Work Text:
You see, even for a free spirited individual like Taehyung sometimes things could be… Well. Not easy.
In a situation like that, a million things could go wrong.
But what were the other options? Living like a liar? Doubting every single day if their love and respect for him were genuine? Wondering until death did them apart if they would ever accept him or not?
No. Taehyung was no coward. He already waited enough. The moment had come for him to tell them the truth. They were mature, intelligent and respectful enough.
Looking up at the ceiling, he took a deep breath to calm his nerves. His cellphone had already been suffering for some minutes, squeezed between his fingers and sweaty palm.
With one movement, he sat up on the bed. Comfortably crossing legs, after a moment of thinking he unlocked the phone and in a few clicks he got to Bangtan’s groupchat. Writing them all individually was not the best move, while talking to them all together sounded definitely better, and more efficient.
He glanced at the clock. 11:56 am. Everyone should have been up already or just about to wake up.
Guys?
No response for more than twenty minutes. He wondered what they had a group chat for. Nobody ever answered there. Anyway, another attempt wouldn’t hurt.
Guys?
Still no response in the next half hour. Out of boredom during the wait, he threw himself back on the bed, staring at the ceiling first and then playing with Animal Crossing. He then tried to write again, driven by his endless optimism.
I need to talk to you.
For a whole hour this time no one read the messages nor answered him.
Guys. Are you ignoring me? >:(
Three minutes later, from the cellphone came the Kakaotalk notif sound signaling a new message. He looked at the screen: Yoongi finally wrote him back.
What makes you think that?
Taehyung rolled his eyes, clearly annoyed.
Dunno. Maybe because you are, in fact, ignoring me?
Once more, no texts from them. At that point, he was starting to be quite pissed off, although not too much. Negative emotions were not good for the heart.
I’m serious, guys. I need to talk to you.
This time, Seokjin stepped in.
Is it another one of your prank? ‘Cause I have no time for that
Letting a grunt escape his throat, he furiously wrote down the answer and sent it. What was he saying about negative emotions and the heart just a moment before?
No, I’m serious. Really. I need to talk to you about something.
Another response from Seokjin, almost immediate.
Go ahead
A long whine, rolling eyes, a sigh.
No, in person. It’s serious.
While waiting for a response, loud stomps suddenly echoed in the hallway.
Then, Taehyung’s room door opened with a loud bang. Right in the center of the frame, forming a standing, human starfish, appeared Jimin with a concerned expression on his face.
“Taehyungie!” he squealed walking towards him. “What’s happening? Are you ok?”
He sat on the bed in front of Taehyung, who sat up with a leg under the other hanging out of the bed, still holding his phone with a half text on display.
“Jiminie. I want to talk to all of you.”
“Yeah, I read that.”
Jimin didn’t seem to catch the undertone of Taehyung’s words, since he kept on staring at his soulmate, waiting for a signal of some sort.
Taehyung quirked an eyebrow. “Jimin. I’m not going to tell you. You’ll wait ‘till we are all together and I can talk about it.” His resolution didn’t left room for debates.
Jimin didn’t catch that either. With a grunt, he tried to convince him to speak.
Taehyung, after hearing the other rant for two minutes on the importance of a no-secret policy in their friendship, simply crossed arms and stared blankly in Jimin’s eyes, waiting for him to shut up and go.
His soulmate didn’t catch the hint at first, but when he did he stood up slightly outraged, and his rumbling kept going from the bed until he closed the door behind him.
Staring at the door, Taehyung sighed. He then sent a text in the groupchat, hoping to put an end to that ordeal very soon. He was craving some relaxing jazz music and a coke. He so needed one.
So, when can we gather?
It took them around an hour and a half of back-and-forth separated by long waitings to agree on when and where. In three days, at 8 pm, their dorm, living room. He made it clear it was a private matter, so no manager and staff allowed.
Right after, he put on some music and went to the kitchen to grab a cold coke. Once back in the room, he started to think on how to tell them.
He didn’t want it to be a heavy talk. Like himself, it needed to be carefree, light and possibly funny.
The day after, an idea popped up in his mind while reluctantly drinking some coffee to help him wake up for the morning practice.
He would make a list of likes and dislikes, and just tell them in one go. That was going to work out perfectly.
Or at least he hoped so.
Two days and a lot of useless anxiety later, the fateful moment presented himself in all glory.
Taehyung was internally freaking out. But like the good boy he was, he pretended nothing stressful was going on.
The guys were all seated on the two sofas in their dorm living room. All of them except for Taehyung, standing right in front of them, at the center of the attention.
He watched them one by one. After a deep breath, and with hands in his pockets, he started to recite the short monologue he prepared.
“So. I know I’ve said it’s a serious matter, but I don’t really want it to be. I mean, it won’t change anything, alright? I will still be me, I will still consider you as family, as brothers, so do not worry. Okay?”
The guys looked at each other with confused faces. “Okay…?” said Jimin, voice uncertain.
