Work Text:
You Were Calling in the Dead of Night
The apartment was silent as soon as he opened his door. The only sound he heard was his breathing due to a sigh dropping from his lips as he flicked the light switch on. With a ruffle of his hair, as he kicked off his shoes and placed his bag down, he shut the door behind him.
He took a deep breath and thought to himself that he was happy that he was able to get back home before the weather turned sour and the predicted storm started for the next two days. What a wonderful way to celebrate his birthday - note the sarcasm.
The male tugged his jacket off and hung it up where it should be by the door. Walking through his apartment and turning the lights on as he went, he walked towards his window that had a gorgeous view of the city and its light. He couldn't help but notice the lonesome comfort that settled in his chest.
His best friend, for many years, had a date that night with his boyfriend. Taehyung didn't mind; he really didn't. He knew he couldn't do anything about it, if his best friend was happy, then he should be too. Right?
He wasn't. His chest ached from seeing the photos on the other's Instagram; that gorgeous bunny-like smile that he wished that was for him. But all he could do was keep quiet. Why should he ruin something that the other was happy in? He knew he shouldn't. And he wouldn't.
With that thought, he heard the first thunder roll, breaking him away from his thoughts and the heavy sound of rain falling outside. Taehyung guessed the weather reflected someone's mood, not his own but someone's. He felt isolated. But not sad. Not frustrated or angry or anything of the sort.
Taehyung then turned his head at the sound of knocking on his door. He was confused as to why someone would be dropping over at a time like this; very late in the evening, close to an hour before midnight. He walked over and opened the door slowly, and just enough to stick his head out.
"Jeongguk?" Taehyung questioned softly as he opened the door further. "What are you…?- Get in quickly. You're soaking wet. " He guided the younger male inside.
Jeongguk had appeared at his doorway; he was dripping wet, head to toe; almost as wet as you'd get if you'd run through the rain. His hair sticking to his forehead and the water dripping down his face, cheeks flustered probably due to the cold and his clothing that was a multi-coloured hoodie and shorts which was clung to his body. He was sniffing, and Taehyung assumed it was just from the cold.
Taehyung helped the younger peel off his jacket and untie his shoes. "Right, you go have a nice warm shower and I'll get some warm clean clothes for you and we can talk after if you want, okay?"
He saw Jeongguk nod lightly. It hurt his heart to see how quiet the younger one was. Usually, he'd be talking as soon as he got inside, but this time, nothing came from his lips. His eyes, though, they looked empty and glazed with unshed tears; Taehyung finally saw it.
Something was wrong.
Though he didn't speak a word as he directed Jeongguk to his bathroom that was opposite his bedroom. He turned the light on and stood by the door frame for a second. He was contemplating if he should let Jeongguk be alone or help him bathe.
He looked to the younger; who was slightly behind him. "Do you want to be alone? Or have me there with you?"
Taehyung noticed how the younger's expression changed slightly as he thought about it. Finally, he just stepped forward and walked into the bathroom alone.
"So you just want to be alone?" Taehyung asked again. Jeongguk nodded, though his back was facing the older. "Okay…just shout if you need me,"
Taehyung then shut the door to let the younger male have his privacy. He bit his bottom lip as he waited till he heard the shower water going. Once he heard it go on, he rusted into his bedroom and went right to his closet, rummaging around through his clothes when he stopped at a gray coloured sweater that he knew would he a bit loose on the younger and give him sweater paws. It was one of Jeongguk's favourites that he would steal whenever he was over.
He also picked up some underwear and some loose around the leg but tapered in around the ankle sweatpants, it'll be a chilly night and Taehyung didn't want Jeongguk to catch a cold and he didn't want the younger to feel uncomfortable.
He held them in a small folded pile in his arms and walked back to the bathroom door. He hesitated before knocking on the door and waiting for any signs that the younger heard. He did hear a muffed hum through the door.
"I'll place the spare clothes out here for you, I'll be waiting in my bedroom for when you come out, okay?" Taehyung said as he placed the pile on the ground outside the door.
"Okay," Taehyung heard through the door.
"Thank you, hyungie," hyungie. It had been a while since he had heard Jeongguk call him that. Something had happened to the younger male, and Taehyung would not push it.
