Broken & Ruined | TAEKOOK

two

Yeojin clutches her stuff toy tighter as her mother, Rihye removes her caring touch from her. Rihye immediately approached her son who's whimpering in fear and pain.

"Oh my God, Taehyung. W-what happened?" Rihye stutters as she scans the little boy's hands and knees, blood oozing out from the wounds and cuts from it. Taehyung is visibly and palpably trembling, closing his eyes while feeling the blood that continuously flows from the cuts on his small hands and elbow.

"M-mom," Taehyung softly muffles. Rihye stood up and looked for something that can help to stop it from bleeding. She hurriedly grabs the piece of cloth from somewhere and immediately wrapped it around Taehyung's hands. 

"I-I'll take you to the hospital— "

"Mom," Taehyung thwarted his mother with his small hands. He does not want to go to the hospital even just for a check-up because aside from being afraid of doctors, he knows that the bill from it is too high for them, they can't afford. He doesn't want his mother to ask random people to lend her money just for him.

Taehyung faintly smiles and heads towards their sink to wash his wounds. He winces as the water from the tap rains his cuts. Tears also pooled his eyes not because his cuts and wounds hurt but because the reality keeps on slamming his consciousness. No minute has been wasted for his reverie, thinking about his dreams. His dreams as a child were nothing. He knows they are nearly impossible. The color from his dull world doesn't exist. The world is too cruel, keeping him away from happiness.

"I'm sorry," A soft voice of his mother echoes his ears as Rihye helps his son to clean his wounds. Rihye can't help herself to tear, seeing her children being hurt. "... I'm really sorry, Tae, son," she cuffs Taehyung's cheeks and trails her thumb among the kid's pale cheeks, wiping his tears away.

"Why are you sorry, mom?" Taehyung asks, ".. you're not at fault," he adds, eyes have the combination of pity and anger. ".. it was dad's. Not yours," he mumbles, killing the water's flow from the tube.

He grabs the dustpan and places it beside the broken pieces he has to clean. "Careful," his mother says, stopping his son from picking up the keeny parts. ".. I'll do it. Sit there with Yeojin. Wait 'til I finish and I'll treat your wounds, Taehyung, okay?" She adds. Taehyung submissively nods his head and watches his mother clean the mess, he and his father have done.

Taehyung notices his mother's reluctant feature. Her pale skin that is smudged with dirt from working outside, her chapped and dry lips, her matted and messy hair—  clutched by the hair clamp and the bruises from her flesh look palpable. A frown of concern has drawn his face, realizing the demon inside their house that unfortunately, his so-call father went too cruel every day and every night. No days or nights had passed that his father, Joonsun is not hurt him and his family. Seeing his mother having a hard time to work for the family's needs pains him and make his heart seize in agony.

"Oppa, you okay?" Yeojin asks. Taehyung averts his gaze from Rihye and shifted to his younger sister whose eyes full of concern, looking not on his eyes but on his wounds leaking blood. Her teddy bear was seized on her grip, feeling petrified at the blood from her brother. Taehyung smiles, creating crescents on his eyes as he manages to avert his sibling's attention from the cuts. Yeojin matches her gaze at her brother's and smiles too.

"Tae's alright. I'm strong and brave!" Taehyung giggles and bops his sister's little nose but instead of a smile, a frown accentuated her face.

"Liar," she glares at her brother, making Taehyung chuckle and messes her hair.

"Yeojin," Rihye calls her daughter in a soft voice, ".. can you please get the betadine and cotton roll for TaeTae?" Rihye flashed a smile at the girl. Yeojin jumps off of the wooden chair and hurriedly goes to their bedroom, leaving her stuff toy.

"Mommy, where?" Yeojin asked out loud, making sure that her mother would hear her voice. Taehyung and Rihye found her really cute, making them giggle. "On the small cabinet, baby!" Rihye shouts back, giggling after her daughter shouts 'okay!'.

"Here, mommy," Yeojin gives the plastic of cotton rolls and betadine on her mother before sitting back next to Taehyung.

"Thank you, dear," Rihye smiles genuinely at her daughter who giggles and hugs her toy. Taehyung messes Yeojin's hair.

Rihye starts cleansing Taehyung's cuts from the palm, elbow, and arm. He grimaced but managed himself to not whimper as the alcohol pours on it. "Does it hurt, oppa?" Yeojin asks and Taehyung just shakes his head in response. Yeojin leans over the wound and blows a wind towards it to at least lessen the pain.

Taehyung creeps a smile on his chapped and dry lips, watching his mother and sister help him to aid his cuts. At least, he still has good reasons to smile and live. The world must be good to give him his good and caring family (excluding his nonsense father).

"You don't deserve this," Rihye spoke up, breaking the silence. Taehyung looks at his mother but Rihye's still focused on treating his wounds. "... my children don't deserve this life," she adds and sighs, "... I'm sorry for letting you live this hell."

Taehyung simply rolls his eyes, not wanting to hear his mom saying sorry because she has nothing to apologize of. Why people who're not at fault were the ones who're asking for forgiveness and those who knew their sins themselves never done it?

"Mom, I know I'm still young and small... but I promise to protect you from that demon," Taehyung utters in gritting teeth. Rihye's lightly surprised as she heard her son calling his father, demon.

"Tae."

"What? He's a demon, isn't he? He's hurting me, Yeojin, and you. Do you still call him your husband? 'Cause mom, I never saw him being a husband to you! Nor being a father to us!" Taehyung almost shout at the rage of his resentment which worries Rihye.

"Tae, he's still your father— don't call him that—"

"I know. He is. And I fucking hated it as fact!" Rihye widened her eyes, realizing that Taehyung just swore. ".. stop fucking protecting him, mom!" Taehyung throws his hand away from his mother and stood up.

"Taehyung, I never taught you to curse!" Rihye says, still managing her voice as calm as she could. She hates the fact that Taehyung at 9 already knows how to say incoherent words.

"Yes, you did not. Why don't you ask your demon husband on how I learned those shits from him?" Taehyung replies in final, stepping out of their door and slamming it close.

Rihye heaves a deep breath, locking her gaze at the door where her son walked out. She never thought that Taehyung could actually do that on her. Teahyung never talked back. Taehyung never cursed. Taehyung never turned his back while talking on her. Nevertheless, Taehyung changed. And it gives her so much anxiety.

"TaeTae said bad words," Yeojin speaks up, making Rihye avert her attention to Yeojin.

She hushes. "Never do what your TaeTae did, okay? It's bad," Yeojin nods.

"TaeTae's bad then?" Rihye didn't answer the kid's question. Instead, she carries personal aids towards its appropriate place.

"He's growing up. Right or wrong, he'll learn things," she sighs and stretches her hand to claim the frame where a lively picture of a real family lives. A smile crept on her lips. ".. I will still take care of you, Taehyung. Until my last breath."

~~~~~

Thanks for reading! Thoughts?
Taekook will happen too soon :)

XOXO, GRAY