We'll be fine

Time couldn't pass fast enough for Taehyung as he was nervously pacing around the practice room. The handsome young man was irritating the hell out of his group members, but they understandably said nothing knowing the reason behind his anxiousness. Namely, today was the day Ava was finally returning from her tour. Taehyung had been on edge for the last few days and considering all the shit that's been happening they were more than happy to have her back home. Just a few more hours and they'd be together again. Maybe then they'd finally have some peace.

Taehyung's tenseness was interrupted by his phone playing an oh-so-familiar tune which he did not expect so soon. He dashed for his phone which showed a picture of his beautiful wife with a cream-covered nose. It was his favorite as it was taken on their wedding day. The memory of that day caused him to grin from ear to ear. He couldn't wait to finally see Ava again, to feel her close and kiss her soft, tender lips. Maybe he was lucky and she arrived earlier.

"Hey babe! Your plane land already?" Instantly he could hear the sound of thousands of people mixed together with the roaming chaos of the busy airport. Taehyung didn't know why, but something felt off.

"Actually Tae, I'm still here." That's when he realized it - nobody was speaking Korean. Aside from that Ava herself sounded uneasy, which made his brows furrow in concern.

"You're still in China? Why, what happened?"

"They're not letting us out of the country." Taehyung's breathing instantly froze with his heart flatlining for a good second.

"What?!?! Wh-"

"It's because of the virus. It's gotten worse." Although Ava's voice sounded calm, her insides were twirling to the point of making her nauseous.

"Shit." he ran his hand through his hair, pressing his lips in a thin line. Trying to process the news he licked his lips which were suddenly very dry. "Did they tell you when they'll let you back?"

"No. The situation is pretty serious. More and more flights are being canceled, and there were even speculations of a complete shutdown of travels in and out of the country." she tried to steady her breathing as her anxiety was rising by the second.

"We could be stuck here for a while." she swallowed hard at the thought of being stranded here, away from him. She felt helpless and exhausted and the last couple of hours were now hitting her hard. Her desperate need for having him close was just adding explosives to the pressure. "Tae, I'm scared."

Taehyung knew Ava long enough to know perfectly well that she rarely expressed her uneasiness, but when she did it meant she was at her limits. He could now clearly hear the tense rumbling noises in the background; evidence of the extreme situation his wife was in - people nervously wandering about like lost souls anxiously waiting to be saved; the sound of luggage being roughly pulled around, the crowd so thick they were bumping into one another; people arguing and screaming demanding passage to their rightful homes, longing for their families and loved ones. The anxiety, fear, and frustration consuming the crowd by every passing second were so intense he could feel it through the phone.

His heart ached at the image of his loved one standing in the middle of the chaos, trying her hardest to keep it together and not let herself be consumed by it all. He wanted to run to her, wrap his arms around her small frame, shielding her and reassuring that he was there for her.

But he couldn't. He was nowhere near her and it was driving him insane. His breathing accelerated and his palms were getting sweaty as he had a hard time controlling himself not to lose it. But she needed him now and he needed to be strong for both of them, so he forced himself to stay calm and breathe.