33

Taehyung

Jungkook was waiting for me, sitting at the piano, his gaze on the wall before him, looking completely lost in his thoughts.

At the sight of me, he faintly smiled, and I sat on the sofa in front of the piano, keeping my focus on him the whole time.

I hadn't talked to him since this morning, if I wasn't mistaken, he was avoiding me.

As soon as he saw me, he would walk the other way or act like he didn't see me. If his eyes caught mine, his expression was impassive, his lips thinned in a hard line.

As I continued to stare at him, the piano the only thing between us, he gave me a strange look and then his expression was blank again before he looked down at the keys.

As I listened to the hauntingly beautiful music, I felt completely transfixed by his beauty and the peaceful look on his face.

All he had to do was sit there silently, and he already had my complete attention.

After three songs, he stopped and then opened his eyes, making direct eye contact with me. I smiled, trying to look as gentle as possible, but he ignored it, then went to the bookshelf. He took his time choosing a book, making me nervous with each passing second.

Grabbing a book in his hand, he walked back and sat down on the sofa beside me.

All the time, he did it silently while keeping his eyes away from mine.

I waited for him to say something.

I didn't know how long we stayed like that. I tried to get some work done, but I was too lost in Jungkook to think.

My gaze kept moving, I saw him scowl at the book and then he twisted his lips in annoyance.

When I couldn't bear the long, frustrating silence anymore, I cleared my throat and shifted twice in my seat, trying to bring Jungkook's attention to me. Clearing my throat again, I opened my mouth to say something, but quickly snapped it shut when I realized I didn't know what to say.

I stared at the wall in frustration, but the painting caught my attention. It was a beautiful landscape painting of a field of vibrant, colourful flowers.

That's it, I thought.

"Did you like the flowers?" I asked, breaking the painful silence between us.

"They were okay," he replied stiffly before looking down at the book again.

What kind of answer was that?

"So you liked them?"

Jungkook shrugged, "They weren't bad."

"Oh," I murmured, my shoulders dropping in disappointment.

He didn't like them.

Swallowing hard, I leaned back against the sofa. Jungkook was so happy with the flowers that Jimin had given him, I thought he would love them. I rubbed a hand over my face and closed my eyes tiredly. In my attempt to make him feel better, I messed up.

After a few minutes, I realized he was looking at me. He stiffened, and his gaze quickly snapped down. I saw a defiant scowl on his face.

Suddenly, he stood up and left.

"Where are you going?" I asked, standing up too.

His steps faltered and turned around, facing me again. His shoulders were pushed back boldly, and he looked straight at me, his brown eyes vibrant and filled with unreadable emotions.

"I'm going to sleep," he said. "It's late."

That's it?

I cleared my throat and then nodded. "Okay. Goodnight."

We stared at each other silently for a few seconds, nodding at me mutely, he swivelled around and

walked out of the room.

I stared at his retreating, speechless.

What the fvck just happened?

I stepped back until I hit the sofa.

Jungkook hadn't even said goodnight.

***

It had been three days.

I growled in frustration and pushed the papers away.

Three days of Jungkook barely speaking a word to me.

I sat down against my chair and rolled my neck left and right, trying to release the tension. I didn't understand what I did wrong. I tried everything, yet he stayed completely closed off.

I knew he wasn't like that with the others. I saw him talking comfortably to Jimin, a smile always present on his face, his eyes glowing.

But with me, he either scowled or frowned in my direction.

Or sometimes, his expression was completely impassive, and I was growing desperate.

Just once, I wanted him to smile at me.

I wanted to see his eyes sparkle with happiness while he looked at me. Just like at the creek or when he played the piano for the first time.

Closing my eyes tightly, I rubbed my forehead, a weary sigh escaping my lips. When I heard the door open, my eyes snapped open, and I leaned forward to see Jimin walking into my office. He closed the door and then leaned against it silently.

"What is it?" I asked, placing both elbows on my desk as I waited for the answer.

"What is Jungkook to you?" Jimin asked, stepping closer.

His question completely took me aback, pushing my chair away from the desk, I stood up and walked around it, "What type of question is that?"

"It's an important one."

I wasn't in the mood to discuss it. I sent him a chilling look. "Listen—"

"Jungkook is not someone to play around with. So if you just want to fvck him, then don't. Don't hurt him, Taehyung. He doesn't deserve it and he's not like those whores you fvck around with," Jimin spat.

"What are you talking about?" I growled. "I would never treat Jungkook like that!" When I took a step forward, he only pushed his shoulders back in defiance.

"How do you feel about him?" Jimin was going to drive me crazy.

"None of your business," I hissed.

"Yes, it is! Because if you hurt him—"

"I'm not going to hurt him!"

Jimin's shoulders dropped and sighed, "It hurt Jungkook when he saw you with Nayeon."

"I know," I murmured.

"He likes you, Taehyung. A lot. He's already emotionally involved."

My heart sped up and my stomach felt weird. A ball of emotions sat at the base of my throat as my chest felt unbearably tight.

The thought of Jungkook feeling even a little of what I felt made my heart go wild.

Fear was always constant.

I didn't want to mess this up, but I never knew how to deal with my feelings. Whenever they became too much, I closed down. And I didn't want Jungkook to feel the impact of it. I wanted to protect him from pain.

"If you don't feel the same way, let him go. Don't hurt him," Jimin added.

I swallowed and then shifted my gaze away, "What I feel for Jungkook… I don't understand it. But I can't bear to see him hurt or sad. When I'm with him, I'm completely lost in him. He is all I can think about."

His eyes widened in shock.

"I'm not going to hurt him, Jimin. Hurting him is the last thing I ever want to do."

Jimin beamed, shaking my head at him.

I smiled, "Is that why you came here? To know how I feel about Jungkook?"

Jimin nodded. "I'm just worried. He's not someone to play around with. He is innocent and fragile. You need to woo him gently and with patience."

"I know."

Jimin clapped his hands together and bounced on his toes. "Okay," he said.

"Is that it?"

"Yup. You can go back to work now."

Jimin sent me another smile and then turned to leave. "Wait," I said.

"Yeah?"

How the fvck was I supposed to phrase this without looking like a complete idiot?

I swallowed hard.

"What type of flowers does he like?"

As soon as the words were out of my mouth, I wanted to punch myself.

Jimin stared at me for a few seconds in complete silence. And then he burst out laughing.

I sent him a fierce glare, and he quickly covered his laugh with a cough. "Sorry!"

Crossing my arms over my chest, I waited impatiently for his answer.

Jimin shook his head. "You are so silly," he said.

"I don't think Jungkook liked the flowers I gave him," I fired back in my defence.

Instead of answering me, he turned around and opened the door, "He loved the flowers, Taehyung," then he winked and left, closing the door behind him.

I stood speechless, astonished.

Jungkook loved the flowers?

When realization dawned, I leaned against the desk and let out a chuckle.

Ah, so the kitten is playing, I thought with a smirk.