Archive of Our Own

the wind sang along his hair as he skipped across the sidewalk. he was starting to put on some length, it felt great. the black dyed hair complemented his skin very well.

jungkook wore a grand smile, a bit too cheerful for someone who had classes later but at least he wasn't feeling miserable.

being in the wistful mood he was in, he marched his way to the cafe down the street. he was craving both caffeine and attention from a certain short friend.

it was very early in the morning but sure enough, the streets were busy, bustling with cars honking and people ready to start their day.

he had his headphones in, listening to music he is sure his highschool-self would have cringed at but he was over that phase. he really enjoyed the music.

even with the music blaring in his ears he made sure to keep an eye out for everyone passing him and he carefully made his way to the cafe.

the familiar sound of the bell rang as he entered the place, a cool air freshener melting away the heat from outside. a few people looked to the door due to the noise, but they soon turned back to whatever they were doing.

jungkook walked up to the counter spotting his friend there, "morning!"

"can you shut up?" yoongi rubs his eyes. he was slouched up on the counter when jungkook came in, it was a surprise he had time to rest in such a busy shop.

jungkook laughs at how grouchy his friend is. yoongi grunts in response, "it's 10 am, not everyone wants to be alive this early. could you be any quieter?"

"it's a fucking coffee shop yoongi, not a library."

"correction, it's my coffee shop. now shut up before i ban you," he grumbles putting his head down again.

snorting at his friend, jungkook goes to pat his head when yoongi slaps him on the back of his hand. it was like he was waiting to hit him.

jungkook starts weighing whether it would be worth it to attack him back or keep his cool. instead, the elder starts their amendment of peace by saying, "so..your usual order?"

"bring it to my seat please," he deals.

"sit somewhere else, for now. someone decided to play an intense game of rock paper scissors and they totalled the stool," yoongi points at his seat decorated with a milkshake.

"shit who was it?"

"the middle schoolers."

"typical." 

jungkook turns away to find a seat and he suddenly remembers why yoongi had a special seat for him. 

it was a small cafe, small enough for one person to handle it, the reason why yoongi never let him work there. that and he looked goofy in an apron. 

despite the small appearance from the outside, business was always booming; which is exactly why he couldn't spot a single free chair in any corner.

it was a popular place for all kinds of students, both because of the student discount yoongi offered and how close the place was to many schools.

the interior was cozy and well decorated, the menu wasn't that extravagant but it was homey and familiar, something not found in the city often.

he continues scanning the area and concludes he will have to sit beside someone in the table area. he spots one empty seat beside a boy near the windows. 

he walks up to the boy, who was reading a book. jungkook felt a bit bad for interrupting. he coughs to announce his presence, "excuse me, is this seat taken?" 

the boy doesn't react and continues reading. he didn't have any headphones, maybe he thought jungkook wasn't talking to him?

this time he taps his shoulder and just motions for the chair. the boy looks a bit startled and looks around nervously.

"can i sit here?" jungkook asks again, this time the boy squints while looking at him. does he not understand? 

jungkook is about to ask for a third time when the boy just nods eagerly and scoots away so they can both have their personal space while sitting.

he seemed flustered but jungkook chose not to question it. he takes his seat bringing out his book to read.

ecery now and then he would look at the boy, he looked very handsome after all. it was funny how focused he was on the book. 

he had a large cup which jungkook could tell was heavily caffeinated. he had worked with yoongi enough to recognize when the man put extra expresso shots in drinks.

a few pages into reading jungkook is already aching to say something. he doesn't know the boy and doesn't want to make him uncomfortable so he waves to yoongi at the counter who gives him a trivial look. 

a look that probably meant "shut the fuck up." he has known the elder long enough to understand that.

after a while, he gets bored again and peeks over at the boy. he was still nose deep into the book and his drink was empty. empty!?

"holy shit did you drink all of that?" jungkook practically yells at the boy sitting next to him.

when he doesn't respond jungkook stares at him while frowning, "hello? are you not listening?" he is about to tap him again when yoongi suddenly comes into view.

"jungkook," his friend says with a warning tone, "he can't hear you."

_______

"what do you mean he can't hear?" jungkook whisper-yells while yoongi drags him back to the counter. the elder rushed over the second he heard his yelling.

"i meant exactly what i said, he can't hear you. now quit bothering him, i cleaned up your seat so you can sit there now."

jungkook doesn't sit down, he is actually pushed down into the seat and forced into reading his book again. remind him to get kinder friends.

he stays silent but his eyes stay focused on yoongi, wide with questions. the elder can feel the gaze burning into him, he desperately whines, "for the love of god please stay quiet, i'll even let you help me serve some drinks."

at his offer, he does shut up and runs to dress in the "goofy apron". if yoongi was so against him working there why did he have a set of aprons fit for jungkook?

he actually enjoys helping around the cafe, especially knowing the weight it lifts off yoongi's shoulders. (his poor shoulders that also carry the weight of the music industry) 

when jungkook is given the chance to work at the cash register he does it naturally. maybe that would convince the elder to hire him?

a few regulars who jungkook know greet him and pay up until the boy from the table is there too. jungkook smiles at him and the boy shys away, he was clearly still flustered over something.

"hey, are you oka-"

"kook how about you let me handle this," once again yoongi comes in saying out of nowhere.

