☾Trial & Error☽ → kth | jjk

XII

Later that evening Jungkook sat on the couch of the small living space, feet resting on the coffee table as he stared at Taehyung, who was watching some crime show on his laptop. The red haired male was too engrossed in the show to take notice of his roommate's borderline-creepy staring. 

Jungkook raised an eyebrow when Taehyung's hand moved to grab his phone. It had been buzzing off and on, and he'd be lying if he wasn't a bit curious about it. He watched as Taehyung's eyes scanned the Caller ID and quickly declined the call before putting it back down by his laptop to return to watching his show. 

Almost immediately it started to buzz again, the vibrations so violent the phone was shifting a bit on the surface. Taehyung groaned inaudibly and grabbed it, this time answering the call. 

Jungkook pretended to be working on his laptop but made sure to listen closely. Jimin's words from earlier that morning had been bothering him all day. If Taehyung didn't hate him, then what the hell was it? And sure, maybe listening in on the guy's private phone calls was irrelevant but Jungkook's curiosity was getting the best of him. 

"Hi dad, how- Sorry, sorry, it was an accident, I meant to accept it but I guess- Yeah, sorry." Taehyung's voice sounded sincere, but with a brief glance over the screen of his laptop Jungkook caught a glance of an incredibly irritated facial expression. "So what's up? Yeah, I talked to the CEO on the phone earlier today, I'm going in on Thursday to meet with him in person... I know, show him what a Kim is made of, you tell me that- Yeah, you tell me that all the time, I get it. I can do that, dad." 

Jungkook wrinkled his nose. What his dad giving him, a 'go get 'em' pep talk? At 1 am? Jungkook looked at the clock and sighed to himself. To be fair, it was 5 pm in South Korea, but still. 

"Dad, it's really late here. Mind if I call you back tomorrow?" Taehyung pinched the bridge of his nose. "Alright... I know, I'll remember. Okay, bye." He hung up and tossed his phone onto the couch while he continued to pace around. 

Jungkook looked up and raised an eyebrow. "What was that about?" He asked casually, as if he wasn't as curious as he was. 

Taehyung stopped and looked at Jungkook. He sat down on the couch beside Jungkook and folded his hands together, resting his elbows on his knees. 

"How did you know you wanted to dance?" He asked. 

Jungkook furrowed his brows. Well that doesn't answer his question. 

"Um, I don't know. I guess I just... know? I started dancing when I was 7 and I've never wanted to do anything else." Jungkook answered. "Why? You thinking about it?"

Taehyung scoffed. "Me? Dance? Hell no."

Jungkook rolled his eyes. Figures. 

"But..." He continued and directed his gaze to the surface of the old coffee table. "I don't know if I want to run my dad's business."

Jungkook's eyes widened. The Kim's family business was insanely huge in South Korea. Even the lowest employees got paid incredibly well, Taehyung must be out of his mind to not want any part of that. 

"Why?" He kept himself level, swallowing the rest of his confusion. 

Taehyung shrugged. "It's a lot to deal with. There's politics, finances, legal issues, conflicts, the stress of marketing... I don't think I can handle all of that. I don't want to."

"Then don't."

"It's not that easy, Jungkook."

Jungkook blinked. Did Taehyung just refer to him by his actual name?

"Taking on the family business is all my dad has ever wanted me to do! He's been training me to do it since I could talk." Taehyung groaned and leaned back into the couch. "And I never really cared until- now, I guess. Maybe I'm just being dramatic but I feel so pressured that I want nothing to do with anymore! I don't care how much money I'd make-"

"Seriously?! Taehyung, listen to yourself!" Jungkook's eyes widened. "You're probably one of the richest kids at the university! You're super popular with literally everyone, everyone seems to be a sucker for you, you can get whatever and whoever you want with the snap of a finger. How do you not want that life?!" 

Taehyung seemed to be resisting the urge to let his jaw drop to the floor at Jungkook's outrageous statements. "Everyone except you." He muttered and looked away. 

Jungkook frowned. "Everyone except-"

"I can count the amount of friends I have on one hand, Jungkook." He held up a hand, staring at him with a lack of amusement. "Namjoon, Jimin when he isn't with Yoongi, and- shit, I don't know, my baby cousin. Point is, everyone that you think is my friend isn't. They either want to suck the life out of me or my god damned bank account. The wealthy life isn't always a luxurious life. Deal with it, Jungkook."

Jungkook frowned more. "You've been handed everything you could ever want your entire life, why are you so bitter about it?"

"Because I don't ask for it. I don't work for it. I don't deserve any of it. Yet people still think I'm a stuck up brat. You think that, don't you? And you think I'm full of myself, thirsty for attention, nothing but a heartless fuckboy, a kiss-ass. What else am I, Jungkook? Huh?"

Jungkook paled and looked down at his feet, suddenly humiliated. Now he was the one feeling like a heartless piece of shit. 

"I'm an ass to you, sure. I'll give you that, but- It's because I never had anyone teach me how to approach someone. Okay? That's a lousy excuse... but. I'm sorry for making you feel the way I did." Taehyung stood up, closed his laptop, and grabbed his phone.

"Just... talk to me like you would to a normal person?" Jungkook frowned, not entirely understanding. 

"If it were that easy, I wouldn't be in this mess." Taehyung muttered and went into the bedroom. 

Jungkook looked at his hands, hearing the door shut behind Taehyung. The room was now quiet.. too quiet. 

What the hell was that?