Chapter Text
Autumn had always been Jeongguk’s favorite season.
It wasn’t the actual time of year itself, no, but instead the drastic shift in personality that seemingly everyone sifted through. Summer made people too loose; too open for heartache and pain. Winter made them picky, like everything depended on a nanosecond of bad decisions made on a whir of thoughtless actions. It was funny, really, how one could reach the perfect medium when the leaves turned the color of unfiltered blood.
That wasn’t him being ominous, per se, but he had always enjoyed letting his more constricted side take a break during the few months of freedom he got from anyone who tried to tell him otherwise.
He had grown up in the exact opposite of an easygoing familial environment, but that much was to be expected from a powerful group of people like the Jeons. Their empire was built on the very foundation of unshushed strength, not that Jeongguk had ever paid much mind to it. He preferred staying on the sidelines, watching everything go down like an eagle hunting for its prey, waiting for the perfect moment to strike.
“I have some news you might be interested in,” Jimin, Jeongguk’s cousin and practically an older brother to him (and also his best friend), said as he flopped onto his stomach. He was laying in his bed across the room from Jeongguk himself, who instead was typing away at an essay due for a class. The two of them were at Jimin’s apartment, and when Jeongguk didn’t look up, Jimin cleared his throat. “Oi! Jeongguk! You’re gonna flip when you hear this.”
“Unless it’s about Kim Enterprise, I’m not interested,” came Jeongguk’s monotone response as he kept his eyes trained on his computer screen, switching between tabs as he searched for the correct information to write down.
“Ah, then you’ll definitely be interested,” Jimin said, and Jeongguk could practically hear the smirk in his voice. Jeongguk snapped his neck up, his eyes darting towards Jimin as the two of them formed perfect eye contact.
“What,” Jeongguk spat, arching his back so he could look at Jimin clearer. “What are you talking about?”
“Kim Taehyung,” Jimin drawled, the words rolling around at the top of his mouth, “applied to work at the coffee shop I part-time in, and the manager’s going to accept his application because apparently having a Kim working for him will do wonders to business. Or whatever.”
Jeongguk’s left eye twitched. “Why would he do that,” he deadpanned, racking his brain for any sort of explanation. “What the fuck, why would he do that?”
“Beats me,” Jimin shrugged, his lips twisting to form a noncommital frown.
“Jimin-”
“Hyung.”
“Jimin,” Jeongguk growled, “it’s Taehyung. He must have some kind of ulterior motive behind this.” He paused, thinking over his words. “Maybe his pathetic excuse of a business finally went bankrupt and he’s trying to make ends meet. Serves him right.”
Jimin rolled his eyes. “I didn’t come here to be floored by your dramatics, Jeongguk,” he said with a small snort. “Anyhow, I’m going to be working with him starting Monday, and you know what that means.”
And Jeongguk, despite himself, let his lips curl back to form a sinister smirk. Jimin chortled from his spot across the room as he gazed at his best friend’s horrifying expression. “You, my dear Jiminnie, are going to spy on Kim Taehyung and get all the inside information on his company.”
Jimin pursed his lips. “Actually, I was just going to befriend him since he seems like a cool guy.”
Jeongguk’s eyes narrowed. “Haha. Funny joke.”
“I’m serious, Jeonggukkie!” Jimin said, pouting adorably as Jeongguk’s eyes softened. “I’ve seen him around campus a few times! He looks like an absolute sweetheart.”
Jeongguk just stared at him.
Jimin sighed. “And I guess while being friends with him, I can try to find something out. Happy?”
Jeongguk grinned, and nodded. “Very, though I don’t think it’s a good idea to be fraternizing with the enemy.”
“Tell that to Hobi-hyung,” Jimin muttered, letting his eyes roam a little away from Jeongguk. “Honestly, I guess another reason why getting to know Taehyung is good is because none of us know what hyung’s doing.”
Jeongguk couldn’t blame Jimin, since he too worried about Hoseok. It had been close to two years since the day when Hoseok had told him and Jimin about his secret relationship with his current boyfriend. Hoseok had been with him for almost three years now, too, and they didn’t show any signs of breaking things off anytime soon.