"No problem, bun." Taehyung smiled before he stepped away and made his way to his bedroom.
Before he flopped down on his own bed, he would change into something comfortable like what he had gotten for Jeongguk. He slipped off his long sleeved shirt and replaced it with a blue sweater that looked to have been loved very much.
Taehyung then slipped his phone out of his pocket and placed it on one of the sorting draws he had before, he slipped off his khaki pants and grabbed both a clean pair of underwear and sweatpants of the colour gray. He threw his other clothing into the hamper he had in his closet. Hopefully, Jeongguk would use the one in the bathroom.
Taehyung picked up his phone before he stepped out of his closet and quickly walked back around his apartment to turn off the lights before he walked back to his bed, he pulled back the covers and moved to the side that was closest to the window. He decided to scroll through his messages and emails and maybe even play a level or two of a game whilst waiting for Jeongguk to come out of the bathroom.
The older he heard shuffling by the door frame and looked up to see Jeongguk standing, looking so fragile and lost in the loose clothing. Taehyung turned to place his phone down on the table next to him and turned back to the younger male. The older man had made a gesture for Jeongguk to come to the bed by patting the bed next to him.
Though what he didn't expect was for Jeongguk to almost run over, pull the covers off the older and partially jumping and snuggle into his arms and hid his face within Taehyung's chest. The older man hesitantly placed his hands on the younger's back, rubbing it in a soothing motion and pulling him closer.
"Do you want to talk about it?" Taehyung asked as he moved his hand to tangle his fingers through the younger's locks.
Jeongguk let out a hitched breath. "Do.. Do you remember my … boyfriend?" He asked.
"Of course I do," Taehyung's jaw clenched. He didn't want to say anything other than that. "Why.. Did he do something..?"
Jeongguk looked up at Taehyung, tears threatening to fall from his lashes. "I broke up with him,"
Taehyung blinked and looked shocked. Weren't they happy together? What had happened to cause the younger to break up with him.
"Before you ask… we weren't going well for the past couple of months… I'm sure we had good moments too, but.." Jeongguk looked away before he rested his cheek back on the other's chest.
"..he said something about you that was just hurtful and it was the final straw for me, so I left him, funnily enough I had started to lose feelings for him… well whatever feelings I had, so it was the better decision for me"
"Bun, you know I don't care about what others say about me, especially people who I don't know." Taehyung shook his head.
Jeongguk sat up and sat in the older males lap, looking him right in the eyes.
"He called you a depressed freak and an ungrateful bastard because you haven't dated anyone, hyungie… I couldn't let that slide." He crossed his arms over his chest.
"Bun.." Taehyung took the younger's hands with his own as he sat up. "...do you know why I don't date anyone?"
"Do I need to know before I boot people out of my life? No, " Jeongguk pouted with a shake of his head.
Taehyung rolled his eyes, and a smile came to his lips. He'll ignore what Jeongguk said and tell him anyway.
"It's because, bun, there is someone I want to date… but they're always either taken or when they're not taken…I never have the guts to say anything. "
Jeongguk looked a little taken back from what Taehyung had said; there was a flash of an unreadable emotion in his eyes.
"Do I know them?" His voice was soft.
Taehyung looked at the other; He was deciding if it was the best time to tell his best friend how he truly felt right after a breakup? He didn't think it was a good time, but if Jeongguk was persistent enough, Taehyung would tell him everything. Well he'd tell him anyway.
"You know them well…" Taehyung trailed his thumb along the back of the younger's hand. "Like the back of your hand,"
Now, how the saying goes is, 'I know myself like that back of my hand.' it was simple. Even the younger one knew that. His doe eyes went wide, and they shifted to look up at Taehyung's in shock.
"..M..Me?" Jeongguk pointed to himself with his free hand. "...Why didn't you say anything?"
"You were always happy, I didn't want to ruin that," Taehyung smiled sadly.
"So you decide to pine in silent and not say a word?" Jeongguk narrowed his eyes. "...I've missed out on so many things with you." His body slumped.
"Yes, you did - wait what..?" Taehyung had furrowed his eyebrows before lifting just one up.
