wake me up |t.k|

one

The last thing that Taehyung recalls seeing is the image of the picturesque lights on the stage.

After that, there has only ever been darkness.

The darkness is always there. It encompasses him, holds him close, cradles him like a mother holds her child. It does not attempt to let him go, and he has to acknowledge that there is a definite appeal to dwell in the darkness. The darkness is tender, intimate, and secure. If not for the screaming inside his head.

Besides the screeches, he is comfortable, as comfortable as anyone in his position could be. He rests on soft bedding, his head on a cushion, and his arms lounge at his sides. A duvet embraces him from the chest down, keeping him warm. That is all they can do for him, and Taehyung can't ask for more, solely because he is unable to.

Occasionally, they move him to evade pressure marks and spare him the additional pain that he doesn't feel anyway. The notion of him being in discomfort is their greatest concern and has been the cause for quite a few morphine-induced hallucinations. They mean well, of course. But after such illusions, his head had always felt rather odd, and he is glad that the treatment has ended.

The doctors have assured Yoongi, Jimin, and everyone else that at this stage, he is not in distress, and resting peacefully.

For now, all that they can do is to anticipate.

Taehyung wants to wake up but does not know how to.

Seldom, he believes, he naps.

He has dissipated all sense of time, and how much time has progressed since the darkness came he can't tell.

Yoongi comes to him practically every day. His appearance is always succeeded by a very distinctive array of noises. First, Taehyung will hear a door open, a door is slightly scraping the floor and must, therefore, require a repairman.

Next, he will catch the quiet rustling of a coat being taken off and the vibration of a chair being dragged over the floor, only to be planted down nearby his bed. Then, he will hear Yoongi sit down with a sigh and a grumble about the 'bloody traffic'.

And then, he will hear a surprisingly delicate 'good evening, Tae'.

Every time, it breaks Taehyung's heart.

There are other voices, too.

There is the grouchy, yet fairly loving 'hey there, V' by Jimin whenever he comes to visit, he had always had a habit of calling Taehyung his stage name when he was uneasy, or the fragile 'hi, Tae' succeeded by a ruffling of his hair that tells him that Namjoon is there. Hoseok comes, too, always patting his arm. Or his Seokjin, whose footsteps he can hear before he even enters the room. He never speaks much but touches his hand in greeting.

But there is also the voice of a fairy, a voice that lights up Taehyung's darkness whenever he hears it.

The fairy comes to him every single day, and always greets him with, "Good morning, Mr. Kim, how are we doing today?".

The fairy's words are always followed by the rustling of curtains being pulled back. "Look at that weather, Mr. Kim.", the fairy will say before Taehyung can hear the footsteps growing closer, nearing his bed. A hand will touch his face, an especially soft hand whose touch sends the most delightful shivers down his spine, stimulating his paralyzed senses.

"I think it's time to get a haircut, Mr. Kim.", the fairy will say with a giggle. He has a Busan dialect just like Jimin.

"Your friends are coming today, and you certainly want to look decent, right?"

Taehyung is very much in love with the fairy.

The logical side of his brain that is still active knows, of course, that the voice does not belong to a fairy, but a person. A person, whose name is Jeongguk, and who comes every single day to take care of him.

Taehyung knows his name because Jeongguk sometimes does not come alone, but with someone else whose name is Yugyeom, and from what Taehyung can tell, Jeongguk and Yugyeom are friends.

Best friends, even, judging by the way Yugyeom speaks to Jeongguk.

Taehyung has never had a friend like that.

He's had friends but no one has ever been truly close to him.

Dancing has always come first.

Dancing has been what has come last, too. Before the darkness.

But Taehyung doesn't complain, at least not anymore. No matter how hard he screams, the screams will always remain inside his head.

No one else hears them.