The Bet - Masters of Puppetry » Jikook

열여섯

Part Sixteen
"I won't give up on us."
       
       
Ever since Jimin's farewell Jungkook had been in a hopeless state. He could still remember the exact look on the elder's face when he had walked out of the door, and it was killing him.

He deeply regretted how things had turned out, or rather how they had started, and profoundly wished his boyfriend would come back to him again. It was nothing he could've had high hopes for, though, let alone anything he could have expected from Jimin.

"I miss you," Jungkook spoke into the receiver with a hoarse voice.

Even though he was used to shedding tears like a little kid by now, he bit his bottom lip quite harshly in order to refrain from crying. He didn't want the other to hear. Jungkook had been so overwhelmed with emotion these last few days that he didn't know how to do deal with it anymore. He reckoned the only way to cope with the pain was calling Jimin every day and several times.

He had been doing this for exactly four days in a row now. Not once had he got further than voice mail, though. It was pathetic, really, but Jungkook felt as if talking to Jimin, regardless of his presence on the other line, was helping him get over the elder although it probably wasn't.

"I'm incredibly sorry for not having told you earlier. About everything. It was selfish of me to keep such secrets," he explained himself, likely for the hundredth time. "You were just so blue when I met you that I didn't want to do anything that risked upsetting you. You deserve to be happy. Leaving me was probably the wisest decision you could've made."

Jungkook sighed softly.

"But I feel so lost without you. I don't know what I can do to make you forgive me."

He found it hard to cope without seeing Jimin every day. He had gotten so used to it. Maybe he had unwittingly taken him for granted and that's why the other had abandoned him.

The problem wasn't even their not being together anymore. They didn't have to be a couple, he understood why Jimin had broken things off, but he still wished that they could at least be on speaking terms. Jungkook was at a loss with the silence. It seemed as if the elder had been nothing but a product of his imagination.

And it was killing him.

"Please, call me back whenever you're ready. I just want to talk," he whispered while fiddling with the hem of his shirt, his heart in his mouth. "I will wait for you, Hyung. I promise. I won't give up on us."

Just as he was hanging up, Taehyung walked into his apartment with grocery bags in his hands. He immediately spotted the younger's phone, knowing exactly what Jungkook had done, whereupon he sighed compassionately. "Will you stop bombarding him with messages already? That is not going to get you anywhere," the silver-haired made the point that Jungkook exaggerated in his attempt to get his boyfriend back.

"I can't," the younger answered before running his fingers through his brown hair in desperation. "I don't want him to think that I can just forget about him, that I'm fine."

"I'm afraid he won't forget you that quickly, either," Taehyung murmured as he stowed the groceries away.

"I know... I hurt him pretty badly."

Taehyung stopped what he was doing and looked over to the brunet who was sitting on the sofa with a blanket, curled up into a ball like a child. He looked horrible. Jungkook had already been a mess when he had called the barkeeper at four AM a few days ago and had asked him to come over. But as the days went by, it was getting even worse despite Tae's efforts to get him back on his feet. There were dark circles around his eyes due to his lack of sleep and Taehyung could have sworn he had shed weight. It didn't surprise him, though, by the small amount of food he was consuming lately. Jungkook was anything but healthy at the moment.

Heartbreak didn't suit him at all.

"Just give it time," Taehyung said as he sat down next to the other male and caressed the back of his head gently. "You did something bad, yes, but everyone makes mistakes every once in a while. I'm sure Jimin knows you regret having kept that secret from him and sees that you're doing your best to be a better man."

"What if he never forgives me?," Jungkook asked, misty-eyed. "I can't live without him."

Although it was tearing the elder apart to see him this shattered, he couldn't keep the other's hopes up in order to protect him from reality. That's why he told him, albeit grudgingly, "Then you'll have to accept his decision."

Jungkook buried his face in his hands, totally stressed out. "I know. I know I should. It's just hard."

"You'll be okay," Taehyung assured him that things would get better. "Everyone's been through a break up at some point. It's hurting now, but time heals all wounds. Don't worry. And who knows? Maybe he will reach out to you eventually."

"I really hope so."

"I know you do," the silver-haired responded as he gave him another warm smile before standing up and heading to the stove. "But until then we'll have to sharpen your appetite. Come on, let's cook!"

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