Chapter Text
He was an aloof child. Ever since he was born, the expression he always wore was one that gave off an air of indifference, only flashing smiles occasionally, but that was only something people saw from the outside. In truth, he was a bubbly person, but he revealed his real faces only to his parents —the only members of his family. That is, until he lost them.
Even on the day of his parents’ funeral, he was expressionless. His eyes were dry and stony and his lips only moved to greet his parents’ co-workers who attended the funeral. And that was the day he started hearing whispers and the day he started building his walls.
Despite his young age, he had an idea of how the world worked and how it revolved around no one. He knew the world wouldn’t stop for him even if he was in his darkest point in life, and he knew he had to be the one to work around it. Even if he wanted to throw himself away, he chose to live his life until the end of it. That’s why he never dismissed the thought of having new people to love, despite having walls surrounding him from all sides, and accepted the warm welcome of the Choi family when he was told he’d be living with them.
The Choi family was very kind to him so he had to repay their kindness by not being a bother nor a burden, helping out with chores and trying to associate with them since he couldn’t do much at fifteen, but he couldn’t help but feel it. He tried to consider them as family but he knew he was an outsider to them, no matter how many months had passed, and he would never be treated as a real family member. He’d just be the son of the late Kang couple who the Choi couple took in because they were greatly indebted to them once upon a time.
One night after a tiring day at school, he snuck out when the house was asleep.
He sneakily tiptoed outside his room, down the stairs, and out the front door. For the first time in a long time, he felt like he was unleashed, free from the suffocating place, and he could breathe in the cold night air properly.
He walked on the streets wearing a simple hoodie, sweatpants, and slippers, clutching his arms, shivering from the cold. He scanned his eyes on himself and mumbled, “I should’ve worn a coat at least,” as he arrived at the playground he used to go to when he was in grade school.
He expected it to be empty since it was the dead of the night, but a figure was sitting on one of the swings.
“Who would go to a playground this late?” he asked himself in his head, then realized he himself was an answer to that.
The playground seemed eerie from a distance; only a single lamp post showered light on the small area; a squealing sound came from the swing slowly moving back and forth; the figure of the person sitting on the swings was silent and turned back.
The hairs on his arms were standing and he was unsure if it was from the cold or from fright. Nevertheless, he went forward, bravely taking the seat on the swing beside the stranger. He just decided not to turn his neck in case it was something unearthly sitting next to him.
He inhaled a deep breath and sighed, trying to relax.
Then it was silent. The harsh squealing sound from the swing stopped and it only frightened him more.
“Kang Taehyun,” the figure beside him uttered.
The voice sounded familiar and Taehyun was still too scared to turn his head, yet he still did and recognized the boy sitting next to him.
“Beomgyu… hyung.”
The boy from the Choi family looked disturbed and interrupted. At the same time, he looked down. He didn’t have the usual vibrant air around him and he was giving Taehyun a death stare.
“Nice seeing you here,” Beomgyu said, sarcastic and disgruntled.
Taehyun blinked at him. He never really talked with him since he started living with his family less than a year prior. Although Beomgyu seemed friendly with other people, he never initiated a conversation with Taehyun. The only times they ever spoke to each other were when they first met and whenever Beomgyu’s mom asked Taehyun to call him whenever her hollering didn’t pass through the loud music in his room.
Taehyun didn’t know anything about Beomgyu except that he was very active and busy and that he was spoiled by his parents because he was the youngest in the family. Since Taehyun came into their lives, he had become the youngest but they never treated him that way. He was simply an outsider.
“Did you want to be alone?” Taehyun asked directly, plastering a smile on his face out of habit. “I think I should leave.”
“Not again.” Beomgyu rolled his eyes in exasperation, making Taehyun arch a brow in confusion. “You should stop.”
“What?”
“You should stop those-” Beomgyu twisted his face unpleasantly. “-fake smiles. Seeing them makes me sick.”
Taehyun frowned and unknowingly started glaring at him. He felt offended. He was putting on fake smiles not just for show. It was out of courtesy and respect. He was already a bother to his family (it was obvious they were a little bothered), so he’d rather not add to their problems and worries by showcasing his grief, he thought.