"but-"

"go clean the table."

yoongi banishes him to the table where another set of middle-schoolers left a mess, he begrudgingly cleans it up while staring at the boy by the counter.

the boy makes eye contact with him before he leaves the place. this time jungkook flushes. who was he?

_______

jungkook goes back the next day, he was there daily and although yoongi complained about it a lot, secretly the elder was always expecting him to come.

he enters brightly again at 10 am, this time his friend is actually lively and currently serving a customer. the elder already had a drink set aside for him.

so jungkook goes back to his regular seat waiting for yoongi to be free. unknowingly he peers to where he sat beside the quiet boy yesterday. he was there again, another book nesting in his hands.

he doesn't realize how long he must have been watching him, maybe the boy felt his eyes on him. just as the boy looks at him his phone goes off, it was his friend calling him about being late to a meet-up. 

it had totally slipped his mind. jungkook fumbles out his wallet to pay even though the elder insisted he doesn't have to. 

he rushes out of the place, not forgetting to look at the boy one last time through the window. he was looking at him too, a gentle smile on his face.

_______

once again early morning jungkook enters the store. actually not that early, he slept in so 12 pm was still early for him. it's a friday anyways, time was irrelevant on fridays.

"hi yoongi!"

"greetings non-adult, how is university?"

"you saw me yesterday… and you literally graduated last year?"

"geez no need to get technical," yoongi slides over his id card, "you left this here yesterday by the way, start being more responsible kid." 

"i'm not a kid, shut up!" jungkook pockets the card and scoffs. he didn't even know it was gone, but god forbid yoongi ever finds out.

yoongi grins nonchalantly, "it's friday, you want the dessert menu?" he says knowing the youngers habits of snacking out on this particular weekday.

jungkook's furrows his brows as if mad and yanks the menu from the elders hand, "can i have a banana split sundae? with extra sprinkles... please."

"right away!" he chuckles going to the back to grab a sundae bowl. jungkook can't quite pin it but yoongi was acting weird.

he gets served his sundae with a heart drizzled on the top with syrup. yeah, something was definitely wrong.

he shovels a spoonful into his mouth before speaking, "cut the crap, what's wrong?"

"well, if you don't have class today can you help me a bit? today it's been awfully crowded…i feel drained."

"oh my god of course."

"i'll pay you for the hours, thank you."

"what n-"

"please let me pay you, i don't have it in me to argue right now kook." jungkook doesn't reply and just nods, he hasn't seen the elder this exhausted ever.

person after person just keep coming and jungkook understands why yoongi didn't want to pressure him with working there.

jungkook silently awaits for a certain somebody to drop by.

the quiet boy enters the cafe a lot later than expected. jungkook thought he had already come by before but he was wrong.

it was almost 5 pm when he waves at yoongi and goes to his regular seating. yoongi pushes jungkook to deliver his drink, another heavily caffeinted beverage. 

how does this guy drink this stuff? jungkook could never, yoongi has to douse all his drinks in sugar or he refuses to even smell it.

today the boy was wearing a beret and instead of a book he had a sketchbook in hand. he suited the look, he did remind jungkook of those rich exchange students that wore expensive coats for no reason.

for a minute he had forgotten about the drink in hand and decides to admire the drawing the boy had etched out. was he an art student? 

he calls out to the boy but he doesn't respond, as usual, so he taps his shoulder. the boy startles at the contact, turning immediately. 

he meekly takes the drink away. he seems more flustered than normal, also very secretive with what he was drawing.

jungkook thinks nothing of it and returns to the counter, ready to prepare the next order. he does keep his eye on the boy who doesn't stay for long at all. maybe he was having a lazy friday too?

he comes up to pay and yoongi has a good few minutes of some sort of hand game with him before he pays for the drink and leaves.

waiting for an appropriate time jungkook asks, "what was the hand dance you were doing?"

"typical sign language jungkook," yoongi helps him mix up the next order.

"when did you-"

"my uncle is mute so i learned to communicate with him remember?"

"but your uncle could hear me? he would always respond somehow."

"my uncle had hearing aids, c'mon kook i raised you not to be ignorant of others. deaf people exist."

"my bad."

yoongi sighs again and finishes the order "now don't go asking him if he has hearing aids or not, it's rude." jungkook just nods.

it's silent between the two as it's nearing closing time and the cafe is almost completely deserted.

"he is very cute you know," he says randomly while wiping a table.

yoongi is on the other side of the room but he still responds, "ah i guess he is, you should tell him if you think so."

"how would i- wait what's his name? he must be a regular here even if i never noticed."

"ask him yourself," yoongi throws a dirty rag at him.

"how?"

"how do you talk to someone jungkook? he isn't an alien, just try to communicate," he says plainly and jungkook gasps, why didn't he think of that? "i'm gonna talk to him tomorrow!"

"loud and wrong, the cafe is closed on the weekend remember?"

"oh yeah."

"you got whipped cream on your hand by the way."

"i am aware," he throws it smack at yoongi's face.

_______

the next time jungkook arrives at the store he doesn't even spare his friend a greeting and goes straight to questioning, "is the guy here today?"

"wow hello jungkook, thanks for asking how my weekend was! i was about to tell you how i scored a date with my crush but no by all means ask away."

