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"Is he still not talking to you?" Ten asked.
"Nope," I said, trying to keep my tone even. Ten raised his eyebrows questioningly, and I sighed. "He's not even opening the door now, and I've been sitting here for twenty minutes."
It was true. I had been parked on a stool outside Hyunjin's door for a good while, and though I had been assured many times that he would go back to being normal in some time, my patience was wearing thin. I had told myself a hundred times that this wasn't anything new, that his words shouldn't be having any effect on me, but I couldn't help the flaming guilt I had felt after our very one-sided conversation. I didn't understand why exactly that was—I didn't usually get affected by people's opinions of me often, but I hadn't behaved like myself when he had yelled at me. Usually, I could be as biting with my words as he could.
Maybe it was because he was my brother—which didn't make sense. Although I hated it, Hyunjin had been spot on in some places. I barely knew him, and the only reason I even knew he existed was because of the racers. Then why did I care so much?
"He is your brother after all," Taehyung said, as if he'd read my thoughts. He had appeared out of nowhere, making Ten jumped, but I was used to his sporadic entrances. "Siblings can be difficult at times. I would know, mine betrayed the whole fucking gang."
I smiled a little at that, leaning the heels of my palms into the edge of the seat. Having Taehyung and Jinyoung back had seemed like a daunting prospect at first, but now that they were actually here, it wasn't as bad as it had seemed. After being exposed to Jinyoung's oblivious commentary, Jennie had softened around the edges, and Taehyung's inappropriate but apt sense of humor even managed to make Yeeun smile when she was in attendance. In a way, I realized I had missed this about Seoul—not the danger part, but the group dynamics. It reminded me why I had chosen to join the racers in the first place.
"I'm surprised that you weren't surprised to hear that," I said, turning towards him slightly, the tips of my fingers working around the plastic edge of the stool. "Aren't you, I don't know, thirsty for revenge or anything?"
"He didn't take anything of mine, so no, not really." Taehyung shrugged. He was wearing a bomber jacket and repainted camo pants. A thin silver chain hung around his neck, and he rolled it around the pads of his forefinger and thumb, smiling roguishly. "Besides, you wouldn't have been surprised at the news either, if you'd grown up with him. Shady gay fucker."
"Homophobic ass," I muttered, rolling my eyes, though I knew he didn't mean it. Ten coughed and excused himself. I knew he didn't like being around the old crowd, but I noticed his smile as he left.
"I'm not homophobic," Taehyung said, cocking an eyebrow. His tongue ran over his lower lip, a muscle visible in his cheek. I scrunched my nose up, thinking it would be weird, since we had kissed once, but nothing happened. He closed his lips with a tilt to his mouth. "Just saying it like it is—he was shady, gay, and a fucker."
