Blood In The Water / Mafia / Kim Taehyung

~ 24

Déjà vu - the feeling of having already experienced the present situation. That's what it felt like. Here I was again, wandering if I could ever trust Taehyung, the same words seemingly falling out of my mouth again and again. "How many times are we going to do this?" I ask, with a heavy sigh, "I'm not the one stopping me from trusting you, you are." My voice is soft, mostly from the inability to work up any energy to shout, not that shouting got anywhere with Taehyung.

"I'm not lying to you, please believe me. It was the truth when I said I needed you. It was the truth when I said I wanted to change and it's the truth that Mina means absolutely nothing to me," Taehyung pleads. Jungkook continued to sit watching us in silence with a blank expression on his face. I wandered what he was thinking, whether he thought I was as pathetic as I felt. It was true Taehyung had changed, he'd become nicer, calmer, not just to me but to everyone.

"Fine, I'll believe you, but if I find out any of what you just told me is a lie, I swear on my life I will fucking kill you Taehyung." Taehyung's eyes light up with a kind of childish innocence, something I didn't even know he was possible of. He throws himself at me, encompassing me in a tight embrace. I hug him back awkwardly as he whispers a plain "thank you," into my ear.  When he finally releases me from his arms he exits the room, complaining of the noise Hobi and Jimin were making downstairs.

"Before you say it, I don't want to hear it." I turn to face Jungkook who puts his hands up defensively. I didn't need to hear how stupid I was, I was already telling myself that. "Good luck," Jungkook mumbles, rolling over and tucking himself back into his blanket. I decide to only unpack half of my belongings, not having enough faith in Taehyung to fully commit to unpacking everything at once. A series of knocks ring at my door before Taehyung enters the room. "Do you want to go out tomorrow?" Taehyung asks, awkwardly stood in the doorway, hands in his pockets and his teeth chewing at the inside of his mouth.

"Out?" I raise an eyebrow in suspicion. "I want us to try. No more business meetings or training, I want to it to be just me and you as normal people, well as normal it can get. Sorry, I'm rambling, I mean can I take you out on a date?" Taehyung's eyes are unable to focus on one place as they dance around the room, trying to avoid mine.

"Erm, okay." I scratch my head not being able to truly fathom what was going on. To say I'm a little stunned by the offer would be an understatement. A date? Like a proper date? As embarrassing as it was to admit, I'd never been on a date before. I'd often fantasised about it, the whole cliché candlelight dinner, holding hands and cheerful laughter but all of that didn't fit with Taehyung. He wasn't someone to enjoy extravagant acts of love, or in fact, any display of emotion.

"Meet me downstairs tomorrow at 8," he instructs before leaving without giving me a chance to reply. I wasn't sure whether to be excited or skeptical. Sure, I couldn't understand Taehyung at the best of times but this was so out of character it was like he was a completely different person. He had taken this whole 'changing for the better' to an entire new level.

It was 8pm the next day before I knew it. The sun had set, the moon casting a silvery glow on the landscape outside my window. I'd changed into what I would consider a casual date outfit - jeans and a 'nice' top. Taehyung hadn't given me much to work with but considering he hadn't specifically told me what to wear, I assumed we wouldn't be going anywhere too fancy. As I make my way downstairs I notice Taehyung is already waiting, staring off into the distance in deep thought. Once he hears my footsteps he glances up and shoots me a smile.

"You look beautiful," he says with conviction. I'm not sure how to respond to the compliment, whether to give him a small thank you or pretend I didn't hear him to avoid the awkwardness of the situation. In the end I opt for the first option, a lopsided, toothy grin making its way on to my face. "Are you ready?" He asks, already beginning to shuffle closer to the front door. I nod my head and we leave the house together, clambering into Taehyung's car. We drive out into the city, twinkling lights shining from the shops and restaurants surrounding us and loud shouts from people who'd clearly been drinking.