"I thought that you didn't… you know, love me the way I did with you and so I tried to get over you, obviously it didn't go well, but… wow" Jeongguk sighed with a smile. "We were both silently pining for each other, huh?"
"I guess so," Taehyung laughed. "Are you okay, though? With the break up with that asshole, " He asked, and this caused Jeongguk to laugh.
"Yeah, I'm fine, just pissed that he had the balls to call you that shit." Jeongguk furrowed his eyebrows and tightened his jaw, looking off to the side.
Taehyung smirked. "I know what will make you feel better. If you allow me, that is"
"Of course, whatever it is," Jeongguk spoke through his pout.
Taehyung eyed the younger's jawline and exposed neck. Leaning forward, he placed playful open-mouthed kisses and light bites along Jeongguk's skin, trying to make him laugh because it was a sensitive spot on him; the spot around the underside of his ear.
"Taehyungie, stop~" Jeongguk tried to curl into his body and push the older one off with a smile. "That tickles." He giggled.
Taehyung laughed as he moved away from the other's neck.
"Do you feel better now? Not as pissed?" He asked.
"Yeah," Jeongguk hummed with a soft smile that had grown from a nose scrunch. "Much better"
Taehyung laid back against his pillow and closed his eyes.
"Good, now it's late, and it'll be storming for the next two days, so I'm not having you go home in this weather." Then the sound of thunder rolled, solidifying that statement.
"So.. I'll get to stay here with you for the next two days then?" Jeongguk wondered, and he saw the older nod. "I guess I'll make myself comfortable,"
Taehyung opened his eyes as he watched Jeongguk move to lay on his left side with his back against the older's left side. Taehyung moved to face the younger's back, and both his body and blankets almost engulfed Jeongguk in its embrace.
"You're forgetting two things, bun," Taehyung said from behind him.
"What two things?" Jeongguk turned around to face the older male.
"One of them is, I love you," Taehyung finally confessed, and the younger giggled.
"I love you too," Jeongguk replied, his gaze finally happy and filled with love.
"May I kiss you?" Taehyung asked, looking into Jeongguk's eyes. "You can always say no, it's okay."
"You may," Jeongguk nodded.
Taehyung leant forward and slotted his lips between Jeongguk's soft ones. He could taste the mint flavour of toothpaste, which almost made him laugh. He let his hands rest around Jeongguk's back, and he could feel the other's hands on his cheeks. Finally, he got to capture Jeongguk's lips in a kiss. He had lost count of how many times he wanted to just kiss the living daylights out of him. But he held back because of the previous circumstances.
They both pulled away, and before Taehyung could say a word, Jeongguk turned back around and pulled his hands tighter around his body, making Taehyung engulf his body more. It made the older male laugh.
"That fast?" Taehyung asked as he placed his head on Jeongguk's neck, just seeing the other's pout.
"I just wanted you to hold me like this," Jeongguk whined. "But.. the kiss was perfect. " He nodded.
"You've probably had plenty, right?" Taehyung asked. "I'm not judging, you know I don't do that,"
"Actually, surprisingly… that was my first"
"What..how?" Taehyung asked in disbelief.
"I had never let my ex-boyfriend kiss me on my lips, it unsettled me just thinking about it, I tolerated him kissing my cheeks," Jeongguk groaned. "But, you were my first because I only wanted you to kiss me like that."
"You were the same for me," Taehyung smiled. "Now get some sleep, bun." He closed his eyes and nuzzled his head into Jeongguk's neck.
Jeongguk let his eyes close as well. "Wait.. Hyungie.." He heard and felt the other hum against his skin. "What are we now?"
"Whatever you want it to be," Taehyung replied honestly as he placed a kiss on Jeongguk's nape before settling back against his neck.
"Then… we are each other's, I'm yours, and you are mine," Jeongguk nodded. "We're boyfriends"
"I like that,"
That was the final exchange before they slept, the younger male engulfed by the warm embrace of Taehyung's body practically wrapped around his body. The blankets had been pulled right up to their shoulders, so there was no way the cold air would make them shiver. The younger male never flinched in Taehyung's arms from the thunder rolls. He felt safe with Taehyung.
Like he should've been there all along.