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Jeongguk closes the door behind him with a soft click before promptly locking it. He drops his gym bag by the door and makes his way to the beds, muscles so sore he feels them weighing down his bones.
Even being on tour, Jeongguk takes the time to go to the gym, especially when his muscles shed off his skin as easily as they do, leaving him looking like an over glorified skeleton. He’s sweaty, but not obnoxiously so, so he flops on the bed next to the one he and Taehyung share to keep it clean.
Taehyung’s voice filters in from under the bathroom’s closed door, the deep baritone soothing Jeongguk to an almost trancelike state, zoning in and out of consciousness. When he steps out finally, steam billows around him and his hair is wrapped in a towel, his silk pajamas hanging off his frame angelically.
“Hey, babe,” Taehyung says softly in passing, moving to his suitcase to do his skincare (why he doesn't just do it in the bathroom is beyond Jeongguk). “How was the gym?”
“Fun,” Jeongguk replies, moving to watch Taehyung. He looks pretty with his tan skin contrasting with the white towel, and he tells him so. Taehyung darts his eyes over to Jeongguk’s in the mirror and smiles at him softly in thanks. Jeongguk continues, “Did my usual cardio and upper body stuff, so nothing too extravagant.”
Taehyung hums his acknowledgment and asks when he’s done with his face, “You hungry?” Jeongguk makes a vague noise in reply, and Taehyung drops a box of pizza on the bed next to his face, laughing. “C’mon, I saved a piece for you.”
“ A piece?” Jeongguk mimics, picking his head up and moving his arm to open the box, but the sentiment of Taehyung thinking of him when he was gone isn’t lost. There’s far more than just a piece in there and Jeongguk sits crisscrossed on the bed to eat it, and when Taehyung is sliding in the bed next to him just to be close to him, Jeongguk steals a peck to his cheek in thanks.
“You’re lucky I saved you any—I almost lost an arm grabbing that box.” Taehyung gives Jeongguk a cross look but Jeongguk just laughs at his expression and pushes their knees together.
It’s really nice just being next to him, and the two of them sit in silence while Jeongguk eats and Taehyung scrolls through his photo library, pausing every so often to look at something while Jeongguk watches. He finishes eating quickly and watches Taehyung fiddle with his phone, lips in a slight pout.
Jeongguk leans over to kiss Taehyung then, lips already puckered up and ready to land on his cheek when Taehyung stops him with a finger on his forehead.
“No more kisses until you shower!” He chastises, pushing Jeongguk away lightly. “You will not get your nasty sweat and pizza grease on my clean skin and give me acne.”
“Hyung,” Jeongguk whines, pouting and dropping his forehead on his shoulder, he moves the muzzle his face in Taehyung’s neck and pushes his nose up against it. “Baby, please.”
And Jeongguk knows the pet-name is a weakness for Taehyung with the way the older’s ears heat and how he bites his lip to hide his pleased grin. Taehyung pushes Jeongguk gently off his shoulder and lightly presses his lips to the younger's forehead, cradling his face in his hands.
“There,” He says softly, pulling back to look Jeongguk in the eye. Taehyung is glowing in the yellow light, and he looks beautiful—skin like honey, hair like gold, eyes like stars. Jeongguk feels a goofy smile split his face and Taehyung kisses him on the tip of his nose and flowers bloom in Jeongguk’s chest as the older shoves him away with the order to shower.
Jeongguk feels light when he turns on the water, his smile never leaving his face even as he strips his clothes and tests the water temperature with his hand. He thinks of Taehyung like he usually does these days, and comes to the conclusion that Taehyung-hyung is different than Taehyung-boyfriend, like how Kim Taehyung is different from V.
It’s a little confusing, especially when Jeongguk is as easy to read as a children’s book, but Jeongguk loves every single version of Taehyung. Taehyung-hyung who gravitates toward Jimin and Yoongi or literally anyone else who’s not Jeongguk; Taehyung-boyfriend who’s clingy and doting and hovers around Jeongguk, constantly brushing his fingers through the younger's hair or pressing his lips against any open skin.
V who is loud, charismatic, and dramatic, a force to be reckoned with the moment he steps on a stage to perform; Kim Taehyung who is softer, more reserved, and ten times more dramatic than before. Kim Taehyung needs time to himself to recharge, time to cry while watching dramas and Disney movies, time to read silently in a corner of their dorm, time to mess around with Jimin and Yoongi between stages at concerts.
Jeon Jeongguk, on the other hand, just needs Kim Taehyung to be happy—every version of him.
When Jeongguk steps back into the room after his shower, a towel wrapped around his waist, Taehyung is playing one of his playlists, the empty box of pizza gone. Jeongguk see’s the shape of Taehyung’s back from the light in the bathroom door and pauses by the light source as he takes in the soft rise and fall of Taehyung’s shoulders.
“Are you gonna stand there all night or are you gonna get dressed and cuddle me?” Taehyung finally says, voice muffled in the pillow his face is no-doubt shoved into.
“Coming, coming,” Jeongguk grumbles happily, kicking his dirty clothes under the sink as he slips on a pair of boxers and sweats in the bathroom. When he flicks the light from the bathroom off, the room is cloaked in darkness save for the digital clock reading 1:54 a.m, the harsh color reminding Jeongguk of the late night they’ll have tomorrow as well.
Goosebumps erupt on his skin as the air-conditioned air clinks to the moisture of his skin, so when he finally crawls under the covers and wraps himself around Taehyung, he’s shivering. Jeongguk digs his nose into the back of Taehyung’s neck and kisses the skin there, the collar of his shirt moving to reveal more skin.
Taehyung twists around so their noses are bumping and they look cross-eyed to one another. One hand comes up to lay on Jeongguk’s waist, his nails scratching soothing circles in the flesh as his other gets intertwined with Jeongguk’s. Their knees bump under the comforter, Taehyung’s silk pajamas soft against Jeongguk’s bare legs.
Jeongguk’s hit with a sudden wave of drowsiness and he closes his heavy eyes but squeezes Taehyung’s hand to let him know he’s awake.
“Hey,” Taehyung whispers, his minty breath warm between them. Jeongguk rubs his nose against Taehyung’s before pulling back again.
“Hi,” Jeongguk says sleepily, his lips barely moving. “You did really well tonight, ‘m proud of you.”
“You did too,” Taehyung bumps their noses together and stills. “Are your eyes closed right now?” Jeongguk smiles sheepishly and Taehyung moves his hand from his hip to ghost over his face, his fingers featherlight as they trace his nose and around his eyes. “You can’t just close your eyes but continue talking to me when you’re tired, you need to sleep.”
“But I wanna stay up and talk with you,” Jeongguk practically wines, kissing Taehyung fingers when they brush his lips.
“Guk,” Taehyung admonishes, the smile in his voice clear even with Jeongguk’s eyes closed.
“Baby,” Jeongguk wines back, slotting a leg between Taehyung’s and squirming when Taehyung tickles under his chin.
Taehyung finally slots their lips together in a lazy kiss, mouths open and tongues pushing together in a languid dance. Jeongguk tastes his mint toothpaste and feels his fingers card through his damp hair, feels sunshine and warmth bloom in his chest and stir up butterflies in his stomach. The air conditioner kicks on and it’s low humm harmonizes with the voices drifting from the low setting on Taehyung’s phone.
They part just enough for a sliver of new oxygen to pass between them, their noses still touching and the air still hot where they exhale. Taehyung’s thumb traces his cheek delicately, and Jeongguk melts into the soft pillow under his head at the sensation.
“Sleep,” Taehyung whispers, pressing a closed mouth kiss against Jeongguk’s lips.
And Jeongguk does.