It wasn’t till a few months later when Jeongguk found out who it was Hoseok was in a relationship with. None other than oldest adoptive son and member of Kim Enterprise, Min Yoongi. Jeongguk had been completely adamant on getting the two of them away from each other, and he and Jimin both had done countless (and admittedly stupid) things to make them see that whatever they had was wrong, but Hoseok and Yoongi never once listened to them nor did they heed their warnings.
So, Jeongguk had stayed quiet, and watched it all play out behind the scenes.
It wasn’t like Hoseok was going to be directly in trouble for being in a relationship with someone from the Kim family. He had two things going for him, after all.
One, he wasn’t a Jeon. Or a Park, for that matter. The Jeon and Park families made up the bulk of Jeon Industries, one of the top investment firms in all of Asia. Their top rival, Kim Enterprise, consisted of the Kim family and their adopted son Yoongi who they had taken in as their own fifteen years ago.
Hoseok’s family, however, had been a close friend of the Jeons for multiple generations now, and the two families were more than just allies now. Jeongguk and Jimin had been the most welcoming to Hoseok than practically anyone else, and the older boy had been eternally grateful for the love he had constantly received from Jeon Industries.
But then Hoseok met Yoongi.
The two had crossed paths at a meeting years prior, and had instantly hit it off without knowing of the others true identity. When they did find out, though, it was a little rocky, but they managed to make it through after coming to an agreement that their relationship would be kept secret from everyone else except the people the two of them trusted most.
For Hoseok, it was Jeongguk and Jimin. For Yoongi, it was Taehyung.
Now, Jeongguk wasn’t an expert on the Kim family or anything, but from what he had heard, Yoongi and Taehyung were even closer than two bloodbound brothers were. Hoseok described it as a bond even deeper than the one Jeongguk and Jimin shared, since the two of them were also not technically true brothers. They were related, however, so that definitely made a difference.
Jeongguk didn’t pretend to know every single last thing about Taehyung and his family, and he hadn’t even been able to hold a proper conversation with the boy since it always ended with the two of them yelling at each other and refusing to listen to one another. It was one of the reasons why they weren’t allowed to attend business meetings at the same time anymore, since the two of them despised each other so deeply.
But then, of course, there was the inescapable fact that they went to college together, were both business majors, and had more than a few classes together. It helped since Jimin also went to their college and was a business major too, but Jeongguk only had one class with him, and Taehyung wasn’t even in it.
He had given up trying to get through to the strange species that was Kim Taehyung long ago, and he wasn’t ever planning on trying again, given the fact that it would just be better if the both of them left it alone. They were both heirs (Jeongguk was, at least. Taehyung was second in line since Yoongi was older than him) to their respective businesses, and having a healthy hatred between them was always okay.
Well, Jeongguk wouldn’t exactly describe it as healthy, but it was enough for him to know when to stay the fuck away.
Then there was Jimin, who had a completely different story attached to his shoulders.
Jimin was a Park, and also worked in Jeon Industries like Jeongguk did. The only difference was that Jeongguk was openly a member of the company, while Jimin had been kept a secret since he was born.
No one outside of the company actually knew that Jimin was one of them, and that had helped them out on more than a few occasions. Jimin was almost like their personal spy, going after the Kims for any ounce of information he could squeeze out of them without them actually knowing who he was. It was convenient, if anything, but Jeongguk had been subjected to so many whining retorts from his cousin that it was beginning to get a little much.
It wasn’t like Jimin didn’t enjoy what he did, in fact, he took it in stride. He earned a lot for it too, even though he was directly related to the company’s founders and owners. Either way, he was an important asset to their team, and Jeongguk wouldn’t replace him for anything in the world.
The thing about the Jeons and the Kims, however, was that the two families had such a deep dislike for one another, it was beginning to get a little out of control.
