Midas Touch ➸ Taekook

- Fifty-fifth -

Taehyung let himself fall against the cold wall of the large warehouse with a long, tired sigh. The prison uniform, a white that had turned rather grey after his escape, still clung feverishly to his skin, and he could still feel the inhibitor collar flashing around his neck. The thing was a horror. Taehyung could feel it blocking his senses a little, but above all it was exerting a real pressure on his cerebral nerves, so much so that ever since that thing had been put around his neck, he'd been plagued by crushing migraines. The pain never really subsided, so all his concentration was spent ignoring it.

Yet he felt strangely well. It was paradoxical. His migraine was pounding away at his head, never giving him the slightest respite, but for the first time in years, he felt as if he were rediscovering new sensations. He'd forgotten what it felt like to exist without that power.

A shadow loomed over him, and he didn't have to wait long before Jungkook came and sat down next to him. The Cajun kept a certain distance, but Taehyung knew it was just a facade. Or so he hoped.

After all, Jungkook had come back for him... hadn't he?

The man turned and placed a steaming cup of soup in front of him. Taehyung looked up at him, with a small smile on his lips.

"Thank you." he said.

He grabbed the cup, and held back a sigh of satisfaction as the warmth spread through his fingers, then his palms. The warehouse was completely disused, so the cold was hard to bear. And after the cruelty of his cell, Taehyung really needed this comfort.

They stayed like that for a while, saying nothing. They had placed themselves a little apart from the rest of the group, at the back of the warehouse, and were content to watch the others without saying a word. Jungkook had finally taken an old pack of cards out of his pocket and was playing frantically with it. And with time and a bit of observation, Taehyung had come to understand that he did this when he was stressed, or at least pensive.

They had a lot to talk about, Taehyung knew that very well. Now that the pressure was off, now that the story of the mutant traffic and Bella was behind them, they could sit down and really talk. But, although this discussion was necessary, there was also something terrifying about it.

Taehyung loved Jungkook with all his heart. He'd loved him from day one, whether he wanted to admit it or not. And he really hoped that the Cajun had been honest with him all this time about his feelings. His heart was too wounded to bear another betrayal. Now he wanted to heal. And he'd finally realised that he couldn't do that without Jungkook. He'd tried for a year and it had failed.

They could do whatever they wanted, tear each other apart, scream at each other and shout that they hated each other, in the end they would always come back to each other. It was something the little X-Man had finally grasped. It had take many wounds for him to understand it, but maybe it was worth it.

Jungkook finally turned his face towards him, inevitably drawing Taehyung's attention to him, but his gaze didn't find his eyes. No, it went down his cheeks, passing briefly over his lips, sliding down his chin and finally coming to rest on his neck. Or more precisely, on the object that adorned it.

"Don't you want to take that off?" asked the Cajun in an obviously worried voice. "Apparently, Logan managed to steal a key from a guard."

He made a move to get up, ready to go and ask for the famous key, but a hand came down on his forearm, preventing him from standing up. Jungkook gave the young man a confused look, to which Taehyung simply replied with an embarrassed smile.

"N-No, not yet..." he murmured. "I want to wait a little longer..."

The Cajun frowned and settled back, clearly reluctantly. He didn't seem to agree at all, and Taehyung knew it wouldn't take him long to show it.