“I know all about it,” Beomgyu continued. “You’re just pretending to be fine. The walls are pretty thin so I hear you crying in your room every other night and your smiles are obviously so fake. My parents tell me I should be nice to you but your fucking acting just makes me want to throw up.”
Taehyun didn’t take the rigid expression off his face but he averted his gaze somewhere else when tears started forming in his eyes. It was rare for that to happen. Usually, he’d just hold them in and only let them out whenever they’d bottled up, but that night was a bit more sorrowful than any other night because it was his mother’s birthday.
He gritted his teeth as tears streamed down his face and he wondered what Beomgyu might be thinking whilst watching him cry like he wanted him to.
Beomgyu huffed out a breath then he took his padded jacket off and tossed it to the sobbing boy beside him. “That’s more like it,” he said. “Cry it all out and stop the shitty act, at least when you’re around me.”
Taehyun caught the jacket and he gripped it tightly before wearing it. The sleeves were a bit too long and only his fingers were exposed to the cold.
He clenched his fists on his lap as he started bawling. His tears wouldn’t stop. Although he was crying, it wasn’t heavy like it usually felt and a lighter feeling came upon him. It was a freezing night but it felt a bit warm, maybe because of the jacket or because he had company.
“Won’t you feel cold now?” Taehyun sniffled as he turned his neck to look at Beomgyu wearing a plain beige sweater paired with black pants and rubber shoes.
“I’m okay,” Beomgyu reassured Taehyun, holding an okay sign beside his cheek. Then, he lifted his shirt partly, revealing another layer of clothing under it, and patted his lower back. “And here I have those sticky hot packs.”
Taehyun chuckled lightly, seeing how well-prepared Beomgyu was. “Do you always sneak out?”
“Only when my heart gets broken.” Beomgyu pressed his lips together and exhaled deeply through his nose.
Taehyun suddenly laughed genuinely, for the first time in months. His breath lingered and looked like smoke in the air because of the freezing temperature and his toothy grin shone brightly on his face along with his wet eyelashes.
Beomgyu didn’t know why, as he should’ve felt mocked, but he was laughing too and he admired the younger boy’s smiling face, finally real and not forced.
“Your teeth are kinda sharp,” Beomgyu pointed out and asked jokingly, “Are you a vampire?”
“If you think they exist, then I’ll say ‘yes.’”
“Don’t you think they could exist?”
“They don’t.”
“Okay. Listen to this.” Beomgyu turned his whole body and his seat on the swing to Taehyun’s direction and firmly planted his feet on the ground so as to keep himself that way. He hunched over, placing his elbows on his thighs and looking Taehyun straight in the eye. “They could be living alongside us, pretending to be humans like how you were acting fine all this time but they’re slightly better, no, way better at acting than you.”
“I get it already.” Taehyun groaned. He was starting to get annoyed but there was a happy feeling in his heart.
“No, you don’t.” Beomgyu shook his head and his tone was very serious. “Look there.” He pointed a finger at three tall men not too far away from the playground. They weren’t the least bit noticeable if you weren’t paying attention to your surroundings but Beomgyu had a keen sense in different areas (his love life was an exception) and he saw them right away when they arrived at where they were standing. Taehyun turned his head to look at them. “Do you see them?”
“What, those men wearing white?” Taehyun observed the way they were dressed very thinly when the season was bitterly cold.
“Bingo. So you see the one that looks like a bunny? He’s laughing right now.”
Taehyun nodded.
“He could be a vampire,” Beomgyu said, making Taehyun’s face drop in utter disbelief. Yet Taehyun didn’t take his eyes away from the possible vampires. “Or that one with colored hair who looks like a fox, or that one with dark brown hair. Or maybe all three of them are vampires!”
“Maybe you’re a vampire too,” Taehyun snickered, removing his gaze from the three vampires, and smirked at the mortal boy on the swing next to him.
“If I were a vampire, you’d be dead by now, Kang. Bloodless.” Beomgyu said threateningly at a chuckling Taehyun. He lifted his feet off the ground, making his swing twist back to its normal direction, and he kicked his legs in front of him. “Vampires are so lucky,” he added as he gripped the chains connected to his seat.
