HEARTBEAT | VKOOK - Chapter 31: Chapter 31

Jeongguk tapped his foot impatiently on the shiny white tiles of the building, arms crossed over his chest, and brows knitted in an exasperated frown. He found himself glancing at his wrist watch every other second, his patience slipping away with every passing minute. And he despised the feeling, how it felt like it'd been hours when it certainly had been a few minutes according to his watch.
He rolled his eyes, lips pursed in a frown as he glanced at his watch for the nth time that day, awaiting the older to come back with the keys of the room already, that his manager had reserved for them. Jeongguk exhaled deeply through his nostrils, head leaning back against the wall as his eyes closed shut, attempting to relax himself.
But a soft tap on his shoulder had him shooting his eyes open, body jolting forward as he turned to the man who stood next to him with a bored look, looking unfazed. They held gazes for a moment, Taehyung quirking up an eyebrow, slightly amused as he leaned his side against the white wall, "You really wanna take a nap here, huh? Can't even wait for a few minutes."
"Shut up," Jeongguk muttered, brows drawing together, "I'm tired, let's go already." His face contorted to a pleading look as he stared at the older with puppy eyes, who simply smirked in return, saying nothing more. He then straightened his back, sending the younger a swift nod before pivoting on his heels and strolling ahead, Jeongguk following after him with a baffled look present on his face.
"Where's our stuff?" He queried, strolling next to the older, glancing over at the older male who had his gaze focused ahead, hands buried into his pockets. "Don't you fret, they've been taken to our room."
Silence fell between them once again, the ravenette dropping his gaze and simply bobbing his head in return. The walk to the elevator was silent, too silent for Jeongguk's liking. Yet, he couldn't bring himself to initiate a conversation, as the male would simply answer his questions in a few words like it was an interview of some sort, which was getting on his nerves honestly.
Yet even so, Jeongguk found himself stealing glances from the older, but when caught, he'd look away, lips twitching and cheeks burning with sheer embarrassment. But Taehyung said nothing in return, simply looking away, which had him praying for the time to pass by faster so he could reach his room and perhaps, avoid the older for the rest of the day.
But of course, he knew couldn't. They hadn't travelled all the way here for nothing after all.
As they approached their room, Jeongguk didn't fail to notice how their room was reserved at the top floor; that being the only room with much more advanced and lavish decorations, but it was no surprise. For Kim Taehyung was staying over, of course it had to be magnificent. However, it wasn't exactly Jeongguk's cup of tea, which settled an uncomfortable feeling in his stomach as he fidgeted in his position, watching as Taehyung slid the card into the security lock, the door clicking open.
And as expected, it was quite fancy. Taehyung walked in first, Jeongguk following after him into the spacious yet elegant hotel suite. His lips parted agape, doe eyes dilating slightly as he took in the view of the living room. It left him speechless, gaping at how ridiculously fancy it seemed, yet even so, elegant and posh- exactly like Taehyung wanted it to be. Perhaps, he was used to all of these luxury by now, but for Jeongguk, it was entirely a different experience, who could only be fascinated by the view around him.
Jeongguk then scurried away to the bedroom, Taehyung following him with his eyes as he grabbed himself a glass of water from the kitchen island, gulping it down to the last drop. He then headed to the room afterwards, eyes landing on the younger's back, who remained frozen on his spot, facing the large glass windows. Eyes wide and sparkling in delight at the view of the city from the top.
He then strolled over to the younger, stopping right next to him and peering down at the view that left Jeongguk in absolute awe. The dark night sky was illuminated by the bright city lights, glowing like diamonds in the dark, and the combination of different colours made it fascinating. It was almost midnight when they arrived at the hotel, which explained the stunning view of the city during the night.
And Jeongguk was captivated by the way it seemed from the top, how astonishing it seemed during the night, eyes twinkling in sheer delight, too immersed by the view to notice the presence next to him.
It wasn't until he felt something like his shoulder, that he broke out of his trance, causing him to look away from the sight. Their eyes met, and his breath caught up in his throat for a moment, silence lingering between them. Taehyung quirked an eyebrow, an amused look etched on his face as he flickered his gaze towards the sight, seemingly casual.
