inseperable; jaeyong

nine

- present -

the past few days after that...were difficult. taeyong wasn't at peace, he couldn't after the other night. everything seemed way too real, even for his slight drunk self to handle.

he was so real.

'mr. lee?'

taeyong immediately shook his thoughts off, staring at the staff in front of him, attentively listening to what he had to say.

'we're ready when you are.' the staff smiled, motioning taeyong to his assigned spot.

as a job, taeyong was a well known model in the industry, although he didn't update much on any of his social media, making him underrated and lack self-promotion. but that's exactly how he liked it.

'beautiful! so very beautiful!' the photographer spoke excitedly, continuing to take shots of the male.

taeyong was a natural, unsurprisingly. he would turn heads for his
looks on the street. he was ethereally beautiful and it was impossible not to think that, despite your gender and sexuality.

and although taeyong didn't exactly care about attention, he enjoyed and was deeply involved in modelling, succeeding at every photo shoot he did. not everybody could do it, and he just had the gift.

'that's a wrap!' the photographer smiled brightly, scanning through the pictures with satisfaction in his eyes. 'you seriously need to do more shoots. you're unreal.'

'ah, thank you.' he chuckled shyly, the stylists removing the designer clothes off of him. 'thank you for everyone's hard work.'

taeyong was always pleased once he finished each shoot. but the best part about it was the ending of it. he would always thank the staff before heading out of the building and making his way down the street as if nothing had happened.

his first destination was the coffee shop, although coffee was not his usual decision. instead, he waddled out satisfied with his ice cream cone melting in his hand.

days like these, after finishing hours of work, were what filled him up with contentment. all he needed was the warmth of the summer sun, giving him a blanket of comfort over him as he strolled down to the bus stop.

taeyong didn't mind public transport. in fact, he took the time on the bus to reflect, analyse the world passing by, or organise his thoughts. he took it as therapeutic, a way for him to feel at peace, despite the noise of children, or the running engine. his usual bus was never crowded, so it only made it a little bit better.

but as he gazed outside, watching the clouds form various organic shapes, he didn't notice the person that had sat next to him. that was until he felt their presence.

and he regretted switching his gaze to the person, because the butterflies came roaring back along with his terror. and his vision was yet again betraying him.

'taeyong.'

he felt nauseous, unsure of what was real and what wasn't anymore. he needed to escape immediately, whether it was through the bus door or breaking the window.

he knew the person next to him wasn't real. but he hated how his hallucinations were just too real. it was frightening him, begging him to look further into him.

i must seem absolutely crazy. he thought to himself, looking around the bus.

'i can't do this!' taeyong muttered, slipping away from his seat and telling the bus driver to let him out.

'taeyong! please!' the voice called out desperately.

he wanted to turn around. he wanted to throw himself on him and stay in his arms forever, like he used to back then.

but he just...wasn't real.

he had to stop imagining. he had no reason to.

jaehyun was gone...forever.