Any other rivalling companies were at least civil with each other, but not these two. Jeongguk didn’t know exactly what the problem was between them, just that he had been taught since he was a young child that Kim Enterprise meant bad things. At least, that was what his mother told him, and Jeongguk chose to believe her. His parents always told him to stay away from the Kims, and that was what Jeongguk did. They never told him why, nor did they tell him what the Kims did wrong, just that he was supposed to keep his distance.
They didn’t count on Jeongguk being accepted into the same school as Taehyung for university, though, and that only made things much more complicated.
Jeongguk couldn’t even properly remember his first encounter with Taehyung. It was at the beginning of his first year at university, and since Jeongguk had never actually seen Taehyung before their first meeting, things started off pretty smoothly before they formally talked to each other.
Jeongguk, being the lost freshman he was, was trying to find his way to his morning lecture, and since Jimin was already in class, he couldn’t ask him for directions. Taehyung, a third year, had noticed him walking around in circles and approached him curiously, asking if he was okay. After getting directions from him, Jeongguk had introduced himself, and Taehyung had gasped (rather dramatically too) and started avoiding him like the plague.
It wasn’t till a few days later that Jeongguk had finally asked Jimin about him, and his cousin had told him that that was Kim Taehyung, the one person they were supposed to stay clear of.
And, by the looks of it, Taehyung had been given similar instructions as well.
Now, Jeongguk was a second year while Taehyung was a fourth year, and throughout the year of going to the same school and occasionally crossing paths, they had never once had a smooth encounter with one another. Jeongguk was fine with that, though, since he knew it was just better for things to go like this.
He had been the subject to many rude jokes and insults made by the upperclassman, but Jeongguk didn’t hesitate to retaliate with a few of his own cruel one-liners as well. The two of them were the most popular on campus, and at first, their interactions were up for public display. They used to have dozens of people crowd around them during their yell-offs, and it wasn’t till Jimin told him that it would be better for them to keep things low-key on campus, lest there be some eyes who took their curiosity a little too far.
“You have an image to maintain,” Jimin had told him after a particularly nasty fight with Taehyung, “and anyways, what would your parents think if they found out what you were doing through some loudmouth here?”
“They’d be proud of their son for sticking up for himself against the enemy,” Jeongguk had replied without missing a beat.
“The enemy,” Jimin had snorted. “That’s a new one.”
No, Jimin had never been particularly fond of the relationship between Jeon Industries and Kim Enterprise, but he had just accepted everything with a tight lipped smile. He had told Jeongguk that he didn’t want to busy himself in the family feud, and Jeongguk had just learned to accept it.
He supposed that was also why he wasn’t completely freaking out upon hearing the news that Jimin wanted to make friends with Taehyung. The best part was that Taehyung didn’t actually know who Jimin was, and to Jeongguk’s knowledge, they only had one class together where they rarely spoke. Taehyung especially didn’t know Jimin’s relation to Jeongguk, and that was good.
“You’ll be careful, right?” Jeongguk asked, his voice small as he curled in on himself, setting his computer aside.
“I always am, aren’t I?” Jimin said, a minute smile surfacing on his features. Jeongguk grinned, nodding.
“Of course you are.”
-
Jeongguk’s apartment was his pride and joy. He had rented it using the money he earned from working overtime at his company, as he refused to let his parents lend the money to him. He wanted to start being more independent, and he was glad they had supported him through it all.
The flat was modern, practical, and quite large too. He had furnished it to his liking, going for a more natural look, and had gushed about it to his friends all through it. It was just a street away from campus, too, so he was able to leisurely get to school every morning and come home in the same manner. Not to mention that Jimin lived on the same floor as him, albeit a few doors away.
So, one can imagine his frustration when none other than Jung Hoseok waltzed into his apartment on a blary Sunday morning, barely six A.M., requesting breakfast.
“Hyung,” Jeongguk whined, rubbing his eyelids as he watched Hoseok rummage through the pantries in the kitchen. “It’s so early. You know I don’t get out of bed until, like, nine on Sundays. You’re stripping away my childhood.”
Hoseok turned to look at him, delivering an unimpressed raise of his left eyebrow. “You’re twenty.”
