NICOTINE [TaeKook] [COMPLETED]

EPILOGUE

It is a fine day. A fine weather. Fine people. It's like, the sun and the clouds and the winds have agreed to make this day a perfect day for everyone. Today, the world looks so calm and innocent that even the atmosphere and the mood started feeling soft.

Taehyung loves days like this where everyone looks like they are breathing the right air for them, at least the air that they barely deserve. Like, there is nothing more humans can actually ask for. Though the heat that comes from the sun hits his skin he didn't seem to bother that much as the winds peel off the heat the moment they touched his skin.

But this day wasn't so perfect as it looks like. As Taehyung walks slowly down the alley of the brown leaves of the cherry blossom trees as he remembered what has been happening around. It saddens him so much that even the beautiful weather and scenery can't help him. Just like that day when everything started to turn. That day when Jungkook started to just change and started getting tired. That day that triggered the start of Taehyung's realization and awakening from his blind dumbness.

The sound of the hot coffee spilling out of the coffee machine and to the small styrofoam cup, the sound of the chattering people on the hallway, the cries of the kids inside the room next to them, and the sound of the wind rushing inside the white room, passing through the light curtain. The atmosphere inside and out the place is soft. It is light and not heavy in any way. The sun is indeed hot and the outside of the hospital building would be more than tiring to even look at. 

It is hot indeed but the wind that flowed inside the room lessened the burden to both Taehyung and the beautiful man in his hospital pajamas. The man's eyes are in a blank expression. Just simply looking straight ahead of him. He's sitting on the bed with his hands on his lap and his back leaning on the pillow against the headboard of his hospital bed. Like a doll. Pretty but dead.

Taehyung, on the other hand, was sitting beside his bed on a simple chair—holding a book that he has been reading to Jungkook for the past days. He enjoyed it and he assumed that Jungkook loved the book as well for the other had stopped having his dreams whenever Taehyung would read it to him.

Taehyung doesn't know, neither did Jungkook, if how many times did they ran through the book already. But, once more, they are approaching the end of it again. The same lines were muttered by Taehyung with his soulful deep voice.

[Excerpt from The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane by Kate DiCamillo]

The old doll said, "I wonder who will come for me this time. Someone will come. Someone always comes. Who will it be?"

"I don't care if anyone comes for me," said Edward.

"But that's dreadful," said the old doll. "There's no point in going on if you feel that way. No point at all. You must be filled with expectancy. You must be awash in hope. You must wonder who will love you, whom you will love next."

"I am done with being loved," Edward told her. "I'm done with loving. It's too painful." 

At this point in the story, Taehyung would always stop on his tracks, as if trying to help himself to not cry and agree with Edward, the rabbit doll. Indeed, loving is painful but he couldn't help but hold on to it. Because like the old doll, he's still expecting for someone to come and be there for him. And he clearly hoped that that person is Jungkook.

He looked up at Jungkook who remained unbothered and expressionless. He smiled, looked down the book, took a deep breath, and continued.

[Excerpt from The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane by Kate DiCamillo]