“No.” Jeongguk reprimands.

 

Taehyung lets out a frustrated sigh and pouts.

 

“But we’ve been through six different outfits already!! Taehyung whines.

 

Jeongguk smirks. He sometimes wonders to himself who’s the real elder here.

 

“Yes, and you suggested open-toed sandals and high waisted plaid knee shorts.” He retorts back.

 

Taehyung and Jeongguk had both been invited to a little playdate with their former college friends, Jongin and Kyungsoo.

 

Taehyung stomps his foot and blows a strand of hair out of his eye.

 

He’s such a five year old. Jeongguk thinks and smiles to himself.

 

With a sigh, Jeongguk grabs his keys and spins it around his index finger.

 

“Let’s go.”

 

The elder stares at the umber haired boy wide-eyed waiting for an explanation.

 

“We’re going to buy you some new clothes. Now, let’s go.” He gestures towards the door.

 

“Woo!! Turn up!” Taehyung hoots and hollers and makes his way outside.

 

Jeongguk rolls his eyes and follows closely behind.

 

“Wait! I forgot my wallet!” Taehyung tries to barge back in the door but is stopped when Jeongguk grabs a hold of his bicep.

 

Hm. Firm. Has he been working out?

 

“There’s no need, I’ll shout.” Jeongguk offers and pushes him back out.

 

                        

 

    ***

 

“Damn it Tae, can you not?!”

 

Jeongguk is trying to concentrate on what’s happening on the road rather than the breath that’s fanning his neck.

 

“I don’t understand why you insist on sitting at the back instead of sitting in the passengers seat.” Jeongguk questions.

 

“I have long model legs. They cramp up when I sit in such a tight space.” Taehyung shrugs and kicks back.

 

“Hey?”

 

Jeongguk hums in response.

 

“You’re shouting me today right?”

 

The younger clucks his tongue and smirks.

 

“That’s right.” He sing-songs.

 

Taehyung leans back and closes his eyes.

 

“It’s a date then.” Taehyung teases.

 

Jeongguk smiles.

 

“No, it’s not.” the younger murmurs.

 

“Ooh! Turn it up! Turn it up!” Taehyung yells startling Jeongguk.

 

Jeongguk is prepared to argue but he knows that his ongoing headache isn’t going to ease up any time soon so why the hell not.

 

“Oh, what the hell.” He turns the radio up.

 

MAKING MY WAY DOWNTOWN, WALKING FAST, FACES PASS AND I’M HOME BOUND.

 

Jeongguk internally smiles to himself at the boys childishness.  

 

STARING BLANKLY AHEAD JUST MAKING MY WAY, MAKING MY WAY THROUGH THE CROWDDDDDDDDDDDDD.

 

“Jesus! Tone it down a little!”

 

“IT’S YOUR VERSE jEONGGUK!”

 

“MARY MAGDALENE, I WILL DROP YOU SO HAR-!”

 

“5, 4”

 

“I WILL STRADDLE YOU TO THE ING CHAI-”

 

“3, 2, 1!”

 

“IF I COULD FALL INTO THE SKYYY, DO YOU THINK TIME WOULD PASS ME BY. CAUSE YOU KNOW I’D WALK A THOUSAND MILES IF I COULD JUST SEE YOU-

 

TONIGHT” they chorus facing each other and their fits of laughter along with the blaring radio is enough to drown out the endless honking from the other cars.

 

         ***

 

 

“You sure you don’t want biscotti? It’s your favourite flavour?” Jeongguk questions.

 

“No, I’m sure. I want to try something new.” He flashes a blinding box smile and Jeongguk is positive it had suddenly increased fifty degrees because it could not get any more impossibly hot behind his ears.

 

“Well alright then, but don’t ask me for any of mine later.” He warns.

 

“I won’t.” Taehyung assures him.

 

The ice cream parlour is diner themed with a jukebox and employees making bee-lines to and fro on roller skates.

 

“erm….” Taehyung bites his lip scanning his options.

 

Jeongguk is getting more fed up by the minute and he’s sure the employee is about to to lose it as well.

 

“Ahah! I’ll take the vanilla malt with the peanut pretzels please.”

 

Jeongguk’s face brightens.