“Okay.” repeated Taehyung, as if to reassure himself that everything was going to turn out just fine. He took another deep breath. Bringing his hands together in front of him, he continued. “So, here are 8 things that I dislike.”
“I knew it.” Seokjin sprinted up and out of there, annoyed. “I knew it was one of your things. I’m sorry, but I said I have no time for that. Bye.”
Taehyung blocked his way. “It’s not one of my things. I’m serious. It’s just the way I’ve come up with to tell you. Please sit down and listen to me.”
They stood there, piercing each other’s eyes, one more stubborn than the other.
“Seokjin hyung. Please sit down. I promise it’s not what you think.”
The older was still dubious, but with a huff he returned to his seat, between Namjoon and Hoseok.
Taehyung sighed, again. He started over.
“So, as I was saying. Here are 8 things I dislike: shoes, spicy food, coffee, sharks, vagina, vegetables, hot weather and bread crust.”
He talked quite fast, and did so with the other half of the list, too.
“Now, 8 things I like: dogs, strawberries, anime, acting, dick, jazz, video games and photography.”
Without letting none of them react nor say anything, he top it off with a thank you.
“And that was it. Faster than I thought. Thank you for coming to my Ted Talk, enjoy your evening. Bye.”
And after that, he basically just disappeared in his room.
Back in the living room you could not hear a pin drop. They were all still looking at the spot in the hallway where Taehyung disappeared a second before with no intention of moving.
After what seemed an entire geological era, Hoseok ended the silence, asking: “Did he just, in a very curious way, made coming out?”
No eyes switched to him. They were still focused on the hallway.
“I think so.” remarked Namjoon, tone flat.
“Well.” said Seokjin.
They finally looked away from the hallway and turned to him.
“What?” he asked, taken aback.
“What what? Are you going to actually say something or…?”
“No.” He fired back.
Another couple of minutes of silence went by, where they stared at each other in confusion.
“So. Taehyungie’s gay.” stated Namjoon, tone still flat.
“Apparently.”
“Yeah.”
“I must say, he never really appeared much straight, to me.” Confessed Yoongi, tilting his head.
“Yeah, no. To me neither.” followed Jimin, pointing a bouncing index to Yoongi in agreement.
After some more self-reflection in absolute silence, Jimin stood up. Jungkook did, too, by reflex.
“You come with me?”
“Where are we going? I want to go to Taehyungie hyung.”
Jimin simply gave him a thumbs up.
Jungkook cutely nodded in response.
While the hyungs kept their asses glued to the sofas, pondering about the universe and the meaning of life, Jimin and Jungkook knocked on Taehyung’s door.
A muffled yes? came from inside the room, inviting them in.
There was no need to talk. Taehyung might have been trying to keep it light, but his worried look told another story. It didn’t seem like he cried, even though his eyes were glossy.
And man, the posture. A tree would have been less stiff than him at that very moment: sitting on the bed back straight, hand pressed between his legs and jaw clenched, features tense, he looked like a lost, terrified puppy.
Jimin was the first to go sit near him and hug him tight.
“Oh, Tahyungie.”
Jungkook went to hug him from the other side, snuggling up to him.
“Are you okay with it?” asked Taehyung, deep voice trembling.
Jimin gently stroked his hair, looking at him enamored. “Shouldn’t we? Does it change something? Aren’t you going to be our lovely Taehyungie for eternity and beyond?”
With a sigh of relief and a feeble yeah, Taehyung pulled them closer and buried his face in Jimin’s neck.
Grasping the fact that they not only weren’t judging him, but were accepting him as if he just confessed his favorite jam flavor (strawberry, of course, in case anyone wondered) instead of coming out, an overwhelming affection and gratitude for them warmed him up.
Jimin and Jungkook cuddled him until tears and snot stopped soaking Jimin’s neck and shoulder.
Taehyung then sat straight, brushing his nose and sniffling. Jungkook offered him a box of tissues. Taehyung nodded, grateful.
Once things cooled down, they brought him in the living room, each holding one of his hands.
The hyungs were still pondering about life and the universe, completely lost in themselves. Made the maknaes wonder if they were trying to recreate a real-life painting. Something titled The early middle-age crisis, as reenacted by youngsters in the twenty-first century.
“Guys?”
No response.
“Guys?” yelled Jimin, trying to steal their attention. It worked.
They all turned simultaneously. Not gonna lie, it was creepy as hell.
“Woah. No, Taehyungie, did you cry?”
Hoseok and Seokjin went to circle him, blathering their concern while also throwing sweet words here and there to reassure him. He was their baby after all. They all had a soft spot in their heart for him.
Namjoon and Yoongi were not any different. But physical affection wasn’t their cup of tea, so they lingered around without much of a show, telling Taehyung they loved him and were going to be always by his side.
Flooded by his hyung’s affection, Taehyung understood he didn’t really had anything to fear. They would always support him, stay by his side and love him no matter what. They were family.
The best one he could ever dream of.
…
Well. No offense to the real one, of course.