Promise

5

****Time skip 5 years****
"London ah! Go easy on yourself a bit." Rose patted myself on my back.
I tried to hide my tears. Lisa hugged me
"Unnie, you should stop crying about him you know?"
"London, he is not coming back." Jennie said as she rubbed my tears.
"What if he comes back?"
My voice broke. I really loved him, so did he. Or was I just wrong all alone?
"It's been four years now." Jisoo said.
Yes, I haven't seen Taehyung for four years. I haven't heard his voice since four years.
------------------Flashback------------------

We soon moved in together. We were happy together. It didn't feel like that the spark between us was dying. We loved each other so much! He used get me so well, so did I. We were not those cute couples shown in dramas, but we still did what felt like described us. I started to think that he was my soulmate. I teased him to get pinned on the surface by him. We shared something special. Taehyung was the softest ever. We were the hottest couple in school.

"You remember our first interaction, doll?" Taehyung said as he fiddled my fingers.
"Was I supposed to forget it, Mr. Playboy?" I teased him as I playfully pulled my hand away.
"Well you remember what Kai said that day?"
"He thought we were making out, right?"
"He sure did."
We both giggled. He pulled me closer, the school bell rang. Lunch was over. I tried to get up but he held me tighter. He smiled his regular boxy smile,
"Why don't we have a small date? We can prove Kai right today."
His mischievous smile was contagious. I reflected his smile. And we both got up. He held my hand tightly and we ran. We almost got caught by some teachers. But Taehyung was quick. I felt as if we were in the Titanic, running from lovejoy. We finally reached the storeroom and locked the door.
"I don't want to be disturbed like last time, you know?"
V shrugged his shoulders and smiled. He sat beside me and played the piano. I placed my head on his shoulder. I completely fell for him. I fell for the soft Taehyung, the one who happens to cry if the nightmare is way too scary. I fell for the boy who's face lights up everytime I hug him and whisper,
"It's alright. I would always be there for you."
Yes, I fell for the boy who gets crazy when he sees icecream. No I didn't fall for the perfect Kim Taehyung. I fell for his imperfectness instead. I fell for him when he played the piano with me, not when he played with other girls' hearts. I fell for him when he held me tight that night. I fell when I realized all he lacked was love. I lost my heart to him when I realized he was not the image he wanted everyone to see. But now it was different, he was different. He didn't need to pretend anymore, he is now the Taehyung I know the most. His boxy smile has turned into the reason for my heartbeat. He makes me feel special. He is not the person I used to know. He seems free nowadays.
"Are we supposed to makeout or what?"
Taehyung's affectionate voice brought me out of my thoughts. He was smirking. I grabbed his neck and leaned in for a kiss. Our lips moved to connect with eachother. I broke the kiss and smiled at him,
"You like repeating things, don't you?"
"I surely do!"
He said, kissing me again. I felt the strong desire to stop the time.

I can't deny the fact that we were happy together. But something kept him on his toes, always. He was really worried about me, sometimes overworried. He seemed as if someone was going to whisk me away from him. I know he was going through a lot, but he was adamant not to share a bit with my or his friends. I shared these with Lisa, Jisoo, Jennie and Rose but at the end of the day we still had no clue what he was going through.

Taehyung clenched the bedsheet in his hands as hard as he could. The darkness around him wasn't able to hide his tears. But why was he crying? Was it another nightmare? His phone beside him flashed the time. It was 3:37 am.
"A-any problem Tae? You sure you are okay?"
My hands ran on his bare back. I wrapped my arms around him tightly, encouraging him to share the pain with me.
"N-nothing at all."
"Another nightmare again? It's going to be alright."
"Yeah doll. Well don't worry about me. Sleep well okay?"
He kissed my forehead and hugged me tight. He hugged me so tight that it felt as if it was for the last time. I felt his breathing increase. His heart was pounding like crazy. I hugged him close, will he ever be ready to share it with me?

"London, I need to say something to you."
"Namjoon oppa, I really don't have time for anything now. I'm already late. Can I please hear it later?"
"It's about Taehyung."
"What about him?"
"He- can we talk some other place? It's important."
I nodded and walked outside the hallway, accompanied by Namjoon. What was it about Taehyung that was so urgent? Is he alright?