Lost • Taekook •

29

35 days adrift

i slowly tread across the deck, marveling at the fact that the storm we had sailed into the other day had blown over.

i guess miracles do exist.

i glance over at the figure slumbering peacefully on the ledge that we had deemed a "bed." a small smile ghosts across my lips. of course miracles exist.

that's why i found you again.

stumbling down into the cabin, i make my way towards one of the trunks i never got to opening. i don't know why. the memories -- i guess they would've been too painful. i hesitantly lift up the lid, not knowing what to expect. and i find taehyung's guitar. a little beat up and definitely worse for wear, but still intact.

i gently lift the instrument out of the trunk with trembling hands. running my fingers over the little nicks in the wood, i choke back a sob. 

with a careful pluck of the string, a weak, slightly out of tune note is produced. it's pathetic. but it resonates throughout my entire body. i bite my lip to try and stop the torrent of memories that are beginning to flood my mind.

i stand up shakily, making my way back up to the deck, guitar in hand. i sit at the top of the ladder, positioning the guitar on my leg. my hands find their place immediately. and without explanation, i begin to pluck a simple tune. 

"that sounds awful," i hear taehyung croak.

i scoff. "didn't feel like tuning."

a bit of silence settles around us as i continue plunking notes and chords. and then i begin to sing.

"well the night does funny things inside a man

these old tom-cat feelings you don't understand,"

my voice comes out raspy and hoarse, barely above a whisper. i've barely sung two lines and my throat already burns. but i continue.

"you light a cigarette

i wish i had the guts to bum one

but we've never met."

my mouth feels as dry as sandpaper. i don't stop.

"and i hope that i don't fall in love with you."

my fingers continue to pluck at the strings and i take a breath for the next verse.

"i wish you'd never met me."

my voice catches in my throat. my fingers hover above the strings, frozen. 

there's a pause before taehyung says, "so you wouldn't be in this mess."

my heart clenches at those words and a familiar stinging in my nose starts to creep up towards my eyes.

the corners of my mouth lift up ever so slightly. "but i wouldn't have us to remember," i say, staring at the dirt under my fingernails and the peeling, cracked skin on my hands. 

a brief memory of what my hands used to look like flashes across my eyes. hands intertwined with the long, slender fingers of another. 

my vision becomes blurry. "i wouldn't trade this for anything."

and for the first time in weeks, a drop of liquid seeps out of my eyes.

a/n: long time no see guys (btw the song jungkook sings is "hope i don't fall in love" by tom waits)