3000 Stars

Epilogue

One Year and Three Months Later

Taehyung sat outside the arena, waiting for Yoongi. Just like he'd promised. In his hands were two ice cream cones, slowly melting. He wanted to laugh at himself, but he was nervous.

He and Yoongi hadn't spent the whole time apart. In fact, they had grown closer. They had moved from awkward to friends to... something deeper. Deep enough that Yoongi had slept over for a whole month before he hit number one and had to spend his free time defending his title and going out for food with all the fighters they met.

Taehyung still remembered the first time Yoongi woke him up while he was having a nightmare, staying away from him only long enough to make sure he was awake before wrapping him in his arms and burying his face in his neck. Falling for Yoongi had happened slowly, in moments like this, so he couldn't separate the time he hadn't loved Yoongi from the time he had.

He just... did.

Yoongi wasn't perfect. Neither was Taehyung. But they knew when to back off, and that had held their friendship together.

Now Taehyung was wondering if he was ready to move forward, or if Yoongi even remembered their promise.

Yoongi finally burst out of the entrance, panting and wide eyed, a huge grin on his face. "I did it!" he yelled as soon as he saw Taehyung, punching a fist in the air. Taehyung matched his grin, waving the dripping remains of their ice cream and laughing.

"Took you long enough," he teased.

"That kid is really good!" Yoongi protested. "He'll take my spot next week, just you watch. It's so fxcking hard to hold that title."

Taehyung laughed. "Take your ice cream."

Yoongi nodded, reaching out and relieving Taehyung of one of the cones. "Did you bring napkins?" he asked.

"No," Taehyung said. "I had a little more faith in you than that."

"Hey!"

Taehyung laughed, licking the ice cream off of his hand and shaking his head at Yoongi. "We're losing our touch."

"Stop talking like that," Yoongi grumbled, bumping him with his shoulder. "We're not old yet."

"I beg to differ. I feel ancient."

Yoongi just laughed, sucking the ice cream into his mouth and licking his lips. "Thanks for getting this," he said, "Want to go sit down?"

"Thank you," Taehyung groaned. "My legs are dying."

Yoongi shook his head, gesturing to a bench on the other side of the road. They crossed it and sat down, leaning against each other quietly and enjoying their ice cream for a few minutes.

Taehyung liked moments like this best. Moments when he and Yoongi could just exist together, not invading each others' space, not worrying about what the other was thinking. Just being together. He leaned back and looked up at the sky, finishing off his ice cream cone, and let out a long breath, smiling and closing his eyes.

"You did it."

"Yeah," Yoongi said. "I did it."

They sat in silence for a little while longer, just enjoying the day. Taehyung eventually sat back up, watching the traffic move back and forth along the street. A bird flew down and hopped around at their feet, pecking at crumbs from some other pedestrian. It was warm, almost hot. Taehyung kicked a foot back and forth and startled the bird, which flew away, coasting across the street toward the door of the fight club.

The mood was relaxed, almost sleepy.

"Taehyung?" Yoongi asked.

"Yeah?"

"Have you... been thinking about it?"

"About what?"

Yoongi was silent. Taehyung turned toward him, bringing one leg up so he could face him. Yoongi was staring at the last part of his ice cream cone, looking troubled. Taehyung rested his head on the bench, tilting it so he could get a better look.

"About... dating," Yoongi said softly.

"Yeah," Taehyung said. "I've been thinking about it."

Yoongi turned, meeting Taehyung's eyes. They stayed that way for a little while, watching each other silently. Yoongi took a deep breath, held it, and looked down at his hands, then out at the street.

Then his eyes returned to Taehyung's.

"Are you... still not ready?"

"I'm more ready than I was before," Taehyung said, smiling. "Are you?"

Yoongi turned pink at the ears, looking away again and covering his mouth with his hand. Taehyung smiled. He wished he could have met this side of Yoongi sooner. Yoongi, stubborn, sweet, soft, respectful Yoongi, was absolutely amazing.

Taehyung tried not to think about the time he had wasted trying to run away from him. It was so much better to be here, basking in the sunlight and watching Yoongi figure out how to phrase whatever was on his mind.

"Taehyung?" Yoongi asked.

Taehyung blinked, shaking himself and sitting up. "Yeah?"

"Will you go out with me?"

"Sure," Taehyung said.

Yoongi let out a long breath, eyes widening. "Really?"

"Yoongi, do I look like a liar to you?" Taehyung asked, laughing. "I've had more than a year to think about it. You're an amazing person. Of course I'll go out with you."

The pink spread from Yoongi's ears to his face, and he opened and closed his mouth like a fish, eyes still wide. "Then-- I-- Can I--" he took a deep breath, cursing. "Can I hold your hand?"

Taehyung blinked, surprised, then reached out, twining their hands together. "Course you can," he said.

Yoongi stared at their hands, then cursed again, resting his free arm on the back of the bench and burying his face in it. Taehyung leaned over, watching him, and saw his shoulders beginning to shake.

"Are you crying?" he asked.

"Don't look!" Yoongi yelped, turning around. His grip on Taehyung's hand tightened.

Taehyung laughed. "I love you, Yoongi," he said.

"I love you," Yoongi mumbled back, face going from pink to red.

Taehyung squeezed his hand. "You wanna let me look you in the eyes again?"

"That's embarrassing," Yoongi mumbled.

"Oh fxck that," Taehyung said, jumping over the back of the bench and walking around so Yoongi was forced to face him. "You've seen me cry plenty of times! C'mon!"

"This is different," Yoongi protested, but he looked up, and their eyes met. Taehyung smiled and kissed Yoongi's hand, then leaned in so their foreheads met, letting out a long breath.

"Thanks for waiting for me," he said.

"Always," Yoongi mumbled.

And they stayed like that for a long, long time.