lipsticks and feelings

;; j

taehyung blinks.

once more.

and again.

he smells strawberry, and his chest is cold.

he stares at the girl in front of him and is totally unaware of the intimidating poker face he has on that makes the girl want to swim into the atlantic ocean for less coldness.

"tae!"

his eyes went into jimin, who steps in the middle of him and lisa, and proceeds to apologize.

"im sorry for the shirt, ill pay for it. we were just messing around and we didnt expect you to come around the corner."

taehyung stays silent, the sentence we were just messing around repeats on his mind for some reason.

he wasnt aware of how long the moment passed with his cold face, but he was taken out of the trance when lisa speaks up,

"i am sorry sir. i promise, i didnt know."

taehyung finally breaks out a smile, "it's okay, dont worry. i can always steal jimin's credit card."

jimin's relieved smile disappeared as soon as it appeared.

lisa smiles back hesitantly, finding herself unable to keep her eyes on the boy's face for a long while.

what the fuck is his business for looking this handsome, she thinks.

"anyway," she breathes out, "do tell me if i can help out in any way. i can wash the top, or let you put ice cream on mine to get a tie, or whatever you wish."

lisa halts, "just no paying back, if it's okay. that top probably costs more than my entire being."

taehyung was about to say no, when his eyes went over lisa's outfit.

huh, he thinks.

"well," taehyung looks at jimin. "you can help me choose an outfit, or do my make-up again. im in my shock-the-fans mood today."

jimin snorts, "you mean trend-on-twitter mood?"

taehyung ignores him, "so what do you think?"

lisa looks at jimin then back at taehyung, "why not? i can always do make-up."

taehyung claps near jimin's ear, on purpose, and gestures lisa to follow him.

when they arrive at a room, lisa's eyes goes wide at the variety of clothing items present.

"i guess you also have a thing for fashion?" taehyung chuckles at her reaction.

lisa laughs, "of course, but my style isnt even something i can afford which is the most annoying thing about myself. makes me want to stab my own heart for fun."

lisa is already looking at the available products for ideas but taehyung literally flops on the couch, which catches lisa's attention.

"you wanna do the make-up there?"

taehyung shakes his head, "no make-up today. just wanna talk."

lisa crosses her arms, amused, "arent you gonna change your shirt first?"

taehyung looks down on it, "not really, no. this can be a new trend."

lisa laughs, and proceeds to the shirt section of the clothes racks.

she picks out a brightly colored top and shows it at taehyung, who frowns at it.

"what even is that?"

lisa retorts, "something you can't pull off."

taehyung's mouth went wide, offended, then laughs and motions lisa to give him the shirt.

he was about to say that it didnt match his pants, when lisa throws another pair at him.

its a beige one, with studs on some parts. next thing he knows, lisa already assembled a whole ass outfit at the couch and taehyung was impressed, to say the least.

its a daring, experimental outfit that he actually wants to try.

"if I end up looking like a clown--"

lisa cuts him off, "then the great kim taehyung isnt as great as everybody thought, huh?"

taehyung, once again, was offended, but didnt feel a pinch of negativity.

he feels good, actually.

its nice that someone new wasnt afraid of him.

lisa squeals when he comes out, and is excited enough to come close to the man and fix his hair for him, even going as far as taking a fallen eyelash from his cheeks.

lisa, once aware of her actions, steps back sheepishly and apologizes, but taehyung flicked her in the forehead with a smile as a reponse.

"wanna be my own personal stylist from now on?"

lisa tilts her head, "don't you have one already?"

"for the group, yes."

"how much will you pay me then?"

"the great honor of being in my presence."

lisa pretends to think, "not worth my time. gotta decline, sorry."

taehyung flicks her again, and they proceed to exchange stories while laying on the couch.

well, taehyung is on the couch. lisa's legs are in the couch but her back is on the floor.

you get the image.

"what's the hardest thing about being an idol?"

taehyung sighs, "the pressure. the expectations. the loneliness despite the crowd."

lisa nods, even though the boy cant see her, "and the best thing?"

"the power. the happiness, the fans. the money. the assurance that you will be remembered.

how about you?" he asks in return, "whats the hardest thing about being you?"

"the struggles. the need for money. survival. the worry that i wont get anywhere."

"and the best thing?"

"the people. the memories. the experience. the inclusiveness and belonging that i feel with the little people i have."

lisa turns to look at him then, and she isnt really surprised to see that they both got a sad look on their faces.

"its funny," taehyung says, "you'd kill for what I have, but I'd also do the same to get yours."

"its cruel," lisa agrees, "but we work it out."

"yes," taehyung smiles, "we work it out.

_____

double update as my weak attempt to win back ur hearts ;))

we're done with jin, hobi, jimin and taehyung introductions with lisa! namjoon, jk and yoongi left which ill fit in the next 2 chapters and from then on, we'll get full action from our favorite ppl.

stay safe everyone! wear a mask and wish for me to pass my semester without tearing my hair out.