What May Change [Min Yoongi FF]

Bonus chap 2: Taehyung and Soomin

The first time I met Taehyung was when we were about eight. Our dad's had both gone outside and were stumbling around in the street, and they got into a fight. My mom didn't give a shit, but I went out to see what happened.

Unimpressed by the antics of drunken middle aged men, I sat down on the front step and waited for my dad to give up and come back. That's when I turned to my side and saw the kid next door, sitting on his front step watching the other man. He made eye contact with me, and we both just sort of frowned at each other. 

When our dad's actually did come back inside, he waved goodbye before going back in. 

After many occasions like this one, we started talking to each other. Every time our dads would get wasted and be annoying we'd sit out there and chat, since being in the house was too dangerous or there was nothing else to do while they ran around. We didn't know each other at school, but we became friends like that. We looked after each other. 

When the violence against Taehyung only continued to get worse as the years wore on, I started hiding him from his dad. We had a secret place we would go if we could get out before the beating started. 

Then, when we were fifteen, Taehyung's dad disappeared in the middle of the night, and he moved in with Jin and Yoongi. His house was empty from then on, and it fell into disrepair. I thought I wasn't going to see Taehyung anymore, and it made me sad, especially since I had nowhere to go now when my dad was acting up. 

Then one day, I escaped the house during one of his rampages. I walked next door to the decaying house Taehyung used to live in, thinking maybe I could hide there. To my surprise, Taehyung was there. He was vandalizing all the walls with spray paint, and when I asked him what he was doing there, he smiled at me and said, "I'm making my childhood more beautiful. I'm covering the bad spots." 

It became a habit to meet there. He came back a lot, and now it was my safe haven. We would paint whenever something cool happened, paint when we got hurt, paint when we were bored or lonely. Then we would sit up for hours and talk. 

Tonight my dad was really throwing a fit. I only worked three days a week, and this wasn't one of them. Since I couldn't afford a cell phone plan, I had a crappy old go-phone which Taehyung always insisted I message him on if I wanted to see him. I considered it, but I didn't want to bother him. 

Still, I wandered over to his house and plopped down in the empty living room that only had three walls. Sadly, he wasn't there, but there was still some paint from last time, and I commenced doodling crappily on the floor. 

A few minutes later a cough caught my attention. I turned to see Taehyung, smiling down on me and tossing me a bag full of new supplies.

"You can't possibly afford all of this legally." I accused.

"Of course not." He shrugged.

"What're you doin here?" I asked. 

"Well, it's Wednesday, so your dad's probably drunk." I laughed. 

"He's always drunk," I corrected. 

"Exactly. Plus, you don't work tonight, so I knew you'd be around to deal with it. Speaking of," He added, bending close to my face. "Why is your lip like that? And how come your hair is all tangled?" 

I looked away.

"It's fine, I just got pushed around a bit earlier." He brushed the hair out of my face to see better.

"I told you to call if he ever hurts you. If he tries to lay a hand on you again I'll stop him," He insisted. 

"I know you will." 

He ruffled my hair and then attempted to right it somewhat. 

"So what are you drawing?" He questioned.

"A fat man with a big bottle and bad attitude. He doesn't know it, but there's an angry dog behind him. It's very tired of his shit." I explained. He snickered. 

"Actually," He said, pulling out a paint can of his own, "There are two dogs, and one of them has lots of experience with big fat men like him. He already knows this dog too, because one time it told him if he ever laid a hand on the first dog like that again, he would be dog food. He probably forgot because he was drunk, this dog might have to remind him." 

I shoved him. 

"It's too cold for you to be outside like this for hours. You should come to my house." He suggested. 

"It'll be okay soon, I brought a blanket and he'll probably pass out soon." He scooted over to the blanket and picked it up. 

"Tell the truth, are you tired?"

I nodded. He beckoned me over to the wall and sat up against it. I joined him and he draped the blanket over the two of us, wrapping his arm around me. 

"Sleep then." He told me. 

I laid my head on his chest and closed my eyes. He was warm and safe. 

"I'll wake you up when he settles down." He promised. "Sleep well, Soominnie."