“How so?”
“They’re immortal. They have unlimited time.”
“And what would you do with that much time?”
“Anything and everything!” Beomgyu exclaimed, gazing up at the night sky. The starry sky resembled tiny jewels embroidered on black velvet and Beomgyu’s sparkling eyes could join them as they looked just like stars. He was a dreamer and all his life he had done nothing but dream. He dreamt of learning many things and achieving many goals. “I’d learn to play every instrument, learn how many languages, play every sport! And hopefully, with that long life, I’d finally get a girlfriend.”
Taehyun chuckled at his words. Oddly, the things Beomgyu mentioned, he was already doing.
“But hyung, aren’t you already doing those stuff? I hear you’re amazing.” Taehyun showed his hands and put down a finger whenever he mentioned something he saw Beomgyu do at home or in school that made him really busy and Taehyun ended up closing both his hands. “But you’re doing so much, too much. You’re young. Relax, you have a long life ahead of you.”
“Not long enough to do all kinds of shit in the world.” Beomgyu lowered the corner of his lips.
“You’ll burn yourself out.”
Beomgyu sighed heavily. Taehyun was right, he could admit out loud.
Actually, his hobbies and extracurricular activities plus his heavy school work did tire him out and he lacked sleep because of them. He was aware but he kept blinding himself and refused to think it was the real cause for his distress and insecurity, the real reason why he was at the playground at midnight.
Taehyun’s words shot him awake. Maybe he did have to take a break from doing too much, or else he’d be the one cutting his own life span shorter.
“What about you?” Beomgyu directed the question to the younger boy, “What would you do if you had that much time?”
“I’d rather not be immortal,” Taehyun answered blankly, making Beomgyu question his statement.
“Why not?”
“It’s a miserable life, to be immortal.” Taehyun faced forward and watched a few cars drive by at a distance. He felt a pang in his heart as a painful memory came to mind. “You’ll just watch the people around you die and you’ll only get left behind, like me.”
Beomgyu shifted his gaze from the heavens to the earth and observed Taehyun’s straight face saying a very depressing line. Although the light was weak and he could only view Taehyun’s side profile, Beomgyu could see clearly how sorrow and grief were written all over his face.
Taehyun was never expressionless. Other people were simply blind.
“Then the key is to not be acquainted with mortals,” Beomgyu said confidently. “Easy as pie.”
Taehyun choked on air as he laughed loudly, his laughter ringing in the atmosphere. “Seems easy enough.”
“Kang,” Beomgyu called him by his last name, making Taehyun stop his laughter and turn his head to him. He wore a pensive face, his eyes filled with concern and eyebrows creased lightly. “You’re not alone.”
Taehyun flickered his eyes, glancing somewhere then back at the youngest son of the Choi family. He thought about his statement deeply, and he never thought he’d hear it from him, from someone in that house. He wasn’t sure if it was a statement he could trust and believe in or if it was a statement with words carrying no meaning. He hoped it was the former and smiled faintly at Beomgyu. “Thanks.”
“Even vampires aren’t alone, dumbass.” Beomgyu smiled back, making an effort to comfort Taehyun in the least obvious way. “They probably have families too, and friends that also don’t die.”
Taehyun snickered then pursed his lips. “But if vampires are real, what happens when a vampire and a human fall in love? Like the ones in dramas or fantasy novels. That would be so sad for both of them, don’t you think?”
“Yeah, that’s shit. It won’t end well for sure.” Beomgyu clicked his tongue then pressed his lips together. “Like I said, the key is: vampires shouldn’t get too attached to mortals and vice versa.”
“What great advice,” Taehyun said, his tone a bit vague but had a hint of sarcasm to it.
Beomgyu simply shrugged and took the “compliment.”
They continued their conversation about vampires, their questions about the world, and their laughter that echoed in the small playground. They slowly discovered each other’s sides and they warmed up to each other, easily becoming close friends overnight. Even as they tried to sneak back in the house, they were giggling silently at their foolishness and clumsiness, trying not to wake the whole house with their antics.
