peace | taekook

chapter three

the shoes from the front door were gone indicating that the previous night's house guest had left at some point, apparently failing to stir taehyung who had slept right through it, tucked away on the couch.

he felt the familiar pain of an uncomfortable position linger in his lower back as he stretched his figure out, trying to untwist a knot that would need more than a single massage to recover. the house felt eerily quiet, no snoring, no yelling, no brewing coffee-

usually the two had plans to occupy their time but it was evident today would be filled with naps and delivery service.

taehyung knocked on jimin's bedroom door, the one technically belonged to all guests but was only ever occupied by the older blonde.

he mumbled into a pillow, "what?"

the dark-haired boy peeked in, eyes scanning a floor full of pillows and discarded throw blankets; clearly they had more fun than he did, "long night?"

jimin poked out from beneath the sheets, patting the spot next to him as he always did, "how can you tell?"

"please tell me you have pants on!" tae groaned before sliding in regardless of the answer.

"i have a full pajama set on, chill!" he flung his leg over tae, curling up closer to his side, "i love him. i want to marry him and have his babies!"

"you'd have such a motherly glow!" the younger joked, shoving his friend off his side.

"but it wasn't sex if that's what you're implying!" jimin propped himself up, rubbing sleep from his eyes as he pondered deep conversation and intellectual intrigue that floated between the two until the late hours of the night, "he was just giving me tattoo advice and life advice."

"sure, right, of course! life advice." they basked in comfortable silence, so close to the brink of sleep and dreams of days past and yet taehyung couldn't seem to close his eyes. he was fixated on something, "what do you know about jungkook?"

jimin hummed, "elaborate?"

"it felt like he was flirting with me, or interested? we had this connection but then he tells me he has a girlfriend and i felt so stupid." he huffed, burying his face into his hands, "am i stupid?"

the blonde rested his head on tae's shoulder, taking in the sweet scent of stale wine, "you're not stupid. you probably did get a vibe!" it was clear he had more to say, he knew beyond the surface, "jungkook has a girlfriend like every other minute. they're so on and off, it's practically impossible to keep up! i wouldn't take him too seriously when he brings her up."

"do they live together? he said he needed to get home to her last night."

"as far as i know they don't but, that's not to say she doesn't spend the night frequently. i mean come on, have you seen him?" jimin wiggled his eyebrows, "you're not seriously interested in him, are you? he's so not your type!"

"how do you know what my type is?"

"because we've been friends for ages!"

"but i've been with numerous people of varying types!" taehyung felt his voice raise as he pondered the previous affairs he'd been engaged in.

"and have any of them worked?" jimin raised a brow, condescension dripping, "you know you're my favorite person but what you're looking for, jungkook can't offer it. i don't think he ever will be able too!"

"are you talking about commitment? being nice?"

"you want more than that. we both know it!"

the conversation seemed to halt, two brick walls staring each other down at the crack of dawn. deep down taehyung wondered if maybe jimin was right. if maybe he was difficult and in need of something that was beyond what somebody like jungkook could provide but he also really, really wanted to prove the blonde wrong.

"well we will just have to wait and find out." taehyung pretended to dig non-existent dirt from under his nails, distracting himself from the pressing question on the back of his mind, "you don't happen to know... if maybe..."

"maybe what?" jimin didn't have all day for him to finish the sentence.

"you don't happen to know if jungkook is going to be anywhere, or part of anything where i would maybe just-,"

"run into him?"

taehyung rolled his eyes, "more just a mutual, common thing that i should dress nicer for than normal."

the older of the two felt a laugh stick in his throat at the idea of taehyung obsessing over outfits and his hair and doing it all for a guy who wears the same shirt for multiple days in a row and basically sits in a bath of black ink every day. he did seem determined though, the fire in his eyes, the way he was openly asking for assistance; jimin couldn't help but admire his tenacity, "jungkook has been developing an art installation that is basically a giant publicity stunt. he's debuting it over the weekend and food and booze may be served."

"and will a certain girlfriend be there or is it more of a go alone type of thing?"

"i cannot confirm or deny her presence but, i can confirm that i'll be attending with yoongi." jimin looped his fingers through tae's hand, "and i guess, if you know, you can't find anybody, i'm always going to be here for you bud."

"don't be rude!" tae tugged his hand away as though he'd been touched by fire, visibly annoyed, "i'm not going to make you the best man at mine and jungkook's wedding if you keep this up!"

at those words, jimin groaned, "you can't be serious!" he couldn't imagine world where such a trivial meeting had now turned to wedding bells.

"dead serious."

taehyung didn't spare a glance as he escaped from beneath the confines of the sheets, slipping from his spot like he'd never been, "shopping in twenty?"

"twenty hours or twenty minutes?" jimin had already filled the vacant space, warmed up by tae's body heat. he had no intention of leaving, at least not anytime soon.

"don't ask questions that you aren't going to like the answer to!" it was evident tae was already halfway down the hall by the fading of his voice; he was hell bent and determined to make things happen.

because the trail of tattoos on jungkook's arms extended far past visible lines and he wanted to see them.