Dearest Hope || Completed

Euphoria

Life was perfect.

Well, nearly.

Taehyung just lived with his uncle and aunt. He had grown slightly closer to the old lady, but to him, his uncle didn't exist anymore. His uncle didn't try talking to him either.

There were occasional letters from his parents, but there didn't seem to be any indication of their return in the near future. Taehyung was content in the assurance that they were safe, and would return.

Hoseok was an angel. Taehyung found that, despite his uncle's clear displeasure, he spent more time outside than at home. Most of that time was in Hoseok's company.

Some days they would take long walks, exploring the city on foot, picking out favourite places where they would return at a later date. Tae had taken to photography with a Polaroid he had bought recently. But most of the pictures were of Hoseok- his heart-shaped smile, his lively eyes, his ever happy demeanour, that one time when he had been gazing up at the clouds, deeply immersed in his own thoughts. The younger kept all these pictures in a folder which he hoped to someday compile into an album.

Sometimes they went to the amusement park and Hoseok rode the roller coasters just so he could sit beside Taehyung and watch that box smile and that look of utter joy on his face.

Sometimes they just spent hours in a random café, talking, joking, laughing, having the time of their lives.

Once, Hoseok took Tae to his and Jimin's dance studio. He had taken up an internship with a famous dance instructor. It had always been his dream to become a professional dancer, and maybe perform for his nation. He wanted to show Tae the studio he loved working in so much. They spent a long time there. Hoseok insisted upon teaching Tae some dance moves, and he was pleasantly astonished at the amount of agility and grace the younger showed. It was wonderful.

Sometimes, with increasing frequency in the past couple of weeks, Tae found himself in Hoseok's house. The senior's parents were always very welcoming towards him, and he slowly grew very fond of them. Hoseok had an older sister too, who was in a university abroad, but when she came home for her holidays, she made sure to bring something special for Tae. They grew close too and she was like the sister he never had.

When they would spend time in Hoseok's home, they would watch movies, play board games or just lounge about, eating, talking, reading. Hoseok's father had an enormous library, where the boys had unrestrained access to everything. Tae loved it there, sitting curled up beside his best friend, reading a book for hours on end. He had lost track of the number of books he had read there. Sometimes, while Taehyung was reading, Hoseok would get up, put on some music and begin practising some dance moves. On such days, Tae just sat and stared at his talented senior, the book lying forgotten on his lap. Sometimes he would sing with the music system, and Hoseok would stop dancing, just to listen to him.

In Hoseok's family, Tae had found the home that was taken away when news of his parents' plane disappearance arrived. He found the home that his uncle and aunt had failed to give him. He found the home that he had refused when he had shunned Jimin and his family. With Hoseok's family, he finally felt like he belonged.

***

It was a rainy day, and like the sky, Taehyung's mood too, was gloomy. There hadn't been any news from his parents for nearly two weeks now, and because of the downpour, he hadn't been able to meet Hoseok or any of his friends. It was too dangerous to go outside alone, and school had declared a holiday for a week due to the bad weather. That day, however, the sky had lightened considerably, and he was debating on whether going to Hoseok's house would be worth it. He shrugged, grabbed a raincoat, and walked out of the house.