That night, Taehyun snuck out of the house feeling sorrow but got back in bed with glee. Although his walls had not been broken down, at least one person was allowed to cross them, and that person gave great advice for both vampires and human beings: vampires shouldn’t get too attached to mortals and vice versa.
Ten years later, their friendship was still strong and alive. Beomgyu’s advice was still relevant too.
Though unfortunately and unknowingly, Taehyun didn’t take it so there he stood in front of a vampire, his dear vampire struggling for breath, in pain, dying. All he could think of was he didn’t want to feel left behind again. Not again.
Taehyun grabbed his phone then hurried over to Kai’s side. He bent over and put a hand on his shoulder, telling him calmly, “Hang on, I’ll call an ambulance.”
From the outside, Taehyun looked calm but deep inside, he was panicking. His knees were weak and his hands were trembling, giving him a bit of difficulty in using his phone. He didn't know what was happening to Kai. He just knew he was in pain. He also didn’t know what to do but the first thing that came to mind was he had to stay level-headed and call for help.
“No!” Kai managed to shout out, still holding his left hand over his mouth. His voice was rough and speaking started becoming painful. He firmly grasped Taehyun’s arm with his right hand and continued to shout. “Call Soobin!”
Taehyun’s eyes widened, shooting a stare on his arm, his heart staggered from Kai’s tight grip. It was hot. Kai’s touch was flaming, not cool like it usually was.
“Soobin?!” Taehyun questioned as he dropped down on the chair next to him. “Kai, you need a doctor!”
“Please,” Kai pleaded and looked at Taehyun with moist eyes. His vision was getting blurry and they started to sting. He bowed his head in hopes of hiding them and let go of Taehyun’s arm, bringing his hand back to grip his knee. “Call Soobin.”
Taehyun was baffled. He didn’t understand why Kai wanted Soobin and not a doctor, but he trusted him, so he took Kai’s phone resting nicely on the table and unlocked it with Kai’s fingerprint. They respected each other’s privacy but this was an emergency and Taehyun had to call Soobin, as Kai desperately requested.
Gum Soobin.
“This must be him,” Taehyun thought as he went over Kai’s contact list. It was fairly empty so Soobin’s name was easy to find and he immediately called the number saved under “Gum Soobin.”
He held Kai’s hand, not minding the extreme warmth it exuded, and rubbed his thumb over it as he listened to the continuous patterned ringing on the phone like his own loud heartbeat, only much calmer. Thankfully, the call went through not too long later.
“Kai, you little shit. Why haven’t you been going to the bar lately?”
“Soobin-ssi?” Taehyun started nervously. He realized he hadn’t met any of Kai’s friends yet so he still had to introduce himself. “This is Taehyun, Kai’s boyfriend.”
“Oh! Taehyun!” the voice exclaimed cheerfully over the phone. “This is his friend Yeonjun, actually, Soobin is-”
“Yeonjun, shut up, you’re ruining my beauty sleep!” another voice chimed in from the background, not knowing it was loud enough for Taehyun to hear. “Don’t put the call on speaker phone and take it somewhere else, what the hell!”
Taehyun could hear shallow bickering from the other line and it was nice to hear something so lively and amusing amidst the panic he was feeling but he had no time for listening to a lovers’ quarrel, so he rushed to tell them about Kai’s situation.
“Um, I’m sorry but Kai needs help right now. He’s in-” Taehyun glanced at Kai hunched over the table, pressing his forehead on the surface, struggling for air. “He can’t breathe, he’s in pain. I was about to call an ambulance but he wants Soobin-ssi here now.”
“What?!” the two voices yelled in shock.
“Where are you?” Yeonjun asked. “Don’t call an ambulance, we’ll be there in a few minutes.”
“We can’t take minutes,” Soobin told Yeonjun then spoke to the microphone. “We’ll be there in a few seconds.”
“Send your location. We’re leaving right now!”
The phone call ended, leaving Taehyun in a daze. But he quickly snapped out of it and quickly sent their location to Soobin’s number.
