remedy | vsoo

04 | p r o m i s e

Jisoo ran her fingers over the bindings of the books as she walked down the rows of shelves, the smell of old novels calming down her nerves from her busy day.

They were all arranged in alphabetical order, aligned back-to-back where the insides could not be judged by their covers. Something Jisoo wished people ought to take into consideration.

Taehyung had clumsily asked to meet with her at a small library down the street after their schedules were finished. It was quite a surprise to have been greeted with a Do you like books? rather than a How are you? after not having seen him in a couple of months.

Still, Jisoo thought his eccentric advances at friendship were cute, the thought of their conversation sending a giggle to reverberate throughout the library walls.

"What are you laughing at?"

Jisoo jolted at the sound of a deep voice behind her and swiveled around, a hand plastered over her chest to calm her beating heart. Taehyung clutched his stomach, his laughter echoing as Jisoo glared knives into his presence.

"Why would you scare me like that?" she squinted her eyes at him, scowling as she let out a huff of disbelief.

"That's what you get for laughing at me in the monitor," Taehyung retorted, straightening his posture and shamelessly flashing a triumphant grin.

Jisoo sighed, sending another threatening look his way, "You almost gave me a heart attack,"

"Okay! Okay! I'm sorry!" he raised his arms up in surrender, but the laughter that was still bubbling from his chest said otherwise.

Jisoo rolled her eyes, but couldn't stop her amused smile this time, his endearing grin intensifying the butterflies she suddenly felt in her stomach.

She resumed her quest for a book to read, quietly singing a tune that had been stuck inside her head to distract herself from the unfamiliar feeling.

Taehyung trailed behind her small frame as his observant eyes flickered from the books to her roaming ones, recognizing the melancholic tempo and reveling in her soothing, husky tone.

"Spring Day?"

"Hm?" she stopped again, about to turn around to look at him before snapping her head back forward, mouth hanging open in realization, "Oh, I mean—I was just—I really like your guys' new song and I—yeah..."

Jisoo squeezed her eyes shut, embarrassed by her fumbling words and continued her careful steps. She was glad that she wasn't facing Taehyung knowing that she was probably red as can be.

An undefinable silence followed as they continued through the library. Although it was fairly small, the plethora of books formed an endless maze of works ranging from thrillers to philosophy. And here in this maze Taehyung was stuck wondering if he should thank her for listening to their music or apologizing once more for startling her.

"So..." he cleared his throat, deciding on clearing the air and changing the subject completely, "The interview earlier... What happened with you and Yoongi-hyung?"

"He was just apologizing to me," Jisoo explained, thumbing through several fantasy books, "He accidentally hit my thigh earlier, but I told him it was no big deal,"

"Ohh, okay," Taehyung nodded in understanding, sheepishly scratching the back of his head, "I thought you two were dating or something,"

Taehyung was embarrassed for his misunderstanding. He thought it had been something more serious since Yoongi had refused to tell him anything.

A little part of Taehyung had been disappointed when he saw the two together. He knew he shouldn't have jumped to conclusions, but the way Jisoo smiled at Yoongi made him wonder how anyone wouldn't be smitten by her.

"Me and Suga-sunbaenim? " she questioned, a bit surprised, "We're nothing like that,"

She looked over her shoulder to make eye contact with Taehyung. His eyes were already on her, and he quickly shifted them to a lamp in the opposite direction, hoping she hadn't noticed his staring, "Speaking of earlier, why did you call me out here?"

Taehyung cleared his throat again and shifted between his feet, suddenly more aware of her eyes on him.

"You said you liked books..."

"Mhm..."

"So..."

"So?"

"I brought you to a library,"

Jisoo stopped in her steps and fully turned around. She gave him a face that said Really? as Taehyung gave her a goofy grin.

"I figured you might like it here. It's one of my favorite places to destress when I'm back in Korea, so, I thought, why not help a friend out?"

She smiled at his words, a warm feeling settling in her chest.

"Thanks for thinking of me. I love it. I'm definitely coming back,"

Taehyung nodded in satisfaction, relieved that she liked it just as much as he did.

"I've read almost every book in here," Taehyung mused, "Namjoon-hyung comes here every now and then, but usually, I'm the only one here,"

"A bookworm, I see. I'm the same,"

Jisoo's eyes climbed the titles in a particular stack before they stopped at the one on top of the pile.

"The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas," Jisoo read aloud.

"That's a good one. Sad, but it makes you realize some things," Taehyung said, "I think you'd enjoy it,"

Jisoo's fingertips brushed the edges of the binding as she tried to reach for it on her tip toes, but Taehyung noticed the way the stack of books began to sway.

"Watch out—"

He quickly grabbed her wrist, pulling Jisoo to his chest and covering her head as the books began to topple over them. They fell with their pages fluttering open like an avalanche of butterflies before landing haphazardly around Jisoo and Taehyung.

"Are you okay?" Jisoo said, her words muffled against Taehyung's chest. He realized how tight he had been holding onto her and finally let go, quickly bending down to gather up the books.

"I'm good," Taehyung coughed, looking down at the books to avoid looking up at her, "These shouldn't be stacked so high. Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," she chuckled in amusement, joining him to re-stack the books in separate piles, "Funny how I always find myself almost getting hurt, but you're always there with me,"

"That's unfortunate. Maybe you're bad luck," Taehyung joked, earning a shove to his side from Jisoo, "But I can promise you, I won't be someone who will hurt you,"

Jisoo continued to collect the rest of the fallen books, quietly taking in his genuine words. She playfully smacked him on the shoulder with a hardcover book, Taehyung protesting at her attack, and tried to ignore the feeling of her heart beating just a little bit faster.

  
I'll hold you to that.