"shut up that's not important- wait namjoon went out with you?" yoongi nods.

"like the actual kim namjoon, not an avatar you made on sims? like the namjoon finally woke up and realized how much you are in love with him?"

yoongi wants to punch him, he really does but broad daylight isn't the right place to commit a murder, especially within his own store.

he sighs, "he's at his usual spot, i'll bring you your drink."

"thank you!" jungkook says loudly and marches to the window seat.

his late-night cramming should help him communicate, right? he spent hours learning the alphabet and repeatedly sang the song while practicing.

"hello my name is jungkook." the only phrase he religiously practiced all night.

jungkook was almost glad the boy couldn't hear him coming behind him, he was a bit nervous about the whole thing.

he gently put his hand on the boy's shoulder but even that caused him to jump in his seat. when he turned around he looked perplexed. 

he must've recognized jungkook because he shifts over his chair and points to the seat next to him and nods.

"oh wait no i'm here to talk to you," jungkook tries signing it out. he thinks he did a good job because the boy points to himself and looks around.

he looked surprised someone was talking to him. 'to me?' he mouths out and jungkook eagerly nods; he continues trying to communicate with his jumbled hand movements. 

he remembers how to say 'my name is' but that's about it, he gets to the letter n and has already forgotten the placement of fingers.

the boy doesn't say anything even if he could. he patiently waits and attentively watches jungkook. who starts blushing from the boy's gaze.

he can feel yoongi watching them from the counter and probably laughing at how miserably jungkook failed at talking.

he is about to give up when the guy signs out the letters himself, reminding jungkook how he studied them last night.

he follows along with the hand movements which make the boy smile. 

he also makes the gesture to explain his name, by now jungkook has absolutely no confidence in his skills but his self-declared mime status was at risk so he continues trying to figure it out.

"taen?" he mouths but the boy shakes his head, "tahun" he tries again but it was a no once more, when jungkook fails again he shows him his id. 

"kim taehyung? that's a lovely name!"

'jungkook' he insinuates back. jungkook was better at reading lips it seems.

"wait how did you know my name?" he speaks slowly to help the boy understand better.

taehyung makes some intricate gestures with his hands and jungkook stared wide-eyed trying to comprehend the sentence.

he quickly realizes sign language is more than just letters, yoongi was right, he needs to stop being ignorant. "yoongi!" he yells ignoring the glares other studious people were sending him.

"the fuck do you want?" 

"actually taehyung called you here," he announces proudly and taehyung seems to have gotten the memo because he waves at the elder.

"good job you know his name! did you tell him you think he's cute?"

"shut up!"

taehyung looks between the two and makes a motion with his hands to yoongi, eyebrows knitted together in confusion.

"what is he saying?"

"he asked what we were talking about, i guess he couldn't lip-read what i said."

taehyung spells something out to yoongi and he responds with something too. while jungkook stands there dumbfounded and left out, he nudges the elder again.

"he said he was the one that found your id card the other day and that's how he knew."

"why didn't you tell me he was the one who found it!" 

"did it matter? you still lost it, doofus."

again taehyung asks yoongi to clarify what he meant, the elder sighs but complies. "can i not be your translator? i have a job to do," yoongi says while simultaneously signing it out.

when he leaves, jungkook rolls his eyes sitting down. he mumbles on about yoongi being annoying and beside him taehyung only nods.

they do end up talking for a while, more like playing charades to communicate but jungkook was just glad he was able to somehow connect to the other.

taehyung seemed a bit iffy at first but eventually caught up and put all his focus on jungkook.

turns out taehyung really was into art like jungkook had assumed and surprisingly wasn't some sort of model. or he could be? jungkook still isn't one hundred percent sure of what he heard.

every now and then taehyung would make a little sound and jungkook was aching to ask if he could actually talk or not. holding onto his rational side he decided against it.

he didn't realize how long he spent there until his phone went off, he looks at his watch and widened his eye. taehyung follows his movement when he jumps up exasperated.

"oh shit, i have class right now! i'm gonna go then. it was nice talking- well conversing with you. bye, taehyung!"

he might have spoken a bit too fast because taehyung didn't respond until jungkook physically left. 

"leaving already?" yoongi asks, "did you give up?"

"very funny, i have class right now," he says bringing out his wallet, this time making sure to have all his belongings.

"i'm also paying for him."

"oh wow, how bold of you, did you call him cute?" when jungkook doesn't respond yoongi scoffs. "seriously? you both talked or whatever the fuck that was for like an hour and- you know what just get out of here."

"yeah bye." he waves to his friend and then to the boy by the window. taehyung looks to yoongi and back to how jungkook rushed out. his confused face makes the elder laugh. 

'he paid for your drink' 

'why'

'he thinks you're cute'

yoongi laughs again when taehyung quickly averts his eyes and goes back to his book reading. the boy leaves soon after still blushing from how yoongi started teasing him.

_______

a lot later jungkook later receives a text from his friend saying he helped him out and called taehyung cute. 

shortly after that he buried his face in his pillow and cussed yoongi out for an hour before researching more on signing gestures. 

his roommate finds him passed out watching some anime about a bullied deaf girl playing in the background. he drags jungkook to his bed and then goes to finish the anime for him.

