You Deserve It
Everything and Nothing at AllA/N: It's time to walk away from someone who doesn't know your worth.
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"I know you'll find someone
Who gives you the time, I didn't give to you."
Taehyung turned down the radio placed on the side of his working table. He sighs before staring blankly at the sheet of paper in front of him, a pencil gripped tightly in his left hand.
He grimaces as he thought about what happened.
He wonders if it was unfair.
...
"Taehyung, I like him."
The boy did not show any signs of emotions on his face, but deep inside, he was cursing and crying out of frustration. Irene smiled dreamily as she stared at someone who just entered the cafe near their school.
He had blond hair, white skin and gentle brown eyes. He was the opposite of Taehyung who had tan skin and sharp eyes.
His name was Seokjin, better known as Jin.
He met with Irene's eyes and waved, the girl returning it back shyly. Taehyung coughed out before standing up and smiling at Irene. "I-I have to go, noona."
"What? But Taehyung-"
"Enjoy."
Taehyung didn't wait for Irene to finish as he stood up, taking his bag and leaving with the coffee he ordered. He passed Jin and ignored him.
When he went out of the cafe, he turns back to see Jin sitting down in front of Irene, where Taehyung was awhile ago.
Forcing his eyes to look away, he turned his attention to the coffee in his hand before drinking it in one gulp, his face then scrunched because of the flavor.
Bitter.
Cold and Bitter.
...
Taehyung thinks it's unfair.
It's unfair that he was rejected by Irene.
It was not fair because Taehyung fell in love with her and she fell in love with someone else. Irene was the type to not love someone who loved her first.
But now that Jin came, it strung a chord inside Taehyung how the older swept Irene off her feet in just a week.
The story becomes sadder as Irene only treats Taehyung as a close friend. Taehyung knows a lot about the older woman, from her habits, dislikes, likes, attitude and so much more that not even maybe Irene's parents know about.
How she unconsciously stares at her friends' butts, how she raises her eyebrow and looks lost when someone tells her something bad, how she laughs at every little things, how she doesn't want to admit that she needs help using technology, how she gets depressed easily but no one notices.
How she tells Taehyung things she doesn't tell anybody else.
'You're wrong.'
Taehyung stops writing when a thought passed through his mind. How was he sure that Irene just told him? What if she told a lot of people and Taehyung last?
"I think I'm falling for him."
Irene tells him for the nth time.
Taehyung just stays silent when the topic of Jin came up. "Do you think I should answer him?"
'No. Absolutely not.'
"If you love him, go." Taehyung mumbles.
"Would it be okay with you?"
Taehyung swallows a lump in his throat as he forced a smile, "If you're happy, I'm happy."
...
The boy from Daegu was furious.
Furious as he sees Jin going out with a girl and kissing. Something inside him broke. His fists were clenched and turning white as his face turns red out of anger.
He meets up with Irene after.
"I think he really is serious about me and him." Irene's face flushed as she fidgeted and fiddled with her thumbs.
"Irene."
"He already asked me out yesterday and kissed me on my cheek!" She giggles. "Irene."
"I think I'm falling for him-"
"Irene, listen to me." Taehyung snapped.
Irene stops and raised her eyebrows at him, her lips turning into a pout. "What is it?" He had never snapped at her before.
"Be careful." He starts quietly as Irene tilts her head at him in confusion.
"Why?"
"You...You don't know, maybe Jin has a girlfriend..."
"But why would he court me if he did?"
'Because he's a boy that's why.'
Clueless Irene. Taehyung doesn't want Jin to taint his best friend black. He hesitates before clicking his tongue. "Just be careful, okay? I don't want you to get hurt."
...
Turns out Irene told Jin about Taehyung telling her that the blond had a girlfriend. As expected, Jin denies that he had a girlfriend and tells Irene that Taehyung was just ruining his reputation.
After what happened, Irene slowly stops hanging out with Taehyung and starts going out with Jin.
"Why are you not going out with Irene unnie anymore?" Wendy asked worriedly.
It was after classes when the boy's instructor asked him to deliver some papers to the other building where Wendy was about to go home, but sees him.