“Don’t call an ambulance?” Taehyun repeated Yeonjun’s words in his head as he went to dial the emergency hotline, not even bothering to switch to his own phone. “What’s wrong with an ambulance? Kai’s suffocating for god’s sake!”
Before the call connected to the emergency hotline, Soobin and Yeonjun arrived at the restaurant yelling loudly and disturbing other customers while they searched for Kai. Taehyun immediately stood on his feet when he heard them and instantly forgot about the call that just went through. He locked the phone and placed it back on the table. He waved his arms in the air, signaling to Kai’s friends, as he wondered how they stuck true to their word and got there so fast.
Soobin and Yeonjun rushed to Kai who was unmoving and still hunched over, then they asked Taehyun what happened.
“I’m not so sure myself,” Taehyun answered calmly, trying to hide his panic. “He just started panting a-and he’s burning!”
Yeonjun shook Kai’s body and he wasn’t responding. Kai was passed out.
Yeonjun crouched down, turning his back to Kai. He took Kai’s arms, let them hang over his shoulders, and held Kai’s thighs beside his torso before he stood up to carry him. Soobin pocketed Kai’s phone and helped Yeonjun prop Kai up on his back, then his face winced upon catching a whiff of a deadly scent.
“Ugh, garlic!” he grumbled as he noticed the small plate on the table. Then he furrowed his brows, looking at Taehyun wide-eyed and in contempt upon catching a thought. “Did you feed him garlic?” he asked him, making Yeonjun’s jaw drop at the idea of it.
“I- I did. Is there-”
“How could you feed him garlic!” Soobin was nearly shouting as he buried his face into his palms in disbelief and bewilderment.
“What’s wrong? Is he allergic to it?” Taehyun asked genuinely, showing them a worried and confused look. He honestly had no idea why Soobin and Yeonjun were reacting that way. Was there something wrong about garlic and ambulances he didn’t know about? “Is that what’s causing this?”
Soobin and Yeonjun didn’t answer and only made eye contact in silence. They both had furrowed brows and they read each other's minds. With one look, one knew what the other was thinking.
But Taehyun didn’t know what those looks meant. He was the only one kept in the dark and it frustrated him because his boyfriend was passed out yet he didn’t have the slightest idea of what was happening to him. His friends were of no help too! And where were they planning on taking him?
“Where are you taking him?” Taehyun asked as they rushed to the door.
“Someplace safe,” Soobin said while running behind Yeonjun who had Kai on his back. He didn’t even bother to look at Taehyun and went straight ahead, exiting the restaurant speedily.
“Wait, I’m coming with you!” Taehyun was lagging behind, still perplexed yet aware that he had to see Kai get checked out by a doctor, or at least see him “somewhere safe.”
Right when he was about to leave with them, the lady behind the counter called him, “Sir! You have to pay!”
Taehyun clicked his tongue as he glanced back and forth at the lady and at Kai’s figure going away from him. Then he ran to the counter and hastily fished out some bills, saying, “I’m sorry I have to go, please keep the change!”
He pushed open the heavy glass door and ran out into the street, turning his head to catch any sight of two men running away with one of them carrying another tall man. Yet to no avail. It was like they disappeared, just like magic.
Taehyun looked up at the sky and raised a hand to his eyebrows, shielding his eyes from the glaring sun. He was worried about it too. Kai was sensitive to the sun and it didn’t seem like his friends had an umbrella for him.
“Ah right, his umbrella.” Taehyun forgot about Kai’s umbrella and left it in the restaurant.
He went back in with clouded thoughts. He didn’t know what to do. He didn’t know what else to do except ring Kai’s phone. He couldn’t possibly contact Soobin when he didn’t have his number. So he called and called Kai’s phone that Soobin took, expecting to hear their voices answer it and not some machine telling him the number he dialed is currently unavailable, please try again later.
He took the folded umbrella under the table as he listened to the automated voice tell him to try again, which he already had been doing. He opted to send continuous texts, instead. He was starting to get irritated, and if he heard that line one more time, his annoyance would wash over his panic.
Just as he filled Kai’s inbox, a message suddenly arrived from Beomgyu.