_______

the next jungkook sees taehyung was actually in the middle of the street. like deadass while he was crossing the road. he irresponsibly j-walked to catch up to him.

he yelled the boy's name a few times before realizing his idiocy and just running over to greet him. 

remembering how startled he gets when jungkook jumps in front to speak, he gently taps his hair, almost in a caressing manner.

at first, taehyung is alarmed but he calms down when he notices it's jungkook. with a mismatched sign he greets him. taehyung seems to understand and he greets him as well, using proper and fluid movements. 

"how are you today!" no proper response from taehyung.

he mouths something and jungkook can't understand what he meant. to show that he mumbles something back, but it doesn't work either. 

this goes back in forth for a while and they both look a little discouraged by the end. they sort of exchange awkward goodbyes and go their separate ways.

jungkook looks back to see how stiffly taehyung walks, he looks guarded all the time. he wonders how it must be feeling dull in the ears.

he saw how sad the boy got when they failed to talk. he doesn't want him to feel unheard.

when jungkook gets home that night he starts studying up on vocal articulation. his roommate assumes it must be a music thing and leaves him be.

_______

"jungkook what the fuck is on your head?" 

"it's called a hair bun."

"it looks like a palm tree," yoongi says reaching over to grip at the tuft. a not so gentle grip he had, pulling on the hair as if it weren't attached to jungkook's head.

jungkook pushes him off; it was way too early to be dealing with this bullshit, he sighs, "just bring me my order."

"stupid yoongi always bullying me. it doesn't look like a palm tree! my hair is cool he is just jealous. yeah, that's it, stup-gi always trying to piss me off." he continues mumbling and then goes to sit down.

taehyung feels the rattle of the chair and looks to his side, jungkook greets him, "hey taehyung."

taehyung wasn't expecting jungkook to really try talking to him after their failed communication the day before, but nevertheless, here he was sitting beside him as if he belongs there.

jungkook starts babbling about his hair to taehyung forgetting how the boy couldn't understand him like this. 

yet, instead of giving a signal, he tries his best to read the other's lips, even if he was speaking far too fast or well, mumbling incoherently. 

he understands the words 'hair' and 'stupid' which at first taehyung assumed were directed at himself, but when he finally looks up from jungkook's lips he understands what he meant.

there was a tuft planted in the middle of his head.  

taehyung tears a piece of paper from his notebook, hiding it while he draws something on it. jungkook waits curiously. once handed the paper he groans and taehyung only laughs.

he scribbles out a drawing of a palm tree and pointed to jungkook's hair all while trying to contain his laughter. 

he can't tell what jungkook said but judging by the redness of his face and how fast he opened and closed his mouth it should be along the lines of "you're just as bad as yoongi oh my god".

he then abruptly stands up, "oh my god wait!"

taehyung catches onto the word wait, he wants to express he doesn't understand but before he can try anything jungkook is gone. he bolts out of the store, man bun bouncing side to side as he frolics away.

a few eyes turn to taehyung and that immediately makes him quieter than he could possibly be. he seats himself down and looks to the counter where yoongi was working.

the elder looks back at him and then to the door that jungkook rudely threw open a second ago. he chuckles and taehyung isn't sure what he was laughing at.

taehyung didn't plan on staying long, but the word "wait" stayed on his mind. what did he mean?

curious as to what made jungkook leave so suddenly he does stick around a bit longer than intended. even offering to help yoongi at the front. they knew each other well enough for him to do that.

_______

a long time after jungkook charged out of the cafe he returns with a plastic bag in hand. he is breathing heavily and his man bun had limped to one side. he had been running. 

when he enters the cafe his eyes immediately go to where taehyung would normally sit. he lours at how it was empty now.

frowning, jungkook walks to the counter clearly disappointed and ready to rant to his friend about something. 

he doesn't get the chance because taehyung is being pushed into his arms.

"great kook you're finally here! take him the fuck back," yoongi says exasperated. 

"what did you do to piss him off so badly?" jungkook asks as the two are headed back to their usual seats.

taehyung shrugs his shoulders, then quickly changes his posture to cross his arms instead. even without him saying it, jungkook can tell what the look on his face meant. 

"i went to get this!" 

he proudly brings out a notebook from his plastic bag. 

taehyung figures out what it's for right away, he is the first to write in the book. 

'we could have used my sketchbook'

'i feel bad using your expensive paper' jungkook scribbles back, his hand was still shaky from how much he ran around.

he was quite perplexed, despite all the schools in the area he couldn't find one fucking store with any stationary. 

'it's not that expensive, you're about to die'

'a little running can't kill you'

'jungkook'

'i like the way you write my name'

'shut up'

this makes jungkook chuckle, he doesn't comment on how the others turned red.

they write back and forth, continuously talking and drawing little things into the book. up until it gets dark.

jungkook takes the book and hands it to taehyung, he mouths "you take it first" and says his goodbyes before retreating to the counter. 

taehyung clutches the notebook close to himself the whole way home. mind fluttering with the smiles the younger boy gave him today.

he felt heard for the first time in years.

_______

they took turns keeping the little notebook, every time it came back to the cafe it was filled with another small sketch that taehyung made while bored. 

he used the image to explain his day to jungkook. 

jungkook would write little passages about his day and draw in his own little doodles. 

it was a juvenile way to speak to each other, a talking journal was something taehyung used since he was young. nowadays it was impossible for people to resort to that for communicating with him.

but jungkook did that for him and it meant the world to him.