“A child.”
“Anyways,” Hoseok chirped, taking out a box of oat cereal and reaching towards the fridge for a carton of milk, “how are you on this lovely morning, Jeon Jeonggukkie?”
“About to rip out the eye sockets of the person who walked in at three A.M., you?” Jeongguk responded, sarcasm dripping out his voice.
“It’s practically seven,” Hoseok retorted.
“Five.”
“We can’t negotiate over what time it is!” Hoseok said, though he looked like he was desperately trying to hold back a laugh.
Jeongguk rolled his eyes, moving so that he was sitting at his dining table. He didn’t object when Hoseok dropped a bowl and a spoon in front of him, filling up the bowl with milk before sliding over the box of cereal. He then proceeded to put a big handful of the oats into his bowl, only pouring the milk in afterwards.
“I’ll never understand how you can even live with yourself while doing that,” Jeongguk said then, lifting his spoon and flirting with it using his fingers. “Everyone knows the milk goes before the cereal.”
“Only a troubled youngster would say something like that,” Hoseok said, not lifting his eyes from his breakfast. “Then again, now that I look at you…”
Jeongguk playfully glared at him. “I’m only three years younger than you.”
“I’ve already graduated and work full-time while you’re still slaving away in your second year of uni,” Hoseok said pointedly. “That makes all the difference.”
Jeongguk groaned. Hoseok had been working in his own family company since he was sixteen, but it was only after he graduated when he was able to make it a job he could do as a full commitment. Jeongguk was the same with Jeon Industries, but he was aching for the time when he would finally be able to take over and do things his way.
Then again, it wasn’t like he wasn’t enjoying going to college or anything. Since he was extremely well off, he didn’t have to worry about the usual broke-college-student troubles that many of his classmates were facing. He had offered to help them, of course, but they had all refused for their pride was too much to even think of accepting something like that, and Jeongguk was fine with that. So be it.
“Did you need something, Hobi-hyung?” Jeongguk asked then, prompting Hoseok’s chewing to slow down just a bit as he slurped at his milk. “I mean, not that I don’t want you to be here or anything. You’re always welcome, and you know that.” He stopped. “Maybe not so early on a Sunday, but yeah,” he added, murmuring quietly enough so that Hoseok wouldn’t hear him.
“Can’t I visit my favorite dongsaeng on this fine Sunday morning?” he asked, pointing his spoon in Jeongguk’s direction and winking.
Jeongguk sighed. “We all know that’s a lie. Jimin’s your favorite dongsaeng.”
Hoseok arched his back, letting out a low laugh of surprise. “You got me there!”
“Not even denying it. Just great.”
“Aw, don’t be sad, Jeonggukkie!” Hoseok said, reaching over to gently pat Jeongguk’s head. “You can be Yoongi’s favorite!”
“Right,” Jeongguk deadpanned. “Of course. Yoongi-hyung’s favorite. Obviously.”
“No need to be so salty about it.”
“You know who’s salty,” Jeongguk said, taking an aggressive bite from his spoon. “Kim fucking Taehyung. You know what I saw him doing the other day?”
“What?” Hoseok asked, blinking as he stared at Jeongguk with curiosity sprinkled in his eyes.
Jeongguk growled, and Hoseok barely had the time to jump in surprise before Jeongguk continued, “I saw him giving directions to a bunch of freshman like he owned the entire goddamn campus.” He snorted. “You should have seen his face. He looked like he thought he was doing those kids the biggest favor, I swear-”
“You do realize that that’s exactly what he did to you the first time you two met, right?” Hoseok asked, angling his head down to give Jeongguk a weird look. “Honestly, you need to chill and think things through with Taehyung.”
“I’m irrational when it comes to Taehyung,” Jeongguk conceded, “it’s true. We’ve been over this. I say things that probably make no sense.”
“Wow if that isn’t the truth, I don’t know what is,” Hoseok snorted. “Ooh! You know what you should do?”
“What?”
“You should try to actually have a conversation with him!”
Jeongguk blanched. “Excuse me?”