He then tore his gaze away from the older and glanced ahead of him, exhaling softly, "Its beautiful, don't you think?"
"Yeah, I've been here a couple of times." Taehyung hummed, eyes wandering over view for a moment before glancing at the younger's side profile. There was a moment of silence, but it wasn't as awkward as before, rather calm, somewhat comforting. Maybe, it was due to how Jeongguk had fallen absolutely silent, a soft glint in his eyes. He was enthralled, so much that he hadn't noticed the eyes scrunitizing him the whole time.
Taehyung found it rather adorable, how whenever the younger was fascinated by something, he'd zone out, forget about the world. How his eyes would sparkle like a kid's, so innocent and pure, full of life yet with a glint of darkness, a depth of untold stories. He was innocent and pure, yet mysterious and unreadable at times, the perfect combination in Taehyung's eyes, a flawless person. Jeongguk was perfect, a celestial being, at least to Taehyung. Too kind and pure for the world, who deserved to be treasured and protected at all costs.
"You must be used to all of these, huh?" Jeongguk queried, glancing at the older with a playful smile on his lips. "It must feel so great, to never lack anything, to live the perfect dream life."
"It isn't what it seems like, Jeongguk." Taehyung muttered under his breath, and Jeongguk didn't fail to notice the sudden shift in his mood, nor the sadness clouding his eyes. "It's not always perfect, maybe I'm rich, but that's not everything."
The younger's brows knitted in a frown, confusion swirling in his eyes that remained solely affixed on the older, who refused to meet his gaze. Taehyung pivoted on his heels, haulting in his tracks when something clicked in his mind, causing a frown to appear on his face, "Jeongguk?"
"Yeah?"
"There's only one bed here." This had the younger turning back as well, eyes spotting the king-sized bed in the middle of the room, with a nightstand on either of the sides.
"It's fine. I'll take the couch in the living room." Jeongguk sent him a nonchalant shrug, however the older shook his head, the creases on his forehead dissipating, eyes darting towards the bed, a glint of confusion evident in his eyes. "No, you don't need to, we can share the bed. I was just taken aback for a second, for they told me of two beds."
"Anyway, you'll take a shower first?" Taehyung turned to Jeongguk, quirking up a brow at the younger, who shook his head. "You go first."
Taehyung simply hummed, nodding to himself before turning away and heading for the door of their bedroom to get his stuff, Jeongguk following after him with his eyes, glancing away once the older disappeared through the door, eyes fixating on the view through the windows. He then exhaled deeply, arms folded over his chest and forehead creasing as he contemplated his thoughts.
Apart from exchanging a few words and stealing glances from each other, they hadn't conversed much through the whole ride. It was awkward, yes, but it felt oddly pleasant to be around him. Taehyung had been nice to him all day, unlike what he'd been two days ago. It was as if he was better when they were not at work, but the exact opposite in the eyes of clients and workers. Yet, Jeongguk didn't question it.
He wouldn't admit it, but he fancied this side of Taehyung, his kindness and his awfully cheesy compliments that never failed to make him blush, although he tried to avoid it. Taehyung was an entirely different person behind the closed doors, out of the sight of his friends and workers. And Jeongguk liked it, appreciated the moments when he was being himself without putting up a mask, expressing his raw emotions for him and Minjun.
Jeongguk then approached the bed, plopping himself onto the springy mattress that bounced a bit before eventually settling in, his head falling back and eyes closing shut the moment his back hit the fluffy mattress. A soft exhale left his lips, eyes remaining shut for a moment, before he lazily pulled out his phone from his pocket; opening one eye to glance at the time. It was past midnight as expected, but Jeongguk wasn't sleepy. As he'd slept the whole ride to the hotel on Taehyung's shoulder, who surprisingly allowed it without a word.
The ravenette scrolled through his Twitter feed for the next few minutes, before tossing his phone to the other side of the bed in sheer boredom, turning to his side and burying his face into the silk sheets. He stretched his arms and limbs, hearing the distant sound of the shower turning off, the door lock clicking open which had him opening his eyes to glance at the door.
