Still with you

Chapter five

One day we'll see each other again.

And that day will be the day I truly accept that you were a part of my life. That you were more than a footnote. You were more than a paragraph, more than a page. You were more than a chapter. You were an entire book in the series of my life.

One day...

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The earliest memory Jungkook has are of two figures walking away from him, leaving him behind, rejecting him. That hazy memory has since set the tone for his entire life. Growing up in the foster system was not the easiest of things to experience. Moving from group home to group home, never truly fitting in with either of them. Jungkook would run away himself or his foster parents would ultimately decide that they didn't want him anymore, that he didn't fit their image, that he didn't live up to their expectations. They would reject him. Then he had aged out of the foster system and was left to fend for himself. He would apply for jobs but they'd all reject him. He'd tried to make money off his art but it was never good enough and his clients would all reject him. Every relationship he's ever been in had all failed and ended in rejection. Schools he would apply to, friends he attempted to make, money he had tried to earn. Rejection.

At some point, Jungkook had stopped trying. What's the point if everything I ever do just ends in...?

And it was when he was at his lowest point that he had struck gold. That he was acknowledged, rewarded, given a chance, and accepted. His scholarship to Blue Feather University. The school of art. Where anyone can shine. Cliche, sure, but maybe that's what's so appealing about it.

Now, here Jungkook sits on a park bench waiting nervously for his photographer to arrive. The sky above is a watercolour wash of electric blue, the fluffy clouds blobs of acrylic paint. The trees drawn in coloured pencil, bright green leaves swaying back and forth in the light wind. The sun is blinding as it beams down unabashed. The grass is yellow under Jungkook's feet, like straw, almost. But white daisies bloom despite the unkempt field that surrounds. Birds chirp happily on thin branches and the distant sound of children laughing and shouting is calming. People walk by from time to time - their shoes crunching loudly against the gravel path - some smile or nod at Jungkook and some ignore him completely.

Jungkook tries to slow the rapid beat of his heart with a steeling breath, it doesn't do much to aid him in his anxious thinking. He and Taehyung are barely friends, just acquainted, but he'd be lying if he said there wasn't something swimming under the surface. It's subtle but loud. It whispers from behind but screams from in front. It's sweet but sour. Like the aftertaste of leftovers, lingering a little too long in the hidden corners of the mouth, in the unreachable crevices of the teeth. It's another chance to be rejected. To be left behind.

Click! "Wow. You sure look deep in thought." Jungkook snaps his head to the left to see Taehyung standing by the bench he resides on, camera up at his face, mischievous grin dancing at the tips of his mouth. Click! "This one's priceless!" He laughs at Jungkook's shocked expression before planting himself in the seat next to him. "What're you thinking so hard about?" The younger feels his mood lighten almost instantly. That suffocatingly subtle feeling stirs hot in his stomach and there's nothing he can do but sit and take it behind a neutral expression. "Nothing important." He softly replies. Taehyung's eyebrows furrow, revealing the fact that he doesn't buy what Jungkook's saying. "Alright." He says anyway.

"So, for the concept, I thought first-date vibes would be cute." The brunette begins, elaborating at the confused look on his blue-haired counterpart's face. "Like the audience is on a date with the model, you, so the pictures will be a first-person perspective of the 'date activities' Like sitting in the grass and getting food and things like that." Jungkook nods his head in understanding. He can see the photos in his mind and the idea is indeed an interesting one, but that's not what he decides to hone in on. "If you wanted to go on a date with me, you could've just said so." The words come out with a cocked head and sly grin and has Taehyung's face flushing a pretty shade of crimson as he physically recoils in embarrassment.