anathema. ✓

two

[ may 6, 20 ; present ]

"i wrote a song for you, taehyungie."

taehyung cocked his head to one side, a wide grin spreading across his features as he turned on his side to face the smaller boy. he let out a soft hum. his fingers reached out to tap jeongguk's chin, ever so lightly.

"yeah, baby?" he asked, voice husky from slumber. the morning light bathed over the boys' skin in a golden light. "what's it called?"

jeongguk's eyes were shut. a soft and slow breath slipped past parted lips. "it's called 'euphoria', and i thought about you the whole time i wrote it." his eyes blinked open, and he spared a quick glance in taehyung's direction before returning his attention to the ceiling. the ceiling fan creaked every second, which created a steady rhythm that distracted taehyung from almost all other thoughts.

"like the one you already wroteㅡhow long ago was it? a year or two?" taehyung asked. it was true; a year or so ago, jeongguk had come to him with a crumpled up piece of paper, the edges a bit torn but the writing as neat as the younger could get it.

it was a lovely song, taehyung cried each time he read it, but jeongguk never seemed to pleased with it. the boy mentioned spending hours on it, sneaking out of bed at night to work on it and not worry the older. even after weeks of writing and perfecting it, jeongguk had told taehyung that this was the best he could do.

his best was more than perfect for jeongguk's boyfriend. taehyung did all he could to get a recording session from even a small company. he scrounged up money, made thousands of offers, and even went begging on the streets just to get someone to take an interest in 'euphoria'. it was going to be taehyung's birthday present to jeonggukㅡthe beginning to his dreams coming true.

however, it didn't end up coming true. taehyung had doors shut in his face, and only ended up spending the money he worked so hard for to pay for the medicine that he needed to cure the cold he caught from standing out in the rain.

none of that mattered at the moment. it was the past, and jeongguk didn't need to know about hurdles taehyung did his best to jump just to help his boyfriend out. this new song, this new version of 'euphoria', could be the younger's new and fresh start.

a much better beginning than the one he was given.

jeongguk's eyebrows knitted together. "i already wrote a song called 'euphoria'?" the ravenette asked, confusion laced throughout his quiet tone, much to taehyung's surprise. "are you sure? the lyrics must be different, if i already wrote one, right?"

taehyung shrugged his shoulders. "i'm one thousand percent sure. and the lyrics must surely be differentㅡit would be extremely funny if you did write the same song over again."

the younger grunted and pushed himself up into a sitting position. he reached over to the bedside table. taehyung heard the sound of paper crinkling, the sounds of jeongguk flattening out the paper to make it look more presentable for the brunette boy.

when he was handed the paper, though, he immediately took a quick glance at jeongguk, who was shyly scratching at the back of his neck. he shook his head to clear his mind and squinted at the words again. the words were exactly the same, andㅡtaehyung could have swornㅡthe torn edges were the same.

was taehyung losing his mind?

no, this wasn't possible. he had likely just dreamed about earning the song from the younger and it came true. it didn't explain the long nights spent searching for a record label to take jeongguk in, but there was no other explanation for this.

"you silly." taehyung let out an awkward laugh and set the paper down next to him on the bed. "this is the exact same song."

he ignored jeongguk's frown. perhaps he had just imagined it all, or that it was all a dream. either way, he had upset the boy with his words. he would need to take it back soon. jeongguk was very sensitive, and taehyung didn't take kindly to hurting his boyfriend's feelings.

"i'm just... messing with you, ggukie," taehyung forced out, giving jeongguk a playful punch to the shoulder. the boy's pout didn't leave. his eyes were focused on the window across from their bed, watching as life went on around outside them. "come on, baby, don't give me the silent treatment like this."

the boy in question shook his head. without another word, he left the bedroom, shuffling past the crowded mess and making his way into the living area. the sound of the sofa creaking was audible from down the hall.

taehyung took in a deep breath, before letting it out in a long, slow sigh. he would have to go after him eventually, but he needed to give the younger time first. after spending years with him, taehyung knew better than to bombard jeongguk with apologies when the latter was mad at him.

taehyung kicked his feet in frustration after a few minutes. they thumped against the bed silently before coming to a stop, his heels just barely hanging over the edge. he couldn't wait any longerㅡit was time to apologize to jeongguk, even if he wasn't quite ready for it.

the paint of the hallway only seemed to crinkle and give out a bit more at the touch of taehyung's fingertips, but he found it satisfying. jeongguk found it ugly, anyway. his footsteps creaked with each step. usually, jeongguk would have heard by now and told him to stay away, to leave him alone.

but the boy was now sitting silently on the couch, his hands crossed over his lap as if he were posing for a picture. his eyes remained focused on the small and rickety television, where a small bug crawled over the screen.

it wasn't until taehyung killed the bug with an uttered 'fuck' that jeongguk snapped out of his trance.

"taehyungie," the boy said. his usual smile distracting taehyung from all other thoughts, leaving him to focus on jeongguk and jeongguk only. "i forgive you. want to see if any good shows are on?"

taehyung was just glad that he was forgiven.

1,060 words