BEAUTIFUL

013

"are you sure this will work?" taehyung licked his lips nervously. he shifted his weight from one foot to the other, glancing around the courtyard. he was standing beside hoseok, who sat on one of the benches.

hoseok smiled softly. "of course it will," he spoke confidently. "gukkie and i have run this plan over many times and we're positive it'll be perfect."

taehyung hummed, grip tightening on the colourful bouquet he held in his hands. "what time will he be here again?"

hoseok checked his watch, "it's almost three thirty now, which means he'll be out soon. his session ends then, so it won't take him long."

"and jeongguk is bringing him out?"

hoseok nodded, and watched as taehyung took a deep breath. "if this really works, you're my new favourite hyung, hoseok," taehyung said, smiling his signature box smile.

hoseok grinned back and stood from the bench. "well, i better get going. just be you, taehyung-ah. that's who he fell for, right?"

after receiving a thumbs up from the younger, hoseok set off and left taehyung to his own. his "hiding place" was the porch at the rear entrance to the center. here, he had a perfect view of where taehyung stood, and could watch and listen to everything unfold without being seen himself.

he checked his watch again: it was three thirty-five. go time, hoseok thought, and his timing was impeccable when he spotted jeongguk leading their shorter friend up to the gardens. jimin looked confused, and hoseok quietly laughed to himself.

"gukkie? where are we going? why is tae standing there? what's going on?" jimin couldn't stop asking questions, dumbly just allowing the youngest to tug him towards his best friend.

nearing the boy with the bouquet, jeongguk pushed his hyung forward and took off to leave the two alone. jimin stumbled to a stop in front of taehyung, who looked down at him with a nervous smile playing at his lips. his eyes darted down to the flowers clutched in the elder's hands, and looked back up. "taetae? what's going on?"

taehyung licked his lips. "um, jiminie, i have something to tell you."

jimin's heart skipped, "w-what is it?"

taehyung looked up to the clouds, searching for the confidence to say the words he'd been holding in for so long. his palms were sweaty around the stems of the flowers he clutched in his hands, and his heart was hammering in his chest.

"jimin–i really really, i'm, i.." taehyung stumbled, almost ready to give up. why was this so hard? jimin was his best friend, he could tell him anything. so why couldn't he tell him this one little thing?

jimin smiled softly, stepping closer and rubbing taehyung's arm comfortingly, "it's okay, tae. take your time. i'm not going anywhere."

it was those last words that filled taehyung with the confidence he needed. the younger looked his best friend in the eyes and took a final deep breath.

"jiminie, i really like you. i-i think i may be in love with you."

the shorter male couldn't hold in his gasp, shocked at the revelation that the feelings he'd tried to bury were actually returned. tears pooled in his wide eyes as he threw his arms around taehyung, "i love you too, taehyungie."

hoseok and jeongguk squealed as they watched their friends confess to each other.

"t-these are for you," taehyung said, presenting the bouquet to jimin, who couldn't stop smiling and took the flowers gently.

"these are so beautiful, tae. t-thank you. how did you even get these?"

"i talked to dr. namjoon." 

jimin beamed, "that's so sweet!"

the younger rocked on his feet, head ducked to hide his blushing cheeks. when he looked back up at jimin, he noticed just how rosy and plump the boy's lips were. taehyung cleared his throat and looked at his shoes before asking what had been running through his mind for months.

"can... can i kiss you?"

jimin's eye smile got wider, if that was even possible. "of course!" he set the flowers down on the bench beside them and rose up on his tiptoes, throwing his arms around taehyung's neck. the younger wrapped his arms around jimin's waist, pulling him close as he connected their lips.

hoseok coughed, "i feel like this would be a good time to leave them be. come on, guk. let's blow this popsicle stand."

jeongguk shook his head while laughing but followed his hyung anyway. "you are so weird."

✧

that evening, after dinner hoseok and yoongi found themselves comfortably situated on the couch in the lounge. the younger was resting comfortably on yoongi's lap, head buried in the crook of his neck and snoring softly. yoongi was still awake, and although he was tired there was something keeping him from joining hoseok in a peaceful slumber.

his brain hadn't been able to shut itself off recently. despite everything with hoseok, his mind kept telling him that he wasn't enough, he wasn't good enough. yoongi knew those thoughts were right, he knew that hoseok would be better off with someone who wasn't as fucked up as he was, but yoongi didn't want to let the brunette go. he couldn't let him go.

because in the short amount of time hoseok and yoongi had known each other, his entire life had been flipped upside down. not in a negative way–because hoseok made yoongi honestly feel like a puddle of goo when he smiled–but because now yoongi had someone who shone a light upon his darkness. he had someone who made him feel worth it, who made him feel like maybe being alive wasn't so bad, because at least he got to spend it with hoseok.

how the hell could yoongi ever let that go?