Sassy (ON HOLD)

Chapter 4

*Taehyung pov*
It was finally lunch time and I couldn't be more happy. In some classes we aren't learning any content until next week but I have a few teachers that want to get right into the lessons.

"You guys want to eat outside again?" I asked Mark and Jackson.

They both nodded their heads and headed towards the cafeteria to get food. I went with them but for some reason, I don't have much of an appetite today. I just grabbed a bottle of water and waited at the side for my friends. They grabbed their food and we started walking to the field. Once we were outside, we noticed that we were actually alone this time and we sat in our same spot from yesterday. I plopped on the soft grass and opened my water bottle before I took a sip. Jackson and Mark were talking to each other while I just looked up at the sky. It was a beautiful blue with the bright sun shining down. It wasn't hot but breezy. It was just the perfect temperature so I wasn't really hot in the sweater I was wearing. I breathed out in satisfaction before I laid back on the grass. I heard Mark and Jackson stop talking before I felt them lay at my sides. I smiled to myself before relaxing some more.

"Hey guys?" I heard Jackson ask softly after a while.

"Yeah Jackson?" I heard Mark say on the right side of me.

"Just promise me that whatever happens this year, we stick together. Whether that be rumors or it doesn't work out with our crushes, let's not leave each other" Jackson said sincerely.

I sat up and stared down at him. He had tears forming in his eyes but he didn't let them fall. I looked at him and my eyes started to water. Jackson rarely gets sentimental like this so I took what he said to heart. I didn't even realize I was crying until I felt someone's hand on my face. I looked up and noticed Mark now sitting in front of me with Jackson next to him. My tears kept falling at a rapid rate and I didn't even try to stop them. They pulled me into a group hug and I cried harder.

"I-I'll n-never l-leave y-you g-guys. I-I love y-you t-too m-much" I managed to choke out between my sobs.

I heard Jackson start crying and I looked up. Mark was crying silently while Jackson was sobbing like me. I held out my pinkies shakily to both of my best friends. They didn't say anything but connected their pinkies with mine. They then connected pinkies with each other before we all sealed our promise with our thumbs. We let go and I still continued to cry. I didn't even care at this point if I looked bad. I was just emotional by what Jackson said. Maybe it's also something more than that....

"We have to go to class soon" Mark said softly while rubbing my arm softly.

I didn't make a move to get up and just continued crying into my hands. I heard Mark and Jackson get off the ground before someone picked me up. I clung to them like a koala with my legs wrapped around his waist and my arms around his neck.

"It's okay Tae" the person I now know as Mark whispered soothingly in my ear.

I just closed my eyes and tried to get myself to stop crying. We started walking back into the building and my tears were finally starting to slow down but they were still falling down my face. I felt Mark stop and I opened my eyes confusingly.

"Why did we stop?" I whispered since my throat was extremely dry.

"Jackson... they're going to ask what's wrong since I'm pretty sure all 3 of us look a mess right now" Mark said to Jackson while also answering my question.

"Well maybe if we just keep our heads down and act like we didn't see them, we can get in the building without answering any questions" Jackson said but he sounded unsure of himself.

"Is it our crushes? I probably look terrible" I said out loud so that Mark and Jackson could hear me.

"Don't talk bad about yourself Tae. You'll always look beautiful" I heard Jackson say before he started to stroke my head soothingly.

I lifted my head and gave him a soft smile. He smiled back at me and I noticed how red his eyes were. I looked up at Mark and noticed how red his eyes were too. I looked behind me and noticed the same 8 boys sitting in the same spots as yesterday. I got nervous and quickly put my head back on Mark's shoulder, making myself comfortable.

"Let's go" Jackson said out loud.

I felt Mark nod before we started walking again. I felt like we were near the boys because I could hear them talking to each other. I turned my head into the crook of Mark's neck so that they wouldn't be able to see my face.

"Hey Mark!!" I heard someone yell before Mark froze.

I opened my eyes and subtly looked where the voice came from. It was from a boy that I was assuming named Jinyoung because I saw him sitting there yesterday. Mark didn't look over but instead looked at Jackson.

"What do we do?" I heard Mark ask while looking at Jackson to his right.

"I don't know. It's your crush calling you" Jackson said while looking around Mark.

I heard Mark sigh before he turned and walked to the boys. I looked behind Mark and saw Jackson following with his head down. I panicked because I didn't want any of them to see me this weak. My eyes watered again at the thought and before I knew it, silent tears were already streaming down my face. I sniffled lightly and Jackson looked up at me. His eyes held worry but he didn't have time to do anything because we already stopped again. I started to panic and Jackson could see that. I started to cry harder but no sound was coming out. I needed to get out of here.

*3rd person pov*
All the boys were smiling when they got the attention of the 3 beauties. They were slightly confused as to why Mark was carrying Taehyung but didn't question it. The 3 boys walked over with their heads down and that's when the boys became slightly worried. They stood in front of them but they never looked up.

"Hey Mark" Jinyoung said trying to gain his attention but Mark still didn't look up.

JB looked behind Mark subtly and noticed Jackson standing there. He noticed his slightly red eyes and became worried.

"Are all of you okay?" JB asked while looking directly at Jackson.

Jackson looked up for a moment before his eyes watered again. JB stood up and was about to go over to him before his attention turned towards a squirming Taehyung. All the boys looked at Taehyung squirming in Mark's hold with worry and confusion. Jackson's eyes widened before he went up to Mark to whisper in his ear.

"He's panicking Mark. You need to put him down" Jackson said making Mark look up.

He turned towards Jackson and then looked down at the squirming Taehyung.

"I'm scared he might run away" Mark said while looking at Jackson.

"We'll go after him. Just put him down Mark" Jackson said with his voice wavering from looking at his panicked friend.

Mark looked at Jackson before looking down at Taehyung one last time. Taehyung looked up at Mark and Mark felt like his heart clenching at the sight of his vulnerable friend. He has a feeling why Taehyung is acting like this and slowly put him down. Taehyung landed on the ground softly before he looked at his 2 friends. He had a red nose and red cheeks from all the crying he was doing. His eyes were bloodshot and he was hiccuping. He turned towards the boys on the bleachers and instantly regretted it. They all looked at him wide eyed and he started to tear up more. He turned back towards his friends with quivering lips.

"I-I t-told y-you I l-look l-like a-a m-mess. T-they w-won't e-ever l-like m-me" Taehyung whispered to his friends while wiping his rapidly falling tears.

Mark and Jackson tried to walk towards him but he instantly backed away. He stared at them for a moment before he turned around and ran away.

"TAEHYUNG!!" Mark and Jackson shouted after him.

They didn't even spare the boys a glance before they ran after him. The boys on the bleachers sat there in shock for a moment before they snapped out of it and ran after them.

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Hey guys!! If you're confused, I'll explain it briefly for you. Taehyung is basically insecure about himself and how he looks in the eyes of others. He isn't all the time but he has his moments. He also hates it when people other than his friends or family see him being vulnerable. He's just a little bean that needs protecting 🥺

Until next time~
~Author A✨