Home (Taehyung x BTS)

3

All of Taehyung's time was spent at home with his friends. 

At least one of them stayed home with him so that he wouldn't be alone (and because the fear of losing him was still strong in all their hearts). Today, Yoongi stayed home and spent quality time with him. 

Yoongi sat on the couch with Taehyung in his lap, occasionally pressing light kisses to the younger's shoulder. They didn't do much; they mainly stayed in that position all day. 

It reminded Taehyung of his coma. 

"Hyung, I have to tell you something." 

Yoongi hummed and leaned his head back enough to look at the younger. Taehyung took in a deep, yet shaky, breath. "When I was in the hospital, I had this...dream, I guess? It was more like an alternate dimension. But all of you were in it, and all of you died." 

The older man squeezed Taehyung's thigh, a silent signal for him to continue. 

"And, and you and I...we got married. But you got really sick because before we met, you were an alcoholic." 

Taehyung whined at the memory, bringing one hand up to wipe his tears. "I h-had to watch you...die. I-I don't wanna...I...hyung!" 

He collapsed onto Yoongi's chest, vice-like grip on his shoulders as he cried. The older man let him cry, absently rubbing his back while he reflected on the past few months. 

Yoongi knew why Taehyung opened up to him about this; the others would have brushed it off, but this actually applied to them in some way. 

It was odd that what happened in Taehyung's dream was actually happening to Yoongi, and that scared the older man to death. He wanted to live a long, cancer-free life; he wanted to get old on his own terms. 

"Taehyung," he muttered, lips pressed against the younger's head, "Look at me, babe." 

Taehyung lifted his tear-stained face to peer into Yoongi's eyes. The older man gave a warm, close-lipped smile as he brushed Taehyung's messy hair out of his face. "I promise I'll stop, okay? I'll never let that happen to me, to you."

He let the younger kiss him, eyes fluttering shut to savor the moment between them. When they parted, Taehyung sat up a bit, resting his head on top of Yoongi's. "I love you, hyung." 

Usually, Yoongi would make Taehyung beg him to say it back, but now wasn't the time for such games. Instead, he buried his face in Taehyung's chest and sighed. "I love you too, Taehyung."

-------

"Baby?" Namjoon muttered, finding Taehyung curled up in his bed. 

The boy was laying motionless, facing away from the door. The only way that Namjoon knew he was alive was from the flat, miserable tone in his voice when he spoke. 

"I remembered something."

Namjoon took off his shoes and walked over to his bed; he was never one for cuddling, so he instead sat down on the edge, one hand resting on the younger's hip. "Talk to me, Tae."

Taehyung relaxed under Namjoon's touch, but just slightly. He took a deep breath in and let it out. "I don't remember exactly why I jumped or what led up to it, but I remember how I felt for months. I-I felt..." 

He sniffled, causing Namjoon to give him a reassuring pat. "I felt so...lifeless, hyung. Like everyone else was moving and I was paralyzed. I remember crying alone, then eventually I couldn't c-cry anymore. I-it's like I was in space. I h-hated it."

Namjoon took a deep breath in, counted to ten, then slowly let it back out, counting down from ten as he went. He leaned down, chin resting on Taehyung's arm. 

He had no words of comfort, nothing. How could he say anything when he didn't know what to say? 

Now that he reflected on that period of time, he realized that Taehyung was often stuck in his own head. He never smiled or spoke, and he never cuddled anyone at night. Taehyung was like a shell of the man he once was. 

Maybe if he realized this sooner, Namjoon could have prevented this.