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Kim Taehyung definitely isn't fond of airplanes.
Overall, he doesn't have a problem with heights. It's not a big deal to stand near the edges of a huge building or be at the highest spot of a rollercoaster. Those things are normal to him, completely acceptable and perfectly capable of being done without any damage. There is something in his mind, though, that keeps insisting on the fact that climbing down and up a rollercoaster a hundred times at the edge of a huge building would be safer than spending twenty minutes in an airplane.
That is why he can't understand how the heck he ended up here, standing in front of diverse gates that lead to boarding, suitcase held firmly into his shaky fingers. Lots of people surround him, walking past his gate or pausing right there, waiting near him, talking excitedly to their friends or with strangers they just met. There is a mother with a teary child in her arms — a girl who must not be older than two years — swinging the poor little one kindly, comforting her, and Taehyung nearly wishes that he could also cry and complain about the trip, but, unfortunately, he is a twenty-one years old man. Whatever there is to face during the path, it's up to him to face it by himself.
The gate is opened at ten o'clock, and they calmly form a line while entering, handing out passports and other documents. Taehyung gets checked in a matter of seconds and makes his way inside the airplane, swallowing hard while climbing up the stairs and taking his first step inside the giant flying thing. He tries to seem calm as he walks by the corridor, checking the seat's numbers and finally finding his near the end of the airplane's first half.
His seat is the one by the window. He didn't have much preference when choosing it, but the corridor seat was already taken, and that spot seemed comfortable, so he didn't find much to lose. Out of curiosity, while still in the safety of his dearest apartment, he checked the name belonging beside his, and found out that his fly partnet was called Min Yoongi. He was one of the first ones to buy a ticket to the flight and seemed to have assured his favourite seat, according to all the option's diversity. Taehyung can only hope that he won't bother the guy — or man, because he doesn't know his age — while exhaling fear.
People seem either joyful or bothered as they enter the airplane, and Taehyung isn't biased of the feeling growing inside his chest, the sensation of being the only growned up person who feels like his heart is going to burst out of his body while they are on air. Every single television report or newspaper article bumps in his mind, almost like it's floating in the air in front of him, and he gulps one more time, finding his throat dry. He reaches for the bottle of water in his suitcase before putting it in the compartment above his head, and, as he pulls it off, he lets out a frustrated sigh. Once again, he forgot to fill up his water bottle. The flight hasn't even started yet and it keeps getting better and better.
There's still ten minutes for people to arrive when someone who calls his attention appears on the corridor. It's not that he instantly falls in love or gets amazed by someone's unique way of walking, acting or being, like it happens in movies; it's just that the person entering has mint hair and milky skin, looking incredibly smooth. His eyes are darker than the rest of his body, even if compared with his black jacket, the one over the white t-shirt, that ends when his brown belt starts, and meeting with his simple jeans pants.
He's actually so stylish, and transpires confidence as he walks, that Taehyung barely notices that he is staring until the guy is stopping by his side, checking the seat number without sparing Taehyung a glance, fitting his suitcase above them and, finally, looking down at the person seated next to him. Taehyung takes his breath and waves with his head, showing off his best friendly smile.
"Hi," he says, "It's nice to meet you. I'm Kim Taehyung."
The stranger nods and confirms Taehyung's suspicions by his next phrase, "It's nice to meet you too. I'm Min Yoongi."
His voice is deep. It's not as deep as Taehyung's, but it is still deep. Just by the few moments Taehyung have stared at him, he would guess that Min Yoongi is about twenty-two years old, perhaps less. He surely is shorter than Taehyung, that's pretty obvious while he's standing, and it remains as a truth once he's sitting and Taehyung's shoulders are clearly higher than his.
Taehyung chews on his own bottom lip for a second before bending over to place the empty water bottle softly at the compartment fixed on the chair in front of him and keeping it held there. Then, he sits, posture erect, and puts on his belt. By his side, Yoongi is doing the same, but he seems a lot more calm, like having six hours flights is just a daily activity to him. When Yoongi takes off a pair of headphones from his pockets and plugs it in his cell phone, Taehyung decides that starting a conversation might not be a good idea, so he simply grabs his own headphones and stares blankly at the floor through the window while he can. Soon enough, when he looks at the same spot, all that he will be able to see will be clouds, the blue sky and the tiny towns and cities down there.
I.
He is starting to think that maybe it won't be that bad until the airplane starts moving. While listening to music, he got distracted enough not to pay attention to any of the said instructions by the pilot and the flight attendant. His mouth feels too dry all of sudden, and he gets himself wondering whether that can be a worrisome situation or not. He doesn't know what kind of things are said, and, just in case, he needs to.
