𝐁𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐧 (𝑇𝑎𝑒𝑔𝑔𝑢𝑘) ✓

♦THIRTY-FIVE♦

"Can we go home now?"

"Almost, I just have to get one more thing-"

It was a Saturday afternoon, almost evening, and Hoseok and Jimin were out shopping together. Hoseok was getting some things for his mother while Jimin had tagged along because he had nothing better to do with his day.

The two haven't said a word to each other about their almost-kiss.

They both acted as if it never even happened. Jimin still thought about it though, he thought about it a lot more than he should. 

They treated each other normally, no awkward tension was between them and nothing romantic was either. Everything was just normal.

Jimin didn't like it.

He wanted to be more than a friend to Hoseok. He had been unsure of his feelings at first, but once Hoseok's lips almost touched his he was more than sure of it. He liked him, he really and truly liked him.

But, Jimin didn't dare to confront the older about it. To be honest, Jimin was scared. He didn't want what they already had to change, and he wondered if maybe, Hoseok didn't even like him. Maybe it was one-sided, again.

How could it be, though? Hoseok had seemed so genuine, so real.

How could he fake that?

"Holy fuck," Hoseok said, freezing his in place. Jimin had been so deep in thought that it took him a moment to notice his friend's distraught face, and once he did he panicked.

"What? What's wrong?" Jimin asked, but once he followed his gaze he saw what he was looking at.

Or, more like who.

Taehyung was walking in their direction, and Jimin knew what Hoseok was thinking.

"No," Jimin said, "no Hobi we are not going-"

"-Come on, we gotta" Hoseok replied, "it's now or never, right?"

"We're meddling!" Jimin exclaimed. He knew Jeongguk had lost all hope of him and Taehyung having a future together, but Hoseok was so keen on helping them work things out that Jimin was afraid it came to the point of meddling.

"Kinda...maybe" Hoseok murmured "let's think of it as helping him! We know Jeongguk doesn't have the guts to do this himself. He'll thank us later."

"But-" before Jimin could even finish his sentence Hoseok was running towards Taehyung, calling out his name. Jimin huffed out a sigh and ran after him.

Taehyung looked up at the sound of his name, but the last thing he expected to see was Jimin and Hoseok. The older frowned as Hoseok tried to catch his breath, getting a few stares from strangers.

"Hoseok? Jimin?" Taehyung asked, "what are you two doing here?"

"Just doing some shopping," Hoseok said once he had caught his breath. "It's been a while."

"Yeah, it has" Taehyung replied, softly. 

Hoseok noticed that Taehyung hadn't changed very much, physically at least. He was holding a  big bag in one hand and his phone in the other, and Hoseok also noticed that he had a ring on - which was what he assumed kept him safe from the sunlight.

Though Hoseok nor Jimin knew it, Taehyung's found a new hobby. These past few months, he's found himself devouring the pages of many novels. Taehyung used to be a big reader when he was human, and it sometimes came back and disappeared throughout the years. Recently, Taehyung's gotten back into it. Reading seemed to calm him, and it also helped him forget about the troubles on his mind.