Golden Romance [1]

Chapter Five: Tears and Lies; A Combo as Old as Time

Trigger Warning: slight homophobia

Chapter Five: Tears and Lies; A Combo as Old as Time

·͙*̩̩͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩̥͙ Hoseok's POV *̩̩̥͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩͙‧͙

I curse loudly, hurriedly gathering up all my papers and shoving them into my bag. My eyes catch on Jungkook's bag and I sling it over my shoulders, letting the straps of my own bag hang from my arms.

Thankfully, the pie came in a small box and I do my best to put it in my bag, making sure not to jostle it too much. The coffees go in both hands, and when I look up, I can see Ah Ra staring at me, horror twisting her usually pretty features.

The guy she came with seems to have disappeared, and I glare at her, trying to send all of my hatred through my eyes. It must work cause she blanches, eyes wide and lips forming a shallow 'o'.

And then I go after my little brother.

I find him quickly enough, him leaning against his car as if it's the only thing keeping him up. The sunlight highlights the quickly drying tear tracks on his face, and I let the coffees rest on the hood of his car, pulling him in for a hug.

He's boneless, making no move to hold me back, and I just squeeze him tighter. "I'm sorry, Kookie. I'm so sorry."

I can feel his shoulders start to shake and a spear of sorrow shoots through me, my own eyes misting in the face of his despair.

"Hyung, why?" Jungkook's voice cracks. "Why would she—" And then the sobs come in.

I can only hug him tighter, my face nuzzling into his hair as I try my best to soothe him. My hands rub circles on his back, and I can feel his tears in the crook of my neck, dampening my skin and the collar of my shirt.

Cars honk on the street, the sidewalks are filled with the chatter of uni students, but Jungkook and I are silent in the midst of the bustle. Eventually, Jungkook withdraws from my hold, eyes rimmed with red and bloodshot, the tip of his nose pink.

"Give me your keys, Kookie. I'll drive you home, yeah?"

Jungkook nods, fishing his keys out of his pocket and unlocking the car. He's silent as he grabs the coffees from the hood and sits on the passenger side.

The ride to his house is silent, Jungkook staring through the window. I have a feeling that he's not really registering the scenery, getting stuck inside his head instead. I ruffle his hair at the next red light, and he leans into my touch.

"It'll be okay, Kookie."

He just shrugs.

Before I had gotten into the car, I had sent a frantic text to Yoongi, one most likely riddled with absurd typos, telling him to meet us at Jungkook's and to bring the rest of the boys, explaining in the least possible words of what happened. I don't know if he saw it or not; I just split my focus between the road and the quiet boy beside me.