Pose For Me | K.TH

12

AILA

"Who was that?"

I look up, phone tight in my hands. It's one of the guys, his face dipping in and out of focus.

"It was...It was my friend."

"Sounded like a guy." He says, leaning in a bit closer. And I can't move back, already pressing so tightly into the back of the seat. "Your boyfriend?"

Boyfriend?

"No— no." I murmur quietly, tips of my ears turning red from embarrassment. "He's..."

"No? That's good, then." He says, and I'm still staring blankly as he shifts a hand up to my face. "Because you're too pretty to be single."

His hand never reaches my cheek.

"Merde."

"What have you done, Aila?"

And the next few moments are a blur. There's a bunch of voices, mixing together into a mess as figures move up and past my vision. There's even shouting— hurting my head even more.

But finally it's just his.

"You can open your eyes."

I hadn't realized I'd closed them again.

Taehyung.

He has my backpack in one hand, my wrist tight in the other. And his dark eyes are fixed on me, expression strained with pressed anger under the low street light.

We're outside the restaurant.

"You smell of alcohol. They made you do this?"

"Why were you with them?!"

I flinch.

"What if they touched you." He says, voice a dangerous whisper. "What if they made a mark on you? Should I be thankful that you called me tonight, to show yourself to me like this?"

His cheek is bandaged from yesterday.

Quiet tears glaze my eyes. I can feel the alcohol slowly fading, but a part of me almost wishes it didn't.

Then maybe I wouldn't be crying like I am now.

"I'm sorry." I mumble, voice hiccuping a little. "I couldn't refuse. I couldn't say no like a dumb idiot, Taehyung. I let them pull me in there when I hated it, I let them make me drink. And I hated it. I hated all of it so much."

My head falls forward, and I can feel my tears silently wetting my cheeks.

I hate myself for being such a disappointment.

He pulls me into his chest. And I cry into his shoulder, shaking softly as he whispers against my ear.

"Je suis désolé."

"None of this is your fault."

And I blame it on the alcohol, when I start crying harder.

_________________________________

My eyes are still red and puffy when I get into the passenger seat of Taehyung's car. And I'm sniffing quietly when a hand suddenly appears in front of my face.