 

Finally. For s sake.

 

“wAIT NO, I’M ALLERGIC TO PEANUTS!”

 

aaaand were back to square one.

 

“erm…-”

 

“He’ll have the english toffee.” Jeongguk announces to the cashier.

 

“What? I don’t wan-”

 

“He’ll have the english toffee.” Jeongguk reiterates glaring at the elder.

 

Taehyung is sure he sees the cashier giggle to herself.

 

“Today, were offering an extra two scoop cone as a special for couples.”

 

“Oh no miss were no-”

 

Whatever Taehyung has to say dies on his tongue as Jeongguk positively latches himself onto Taehyung, arm hooped through arm.

 

Jeongguk is sure Taehyung’s jaw has dropped to the floor and smiles to himself as he sees his cheeks tint a pretty scarlet.

 

So cute. Jeongguk bites back a grin.

 

“In that case, we’ll have an extra cone with a strawberry cheesecake scoop and a chunky monkey.”  

 

             ***

 

Taehyung takes another nibble and sets his spoon down. Jeongguk quirks an eyebrow.

 

“Why aren’t you eating?”

 

Taehyung shrugs.

 

“I’m not hungry.”

 

Jeongguk scoffs.

 

“You’re the one who suggested coming here to eat.”

 

“And I’ve eaten enough. Can we just drop it?” Taehyung huffs in annoyance.

 

Jeongguk feels a tinge of hurt. Never before had Taehyung spoken to him in such a bitter manner. Yes, it wasn’t anything major but it was something Jeongguk had never experienced before when it came to the outgoing and talkative elder.

 

Bipolar much.

 

“Well, alright then.”

 

They spend the next couple of minutes in silence picking at their ice cream.

 

Jeongguk loses his appetite as well.

 

        ***

 

Jeongguk doesn’t know how they ended up at the library or who suggested it.

What matters now is the tension that still lingers in the air between them.

Taehyung doesn’t seem affected in the least but he isn’t talking or looking at Jeongguk whereas the younger is awkward and tense and can’t take his eyes off the other, watching his every move from across the table. As if he's a ticking time bomb.Taehyung sighs.

 

“Can you stop acting as if I’m on my period?” he glances up at him, irritatedly.

 

Jeongguk glues his eyes back to his book and gulps.

 

"Sorry." He mutters.

 

Jeongguk’s eyes find themselves resting on Taehyung’s features once again. The younger doesn’t remember exactly when the elder started to rapidly mature. All he knows now is

 

God damn, is he fine.

 

Taehyung’s hair is now dyed a simple bistre shade and Jeongguk reminisces back to their pre-debut days when it was the perfect shade of cotton candy and how stupid and absurd it sounded for a seventeen year old with pink hair. I would pay to see that again. He remembers everything clearly as if it was just yesterday. Right up when they first met and Taehyung had insisted that he was able to his elbow and ended up dislocating his shoulder. When he gave a to Jin. When they went to a sauna together and Taehyung slipped on some of the snow. When Taehyung asked him to be his boyfriend. The boy had yet again to no ones surprise pulled yet another ligament after karaoke (only you taehyung, only you) and was leaning on the shorter male for support. They had stopped by a vending machine before he mustered up all his courage and asked Jeongguk to be his boyfriend. Rather lamely, he must add. It was three in the morning, they were both exhausted but to Jeongguk, it was perfect. Despite the lame proposal, Jeongguk knew Taehyung was still a little hung over the soju he overdosed on at the karaoke bar and so pushed the confession off as the drunk fell asleep and assumed he had probably meant it as a joke.

 

Jeongguk can’t stop the fond grin that splits his face and his train of thought is interrupted once he realizes Taehyung isn't sitting across from him anymore. Panickedly, he stands up and frantically looks around and let's out a sigh when he sees a tall figure browsing the non-fiction section.

 

He flips open his book to a random page and pretends to be reading once he sees him making his way back to the table. As Taehyung flips open the front page, a name sticks out to him.

 

Jeon Jeongguk

 

He then realizes the book keeps a record of the people who have borrowed it.

 

"You've borrowed this?"

 

Jeongguk squints.

 

"Oh, yeah, I've read it" He recognises.

