LIMIT ° you . kth . jjk [18+]

eleven

[ taehyung ]

"Taehyung! I like you."

"Sorry, I'm not interested in a relationship right now."

Those days felt like centuries ago.

Taehyung didn't understand how this girl whom he had met briefly in a subway station had fallen so deeply in love with him. Sure, he was relatively handsome - not that he was trying to boast (but he had ears and he knew what his peers said about him.) Was it just his appearance that had captivated her?

"Taehyung! I really like you!"

"Sorry, I don't have time for a girlfriend."

She kept trying. Over and over and over. No matter how many times he would turn her down, rejection bounced off her ears leaving only a transient frown that would disappear in seconds. If this were a twelve year old's daydream, maybe he could've come to like her. Maybe her persistence would set her apart from the sea of girls in his school. 'She was different' was something that popped momentarily into his mind, but he just wasn't interested in romance. Besides, the other thought -- 'This is getting annoying.' -- seemed to drown out whatever pity or sympathy he held for her.

"Taehyung! I really really like you."

"Sorry. I don't feel the same way."

His friends laughed at him. They thought it was absolutely hilarious that Taehyung, out of all of them, was the one with an obsessed fangirl. They all thought Seokjin would be the proud winner of that problem, due to his kind behaviour and stunning looks.

Yes, Taehyung was relatively amicable as well, but his low voice and stern gaze usually gave people the idea that he was the tough guy of the group. It was only the other six that knew Taehyung for who he really was.

Perhaps Song Ahreum had caught a glimpse of it as well?

"Taehyung! I really really really like you."

"Sorry."

It was Yoongi that suggested it; antipathy. Do something that will snap her out of her naive infatuation. According to the older boy, it was Taehyung's civility that prevented the engrossed girl from leaving her feelings behind.

Taehyung didn't really understand it. How exactly had he been kind to her? Was it because he apologized each time she confessed? Wasn't that a common courtesy? In any case, maybe his older friend was right. Though he disliked giving in to his own rebellious image, in this instance, he didn't see any other option. She didn't give him another choice.

"Taehyung, give me a chance!"

"Leave me alone."

It didn't work.

And it never worked for all the other times she approached him.

What did he have to do to make her understand? Taehyung didn't do girlfriends or serious relationships. Hedonism pumped freely through cobalt veins and freedom dictated his entire life. Girls came and went without leaving emotional bindings on his conscience and that was the way he liked it.

It was a joke from Jimin that planted an idea inside the male's mind. "I wonder why she likes you so much, you'd be an awful boyfriend." The rest of the boys laughed, agreeing with the young boy's observation. Jimin was right. Taehyung would've been a terrible partner.

Umbrellas wouldn't be shared - he would've forgotten his in the first place. Celebrating monthly anniversaries and birthdays were just a waste of time and money. But, most importantly, his interest in her would've drained faster than Yoongi's happiness in the presence of Seokjin and one of his many god-awful jokes.

Perhaps if he could break Ahreum's delusion, she would finally give up.

"I can handle you, Kim Taehyung."

The reserved teenager never expected her to follow through with his suggestions. He was certain she would quit at the first sign of embarrassment, but she pushed on - biting her fingers and concealing her face as she allowed him to tease her. He didn't get it. Why wouldn't she give up?

He would try again.

But like before, failure greeted his persistence.

It was the kiss in the infirmary that jolted the boy out of his childish mindset and blared alarm bells through his skull. He had kissed her before. Hell, he had kissed many other girls before. They were usually rough, heated and sloppy - he didn't particularly care. But this time, and as much as he hated to say those three stereotypical words - it was different.

Maybe it was the way her delicate fingers intertwined so perfectly with his, or how her lucid hazelnut eyes, inlaid with dark specks, would bore into his, hypnotizing and luring him into her inadvertent enchantment. He weakened his grip and allowed his adamantine walls to fall as he breathed in her ambrosial scent, the saccharine flavour of cherry coating her lips lingering on his tongue as he drew away.

For the first time, he wanted to continue, not for the sake of a challenge, but due to curiosity itself.

It terrified him.

His plans were solely devised to frighten the poor girl into capitulation. Everything he did, he did to shock and distance himself from her. Taehyung should've known better, he supposed. Whenever someone engaged in such licentious activities, it was impossible to truly keep emotions at bay. This was precisely why he preferred to have a bevy of different ladies at his disposal. That way, attachments had no time to form.

But it did - no matter how much he hated to admit it. The chains that linked his willpower to his beliefs shattered that night he brought her to his apartment. His mind that had been clouded by an unknown jealousy choked him when he saw his youngest friend sweetly pressing his lips against Ahreum's elbow. He wanted to push her away, and yet, the painful ache that gnawed at his chest longed for her to stay only by him. If Seokjin hadn't called, who knew how far he would've allowed his burgeoning desires to control him.

He couldn't lose at his own game. His pride refused.

This time, he resolved to end the game once and for all.

"What's this for?" The naive girl asked as she took the small camera in her hands, her gaze lifting up to meet his before it fell once more onto the item. He saw the way her words left her with the slightest hesitation - the slurred lilt of her southern accent slipping in as her frayed nerves struggled to maintain composure. Even her fingers seemed to tremble ever so faintly as she tightened her grasp around the camera.

"It's your third challenge." He said, a sadistic smirk pulling at the corner of his lips as he wrapped his arm around her shoulder, escorting her to the back of the school.

Victory was at his fingertips, but was that what he truly wished for?

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( author's notes ) hey, this is your obligatory taehyung insight chapter! x')