“Yeah!” Hoseok continued happily, as if there was absolutely nothing wrong with what he had just said. “I mean, is he really that bad if you think about it? Like, actually sit down and think about it?”
“Yes,” Jeongguk responded without skipping a beat.
“Ah,” Hoseok said, lifting his index finger, “but you don’t know that, since you’ve never given him a chance.”
“A chance,” Jeongguk repeated.
“Exactly,” Hoseok nodded. “A chance.”
He sat back, as if every single one of Jeongguk’s problems were now solved. The younger boy facepalmed.
“I don’t think you realize the severe stupidness behind that idea,” he said, his words harsh. Hoseok looked unfazed. “Hyung, that’s bad even for you. Are you feeling okay? Did you hit your head on your way here?”
Hoseok pouted. “That’s not nice!”
“Well I,” Jeongguk said, twirling his spoon between his fingers, “am not a very nice person.”
“Yes, Jeongguk, we’ve established that.”
“You didn’t come here to insult me, did you.”
And then, Hoseok stopped, his eyes clouding over and the air around them growing much more tense. Jeongguk bit his lip nervously as he looked up at his friend, searching for some kind of explanation. He got none, and the thought burned the back of his mind.
“Jeongguk,” Hoseok began and Jeongguk’s ears perked up at the sound of his name, “come with me to the balcony, yeah?”
Jeongguk nodded, wordlessly getting up and walking with Hoseok to the door that would take them to the platform outside the apartment. Jeongguk lived on the tenth floor of his building, and there was ample space for a balcony. As the two of them stepped onto it, Jeongguk could feel the slightly chilly Autumn air hit the bare skin of his arms, but he didn’t let that deter him as Hoseok let out a deep sigh and leaned on the railing.
“Yoongi asked me to marry him,” Hoseok said suddenly, and Jeongguk froze.
“H-he,” Jeongguk stammered, his mouth falling open in shock, “what?”
“He asked me to marry him,” Hoseok repeated, slowly turning back to face Jeongguk. The two of them made eye contact, and Jeongguk didn’t know what to do. “And I said yes.”
“You said yes.” Jeongguk swallowed.
“Yeah,” Hoseok said, meekly nodding. He coughed awkwardly. “I just. Um. I just wanted to tell you- and I, you know, understand if you don’t support me or anything. I get it, Jeongguk. I know you have your beef with their family and all, so it’s… it’s fine, but I still wanted to let you know that-”
“What the fuck,” Jeongguk said, immediately snapping out of it. Hoseok winced, and upon noticing this, Jeongguk backtracked a bit. “What are you talking about? What do you mean you’ll understand if I don’t support you?”
“You’ve never been too keen about my relationship with Yoongi,” Hoseok started, playing with the hems of his t-shirt sleeve. “And, you know, he is a Kim and all, so-”
“Why would that make me not want to support you?” Jeongguk asked, blinking rapidly. “Hyung, you’re one of my best friends. I’m always going to support you, even if I don’t like something.” He sighed. “And I know Yoongi-hyung. I’ve met him a few times. Of course, I may not like that you’re dating him considering who he is and all, but even a stupid idiot, for example, Jimin, would see how much you two care for each other.”
“Are you seriously okay with this?” Hoseok asked, his eyes going wide. “Honestly?”
Jeongguk shrugged. “It’s your life, hyung,” he said, looking down at the floor. “Who am I to say no, right?”
Hoseok stared at him for a long time, the two of them not moving a single muscle as they went over their thoughts in great detail. Jeongguk was battling with his conflicting emotions, knowing well that there was absolutely nothing he could do about this. If that was the case, then why not support his hyung and make him the happiest man on Earth? How could Jeongguk take away that kind of feeling from him?
“I don’t deserve you,” Hoseok said, reaching out to take Jeongguk into his arms. The two friends embraced tightly, and Jeongguk couldn’t help but laugh. “Thank you, Jeonggukkie. Thank you so much, really.”