_______

being deaf isn't bad, actually, it's kind of nice sometimes. you get to avoid the awful sound emitted by nails on a chalkboard and you don't have to listen to horrid construction music.

but right now it wasn't helpful at all. it was stupid going around town when he didn't have any assistance but taehyung urgently needed to go out.

normally he would be fine going outside. he was very used to the city, very familiarized with everything around the area.

he didn't need to hear anything to feel fulfilled on a daily basis. but god did he wish he at least be aware more often.

he is a capable person, he should be able to do anything anyone else does. most of the time he is able to go freely without hearing anything.

but taehyung finds that sound is a crucial thing when dealing with other people. 

just like now, he wasn't paying attention to his surroundings and accidentally bumped into someone. 

taehyung felt embarrassed for bumping into the lady and she looked agitated. he simply didn't hear her walking past him, but she didn't know that. 

she was moving her mouth too much and too loudly he couldn't figure out what she meant. he tried his best to explain with motions, he really didn't want to talk.

he didn't know how he would sound, or if he could even make the right sounds. it felt pathetic.

people were starting to stare at him now, someone whispering something at him to his right. he isn't sure what they are saying though.

he puts his head down in shame. none of the people here seemed open enough to understand the situation he was in and he could already feel the titles he was being given. 

with so much commotion around him, even without sound, it was overwhelming. a gentle tap on the back of his head brings back his focus. only one person does that to greet him.

taehyung looks up and finds jungkook beside him; the boy seemed to be everywhere he went.

jungkook softly takes his hand and circles letters into it. he found yet another way to talk to taehyung. it wasn't the fastest way to communicate but it worked.

'are you okay?'

'i don't know'

the lady started yelling something again but taehyung kept his eyes on jungkook's mouth. 

he doesn't know why but for a while now he could tell everything the boy was saying, despite his slight lisp. he would pronounce every syllable. 

as if intentionally so that taehyung understood him, but there's no way…right?

he stares at jungkook's mouth making out what he says, "ma'am we're sorry for bumping into you, but you have no right to say something like that."

'what did she say' taehyung traces onto the others hand puzzled by what he meant.

'don't worry about it' jungkook lets go of his hand for a second.

then he takes ahold of taehyung's wrist instead, 'close your eyes for a second' he spells along the radius of the hand.

'what'

taehyung looks to jungkook with a confused look but ends up closing his eyes anyways when the younger winks.

the lady in front of them only glares at them and their less than odd communication. 

when taehyung opens his eyes jungkook was now in front of him and the lady was nowhere to be seen.

she was escaping to another aisle and the crowd of people also bustled away from the two. taehyung looks to jungkook expecting him to explain, but he cheekily spells out hello onto his wrist instead.

he pushes the boy to explain again, but he just pulls him to the counter instead. on their way out taehyung could see the women again. she looked mad at him but at the same time very embarrassed. 

jungkook never did tell him what she said or what he said afterwards to get her to shut up.

_______

the next they met at the cafe taehyung had already ordered jungkook's drink. he was shocked such a drink was on the menu but turns out it was the jungkook secret special. 

a fruity blend, subdued in low-fat milk with absolutely no caffeine. for someone so hyper it was funny seeing jungkook's distaste for caffeine.

jungkook greets him like normal, this time ruffling his hair a bit. he thanks taehyung, spelling it out with signed letters. he doesn't know how well he did because the boy only nods. 

after that, they don't speak much, maybe saying a few words between the notebook but they stay beside each other in a harmonious manner. 

taehyung wanted to ask jungkook something but left the younger be seeing how seriously he was staring on his laptop. it must have been an important assignment judging by his focused eyes.

jungkook doesn't notice how quickly the sky outside started to go dark, by the time he closes his laptop taehyung has already cleaned up.

the boy moves so quietly, jungkook could be convinced he's the deaf one between the two.

taehyung holds up their notebook, goodbye written in a thick font and a few doodles around it. jungkook chuckles and tries to do something similar.

sign language wasn't the easiest and he was still attempting to learn it, still, he mustered up the confidence to try spelling out goodbye. 

at first, taehyung tried his best to connect the letters but soon gave up laughing. like with an actual laugh. so he could talk after all?

taehyung holds his hand, opening up his palm to spell out, 'try this instead'

he shows how to make simple gestures like "hello", "goodbye", "thank you" and a few more everyday terms.

jungkook tries imitating as best as he can. 

'this must be a hassle' taehyung writes into the notebook.

'it's okay i hear you' jungkook writes back.

when taehyung returns home that night he decides it's time. it's taken him too long to make this decision and the time spent with jungkook might just be a pushing factor.

he slips into his bed, phone in hand. his finger hovers over the call button for a bit before he decides to just press it and hope for the best.

_______

taehyung beams a smile as soon as he feels a gentle pat on his head. the chair beside him moves, and he closes his book.

it was jungkook sitting down beside him with a huge slice of cake. he didn't even know this place sold cakes. he offers his hand to the other already knowing how they greet each other now. 