“Are you home? I’m near your apartment and I want to take a nap. I’m coming over.”
Taehyun had no idea where Kai was and he couldn’t go around the whole city without direction. So he clicked his tongue then wrote a reply.
“I’m out but I’m on the way home. Wait for me.”
The whole ride home, Taehyun was uneasy and he ruminated over what happened in the restaurant with Kai. It was strange, he thought. It was beyond strange, even. He had never seen anything like it.
Even when he arrived in his apartment after meeting up with Beomgyu, he stayed quiet and motionless behind the door, still holding the folded umbrella with one hand. He kept chewing over Kai’s situation, so drowned in his thoughts that he didn’t hear Beomgyu’s voice calling him several times.
“Taehyun. Kang Taehyun!”
“Hmm?” Taehyun’s senses woke up and he finally turned to Beomgyu who was taking over his couch. Beomgyu had his legs spread across the space and arms under his head, feeling at home. “What?”
“Don’t you have to pack? You’re leaving in around twenty-four hours.”
That completely slipped from Taehyun’s mind. He had a lot going on in his head that he forgot about his trip the next day. With his current situation, could he even go on the trip?
“Ah, right.” Taehyun put away Kai’s umbrella in one of the cabinets by the entryway then finally took off his shoes and walked directly into his bedroom. “Can you help me?” he asked Beomgyu who immediately agreed and followed him.
Taehyun kept silent even as he unzipped his empty luggage on the floor at the foot of his bed. His worry and panic were battling against his anger and none backed down, only filling Taehyun up with negative thoughts. Although he looked undisturbed on the outside with his straight face, his hands trembled as he grabbed his phone every so often to check for replies.
A part of him was thinking it was fine for him to be there in his apartment packing for a trip while Kai was passed out with his friends to take care of him. He couldn’t do anything but wait for a location to be sent to him. Another part of him was thinking it was out of his character to be neglecting Kai's dire situation.
“What’s up with you?” Beomgyu asked. He then dived, landing on Taehyun’s bed, and rolled around in the sheets noisily to find the best spot. Obviously, he wasn’t physically helping with the packing. When he found the spot and the right position — his back flat on the mattress, his head angled and supported by thick pillows, and his hands folded over his stomach — he simply watched his best friend toss random clothes in the luggage. “You’re acting strange and you’re going on a business trip, not a vacation! Don’t bring those!”
Taehyun looked down on his half-filled luggage and realized he was just putting whatever he saw in his closet. He squatted down to pick the clothes up and put them back but he paused and hung his head low, sighing heavily.
“Tell me what happened.” Beomgyu sat up and moved to sit on the edge of the bed as he ruffled his hair.
Taehyun raised his chin and wore a troubled look, licking his lower lip as he pondered on where to begin. Although he mostly had heavy feelings, he was still glad Beomgyu was there with him. The past few months, he relied mostly on Kai whenever he had worries with work and all, but Beomgyu never left his side. And he was glad Beomgyu was there when he was troubled over Kai.
“It’s Kai,” Taehyun started. He sat down on the floor and folded his legs, then he scratched his neck as he continued calmly, “We were having lunch earlier and something happened to him.”
Beomgyu stretched out his legs and watched his socked toes wiggle as he listened to Taehyun’s story.
“All of a sudden, he couldn’t breathe,” Taehyun said. He was getting jittery just from the memory of it. He furrowed his brows and goosebumps started appearing on his skin as the vision of Kai’s struggle became clear in his head. He still didn’t know what it was but he was terrified. He was terrified not of Kai, but for Kai. It was already painful for Taehyun to watch him fight for air, what more for Kai? “He- He was suffocating and- and his skin! His skin was burning! I told you how he had pretty low body temperature but he was burning up!”
“Shit, that’s weird,” Beomgyu commented seriously. “I’m no doctor but I think that’s weird as fuck.”
“I know! I’m worried. I’m worried to death!” Taehyun exclaimed. “And he didn’t want to go to the hospital. He wanted his friends, so I called them and I think they were mad at me.”
“Mad at you?” Beomgyu creased his forehead. “For what?”
