It's been over a year since Taehyung left and Jeongguk had learnt to stop letting the thought of him invade his mind. But sometimes the past collides with the present and suddenly Taehyung is in his parlor, asking for a tiger flower tattoo and Jeong...
The wrapping was on again and Jeongguk was repeating the same instructions of aftercare. "Rinse with—"
"Warm water." Taehyung cut him off, "I know I know."
Jeongguk jabbed at the back of his head, laughing quietly when Taehyung let out an ow. "I'm required to say it, so don't start complaining." He said, "On a scale of one to ten how bad does it hurt?"
"A hundred." Taehyung replied exaggeratedly, but his confidence boosted and he polished up with a "I'd feel better if you kissed me again".
Jeongguk looked away. "Taehyungie... I- I wasn't thinking."
Somehow Taehyung's voice had gotten deeper as he tilted his head up towards Jeongguk and reached out to interlace their fingers. "Don't think then..."
Jeongguk thought he might've lost the ability to breathe when Taehyung got to his feet and leaned in closer. One hand clutching onto his shaking fingers, the other brushing against his collarbones before caressing his jaw. He was still shirtless and the prospect made Jeongguk's head spin and heart rate pick up.
Taehyung didn't want to scare him by moving too fast, so he went past his lips and nibbled gently on Jeongguk's earlobe instead. The younger's breathing pattern became irregular, his free hand flying up to clutch at Taehyung's bicep, wanting something to hold onto but avoiding his shoulder, where the skin was still irritated.
The fact that they were at Jeongguk's empty workspace added to the sudden thrill of the moment.
"Are you okay with this?" Taehyung whispered near his ear, voice raspy and sending a chill through the younger. He was decent enough of a human being to understand silence wasn't consent. Kissing isn't something you can do without permission, especially when Taehyung wasn't sure how Jeongguk was feeling right that moment.
Suddenly Jeongguk shoved him away with one powerful move, causing both of them to stumble. Taehyung looked at him with alarmed eyes, seeing the look of horror on his face. Did he cross the line?
All his questions were answered when the bell chimed, signaling someone had entered. Taehyung hurriedly sat back down on the chair and diverted his attention to the door.
Yoongi and Jimin.
"Fuck." Jeongguk cursed under his breath, having forgotten they were having dinner with him.
The pair seemed to be too caught up in a chitchat to notice what had happened between Taehyung and Jeongguk— thank god— but Jimin's eyes narrowed anyway.
"Taehyung?" The blonde said.
"Hi." Taehyung answered awkwardly.
"He just finished with his tattoo." Jeongguk chirped, desperately trying to force the elephant out of the room.
"Great job." Yoongi placed the takeout down at the desk in the corner, oblivious as hell, and went to check the bandage around Taehyung's shoulder. He nudged Jeongguk. "I'm proud of ya."
Jimin shot Jeongguk a look of concern. Jeongguk waved him off. Taehyung put his shirt back on and went to pay, wanting to make eye contact with the younger but too scared that Jimin would retaliate.
His body was in panic mode, too in shock to think straight. As the seconds went by he realized this was possibly the last time he'd see Jeongguk. Jeongguk never actually mentioned anything about meeting up again or staying in touch. It would be like walking out all over again and the idea made Taehyung sick to his stomach. He felt trapped. There was no way in hell he could walk over to Jeongguk now and ask him about it when he's just supposed to be an everyday customer. And feeling Jimin's intense stare on his back wasn't helping.
"Taehyung."
The older turned in Jeongguk's direction. He was holding out his jacket.
"You almost left it."
Taehyung reached out to take it, trying to prolong each second to somehow communicate with Jeongguk. But what used to be easy to read was suddenly nothingness. There was no emotion Taehyung could identify in Jeongguk's eyes.
"Thanks for coming." The younger said blankly. Then he headed elsewhere, not sparing him another glance.
Taehyung didn't know what to think when he walked himself out of the shop. It was pretty late, and he felt like he'd made an idiot out of himself.
What happens now? Did he read all the signs wrong? Is this where he stopped pursuing Jeongguk?
The thought was unwelcome and Taehyung felt the sudden coldness sweep through his body, stuffing his large hands into his jacket when—
He felt something.
Taehyung pulled out the paper slip from his pocket. There was a phone number scribbled in haste and an indicator of who it was from.
your human pillow :)
Taehyung almost cried.
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