'good morning, i like your hair' 

'thank you, where did you get that cake' taehyung traces. he wanted to compliment jungkook back but chickened out.

instead of answering jungkook pointed behind him. he turns around, it was yoongi standing there with his drink.

yoongi smiles at him and hands him his cup, he then turns to jungkook and his smile vanishes. "you know you're going to become diabetic."

"you run the caffeine shop, not me." jungkook replies, already starting to devour the cheesecake in front of him.

yoongi looks at him disturbed, "at least i'm not fattening up with sweets on a daily."

"at least i have muscles."

"of course you do, you fuckin' gym freak," he scoffs and jungkook does too.

a few students who happened to be eavesdropping on their conversation look uneasily at yoongi. jungkook knows he doesn't have to tell them, but he wishes they knew how the elder really was.

yes, yoongi insults him on a daily. he also drives an extra two hours to get strawberries weekly so jungkook can order his special cheesecakes. 

to everyone else, it may seem like they are always fighting, which is true most of the time. but both of them know how much the other cares and how close they really are.

taehyung picks up on the little things they do for each other. 

yoongi always remembers to add a little joke on the side of jungkook's cup. jungkook always remembers to make sure yoongi drinks water while working.

jungkook would quietly slip behind the counter and help yoongi whenever he seemed tired. yoongi would tell others to quiet down when the younger would doze off.

yoongi's energy is always a bit more lifted with his friend around and jungkook always makes sure to talk to him. they almost seemed like brothers. 

after the elder left their table taehyung tapped jungkook on his head. he looks at him with a hum and naturally lifts his hand for taehyung to talk.

he thinks of the best way to ask and ends up tracing 'how did you get to know yoongi?'

"he used to bully me," jungkook says like it's no big deal.

'what' 

"yeah mostly about my hair, it used to look like a coconut, and then he beat someone up for trying to make fun of me," he explains slowly emphasizing his elocution. 

'what did they make fun about'

"talking too much, i have a lisp you know."

'no i don't' taehyung looks at him grimly.

"well of course not!" jungkook almost giggles out; thank god the other couldn't hear him making that embarrassing sound.

taehyung smiled now that jungkook was too. 

'i like listening to you talk' 

"i like talking to you too."

they smile at each other and get back to doing their own things.

_______

right before jungkook announces he is about to leave taehyung slips over their notebook. he roughly sketched out a picture of yoongi and jungkook together. 

jungkook smiles widely at it but scrunches his face at the proportions. they looked fine, just yoongi for some reason looked like a titan.

"i am much taller than yoongi though," he says frowning.

taehyung takes a pencil and writes out something before packing his own bookbag to leave. 

they say their goodbyes and on his way out jungkook opens up the book curious as to what taehyung had written inside. 

he feels a blush creep onto his face as he reads the fine handwriting. 

'you're cuter this way'

jungkook waddles home dreamily, with only one person on his mind. 

_______

jungkook walks into the shop a bit later than usual, his morning class ended a lot later than he had hoped. he greets his friend before turning to his seat.

taehyung is already there, looking a lot more anxious than normal. he approaches him with a  smile.

the boy doesn't even spare him a proper greeting before grabbing his hand.  'i won't be here tomorrow' he traces out fast.

jungkook is a bit taken aback by the speedy writing, but he catches on when taehyung writes it on his palm a second time. 

"why not?"

'i need to do something very important'

"it's okay we will see each other again next week anyway!"

noticing how tensed taehyung looked jungkook gently takes his hand, unfolding his fingers and flipping it over so his palm faces up.

'i'll be here waiting for you i promise' he gives a full-teethed smile. 

'i might not come…' taehyung signs it out. he knows jungkook can't understand but he doesn't know why he felt frantic about saying it. 

the boy only shrugs not understanding. jungkook didn't need to know he was leaving anyway, he didn't need to care about it.

they talk for hours. finishing quite a few drinks and making yoongi much richer than he was in the morning. 

jungkook can't help but notice how taehyung seemed a bit off. he wanted the boy to know he can tell him anything, but he also didn't want to pry so he kept to himself. 

he did however do everything in his power to make sure taehyung was happy the entire time they spent together. his joy was certainly becoming jungkook's joy too.  

when it's sadly time to leave taehyung hands their notebook to jungkook. yanking his hand to start writing on it. 

he doesn't know when they became more comfortable around each other, but holding hands or just simple skinship was something normal between them now.

'you take it this time'

"i had it last time though?"

'just take it'

"alright alright, bossy." he puts it into his bag and starts leading the way to the counter. 

before he can leave though taehyung stops his arm and pulls him in for an embrace. this is the first time they've hugged. it couldn't have felt more cliche than this.

jungkook doesn't understand the weight behind how tight taehyung hugged him but he returned it too. 

when they pull apart, taehyung only has a simple smile. 

yoongi says goodbye to both of them, feigning innocence as if he wasn't taking pictures of jungkook finally getting some action. 

jungkook signs a goodbye and taehyung signs one back. 

once he is alone his smile drops. he really didn't get to tell jungkook anything, even though he knew the boy would listen no matter what. 

was it really he couldn't be heard or that he didn't try to be heard? 

the question stays in mind as he gets home starting to pack a few things away. 

_______

"you're awfully earlier today, it's only 8 am. what happened to your morning jogs?" yoongi rubs his eyes taking in the morning sun seeping through the glass door.