Jeongguk grinned. “Of course, hyung.” He paused, suddenly remembering something. Slowly, he backed away out of Hoseok’s grasp and frowned at him. “Wait,” he started, “how are you two even going to do this in the first place? It isn’t like your families are going to approve, and your relationship isn’t even legally accepted in Korea.”
Hoseok bit his bottom lip, tugging at the soft flesh there. He sighed deeply, shaking his head whilst rubbing his temples. “Okay, listen, about that… I, uh, am going to tell you something, and you need to promise not to freak out.”
Jeongguk nodded slowly. “Uh… okay?” Something terrible was going to happen. Jeongguk could practically feel it in the air.
“Yoongi and I… uh,” Hoseok began, lifting his arm to nervously scratch the back of his neck. “We’re, um, going to get out of here. Leave this country, you know? Yoongi suggested going to America, and I’m considering it. Maybe Europe. Who knows, really, haha.”
Jeongguk stilled. “So you’re telling me-”
“It’s not as bad as you think,” Hoseok winced. Jeongguk’s eyes hardened.
“-that you’re eloping?!”
“Okay listen-”
“What the fuck?!”
“Jeongguk,” Hoseok whined, his shoulders slugging down as he pouted. “Please try to keep an open mind about this?”
“You’re running away! You’re running away!”
“Jeongguk-”
“I was fine with you two dating, even getting married, but eloping?!”
“Jeongguk, listen to me-”
“I can’t believe-”
“Jeon Jeongguk,” Hoseok said, clenching his hands around Jeongguk’s shoulders in exasperation.
Jeongguk stilled. “What?”
“I’ve thought about this a lot for a while,” Hoseok said, lips turning downwards to form a frown. “I know what I’m doing, so please support me.”
Jeongguk gaped at him. “What about the companies? As much as I hate to admit it, Kim Enterprise needs Yoongi-hyung. He’s the heir.”
“Yoongi denied that years ago,” Hoseok admitted quietly. “Taehyung’s been the heir for a while now, even though he is younger than Yoongi.”
And that was just the icing on top of the fucking cake. Jeongguk’s jaw dropped at the new information. All this time he had thought he was the only heir between the two of them, but now he was finding out that Taehyung had equal power? All those times he had boasted about being better than him, when in reality they were one in the same?
He’d have to talk to Jimin about this later.
“I don’t know what to say,” Jeongguk deadpanned, not looking at anything in particular. “I know I want to support you, hyung, but isn’t eloping super dangerous?”
“Yoongi already took the money from his bank account,” Hoseok said. “I did the same. We should be fine financially, and we’re already starting to look for new jobs across the globe. Being a part of large Korean firms really pays off with the whole job search, you know?”
“I’m still not completely convinced,” Jeongguk said, eyebrows pinching together in worry.
“Please, Jeongguk,” Hoseok begged, his voice barely above a whisper. “I’m going to do it even without your consent, but it’ll make it so much easier for me if I know you’re okay with it.”
Jeongguk looked at him. Really, really looked at him.
Yoongi had been nothing short of a gem in Hoseok’s life ever since the two of them had gotten together. The few short times Jeongguk had gotten a chance to meet him, he had been impressed by the man’s manners and skills in the field.
Sure, he was part of the Kim family, but he made Hoseok happy. And for some reason, that was enough for Jeongguk. Up till now it had been fine, so why was he hesitating so much now?
Jeongguk knew why, of course. He was afraid of Hoseok leaving. He didn’t want Hoseok to leave. Hoseok had been with Jeongguk for so long, and had been through so much with him, that Jeongguk couldn’t help but be a little selfish. He knew, however, that it wasn’t going to work that way.
He needed to do this for Hoseok.
So, against his better judgement- something he had been doing a lot more as of recent, he nodded slowly, like he was still unsure. And truth be told? He was. He really, really, was.
“Okay, hyung,” he nodded, not even bothering to hide it as the tears surfaced. “Okay.”
-
When Jeongguk was approached by Kim Taehyung (yes. The Kim Taehyung) the following afternoon, Jeongguk was sure he was going absolutely mad.
