1945; Love during War

Chapter 2: The Beautiful Man

Taehyung woke up as usual at 6 and took a bath. The warm water poured down his fatigued body, fatigued due to the sleep deprivation. He stayed in the water for about 30 mins and came out in his bathrobe. He moved to the kitchen. There was no doubt he was an amazing cook and even more amazing baker. He was a great learner who had learned a thing or two from his mother. But ever since the day his mother left him hanging, with the promise of returning back, he stopped baking. Whenever he tried, he would get reminded of his memories with his mother which only brought pain and tears, so he stopped, completely. He made some tea and pancakes while reading the paper. The paper noted how the war was coming to an end but only he knew of the impact it had created on the lives of thousands of families.

After the morning chores, he sat by the table near the balcony and his finger trailed on the typewriter. The typewriter his beloved father would use to write amazing stories which Taehyung never got tired of. He was an amazing reader and enjoyed every masterpiece his father wrote. Seeing his father turn his vivid imagination into concrete stories in papers, Taehyung promised himself he would become a writer. But after his family was taken away, his desire to write got locked away and it seemed, he never found the key to it. He had tried a couple of times to write but halfway through the stories, his mind would be occupied with gunshots, bombing and the cries of his parents. Everytime this happened, he would tear down the pages into hundreds of shreds and cry amidst all the pieces. It had become like routine and today was no different.

He walked down the street dressed perfectly in his brown three piece suit, with a huge coat on top, hanging on his shoulders accessorized with his beret and glasses. Though it had been only 5 years that Taehyung had come to this neighbourhood, he had gotten well settled thanks to his paintings. Within 3 years time, he had became a well known artist with his paintings, being sold at amazing prices. But what was even more surprising that it wasn't only his paintings that caught the attention of his customers but rather the painter himself. Both men and women, would get mesmerized by his beauty, his timid and shy nature, his petite body and his french accent. Rich and high status business men and women would come by to his gallery and ask him for dinner, but he would politely decline all of them, leaving them heartbroken.

He opened his gallery, hanged his coat and was settling his work on display. The space was limited so he had to hang the paintings, one above the other. He was on standing on the rusty tool and arranging the paintings. Right in the process, he heard the door open.

"The gallery isn't open yet. I am still setting up". Despite this, he heard footsteps approaching inside. A little annoyed, he turned around the stool swiftly to see who it was. For a second, his breath hitched when he saw a fine man in his 20s standing in front of him. Unlike his rich customers, this man had a plain attire with a simple suit yet his sharp features outshined it all. His dark black curvy hair, his doe brown eyes, his sharp jawline and to top it all, his sweet smile captivated Taehyung for awhile. 

When Taehyung kept staring at him, the other man cleared his throat. Taehyung was broken from the trance and when he was caught staring, he tried to get off the chair a little too quick to hide the embarrassment. His leg twisted and as he was about to hit the floor, the fine man rushed and held him securely in his arms. Taehyung who had his eyes shut, grabbed onto his savior's neck with all force and held him tight. When he realized, he didn't hit the ground, he slowly opened his eyes to see the beautiful man inches away from his face. To his surprise, the man looked even more beautiful from up close. A little tired eyes but as he was smiling, the wrinkled eyes seemed to have casted a spell on the painter's heart. The man had to clear his throat again and Taehyung was caught again, staring at him.He quickly stood on his legs and turned to the man, "My apologies. Sorry for the trouble of having to carry me. Sorry for startling you" Tae kept apologizing with a slight bow. 

"That's completely fine. Plus, encounters like this make life, what do I say hmmmm, more interesting." The man replied back with a pause. Poetic Taehyung thought. They both stared at each other in the comfortable silence. The staring contest was broken when the man took off his hat and bowed, "I am Jungkook. Jeon Jungkook. Nice to meet you."

"Taehyung, Kim Taehyung" Tae added rather quickly than intended. "That's a lovely name you have Taehyung, just like your paintings". The young painter was used to receiving compliments as such now and again, however, today, it felt different. It didn't feel like the other was trying to flirt but seemed very sincere and genuine.

 "And what makes you think I am the painter" Taehyung replied, a little more playfully than intended. He caught himself off guard for the tone he was using with the stranger, more like his savior stranger. 

"Well, for starters, your fingers are still stained with colors." Taehyung quickly looked into his hands and smiled. He was surprised how the young man was so quick into noticing such minor details. 

"Secondly, I know when I see an artist. They have this charm about them, that distinguishes them from the rest of the crowd" Jungkook finished with a sweet smile scanning the already hung paintings. "Your paintings depict so much beautify, such different stories and different sources of inspiration it seems" Jungkook added and looked at Taehyung. Taehyung blushed again. In a such a short span, this was the first time when he was blushing so many times, that too thanks to the same man. 

"You have quite the eyes, don't you? Taehyung asked with a blush tinted face. Before the man could reply, they both heard someone clearing their throat at the door. They both turned to see a man in his 20s, with a questionably different sense of fashion who walked towards Tae.

"Hoseok-ah" Taehyung rushed and indulged the man in a hug. "I missed you so much, how was the trip to London?" Taehyung asked holding the man's hand. "It was amazing Tae, father made me meet like dozens of authors. They all had such amazing pending works. I can't wait to edit their works and publish them". "That's amazing" Tae replied with a huge smile.

"Now what is more amazing is that did I just walk into you flirting with a man? The Kim Taehyung flirting with a man.I have never seen you flirt Tae." As soon as Hoseok mentioned this, Taehyung turned behind, only to find the man was already gone. He rushed outside to see if the man was there, but to his sadness, he was nowhere near to be seen. " He could have at least said a goodbye" Taehyung mumbled, coming back to the gallery.