 

Taehyung nods and turns his attention back to the book. He skims and flips through the pages and Jeongguk's eyes can't help but to recognise the fluoro highlighter graffitied onto a series of random pages and he positively yelps and leaps across the table grabbing ahold of the book and startling the elder male. The librarian furrows her eyebrows and glares at the two.

 

"Jeongguk? What the ?" Taehyung chastises.

 

"You can't read this book."

 

"Ooh. Okay. So I can't choose my own outfits, I can't choose my own ice cream and now I can't read a book."

 

"That's not it-"

 

"For s sake, stop babying me!" Taehyung slams his hands on the table and stands up gaining the attention of the others in the library.

 

"Taehyung-"

 

"Nonono Jeongguk, it's my turn to speak. You have been hauling me around the entire day making my decisions for me and you have been a condescending stubborn little . Rolling your eyes, huffing and cursing under your breath? You think I don't notice that? I have been for the past six years and you know, it hurts. But what's worse is that I don't hate it. No no, I love it. And that's not sarcasm, I love you, Jeon Jeongguk. I love the way you get foam on your upper lip when you drink your favorite macchiato, I love the way you go down the stairs starting with your right foot, I love the way you scrunch up your nose when the hairdresser brushes the stray bristles of hair off your forehead. But what I do hate is that you take advantage of it. You've known I've liked you since that night at the vending machine yet you still string me along for as long as I've known you. And when I'm convinced I can finally forget about you, you give me just enough to keep me on the hook. Wait, no what was that you pulled at the parlour? Yeah, I'd like to know. So after six years of blatantly ignoring how I felt, you thought the perfect time to acknowledge my feelings was when you were offered free ice cream? But really, it doesn’t matter. None of it does. It’s all pointless, because at the end of the day, it’s not mutual.”

 

By the time he finishes, he realizes his breathing is shallow, he feels light headed and there are remnants of tears lining his eyes. Jeongguk on the other hand looks relatively calm as he sighs and stands up, face to face with the elder. He takes out the book tucked under his arm and hands it back over to the other and gestures for him to open it. Taehyung quirks an eyebrow in question but hesitantly opens it when Jeongguk urges him further.

 

Scrawled along multiple pages in different colours of fluoro highlighter is Taehyung’s own name surrounded by love hearts that look like they’ve been drawn by a nine year old girl and he looks up at the younger. Confusion is written all over his features so Jeongguk explains.

 

“Taehyung, if you think for one second that I’ve never held any feelings for you. Maybe you’re not seeing the whole picture.”

 

“This,” he nods towards the book “is a book I borrowed years ago.”

 

“And this,” he motions at the highlighter “was graffitied by a premature fifteen year old boy who had, no has a dumb crush on another seventeen year old boy who likes to give s upon first impressions, dyes his hair different shades of popsicle and who, I cannot stress enough, is incredibly clumsy.”

 

Out of a sudden moment of boldness, the younger takes a hold of the others hand and takes a shaky breath and Taehyung can feel his hands trembling.

“Taehyung, I’ve loved you for as long as I can remember and you’re a dumb er if you think otherwise.” Jeongguk concludes.

 

“And if the proposal is still present, then yes, I’d love to be your boyfriend.”. Jeongguk grins.

 

Taehyung for a second thought he’d suffocate for holding such a long breath and tears yet again start to brim in the corners of his eyes as he re-adjusts their hands and laces their fingers together. He leans forward and pecks the others cheek and hangs his head low in embarrassment. Jeongguk stands rooted and he’s sure he’s on cloud nine right about now. The older sniffs and smiles a crooked smile and Jeongguk wonders how he can still look so perfect donning a pink nose and puffy eyes.

 

Taehyung pulls them both down and they sit, side by side, legs overlapping and fingers locked in comfortable silence as Jeongguk leans his head on the older’s shoulder.

 

“Jeongguk?” the older speaks up.

 

“Hm.”

 

“We still haven’t bought my clothes.”

 

“How about tomorrow?”

 

Jeongguk’s response is immediate; almost bold and Taehyung grins.

 

“So it’s a date.” Taehyung coos.

 

“Yeah,”

 

Jeongguk looks at the other.

 

“It is.”