"I'm— uhm, I'm sorry," he starts talking, hoping that Yoongi will listen to him, and, gladly, he seems to, because his eyes fall straight into Taehyung, "What did she say? I mean, I zoned out and didn't listen to it, and I was thinking maybe it was important—"
Taehyung stops talking, because, instead of an answer, he is slowly getting a smile from Yoongi. He must admit that he is surprised. At first, the man didn't seem like someone who would smile easily, and that is quite soon for the corners of his mouth to be quircking up like that — there's no mischief, just a bit of humor, but it's not offensive.
"First time?" Yoongi asks, and Taehyung blinks, "In a flight."
Taehyung's mouth gains the shape of an "o" as he nods, "Oh, I'm sorry. Yeah, first time. I guess it's kind of obvious, huh?"
Yoongi gives him a discreet smile, "Most of people who are used to airplanes don't care about anything they say, unless the words 'turbulence' or 'falling' appear somewhere," he says, and he is quick to add, "Which doesn't happen with frequency, so you can rest your mind well."
That drags a soft laugh out of Taehyung, "You sure? I've seen a lot of movies where people reassure each other about no problems and, well, the end isn't nice."
"Well, I've been in tones of flights before, and I've survived all of them; as far as I'm concerned, at least," Yoongi comments, small smile still on his lips, "I mean, someone could have brought me back to life after something happened, but there are no records of it, which means no traumas, right?"
"I guess so," Taehyung says, and he is doing his best to believe it. There is a big part of him that is really glad that Yoongi isn't actually such a closed person, because talking to someone might help him; a lot, "Isn't there some kind of research on it, though? Out of a hundred flights, a certain number proceeds alive and well?"
Yoongi's smile widens slightly, and Taehyung can see his gums. It's cute.
"Why don't we look up on that?" Yoongi suggests, taking off one of his headphones and typing on his cell phone. Taehyung waits quietly, trying to ignore the image of the airplane getting higher and higher that can clearly be noticed if he looks outside the window, "Here, found it. Basically, by what I can tell, the odds of anything bad happening are the tiniest."
"Can I see it?"
"No," Yoongi answers, but it's still soft, and, though his smile has now returned to be only small, it's still there, "Six hours in an airplane with someone teaches you to trust them most of times, so why don't we start now? You trust my word that nothing bad is going to happen and I trust yours that you trust mine."
Taehyung blinks, blankly for a second, and then he nods, confirming. Yoongi doesn't seem like a liar, and, even if he is, he's apparently doing it to make sure Taehyung will feel safe — and that's a really nice thing coming from a stranger, so Taehyung is not refusing the kindness.
Unsurprisingly, Yoongi doesn't seem much like a talktive person, because he doesn't proceed with any talking after that. He simply goes back to staring at his phone while typing, only one side of the headphones on, and Taehyung sighs inaudibly. For the first time since the airplane left the ground, he gathers boldness and looks outside. The view before him knocks out the air of his lungs. It's terrifying and still so beautiful. They're passing through clouds, small drops of water getting glued to the windows, and Taehyung wishes it could be possible to open an airplane's window just so he could feel the air outside, because it does seem like some quality breathing.
Taehyung doesn't even notice the "wow" that escapes his own lips before Yoongi is humming in agreement and staring past him, right through the window, "It's a nice view."
Taehyung smiles in embarrasment, "Sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt whatever you're doing. I'll keep in silence from now on."
"It's fine," Yoongi says, "I'm not doing anything important. You have all the right to be impressed; that's an amazing view for someone's first flight."
Taehyung blinks, "Wasn't yours like this too?"
"No, my first flight was at night and it was storming and cloudy," Yoongi answers, shrugging lightly, "Not that I have much to complain, since I slept the whole time."
That's makes Taehyung laugh softly, and he decides that he enjoys the company of Yoongi. It is good, because spending six hours — aside from the unexpected delays to which they are vulnerable — side by side with someone annoying, or boring, or rude would be really shitty.
"So," Taehyung starts, once he notices that Yoongi's focus on his phone isn't that strong anymore, "Do I hear a small Daegu accent in your voice?"
The ghost of a smile crosses Yoongi's lips, "You most likely do. It's my hometown. And, as far as I've heard your voice, it's your hometown too, isn't it?"
Taehyung nods excitedly, "It's hard to meet people who came from Daegu to Seoul with frequency!"
Yoongi nods, "It surely is."
"Why are you travelling, anyway, if I may ask?" Taehyung asks, and fastens to add, "You don't have to answer all my questions, I'm just anxious because of the whole flying thing. Feel free to ignore me or tell me to shut up."
The green-haired male smiles, shaking his head slightly, "I'm fine with talking. Most of time, my friends say I should talk more, so I've been trying."
"You're doing a good job at it," Taehyung says, "Am I helping?"
Yoongi nods, "Yes, you are. And, to answer your question, I've got some papers I have to deliver to someone."
Taehyung waits for him to proceed, but, once he realizes that's all Yoongi is going to say, his eyes widen slightly, "Is that all? Tell me more about it!"