A soft blush spread across his cheeks at the next thing that came into his view, eyes wide and lips agape, breath catching in his throat at the sight. Taehyung walked out in nothing but a towel wrapped around his waist, droplets of water trickling down his toned stomach as he dried his hair with a towel. The sight left Jeongguk awestruck and breathless, immidiately turning away from the older and sitting upright on the bed so his back was facing him.
What the fuck?
Taehyung didn't fail to notice the blush coating the younger's face as he turned away from him, an amused smirk twitching at his lips as he left the towel on his shoulder, approaching his bag. A tense silence filled the room, the only noise being the zipper of his bag as he pulled out his clothes, "You act like you've seen a ghost. Don't tell me you've never seen a guy?"
Jeongguk remained frozen in his place, heart thudding in his chest as the image of him swirled in his mind. The shuffling noises behind him caused his thoughts to take a wrong turn, which led him to grow his eyes wide even more. "N-No, I- uh, I'll let you change." He rose from his seat, but a voice had him freezing in his tracks.
"You don't need to, we're both guys anyway. You can stay."
His feet were glued to the ground, unmoving as he contemplated his thoughts, his back facing the older. He could hear the slight shuffling behind him, a warmth spreading on his cheeks, heart pounding vigorously in his chest due to his mind that wandered to places, or perhaps thoughts he didn't wish to think of the moment, that were so freaking wrong, yet he couldn't help it.
Jeongguk's hands clenched into fists, fingernails digging into his palm as he pinned his gaze to the floor, unable to get the image out of his mind. The way the droplets of water trickled down his long neck to his toned abdomen, the towel wrapped just a little below his waist, hair tousled in all directions- the thought itself felt arousing to Jeongguk. His throat went dry and dick hard just by the wandering thoughts in his head that decided to pop out at the most unexpected time, all due to the weird situation he got himself into.
"So you're just going to just stand there or what?" Taehyung quirked a brow, throwing a hoodie over his head and turning to eye the younger's back, seemingly baffled. A sigh then evoked his lips, hands falling limply by his sides, "I'm done, you can turn now."
And he complied, taking a deep breath and slowly turning to the older, taking in his appearance who was now fully dressed, sporting a pair of sweatpants and a grey hoodie, hands shoved into the pockets. His eyes found Taehyung's again, heart fluttering in his chest as the male raked his eyes all over his frame, making him feel small all of a sudden. It was nothing fancy, Jeongguk had an oversized blue T-shirt on, with a pair of skinny black jeans that showed off his thick thighs. And at that moment, he found himself being glad, for his T-shirt was long enough to conceal his hardened member.
The room fell silent, an undeniable tension lingering in the air between them- Jeongguk's heart racing due to the never-ending thoughts running through his mind. Taehyung then tilted his head to the side, brows creasing slightly, "Is something bothering you, Jeongguk?"
The ravenette blinked for a moment, shaking his head almost immediately, "N-No. . I'll go take a shower." He licked his chapped lips, eyes seemingly hazy as he attempted to avoid the other's gaze. He then reached for his own baggage that was dropped onto the floor next to the couch, zipping it open and rummaging through the items as he took a seat on the bed.
"I'll be gone for a while, I need to check out somethings so. . don't fret about my absence." Taehyung mumbled, glancing at the mirror to take in his appearance for one last time, fixing his hair with his fingers. "And if anyone's at the door, tell them to meet me at the ground floor."
Jeongguk nodded wordlessly, glad that the older wouldn't be around for sometime. His eyes flickered to the door through which the older had disappeared, too occupied with the thoughts clouding his mind to even think of what came to the older for him to leave at such an hour. Perhaps, it was the management issue. But as long as it wasn't really important or to be brought to his attention, there was no point in worrying about it.
The next morning Jeongguk found himself at a cafè just a few floors down the building. Taehyung was seated in front of him, food left untouched and seemingly busy on his phone. Perhaps texting someone important that ruined his mood, the frown etched on his face being a dead give away that Jeongguk guessed right.
