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Identify Me (ON TEMPORARY HOLD UNTIL "THE OUTCAST CLUB" IS FINISHED)
2 | BIRTHDAY WISH
A week had flown by, and the band of friends had begun the countdown to liberation. Taehyung could almost taste it.
At an ungodly hour on December 29th, he was awakened with sharp kicks against his mattress once again.
“C’mon hyung…” Taehyung mumbled, each syllable filled with sleepiness. “…Stop kicking the bed…”
“Do you hear this kid?” Yoongi’s voice was dripping with sarcasm.
“Ah, seriously…”
Wait, was that voice… Jimin?
“Upsy-daisy,” a familiar voice mused as he was pulled up into a sitting position. He pried his eyes open and could vaguely make out a flash of light illuminating three very equally-familiar faces.
Taehyung rubbed his bleary eyes and yawned widely. “Jung…kook? Urgh…. Jimin? Why are you guys here?”
The three shared a look with each other before Yoongi replied.
“Because it’s your birthday, smartass.”
“…What? My birthday is tomorrow…” His head nodded off, eyes closing drowsily.
“Ohmygod,” Yoongi grumbled as Jimin and Jungkook chuckled. “Whatever. Let’s just start.”
The three began to sing the happy birthday song very quietly, making Taehyung’s sanity return with every word.
“Happy birthday dear Taehyung, happy birthday to you!”
There was a silence as Taehyung scratched his head.
“…What time is it?”
“Ohmygod.” He heard Yoongi repeat a second time as Jungkook laughed again. “It’s 11:56, hyung. Four minutes until your birthday.”
“Really?” The fact that he would be able to leave Gapsun Orphanage in just a few hours made his heart leap, shaking him to sanity. Excitement sparked in his eyes as he grinned.
“Where’s my cake and candle?”
“Aigoo, aigoo,” Yoongi poked Taehyung’s head with his fingers. “Here’s your damn cake,” he tossed something into his palms. “And do you seriously think we’d have access to a lighter?”
“What is this?” Taehyung felt the packaging. Jimin shone his flashlight on it and Taehyung tried his best not to laugh.
“A choco-pie?”
Jimin grinned, “It was Yoongi hyung’s idea.”
“Well I’m sorry that we don’t live in the richest orphanage. This place is like hell on Earth, so be grateful I even found that.”
Taehyung could almost envision the redness of Yoongi’s ears.
“No, no, I like it. It’s great. It’s very… Yoongi,” Taehyung mused as Jimin and Jungkook snickered quietly. “But shouldn’t I make a wish at least? And you can’t make a wish without a candle.”
“Oh for Pete’s sake—here!” Yoongi stuck out his pinky finger in front of Taehyung’s lips.
“Err… hyung? What are you doing?” Jungkook looked equally as baffled.
Jimin stifled his laughter, “I think all the punishments from the Director have gotten to his head.”
“Shut up, you two,” Yoongi hissed. “Do you want to blow out the candle or not? A finger’s the closest thing we have.”
Jungkook and Jimin shared a glance before grinning, “Alright, play along. Make a wish hyung. Hurry – it’s 11:59!”
Taehyung clasped his hands together and closed his eyes tight.
I hope that wherever we all are, whenever we graduate from this place, we’ll all be happy.
And with one huff, he blew the ‘candle’ out.
Jimin pointed the flashlight to the clock on the wall, “Twelve ‘o clock on the dot, hyung! Happy birthday!”
“Maybe we should’ve waited until after 12. I heard your wish doesn’t come true if you make it before your birthday,” Jungkook noted, head leaned against his palms.
“That’s a load of BS. Of course it’ll come true.” Yoongi assured. “Now get back to your room, you two. Deans will be patrolling the place in fifteen minutes.”
“How do you know?” Jimin raised an eyebrow suspiciously.
“Don’t question my methods. Now shoo, scram.” Yoongi waved them off. Jungkook and Jimin reluctantly left, but not before giving Taehyung a firm pat on the back. “We’ll see you in the morning, hyung. Happy birthday again!”
When the door shut, Taehyung scratched his head, “Are the Deans really patrolling in fifteen minutes?”
“Nah, that’s BS, too. Jungkook and Jimin would’ve been here all night if I didn’t tell ‘em to leave.” Yoongi smirked as Taehyung laughed, “Of course you’d do that.”
Yoongi sat on the floor while Taehyung sat on his mattress. It was silent for a few minutes before Yoongi suddenly stood up, “Oh. You didn’t see outside yet, right?”
