dilute me | v.k [DISCONT.]

3| wink

Jeongguk read over the messages again when he woke up, again after he got dressed and again on the walk to school with Hoseok. It definitely couldn't have been part of his imagination, and that made him so nervous, but still, maybe it was all just a joke.

Surely Kim Taehyung didn't want to say those things to him of all people, right?

They'd never even spoken before, let alone had the opportunity to learn each other's names. Well, Taehyung shouldn't have known his, but everyone knew Taehyung's.

Maybe that was partially the reason why Jeongguk refused to believe that this was anything but a joke because literally, no one acknowledged him in school aside from Hoseok and occasionally Jimin who he wasn't sure if he'd ever see again.

"What's got you looking so shaken, Gguk? Are you still thinking about yesterday? I heard that the other guy got out of the hospital this morning and he's making a swift recovery if that's any consolation." Hoseok said, glancing at his best friend who had been oddly quiet on this particular morning.

"Who told you that?" Jeongguk asked for the sake of conversation itself. He didn't feel like addressing the question he got asked because he didn't want to lie and he also didn't want to tell the truth.

"Sehun," Hoseok said simply, looking back down at his phone as he always did, probably going through snapchat like he actually knew the people personally that he was friends with on that stupid app.

Obviously, Jeongguk didn't really care about who told Hoseok. It was just another name he couldn't put a face to.

But just as he had begun to try and think of a new topic to mutter halfhearted words about, his phone vibrated and he felt his body tense up.

UNKNOWN
i bet you went to sleep thinking

about
what you want me to do
to you, didn't you, baby?

"Ah, who's that?" Hoseok asked with a grin, making Jeongguk jump and incriminatingly pull his phone into his chest so that just maybe the message might 'accidentally' delete itself.

"N-No one... Why— why do you ask?" Jeongguk stammered, pulling himself together by the time the end of his sentence came.

"Because you're literally blushing like a schoolgirl. So let me see." Hoseok chuckled, making an attempt to grab the phone which vibrated once more. By now, Jeongguk didn't even have the heart to check it and instead shoved it into his pocket.

"We're at school. N-No phones at school." Jeongguk said quickly, reciting the school rule that had never once before done anything but make him sadder. For once, he felt blessed to have to go to math with Mr Kim at 8:45 in the morning.

Luckily, Hoseok wasn't in this class and didn't get a chance to call out Jeongguk's weird behaviour because they had to part ways, but Jeongguk knew someone far worse was in his math class.

"Kim Taehyung, please leave Mr Byun alone and take your seat." Jeongguk heard an already exasperated Mr Kim say as he walked into the door and saw Taehyung with his stupid grin on his face as Baekhyun clutched at his shoulder.

"Yessir," Taehyung said in mock respect, going over to his seat just before he locked eyes with Jeongguk who had almost tiptoed inside to arouse as little attention as possible, wanting to die when his attempt to come in without being noticed failed miserably.

Taehyung stopped what he was doing for a second to shoot Jeongguk one more of his iconic deadly winks before sitting down properly and bringing his attention elsewhere.

Jeongguk's heart thrashed against his chest at an alarming rate as he practically collapsed in his chair at the back of the classroom. God, Taehyung just made him so nervous. It was like he was being told to call him daddy all over again whenever he saw him in the corner of his eye during the lesson, and each time he thought about doing so it seemed less weird.

He hated himself for thinking that calling Kim Taehyung daddy would be anything but weird.

He also hated himself for being so bad at math that he was placed in the lowest group with people like Taehyung and Min Yoongi who simply slept all lesson. There was nothing more depressing than thinking that he'd probably make the same grade as someone who didn't even bother opening their eyes.

Meanwhile, Hoseok was in the top set, so he didn't even have anyone to talk to when class really dragged like today. Therefore, he found himself staring at Taehyung instead, simply trying to figure him out.

🌻🌻🌻

Hoseok sat down beside Jeongguk in the cafeteria after a few minutes of waiting and the first thing he brought up was the one thing Jeongguk didn't want to talk about.

"So, who's the one that's making you blush? My money's on a bad boy." Hoseok said, humour lacing his tone and stiffening Jeongguk in his seat as his pupils blew up and shot to stare at him.

"B-bad boy? Hoseok hyung what did you do?" Jeongguk frowned. There was no way that that was a coincidence or even a good guess. Jung Hoseok knew something.

The older boy held his hands beside his head in surrender because Jeongguk didn't look even slightly amused. "The guy I was talking to yesterday, Oh Sehun, he asked for your number. I assumed it was for him and he seemed alright so I—"

"Hoseok!" Jeongguk whisper yelled, both hurt and angry.

Not only was he angry that Hoseok would give out his number to someone who's intentions could be bad, but he was hurt. Hurt because he thought it was Taehyung who had wanted to talk to him.

And no, Jeongguk wasn't in love with him or something, it was just that if anyone from that friendship group was going to try and talk to him, he'd hope it would at least be Taehyung.

"I'm sorry, Ggukie. You know I wouldn't have done it if I thought it'd be upsetting for you, it's just, you were so bored and I knew I was never going to be able to give you thrills because I'm boring just like you. I thought Sehun or whoever he gave your number to would have a better chance."

Sehun.

But he never got caught 'checking him out' like the person messaging Jeongguk said they did. It simply couldn't have been him. Taehyung was the only one who showed any interest at all, right? Although, Jeongguk couldn't really tell you who Sehun was.

"Was that supposed to make me forgive you? You just called me boring." Jeongguk asked, the smallest and weakest smile being projected in some attempt to hide his disappointment and make Hoseok stop feeling so bad; his heart was in the right place.

"I love you, Jeongguk, but you're really boring. You gotta get yourself a bad ass boyfriend to show you how to be a little reckless and dilute the monotonousness of your life." Hoseok said, placing his hand on his best friend's shoulder lovingly.

And to some extent Jeongguk agreed, but why did it have to be that bad boy?

"Wait, I'm sorry. Did you say 'whoever he gave your number to?" Jeongguk asked quickly, remembering the piece of information he'd let slip from the forefront of his mind before.

"Yeah? I mean, he didn't specify who wanted your number. I'm not completely sure if he swings that way." Hoseok said.

And thus, Jeongguk thought that he might be messaging the unknown number first tonight.