Wendy was Irene's girl best friend and the two were familiar with each other. He smiles at her but Wendy is staring at his eyes which was the opposite.
Full of emotions. Anger, hurt, sadness, frustration.
With a shaky voice, a tear rolling down his face, "I'm just a best friend to her."
And the way he says it broke Wendy's heart.
...
After that question from Wendy, they started hanging out more. Irene didn't have time for the both of them and Taehyung thinks this is the first time he hangs out with Wendy without Irene.
He finds out that Wendy is a fragile person.
They decide to walk home together after school since Wendy lived nearby, just 10 minutes from Taehyung's apartment.
It didn't surprise him when Irene saw them and gave them an incredulous look and approached them. "Why are you guys hanging out together without me?" She sounded hurt.
"You were busy with Jin." Wendy stated calmly.
"I'm allowed to hang out with someone other than you..." Taehyung averts his gaze from Irene as he says that.
Irene doesn't say a word as she left.
...
"You like Irene unnie."
Taehyung doesn't talk as Wendy stared at him with a piercing gaze. "But why didn't you chase after her?"
"I did."
The boy from Daegu was reminded of when he chose to chase after Irene 4 years ago but was rejected harshly.
"But I'm just a friend."
...
There are so many downfalls of being too close to someone you love.
One, they don't see you as a love potential. Two, you get hurt every time they love someone else. Three, you understand them better than anyone else but they still choose others. Four, you're just a brother and a sister to her. Five, you'll never be able to tell them how you feel.
Six, you will always have to endure these things.
Seven, you're just a best friend.
"She means everything to me but I mean nothing to her."
Taehyung doesn't inform Irene about his flight for Toronto three days later.
...
Irene was guilty.
She should have listened to Taehyung when he warns her of Jin.
But the damage has been done and she herself finds Jin entering a club with a girl. Irene follows him inside and the tears fell as she sees him cheating on her.
4 years ago, Taehyung confessed to her and gave her almost everything she wanted and surely, the girl was touched by the gesture.
Surely, she loved him back but she was a coward.
Being cowardly was what broke them to pieces.
She shattered his hope, and she remembers a term in the Philippines where she would be called, "Paasa."
The last time she and Taehyung talks through online means was in Facebook where she tells him that it was all a joke.
On the day of Taehyung's flight, Irene finds out from Wendy and she chases him through the airport.
Because of her father being well-known through out Korea, she had a pass that made the employees let her through until she sees Taehyung showing his passport to the immigration.
"Taehy-"
A tall man with sunglasses, wearing a black suit and a frown on his face stops her. "I'm sorry miss, you need to show your ticket before I let you in."
Irene shows him her passcard but the guard shooks his head apologetically. "Rules are still rules, miss Bae."
The brunette cries out of frustration and stomps her foot. It was like a scene that came out from a K-Drama and she hates it.
"But..."
She glares up at the guard with tears in her eyes as he sighs. "I'll let you through only until there."
Stupid Irene didn't check where the guard points at and quickly dashes towards there where she sees Taehyung.
"Hyung!" She screams but Taehyung doesn't hear her.
That's when she realized there was a thick glass between them.
She banged on it loudly, not caring if she was going to break it(She could pay for it anyway.) Thank God that Taehyung gets startled easily as he jumps before looking around and sets his gaze on her.
"Why did you not tell me?!" She says. Taehyung moves closer and gestures that he could not hear her.
Without thinking, Irene pulls out her phone and types hastily on chat. Even with the poor signal, she sighs in relief as it sent.
But she forgets and realizes late when Taehyung pulls out his phone and stared blankly at the chat.
It was full of broken memories for the both of them. Taehyung shakes his head before mouthing, "Goodbye."
Her phone rings as she sees Taehyung turn around.
"I'm just a best friend to you. I'm tired."
Any moment wasted on a typo would be horrid. Irene cries as she sent a message back.
The clock symbol slowly turned into a check mark with a circle around it.
And then it turns blue.
"I like you."
But Taehyung does not stop walking.
And the message left unread.
A message that will never be read.
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