Needing A Spring Day

10. Clean

Never, in the past two months of being locked up in jail had Taehyung entered his cell with a smile on his face. But after the results he had heard during his final hearing earlier that day, there was no other emotion to be portrayed.

He was getting out.

The word free still seemed foreign on the tongue, as if the last few hours2 had been a dream and he was still destined to spend the remainder of his twenties in these four cement walls.

"By the weird shape your mouth is making, I'm guessing everything went well?' His cellmate remarked, looking at him from over the top of the book in his hand.

Nodding, Taehyung pressed his back against one of the walls and slowly sat down on the floor. Although he had held himself together fairly well during the ride back, now in the comfort of his cell, the tears once again threatened to fall. Covering his face, he forced back the urge to cry, knowing he needed to hold off for just a little while longer.

"If you're going to cry, best to do it under the covers before someone sees you." Dawn recommended, climbing from the bottom bunk and stepping towards the entrance of their cell. "If the others see you they might lash out." He spoke silently, watching carefully for anyone passing by.

Nodding his head once again, Tae collected his emotions and stood back to his feet. "Two more weeks." Tae whispered, smiling yet again as he leaned the back of his head against the wall and took a deep breath. "Two more weeks and I get to go home."

Dawn was always good at keeping a stone cold face, never breaking no matter the situation he found himself in. Tae had been scared of him at first, unsure if his new bunk buddy was as mean as he appeared to be. Although carrying a cold exterior, Dawn turned out to be a caring person, instantly taking Tae under his wing and watching out for him when it came to the older and more dangerous felons.

And now, for the first time since they had met, Dawn gave the faintest smile over his shoulder before moving back to his bed. "Told you so." He remarked, picking up his book and creasing the edge before putting it on the shelf. "You had nothing to worry about."

"Are you going to miss me when I'm gone?" Tae teased, trying to contain the laughter behind his words as he smiled towards the older boy.

"You wish, kid. You're just another bunkmate getting out before me. Nothing special." Dawn responded, crossing his arms over his chest before cracking another slight smirk.

"Except I'm the only one who you've been able to tolerate. Your words, not mine." Tae beamed before quickly concealing his pride.

Running his fingers through his grown out blonde hair, Dawn licked his lips. "You're never going to let me live that down are you?" He questioned, exhaling an exaggerated sigh as a bell rang throughout the prison.

Tae shook his head as he watched the older collect his belongings for their shower time. "Nope. And I expect you to get a hold of me when you get out in six months."

"Sure Kid. If by the grace of God I get out when they say I will, I'll track you down."

Grabbing his own shower caddy off the shelf, Tae nodded and followed. "Good. I'll be looking forward to it."

~~~~~

Hoseok let out a deep sigh as he stepped into his girlfriend's apartment and shrugged off his jacket. The argument with Jimin earlier that evening had been a regular topic of disagreement, one that only grew stronger once he had moved in and seen first hand just how bad the abuse really was.

It was hard to imagine anyone laying a hand on his best friend in such an aggressive manner, taking advantage of him and hurting him the way they had. Thinking about the years he had spent keeping it a secret made his heart clench, instant guilt filling his head as he wished there was something he could do that would finally be of use to the person he cared about.