Taehyung had never (never ever ever) come up to Jeongguk for any reason at all, save for the first day when they had met. In fact, most of their fights- conversations, were stemmed from the fact that they just kept bumping into each other.
Jeongguk only blamed his bad luck on those, but why was Taehyung walking up to him from across the campus right now? The fourth year’s eyes were set ablaze on Jeongguk as he marched up to him, and Jeongguk could only stand still with wide eyes as the older boy stomped closer and closer.
Thankfully, he was quick to remember his cool.
“Taehyung-ssi. Can I help you?” he said in lieu of greeting.
Taehyung’s teeth gritted together, like he was trying very hard to stop himself from saying something.
“Jeon Jeongguk-ssi,” he started, taking a deep breath and straightening up, “may I speak with you for a minute?”
“Why?” Jeongguk eyed him suspiciously. It was unlike Taehyung to be so… so civil, yet here he was.
Jeongguk was definitely going mad.
Taehyung led Jeongguk to a secluded corner of campus, where only one lone student was sitting, looking over her books. She squeaked upon noticing the two most popular (and best looking) boys approach her, and when Taehyung sweetly asked her to leave with a charming smile, she was quick to comply.
Then, it was just the two of them. Jeongguk shouldn’t have been nervous. He shouldn’t have, but there he was, swallowing lumps of saliva that had been piling up in the back of his throat. He felt constricted, like Taehyung was here to pick another fight with him, confront him about something his parents did regarding the companies.. something.
But Taehyung just whipped around, his lips pressed into a thin line as he looked over Jeongguk for a few moments.
“I need you to do me- and yourself- a favor,” Taehyung started, leaning back on the brick wall of the math building and crossing his arms.
Jeongguk blinked. “Excuse me?”
“A favor, Jeon,” Taehyung repeated, running his tongue across his top lip. “Or do you not understand what the word favor means?”
Jeongguk’s jaw clenched in annoyance. “What favor could you possibly need from me, Kim?”
“One that I’m sure you’ll comply with once hearing why I need it,” Taehyung said, leaning his head closer.
Jeongguk didn’t know what was going on. Was this some kind of joke? Was Jimin pulling some sick prank on him? Taehyung and Jimin were set to start working together today anyways, so it wasn’t completely impossible to visualize. Then again, it was Jimin, and he wouldn’t do something like that with Taehyung of all people.
Maybe.
“Well then,” Jeongguk said, also crossing his arms, “tell me.”
“I’m sure you’ve heard about my brother’s plans to elope with Hoseok-hyung,” Taehyung began. Jeongguk could have sworn he saw a flash of something akin to actual emotion course through Taehyung’s face, but it was gone before he could make sure of it. “I don’t know about you, but there are quite obviously some problems with this.”
Oh the way Taehyung spoke to Jeongguk. Like he was some kindergartener with no sense of right or wrong. It made Jeongguk absolutely sick.
“Let’s start with the most obvious one,” Taehyung began again, rubbing his lips together and glaring at the younger boy. “Our families hate one another.”
“Well isn’t that the understatement of the century,” Jeongguk muttered.
Taehyung shrugged. “Right, well, I’ll get back to that part later,” he said, which made Jeongguk’s eyebrows furrow in confusion. “Anyhow, if word gets out about a marriage between the Jungs and the Kims, you know things aren’t exactly going to work out well for any of us.”
That was true. “Okay.”
“So I propose us doing something that’ll get the attention off of them,” Taehyung finished, now grinning like he was the most amazing person in the world.
Jeongguk snorted. “Uh huh.”
And the smirk was wiped right off of Taehyung’s face. His eyes narrowed. “What? Would you like to say something, Jeon?”
“No no, continue, please, I beg you,” Jeongguk said with sarcasm etched into his tone. Taehyung growled, and Jeongguk did nothing but return the gesture with a low noise of his own.
Then again, this was the longest conversation Jeongguk had ever had with Kim Taehyung, thought he couldn’t exactly see where it was going.
“We,” Taehyung stopped to point at both of them, “should date each other.”
Jeongguk stopped.
He stared at Taehyung.