Taehyung grew curious. “Why? What’s outside—” He instantly grew quiet as he saw the winter wonderland beyond the window. As snowflakes gently fell, Taehyung was reminded of the days when he was a Primary, pressing his nose against the glass, mesmerized by the beauty of the first snowfall of each passing year.
“Fancy that. It doesn’t snow on Christmas, but it snows on your birthday. Pretty damn wicked, if I do say so myself.” Yoongi whistled.
“Uh-huh,” Taehyung’s voice trailed off, unable to look away from the window. Yoongi studied Taehyung’s expression that seemed almost bittersweet and grew quiet.
“…I wonder if Namjoon hyung, Seokjin hyung, and Hoseok hyung are watching this, too.” Taehyung murmured under his breath.
Yoongi rested his palm against his head, leaning it against the windowsill. “Who knows? If they’re in Korea at all, they’re probably sleeping peacefully somewhere. Maybe they don’t even care to remember us. They said they would visit and write to us, but they never did, anyway.”
“Don’t be negative, hyung. Maybe they’re just busy.”
“It’s been years, Taehyung. Years since we’ve seen them. Namjoon and Seokjin hyung graduated early nearly 3 years ago. Hobi was just last year.”
“But that doesn’t mean they forgot us for good,” Taehyung replied. “When I leave, I don’t think I’ll ever forget this place.”
“Hah, I’ll be glad to forget this hellhole the second I walk past those iron gates. I bet most of the stuff they do here isn’t even legal.”
“How do you know? We’ve grown up here all our lives, so you wouldn’t even have anywhere else to compare it to.” Taehyung teased.
“Be that as it may,” Yoongi said, “You’ve gotta admit that this place is fishy. When I leave, I’m gonna get to the bottom of it, no matter what.”
Taehyung laughed, “I guess it’s my duty to help you then, hm?”
“Be my guest,” Yoongi grinned.
Another blanket of silence covered the atmosphere as Taehyung leaned against the wall. “Hey… hyung?”
“Hm?”
“Regardless of whether we get adopted or we’re given the freedom to leave, let’s go together, okay?”
“Obviously. We’re best friends after all – no, you’re practically my brother,” Yoongi snorted. “I’m not gonna pull a Namjoon-Seokjin-Hoseok and go my own way without ever contacting you again.”
“Seriously, give it a rest,” Taehyung laughed as he wiped his tears away.
Yoongi genuinely smiled as he looked at him. “Well… Who knows? We might be roommates again, but in our own apartment – not kicked around like dogs here.”
“That’s true.”
“Now let’s go to bed,” Yoongi dusted off his pajama pants. “Today’s gonna be an eventful day.”
*
For the last time, Taehyung found himself standing in front of his bathroom mirror.
This is it, he thought. This is the last time I’ll wear these horrible clothes that I wore for the past 18 years.
Taehyung pensively probed his hoodie with soiled fingers, smoothing out the name that was stitched onto it. At once, a tornado of foreign memories seemed to attack for precedence in his mind. Memories of lying back on his lumpy mattress that he gradually got used to, dreaming of the day he would get to see the outside world, crying himself to sleep to forget the pain, and late night talks with Yoongi and the others flashed before his eyes.
Taehyung wasn’t sure what the outside world entailed, and although a bit afraid, he was sure that anything would be a wonderful place compared to this.
Finally, he would be part of a world with no punishments, no impersonal ranks, and no Deans spitting on the ground he walked on. No longer would he have to endure long nights of the Director locking him up in the punishment room for no reason at 3:00 am. He would be free – whatever freedom meant.
With that resolve in mind, he ped his hoodie, and tossed it into the disposal bin.
*
Moments later, everyone who knew of Yoongi and Taehyung had gathered at the front to bid the two seniors goodbye. The Director, head of the orphanage, stood intimidatingly in front of them, eyes dark and brooding, hands clasped behind him as if he expected the respect equivalent to a god.
“Min Yoongi, Senior Rank C, 20 years old,” the Director recited like a textbook, tone devoid of any sincerity. “Congratulations on your graduation.”
He then turned to Taehyung, and the latter noticed him smirk ever so simply.
“Kim Taehyung, Senior Rank A, 18 years old, and certainly one of our finest,” his words were like ice. “I congratulate you not only on your graduation, but on your birthday, as well.”
They both bowed apprehensively and Taehyung sensed Yoongi tense up when the Director placed his hands on each of their shoulders.
“I know you two will go on to pursue… better things.” He replied. “You have five minutes to say your goodbyes, and you will follow the of the Deans up until the gates. Then, you are both free to leave.”
The weight of the Director’s words left quite an impression on them both, and the Director vanished from sight.