"i couldn't sleep so i came here to help you!" jungkook doesn't give him a chance to react and leaps over the counter.

"what am i gonna do with you? you're basically my employee at this point."

"i'm even better! you don't have to pay me." 

"you're especially cheery today, what's the deal?"

"i started going to classes."

"holy shit have you been skipping this whole time? does your mom know?"

"what? no, i mean i started sign language classes," jungkook explains.

he dresses in the apron that's always ready for him. today he even wore clothes to match the store colors. 

"i learned how to make that cool latte art you always do, you really should hire me," he says tightening the apron around his waist. 

"i actually have been thinking about it…" yoongi mumbled before heading to the back kitchen.

jungkook doesn't realize the hours passing, he was so caught up in work that he didn't realize just how long he spent behind the counter. 

he also didn't notice how taehyung still hadn't shown up after hours. normally on a monday he would be in by 11 am at the latest. 

he waits until closing time. no taehyung to be found anywhere. 

jungkook still has a smile on his face, not that it had meaning anymore. he was just trying to stay positive for the other people in the cafe. 

yoongi also seems worried but reassures jungkook he is probably just busy. it's not like he had to come to the cafe every day.

_______

the next day jungkook rushes in as soon as he can.  he spends the entire day waiting, no sign of the other boy anywhere.

the day after goes the same way, only this time he couldn't hide his sadness with a smile. 

he leaves the shop not caring if he looks like he is about to cry. 

_______

a week after taehyung was lasr seen, he still hasn't returned. his seat stays empty for the most part, occasionally occupied by other customers.

jungkook stays worried, upset and a little hurt by the disappearance. he still musters up the effort to attend a universal sign language class everyday. 

he hasn't skipped a day, not since taehyung left anyways.

he does eventually start crying now realizing the boy has probably left for good.

_______

"hey jungkook i'm ordering food, you want some?" his roommate knocks outside his room.

"no."

"are you okay?" he slides the door open.

"why do you ask?" jungkook groans, why did he have to come inside?

"you look upset," his roommate notes the trashed room.

"i'm not, i actually got a job today."

"oh congrats, but i hope you get out of whatever headspace you are in right now, it's not healthy."

"what does that mean?"

"nothing, come eat." jungkook doesn't budge and his roommate rolls his eyes. he was sick of this attitude. 

"get up or i'll call your short friend," that gets him on his legs immediately.

_______

on his first shift jungkook comes surprisingly late. yoongi understands he is still mopping for some reason and decides to leave him be.

he greets him with a tight smile, "jungkook hey, i have your apron on the side." 

the boy doesn't respond, but he looks focused anyways.

yoongi follows his gaze, it was pointed at the corner taehyung would usually be in. this time occupied by a young lady.

"he isn't back."

"i didn't ask," he replies instantly. 

yoongi can only sigh before moving off to clean a table someone spilled coffee on. 

_______

what had it been? a few weeks at most. 

these most miserable fucking days jungkook ever had. he can't even tell why he is so upset anymore. he just feels sad and lonely. 

through yoongi jungkook found out that taehyung had gone to another city. he has no clue how the elder found that out. 

neither he nor yoongi had any way to properly contact taehyung. jungkook had already started to lose hope in him returning.

at first, he was mostly worried about how he would get there safely. what about his classes too? but then he quickly realized it wasn't really his place to think that was it?

though he thought they were close enough to tell each other that..no?

they only spent every day together for hours. 

he starts to wonder if taehyung really wanted to talk to him. this stayed as a stupid thought that had invaded his mind over the time he spent without the boy.

he wishes he at least said goodbye before going wherever he did. 

_______

"why is he sighing so much?" namjoon whispers behind jungkook. yes, that namjoon. he and yoongi were apparently dating now.

yoongi's voice is not so hushed, "i don't fucking know and he won't fucking tell me, oh it's so fu-" jungkook turns behind to face namjoon holding back yoongi from literally jumping on him.

"I don't feel like being heard by anyone."

"what does that mean?"

"i don't know, nothing i think makes sense anymore," he explains perplexed.

"what are you thinking?"

"i'm starting to doubt if he ever really wanted to talk to me. i mean i was always writing on paper or drawing on his hand. also, he could speak, he never talked to me though," he slums back on the stool.

yoongi stares at him harshly before releasing a strained noise that sounds like a grunt.

"you know, you might not be deaf but you sure are super fucking blind." 

"what yoongi means to say is you shouldn't put yourself down."

"no namjoon, i'm calling him fucking blind."

the two boys then leave jungkook to ponder by himself. it was for the best anyways. 