He heard the older sigh, placing his phone away and leaning forward to the table, taking a small bite from his sandwich. His eyes flickered to Jeongguk, who watched him intently with a curious look glazing his eyes, chin resting over his palm and lips pursed into a thin line.
"What?"
The younger retrieved his hands off the table, now interlacing his fingers as he lifted an innocent shoulder, "I don't know, but I do wanna know what's up with you."
"What are you talking about?" The older queried, eyes never leaving Jeongguk as he took another bite from his sandwich, confusion swirling in his orbs.
"When did you come back last night?" Jeongguk took a sip of his Caramel Macchiato, leaning back as he affixed his gaze solely on the older. Taehyung swallowed the food in his mouth, eyes dropping down to his plate for a moment as he tilted his head slightly.
"You were asleep when I came back, and It's been like, fifteen minutes? But it's nothing to worry about, I was just checking on the management issue, mostly assuring Choi that it was okay, for he was stressing over this tiny issue." The side of his lips turned upwards in a grin as he gulped down his glass of water.
Jeongguk nodded slowly, lips twitching as he dropped his gaze for a moment, "When's the meeting?"
"There's still an hour left." Taehyung hummed, taking a swift glance at his watch, before leaning back in his seat and wiping the corner of his lips with a napkin. He then glanced at the younger, raising a cocky eyebrow, and leaning forward, "You seem more concerned about the meeting than I am. Seems like someone's finally knocked some brains into your head, huh?"
Jeongguk rolled his eyes playfully at that, now accustomed to this side of him, a subtle smirk twitching at his lips that he attempted to conceal. "In your dreams. I've always been the same, you just haven't noticed."
"Or maybe I do." His eyes twinkled with mischief, lips curving into a smirk as their gazes locked, "I just don't say it."
Their eyes remained affixed solely on one another, Jeongguk studying the older's features to figure out what went on in his mind, an obvious baffled look written across his face. Taehyung's eyes were intense, the pools of darkness holding a sense of craving, the desire for something he couldn't seem to have. Jeongguk couldn't get what it was, but it was something similar to that.
His heart fluttered at the way the older's eyes travelled down to his lips, a seductive glint evident in his gaze, causing his cheeks to heat up in a soft hue of pink. Their eyes locked and he quickly averted his gaze, taking a sharp breath and contemplating his thoughts on how to distract the older.
He then pursed his lips for a moment as a question formed in his mind, something he's been wanting to ask for a while, eyes reluctantly meeting the other's, "Since we're alone now, would you mind telling me the reason of what you did two days ago?"
Taehyung seemed slightly taken aback by the question, as though he hadn't expected it coming. The side of his lips curved into a lazy grin, "I don't think I did anything, Jeongguk."
"Oh? You did, you kissed me, Kim. You can't deny that now."
"You wanted me to." He let out a breathy chuckle, eyes never leaving the other's as he placed his chin over his palm, gaze intense, "I just proved what I'm capable of, what you wanted me to show."
"But why'd you do that? Even when you know you'll have the upper hand no matter what I do? You could just leave but. . you kissed me. Does that mean that you like me?"
Taehyung stayed silent, a smirk tugging at the corner of his lips, eyes dark as he gazed directly into the younger's eyes, lifting himself off the seat and leaning over the table a bit, whispering to Jeongguk's stunned face, "I know you feel it too. Don't act like you didn't want it, gguk."
Taehyung sat back in his seat, his facial expression returning back to normal as he gazed at the younger, who remained speechless, mind turning blank and lips slightly agape. His heart hammered rapidly in his chest, so loud that he feared Taehyung could hear it too. Silence fell in between the two of them, Jeongguk taking a moment for it all to register in his mind, causing his eyes to dart up to the other's gaze, doe eyes laced with a hint of fear and bewilderment.
And before he could question him further, Taehyung spoke up, eyes scanning over the space of the cafè as he licked his lips, "We gotta go, there's a meeting to attend, and I wouldn't want you to be late to this one."