04.

on most days, jimin is sunshine. he is fluffy clouds in a clear blue sky, daisies swaying in the fields, the tittering of birds in the wind. he is the cup of warm coffee on a sunday morning, the text at 2 am reading "good night, i love you~", a cool summer breeze in the sweltering heat. jimin shines brighter than anyone, smiles wider than anyone, laughs louder than anyone, and taehyung is right by his side as a close second. jimin is the tinkering melody and taehyung is the smooth harmony as they compose a beautiful song together and send it into the night sky. taehyung will look up from his papers, hair mussed and eyes strained, and upon seeing jimin's comforting smile the stress evaporates into thin air. when their fingers interlace under the table at a family dinner, taehyung thinks he could be the happiest man alive.

"taetae, how much do you love me?"

"i can't tell you."

a look of hurt crosses jimin's features, and taehyung decides that a jimin not smiling isn't jimin at all.

"why not?"

"i could never express with words how much i love you. you're too special for that."

the wounded look is replaced with a pretty blush, and taehyung thinks that's better while leaning over to press a kiss to jimin's forehead.

~

some days, jimin is a storm. he is the angry rash on your skin after brushing against poison ivy, a strike of lightning, a clap of thunder. he is a slap across the cheek, the roar of blood in your ears, the splitting headache from stress. jimin's eyebrows furrow, his lips pursed, arms crossed over his chest protectively. it's the one time jimin will raise his voice so that it carries over anyone else's, steady and strong, prominent. the disappointment is loud but silent, present but not, and it takes him time to forgive because jimin almost never gets disappointed. the understanding, compassionate character disappears for a moment, replaced by a person with no filter, slashing down at whoever and whatever stands in the way.

"honestly, taehyung, how many times have i repeated to text me if you're going to be late when we meet up?"

"i forgot, alright? chill."

the absolute disbelief in jimin's eyes makes taehyung want to swallow down the words he spit out without thinking.

"chill? you want me to chill. pretend everything's okay."

no, i love you, i'm so sorry, please tell me we're okay. but taehyung's mind goes blank from being nervous, and he stands helpless as he goes on incognito mode and says the next thing he thinks of.

"yeah."

there's a broken betrayal radiating from jimin, and taehyung can almost see the wall that builds itself up, agonizing block by agonizing block, until it covers jimin from his sight.

"fine. don't look for me then. i don't want to see you."

taehyung wants to reach out, shout that i didn't mean it, i really didn't, but decides against it and leaves jimin some space to straighten out his thoughts.

~

the rarest of days, jimin is rain. he is glittering tears on cheeks, sobs stuck in the back of your throat, a sad riff on an old, abandoned piano. he is a skittering pebble on the bank of a river, a leaf the shade of sunset floating off its branch, a soft cry for help. he is insecurity, despair, fear. these are the days when jimin is quiet, gazing off into the mountains with a blank look resting on his face, tugging down at the corners of his lips. these are the days when jimin is insecure of every little thing he does, and taehyung will hold him for hours whispering into his ear about how flawless he is, how beautiful he is. most of these days, taehyung will peek into their shared bedroom to find jimin looking vulnerable and exposed in a fetal form, sobbing softly, and he will wordlessly lie down and embrace him until jimin curls into his chest and falls asleep in exhaustion.

"jiminnie, i'm home." taehyung looks around their apartment, his head poking through every door and into every room but finding them quite empty and with lights darkened.

"jiminnie-" he opens the door to their squished bedroom, and on the immaculate white sheets lay jimin, head tucked into his chest and knees hugged tightly, a wave of misery washing over him as his shoulders tremble violently. taehyung holds in all the questions and wraps his arms around jimin's small form and feels jimin shifting on his side to face him.

"it's okay, baby, it's going to be okay. we're going to be okay. i love you." taehyung's voice cracks when he can hear jimin trying to swallow down a particularly loud sob, and tries to hold jimin closer despite there being no more space left, as if being closer and merging into one will make everything alright.

and when jimin looks up with red-rimmed, puffy eyes that speak of lost memories and scattered dreams, tears streaking his cheeks with misplaced hopes and wasted wishes, taehyung can hear his heart shatter into a million pieces. he knows jimin heard it too when he tries to collect together a smile that looks more like a grimace. he feels jimin's warm touch blossoming in his chest, a small hand picking up shards of his heart and piecing it back together like a puzzle.

instead of mustering the courage to show somewhat of a smile, taehyung presses his lips to jimin's, sending messages of comfort, love, warmth and reassurance and jimin receives them eagerly. taehyung thinks jimin tastes like sunshine, like storms, like rain.

jimin tastes like home.