Taehyung woke up slowly, groaning as pain shot up the sides of his arms. They were tightly bandaged, his oxygen tube hooked up again.
He smiled, his boxy grin appearing. "Mommy loves me so much. I just know she does."
He climbed out of his warm duvet, yawning and pulling his oxygen tank with him to his mother's room. He knocked twice, bouncing on the balls of his feet.
After a few moments, his mother appeared, her long dark hair looking greasier than usual. There was a cigarette hanging from her pale lips and purple rings beneath her eyes. Taehyung peeked over her shoulder, noticing the silhouette of a large man sleeping in her bed.
She caught his gaze, grabbing his chin roughly. "Where are you looking, little one? Do you want to be locked up again?" She spoke curtly.
Taehyung swiftly shook his head, flashbacks of being locked in the basement for 3 days with no food or a bathroom sending shivers down his spine.
His mother closed the door harshly, boring holes into his eyes with her grey-green ones. "Well, what is it?"
He smiled his boxy grin at her. "Can I take Tannie out today? It's been two weeks and 3 days! I counted!" His voice practically oozed excitement and his mother's expression softened.
"Since you've been such a good boy, I'll let you take him to the playground for 1 hour. If you are even a minute late, its in the basement for a whole day. Got it? And change your cardigan. I don't want people to see you like that." Her voice was stern, but Taehyung understood her perfectly.
"Okay, mommy! I love you! Thank you!" He rushed back to his room, tearing off his yellow cardigan and replacing it with a dark blue sweater. He slipped on a pair of matching blue high-tops and rushed downstairs.
He took Yeontan out of his tiny cage, clipping the red leash on his neck. "Are you ready to go to the playground Tan-Tan?" Yeontan barked happily, and Taehyung waited for his mom to come downstairs and open the padlock.
She came down a few minutes later, her hair brushed and her face coated with makeup.
"I'm going to be going out, but you still have to be back in an hour. The camera will catch you if you're late, okay?" Taehyung nodded happily, oblivious to the conditions he was under.
His mother opened the front door and Taehyung wrapped Yeontan's leash around his hand. She quickly undid the padlock, and Taehyung rushed past her to the nearby park.
It was a secluded park, swingsets and slides and everything else you'd see in a park enclosed by a large white fence. Taehyung unclipped Tan's leash, letting the little brown-and-black furball run around, yipping at butterflies.
He sat on a swing, remembering that he couldn't go very high due to the burden of his oxygen tank. He swung himself lightly, swinging his bruised legs, staring at the little bandaids scattered on his knees and thighs.
Suddenly, there was a figure standing in front of him, a cigarette between his pearly bunny-like teeth, staring longingly at Taehyung.
Taehyung immediately stopped swinging, admiring the boy before him. He didn't look much older than himself, but he was clearly more mature. There was a cigarette hanging loosely between his teeth, his black hair sticking to his forehead in wet tufts.
There was a cute little mole underneath of his pink lips, and Taehyung found himself desiring to touch it with his fingertips. He locked eyes with the stranger, flashing a boxy grin. The boy before him blushed, sitting on the swing beside him.
"I've never seen you here before. 'N I come here often. Who're you? I'm Jeongguk. Er..Jeon Jeongguk. I live in that blue house over there." The stranger, Jeongguk, had a voice like pure gold. It was sweet and boyish and made Taehyung feel so comfortable.
"I'm Kim Taehyung! I live down there-" he points behind them, "in that white house with the chain! My dog Tannie is running around over there." Jeongguk spotted the tiny ball of fur chasing a moth, barking obnoxiously.
While Taehyung was distracted with looking for Yeontan, Jeongguk got the chance to properly gawk at him. He drank in the visualization of Taehyung's blonde curls and his honeyed skin. His outfit was simply lovely, even with the numerous bandages.
He also noticed the oxygen tank, covered in Rilakkuma stickers and drawings of a pink bunny with an exceptionally strong eyebrow.
Jeongguk tapped Taehyung's shoulder, pointing to the rabbit character. "Who's that? It looks like me in 5th grade."
Taehyung giggled. "His name is Cooky! An' he does sorta look like you!" Jeongguk thought his heart was becoming a puddle of mush hearing Taehyung speak.
His aura was ridiculously bubbly and angelic, almost like a newborn deer.
"Can I have your number?" Jeongguk blushed, picking at a few loose strings on the hem of his tan sweater and the holes in his acid-washed jeans.
Taehyung pouted a bit, staring into Jeongguk's starry chocolate eyes. "'M sorry. Mommy won't let me have a phone. She says the internet is dangerous."
Jeongguk cooed at the word 'mommy', but sighed that he couldn't contact Taehyung personally. He pet his hair, standing up and smushing his cigarette butt underneath his black timberland.
"Gotta run. I'll visit you, cutie Kim. See you 'round." Jeongguk rushed over, hopping on his bike and pedaling off.
Taehyung felt his face grow hot- cutie Kim? What a cheeseball!
He giggled again, running over to Yeontan and scooping him up, rubbing his face against his neck. He wrapped the leash around his waist, traveling back to his house. His mom's car was still gone, but he slipped inside anyways.
He put Yeontan back in his cage, shutting the latch and thumping upstairs to his room. He locked his door, stripping his overalls off and leaving just his sweater on. He pulled out his journal, marking the date and writing page after page about his encounter with the gorgeous stranger.
One page simply had the words "Jungkookie" written over and over. He smiled his boxy smile again, shoving the journal underneath his mattress as usual and staring at the glow-in-the-dark stars and moons stuck to his ceiling.
It was only around 4:30 pm, but Taehyung felt tired. He cuddled up with pillow, wrapping his small arms around it and letting unconsciousness overtake him.
Meanwhile, Jeongguk was in an absolute crisis. That boy he met was so incredibly adorable, it didn't even seem like he was real. For the rest of his day, into his shift at work and even when cooking and showering, all he could think of was Taehyung.
taehyung, taehyung, taehyung.