_______

it was a few days later that jungkook figured out what yoongi meant. he figured it out so stupidly too.

he was just sitting on his bed late at night, all study material abandoned to his desk while he read over their notebook. it had rain-stained pages and faded ink from the time jungkook spilled his milk tea on it.

they didn't spend a grand span of time knowing each other, but from what they had spent they created large stories imprinted in the notebook.

jungkook is glad he was the one who kept it last, he likes looking at the little doodles taehyung would do trying to further explain his stories.

that's when he realizes, taehyung was never half-assing their conversations. 

he was always open to talking. he was always trying to truly hear what jungkook wanted to tell him. and he always seemed to understand.

it was always jungkook who talked too much, it was him who would get impatient and continue blabbering on and on. but taehyung always continued listening.

he started feeling worse because despite being the unheard one taehyung never complained, he never stopped jungkook from talking.

how stupid this was. the one person in the world who couldn't hear at all was the one who also heard jungkook the most. 

the one person in his life who didn't say anything, spoke to him the most. and what did jungkook do? scrutinize him for leaving.

as soon as he starts scolding himself he stops, being mad at himself for always thinking the worst isn't going to bring taehyung back, and it certainly won't make yoongi happy either.

he goes to sleep hoping taehyung is safe wherever he was. he wishes he would hear back from the boy soon. soon could be the next morning or another few months. he just wants to see him again.

_______

it's early in the morning, yoongi told him he needed to take the morning shift and who was he to argue with his friend. 

he finally understood why yoongi always looked so drained in the morning. listening to people bitch about their orders at 9 am in the morning really brings out a new kind of rage. especially when you are expected to stay calm.

yoongi was still upset with him because of his bad attitude lately, but he laid off him today. he was surprisingly doing well with jungkook acting grouchy. 

it was a slow day and jungkook had a test that he completely botched the day before. it wasn't his day at all.

he was dozing off when yoongi smacked him against his head. he grumbles something to the elder when he walks away and goes back to "resting his eyes".

the doorbell rings and jungkook doesn't bother to look up, sure he might get fired but yoongi understands him well enough. but apparently not well enough to let him sleep.

a few minutes later jungkook can feel a presence looming over him again. 

then something a soft pat on his head, just like he would do whenever he saw taehyung. he started to think about him again, great! it felt awful.

"yoongi you don't have to fucking pat me, i'm awa-"  the words get caught in his throat because yoongi is serving a customer on the other side of the store.

jungkook never turned around so fast.

_______

jungkook stares and just stares for a while making sure he isn't still asleep. this could all play out to be a cruel joke. the second he turned around he felt his heart stop. 

almost like a ghost, taehyung had suddenly popped up again. it didn't help how paled he looked while standing in front of jungkook.

at one point jungkook tried putting his hand through the boy to test if he had really died and this was his ghost.

turns out taehyung really did return. exactly one month after fucking vanishing, yes, jungkook kept count.

they got seated in their regular spot. yoongi jumped at the sight of taehyung but quickly excused himself noticing how tense the two looked. 

they sat in awkward silence, taehyung sipping his drink while jungkook only watched.

he felt a bit manic, it was just shocking and a little overwhelming for taehyung to just show up when jungkook missed him most. 

he wants to speak, he wants the other to know how much he missed him but he remains wordless. 

that's when he hears it. "jungkook."

jungkook thinks he finally lost it but taehyung calls his name again and this time tapping his shoulder. 

they stare at each other, taehyung adjusts an earpiece that's placed onto both ears, he takes a deep breath and opens his mouth, "i'm so sorry for the ghosting, i uh got new hearing aids, they aren't the best but i can understand a lot better." 

he doesn't even know what he is listening to anymore. just his name coming out of taehyung's mouth was enough to leave him starstruck. 

the first word taehyung ever vocalized to him was "jungkook" suddenly he started to like his name a lot more. 

jungkook doesn't speak, he listens attentively, falling deeper into just taehyung's voice. 

taehyung was very nervous speaking to him but he knew he had to overcome this somehow. talking wasn't even his issue. he just had this irrational fear that even if he spoke it wouldn't be perceived as anything.

no one ever took him seriously because he was just the deaf kid who made it difficult to communicate. 

yet the look the other boy was giving him kept him courageous enough to keep talking.

"i hope i don't sound strange it's been a while since i tried talking," he manages out slowly, moving his hands along in sign which jungkook now understands a lot better.

taehyung had the habit of staring down whenever he was nervous. a habit he got when he got sick of reading the pitiful words drawn from others' lips.

jungkook picked up on this a while ago; he finds it a bit sad but endearing nonetheless.

he wants to grab his face and look him in the eyes just so taehyung knows he is listening, and he will continue to listen to everything he has to say. 

he keeps his calm not to make the other uncomfortable. 

"i'm sorry i didn't speak earlier, i could always talk…it's just embarrassing when i can't hear my own voice. i hope i didn't offend you."

he continues speaking and jungkook just listens to him. he seems pretty self-conscious about his voice and it's a shocker to jungkook.

he had never heard someone sound so beautiful before. 

he had never seen anyone look so alluring while just speaking.

"about the disappearance, i was taking speech classes and adjusting to the hearing aids. i've been back for a while, just felt weird coming to you."

taehyung didn't owe him any explanation, but the fact he was struggling against himself to explain meant a lot to jungkook. 

"wh-why are you staring?"

jungkook felt like he was the one who couldn't speak, he was rendered speechless. just mesmerized by hearing taehyung talk. how could he be embarrassed by that voice?

how could someone so perfect feel insecure about something he didn't even have control over? it was astounding how taehyung must have gone unheard this whole time. 

jungkook's glad he listened. 

he is glad he heard his voice even when it wasn't there.

"are you listening?"

jungkook snaps himself out of the trance, shaking his head while he smiles. he pulls taehyung in for an embrace, circling something onto his palm as they would do before.

'yeah i hear you.'