His Buried Past| Taekook

Chapter 15

Sitting on his bed, Jungkook stared at the phone in his hand. He'd locked it away years ago, finding it too painful a reminder of his life before. But he couldn't bear to get rid of the memories either, so it had sat untouched.

After powering the phone on, he opened the photo app, and immediately he was shown happy times from before he'd lost-no, thrown away- his Taehyung. There were pictures of them smiling and holding each other at the beach, and holding hands at the carnival. A picture of the two of them with cake smeared on their faces. The mafia leader smiled a little at the memory. It had been Tae's birthday, and they'd ended up laughing and play-fighting while smashing cake on each other's faces.

There was another picture of them playing a video game together, Jungkook looking focused while Tae grinned his boxy smile. There was also a picture of them sleeping on Jimin's bed. It had been a sleepover with the whole group, and the two had fallen asleep on the bed cuddling together. There were group pictures with the hyungs too, of them all out eating pizza, another of them splashing in the pool, many of them just hanging out and doing nothing.

After flicking through the pictures, he saved them to his current phone, then picked out several to show to Taehyung. Reaching into the lock box, he also pulled out some framed pictures, from when they'd been small. The two small boys, 7 and 5, sitting on the swings, smiling brightly at each other. Another with Jungkook's arms wrapped around the younger boy, when they'd been about 9 and 7.

He couldn't stop his eyes from watering as he ran his fingers over small Tae's face. Growing up, he'd always loved the younger boy. Loving Taehyung was so much a part of his being, it was impossible to imagine a time where he wouldn't love him. They were soulmates, each unable to function without the other.

But after finishing school, Jungkook hadn't been able to avoid facing the problem of how Tae would live with the lifestyle the older had to deal with. How could the gentle boy be happy surrounded by violence? How could the sensitive, carefree Taehyung live surrounded by guards and guns? Jungkook wasn't given a choice; his father would never allow him to walk away from the mafia.

But he loved his boyfriend more than anything, and he thought that so long as Tae was happy somewhere, he could be content. So he'd made the decision to push the boy away, rationalizing to himself that whatever pain Taehyung felt would be temporary and the happiness he could have later would make that pain worth it. Scoffing, the mafia leader ran his hand over his face, mental exhaustion weighing him down. Obviously, his choice had been the worst mistake in his entire life. It was a mistake he and Taehyung were each still paying for.

Remembering the distance and distrust he'd felt from V earlier, Jungkook raked his fingers through his hair. It was going to be difficult, maybe even impossible, to repair the damage he'd caused. The person he'd brought home wasn't the same open, kind, and vulnerable boy he'd known years ago. But he'd meant what he'd said in the car when he'd held Taehyung in his arms; it didn't matter.

It didn't matter how much he'd changed or whether he called himself V or Taehyung; he was still Jungkook's soulmate. The older would love that boy no matter what he'd done, even if his love was never returned again. Strengthening his resolve, he stood and took a deep breath, before heading downstairs to the room he'd placed the younger in.

V's room

The troubled boy was almost asleep when a knock at the door pulled him to wakefulness. Hearing the locks turn, he was unsurprised when Jungkook entered the room, a box in his hands, his eyes running over the younger who was reclined on the pillows. Taking note of the tray and empty dishes on the table, the corner of his lips pulled up in a small smile. "I see Jin's been here."