His lips parted.
“What the fu-”
“Hear me out,” Taehyung said quickly, and for once, Jeongguk could see the physical desperation the older boy was under. He paused, realizing that there was no point in acting irrational about this, even if it was something he knew best to do in the presence of Kim Taehyung.
“I don’t really want to, but I don’t have a choice either do I,” Jeongguk said, his voice monotonous and hopefully rude enough to get his point across.
“You don’t, no,” Taehyung admitted, and Jeongguk groaned. “Now, obviously a marriage can’t be undone, right? But dating can, so we should fake date each other to make sure Yoongi-hyung and Hoseok-hyung can run away peacefully.” He clapped his hands together, like his idea was the best thing ever spoken. “It’ll take the attention off of them for the time being. It’s perfect!”
“No,” Jeongguk said immediately. “There’s no way in hell I’m dating you. Fake or otherwise.”
“And here I thought you actually cared about your friend,” Taehyung said, putting a hand to his heart and gasping loudly. “I thought you would want them to be happy, like I do, but I guess I was wrong.”
Jeongguk sighed. “What do you want, Taehyung.”
“I want my hyung to be happy with Hoseok-hyung.”
Jeongguk shook his head. “No, what do you really want. I don’t doubt that you want them to be happy and all, but there’s clearly something else.” Jeongguk had always been praised for his incredible insightfulness, and it was definitely paying off right now.
He knew Taehyung enough to know that the two of them were similar, and that Taehyung would also rather not have anything to do with Jeongguk if he could help it. There were other ways to get the attention off of Hoseok and Yoongi, and Jeongguk knew that Taehyung was well aware of that.
When Taehyung twisted his lips in thought, Jeongguk knew he was right.
“Information,” he finally said after a few seconds of painfully awkward silence. “I want information from you guys.”
Jeongguk blinked. “What the fuck? I’m not giving you any-”
“Not… not that kind of information,” Taehyung said, his nose scrunching up in distaste.
“Then what kind of information,” Jeongguk said, sighing in exasperation. “Please, do tell.”
“I want to know why we’re like this.”
Jeongguk was very close to letting go and running to a mental hospital to get himself checked out.
“What do you mean.”
“This- this feud, or whatever,” Taehyung said, his hands shaking around like he was trying to make a point of something, “it’s been going on for generations now. I don’t know what your parents told you about it, but mine didn’t tell me anything.”
Jeongguk’s didn’t either. “Go on.”
“Haven’t you ever been curious?” Taehyung asked, now looking directly at Jeongguk. “I have, and I want to know what actually happened between our two families to make things so bad. I want my hyung to be happy with his husband.” He looked away. “But I need the Jeon side on it too if I’m going to find something. You all have a whole other archive of files and history that I don’t have access to unless I’m somehow connected to your system, and I want to know, Jeongguk.”
Jeongguk had never put a second thought to all of that. He had just accepted that there was a feud, and had kept it alive and well throughout his years.
“Things have been miserable back at home for all my life,” Taehyung continued, and Jeongguk watched in pure shock as the elder’s eyes softened. He couldn’t believe this. He was actually going insane. “I can’t speak for you, and frankly, I don’t really want to, but don’t you think it’s time to finally find out why?”
Jeongguk’s mouth went dry as he thought over the other’s words. They were moving, sure, but was Jeongguk really up for something like this? Did he even want to do this in the first place?
“How do I not know you’re just trying to get into my company,” he asked, voice low and serious.
Taehyung shrugged. “Guess you don’t.”
That was it. He said nothing more to elaborate, and for some reason, just that much alone was enough to convince Jeongguk. Why? Well, he didn’t exactly know.
“Fuck,” he hissed. “Fine. Fine, I’ll do it.” Taehyung immediately brightened up. “But I’m doing this for Hobi-hyung, and Hobi-hyung only, got it?”
Taehyung nodded quickly. “Thanks for not being an idiot for once.”
Jeongguk’s cheeks reddened in anger. “Fuck you, Kim.”
“Right back at'cha, Jeon.”