Many individuals came up to them to wish them farewell. Most of them were people that Taehyung never knew – Juniors, Primaries, and even a few Seniors who looked up at him with shining eyes of admiration, as if they were exclaiming, ‘I’m going to be exactly like you, hyungnim!’
Finally, it was time for Jimin and Jungkook’s goodbyes.
“I’m going to miss you guys a lot,” Jimin sniffled, not even bothering to hold back regretful tears, “Even Yoongi hyung.”
As Yoongi complained in his trademark voice – “what do you mean, even Yoongi hyung?!” – Taehyung patted Jimin’s head, alarmingly close to shedding a few tears himself.
“We’ll miss you too, Jimin-ah. We’ll meet again and write to you guys for sure,” he assured.
“That’s a promise,” Jimin wiped his tears with his sleeves and sniffled.
Jungkook firmly grasped Taehyung’s hand in a fleeting goodbye. “Take care of yourselves, hyungs. We won’t be too far behind you guys.”
“You too, Jungkook.”
“Alright, enough with the sappy goodbyes. We’re all men here, so let’s leave in a manly fashion, okay? It’s not like we’re never going to see each other again.” Yoongi urged, upset about leaving their friends behind but also more excited about walking out of the gates of Gapsun Orphanage.
Taehyung chuckled at Yoongi’s enthusiasm as he wiped his tears away hastily. Yoongi was right – nothing good would come out of crying. Mustering up his courage, he walked out of the four walls of the building for the first time, with nothing on but a ratty scarf, heavy duty boots, thin jeans and a plain grey coat.
The first thing Taehyung did was squint at the bright sunlight that filled his sight. And then he felt it – the chilly December breeze nipping at his nose, the thin snowflakes melting against his cheeks and tops of his hands… It felt too surreal – too good to be true.
And for the first time in a while, Taehyung felt nothing but pure exhilaration. Sensing Yoongi’s excitement as well, they both turned towards each other with genuine laughter – roaring and carefree as the frigid air whirled through their noses and mouths, filling their lungs with the epitome of winter itself.
Taehyung laughed at Yoongi’s laughter, and vice-versa. A glint of youthfulness filled their eyes, and it was as if they were mere children again.
“Move along, you two,” a Dean with a gruff voice harrumphed. The pair didn’t hesitate to continue marching forward.
Voluntarily, Taehyung held his hand out, and the flakes touched his pale skin, disappearing within milliseconds of contact.
Abruptly, the Deans stopped at the already open gates of the orphanage, and stood at attention on either side of them, as if coaxing them to go through.
“I guess this is where we can leave,” Yoongi grinned widely, turning to Taehyung. “Let’s go.”
Letting a wide smile take over his lips, he nodded, leaving the orphanage behind.
They were walking, walking, walking…
And then, they stopped.
I’d love to say that the pair of best friends left with all the happiness in the world and got to pursue the simple pleasure of being free. I’d love to say that they visited the shopping districts and rented an apartment to live in and went to karaoke bars at night after the most scrumptious meals at homey restaurants.
But nothing was ever that perfect. Not even for them.
The sound of tires squealing against the road made Taehyung stop abruptly in his tracks. A smooth black van had swerved in front of them, blocking their view completely.
It had all happened so fast.
In a flurry of movements, people tackled Taehyung and Yoongi from behind. Before Taehyung could react, a hand slammed a cloth over his nose. As he struggled and kicked and flailed his limbs, a peculiar scent filled his nostrils.
In mere moments, everything was fading. The white wonderland that surrounded them, the laughter that the pair had shared just a minute ago; even the unfamiliar smell of winter seemed to escape his grasp, as if it was running through his fingers like sand that could not be captured.
“HYUNG!” An ear-splitting scream broke through his dazed thoughts.
Jimin…? Taehyung’s eyes started to close, his body starting to slump over, leaning back against the unidentified man holding him steady behind him. He tried hard to focus, to see something, anything, but all he could make out was a furious Jungkook, violently attempting to claw through the Deans that pushed him back.
By then, Taehyung’s body crumpled forward, too weak to do anything. He noticed two shiny shoes approach him, and a familiar, icy voice break through his consciousness.
“Hello, Taehyung,” the Director said. “I regret to inform that you two have both been… ‘adopted.’” His pleasant tone snapped into a curt command.
“Throw them in the van.”
Before Taehyung could even notice his body being shoved inside the car, he had already lost consciousness.
[!!!] Identify Me is on temporary hold until The Outcast Club is finished! More frequent updates after The Outcast Club is completed! :)
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