“I don’t know! About garlic!” Taehyun yelled, confusing Beomgyu with his statement. “I told them I fed Kai garlic and then they looked at me with those- they looked at me like I committed a serious crime!”
“What is he? A vampire?” Beomgyu voiced out, his tone serious at the same time joking. He chuckled scornfully then quickly turned to Taehyun, raising his eyebrows. “You said he was allergic to the sun too, right?
He tried not to show it but Taehyun gulped and unexpectedly took it into consideration. Although it sounded like nonsense, it made sense too. Kai’s skin was cold, he’s allergic to the sun, and eating garlic made him… made him like that , and his teeth were a bit sharp when Taehyun first saw them through his smile. And the dreams… No, it was impossible. It sounded like bullshit, Taehyun thought and tried to dismiss it, but the possibility remained lingering in one corner of his mind.
“I don’t know what to do,” Taehyun expressed himself, “I have to see him but I don’t know what to do, what to say, what to expect to see, what to expect to hear from him. I don’t know! It’s all crazy! If only you’d seen him, Beomgyu hyung, you’d understand why I’m like this.”
“I don’t even have to,” Beomgyu said while looking at a distressed Taehyun. “If you think you have to go to him, then go! Don’t let anything stop you.”
Taehyun furrowed his brows and blinked at Beomgyu looking so innocent. “I thought you didn’t like him that much?”
“I just thought he’s dangerous. And It seems like I’m right this time, no?” Beomgyu flashed Taehyun a smug look, making Taehyun laugh lightly. Taehyun didn’t think badly of it because he knew his best friend was just trying to make his feelings lighter, and he was thankful for it. “This is your life. You can date any asshole you want and I’ll be here if you get left behind with a broken heart even if I warned you and you didn’t listen to me. But I trust you fully and you’re smart too, at least I think so, so I know you wouldn’t just date anyone.”
“Not just you. Everyone thinks I’m smart,” Taehyun said confidently, lifting the corners of his lips. He felt more at ease, though the heavy feeling was still present.
Beomgyu rolled his eyes at Taehyun’s remark, grinning too, and let his back fall on the bed.
“You’re right, I shouldn’t be here,” Taehyun said, standing on his feet and taking his phone again to call Kai for the thousandth time. “I should go to him.”
“That’s more like it,” Beomgyu mumbled under his breath.
Right before Taehyun unlocked his phone, a glowing notification popped up on the screen. He finally received a message from Kai.
His heart jumped and started pounding against his chest as he quickly checked it out with his shaky thumbs. Beomgyu noticed this from the corner of his eyes and saw Taehyun fidget around from reading something on his phone screen.
“I can’t take you to the airport tomorrow. Sorry.”
Taehyun knit his forehead and frowned upon reading Kai’s text. He didn’t care about Kai not taking him to the airport. That was the least he cared about. He cared about him . He was worried to death about him and he wanted to know where and how he was.
“It’s okay. How are you feeling? Are you okay? Where are you right now? I’ll go there. I have to see you.”
“I’m fine. Yeonjun and Soobin are here with me. Don’t bother coming.”
The reply was quick and it slightly irked Taehyun as he read it out loud, letting Beomgyu know of Kai’s safety as well.
“Don’t bother coming? What the hell?” Taehyun thought out loud. He thought he had to be there next to him. He just had to. Kai’s his boyfriend, the person he loved, he had to see him well.
Without a second thought, he tried to call him, tapping his foot on the floor as he heard the ringing. But the ringing was cut short and his tapping cut short too. It was deliberately hung up.
Taehyun huffed out a breath in disbelief.
Out of all the texts Taehyun sent, worrying like hell about Kai, he received only two replies. Two. And both were obnoxious and insensitive. His calls too. They were never answered, not once, nor were they returned.
Beomgyu watched the scene unfold before his eyes and he shook his head while he closed his eyes to take a nap.
“Dangerous,” he whispered to himself and regretted the words he spoke just a minute ago. He told Taehyun, “So you chose to date an asshole named Kai. Fuck it, just stay here and never mind that sick bastard. Continue packing unless you want to go on your trip naked.”