There is something like the begining of a smile dancing on Yoongi's lips as he looks back at Taehyung, and it's incredibly cute. His gums appear, even like that, and Taehyung almost laughs at himself, because if people always said that his boxy smile was cute, it was because they haven't met Yoongi's gummy smile.
"No," Yoongi says, smiling, "Might as well tell you before we land, or not."
Taehyung squints, "What does it depend on?"
Yoongi seems to ponder about it, "My mood?"
"Oh, come on, hyung."
That drags a smile out of Yoongi as well, "It's Taehyung, right? How old are you, Taehyung? It musn't be that easy to know whether I am your hyung or not."
"I'm twenty-one," Taehyung answers, "And it's not that I'm calling you old or anything, hyung, it's just that it's kind of easy to predict, I guess? You do look a lot more mature, although it could be confused if counting our heights."
"Hey, I'm not short," Yoongi argues, playfully, "I'm not one to blame for the fact that you are this tall at the age of twenty-one. Hopefully, from now on, you're only getting smaller."
"Is that what happened to you?" Taehyung jokes, slightly scared that any of his quotes might cross a line and cause Yoongi to be mad at him, but, at the same time, anxious for them to talk and be close to each other, even if it's just for the next hours, because it would definitely make a good distraction.
Fortunately, Yoongi lets out a soft laugh, but he pretends to be mad by frowning, "Aish, this kid. I'm twenty-three, I'm not that older than you. What are you travelling for, anyway?"
Taehyung's chest inflates slightly; he can't say he isn't proud of what he's there to do, "I'm going to have an audition."
"An audition?" Yoongi echoes, and Taehyung nods, "Are you a singer?"
"An actor," Taehyung corrects him, "Actually, an amateur actor. I'm still studying for it, but there is this friend of mine who is already an actor, and he convinced his boss to give me an opportunity of auditioning for his brand new drama."
Yoongi nods, eyes glowing weakly, "That's really nice, Taehyung. You can be sure I'll be rooting for you."
Taehyung smiles, "Thank you, hyung. I will be rooting for you, too."
That causes the elder to smile slightly, "For what?"
"Delievering your important papers."
"It's not something to root for, though," Yoongi says, clearly amused.
"Yeah?" Taehyung asks, eyes sparkling in curiosity, "Then, tell me what it is about so I can use the right term. I mean, just for research, you know?"
Yoongi muffles a laugh with one of his hands, "Maybe later."
Before Taehyung can start talking again, his own cell phone buzzes, and he silently reaches for it, tilting his head a bit. The name on the screen is "Minjae", also known as Kim Minjae, the person who got the audition's opportunity to Taehyung. It's not a call, but a text.
"It's that friend I talked about," Taehyung tells Yoongi, seemingly caughting the elder by surprise by explaining it to him, like Yoongi didn't think he would, "The one who got me the audition."
Yoongi nods, "Is everything okay?"
"Yeah," Taehyung confirms while reading the text and smiling a bit, "He's just asking me if I'm handling the flight well. My friends kind of know about my airplane fear, so, he's probably not going to be the last asking me whether I am alive or not today."
"I see," the elder says, "You're doing great, though. Doesn't even look like your first flight; I mean, at the moment. You were shaking like crazy when we first took off, but you're really good now."
"Thank you," Taehyung gives him a gentle smile, "It's thanks to you, anyways. I would be freaking out with no one to talk to."
"You're helping me as well," Yoongi says, "Now, I can tell my friends that I've been able to talk to someone I just met at the airplane for more than five minutes."
"Let's make it even better than that," the dongsaeng suggests, "Let's make you tell them that you talked to someone you just met at the airplane for six hours."
Yoongi laughs smoothly at that, but he nods in agreement, "Let's do that, then. Tell me more about your studies as an actor."
And so Taehyung does. He won't lie, talking about his dream is one of his favorite things in the world, mainly if the person who's asking about it seems truly interested on it. It's inspiring and comfortable, and it makes him feel like what he's doing is actually important and right for him. Yoongi gestures positively with his head intermittently while listening, clearly amused by the subject; or, perhaps, just by the way Taehyung talks about it.
Taehyung tells him about the plays he acted in during High School — from the cliches, like Romeo and Juliet, to unknown korean plays — and Yoongi has questions about each of them; it's almost hard for Taehyung to believe that the man in front of him has actual problems with talking to people, because he is sustaining the conversation in the most cozy way possible.
II.
Taehyung barely realizes the time passing before his cell phone buzzes with the arrival of a text from Park Jimin, his best friend, saying that "one hour has passed, only five more to go", inducing a small smile to appear on Taehyung's lips. Once again, he looks back at Yoongi with the intention of telling him about what the text is, and, this time, the elder looks less impressed by it.
"It's my best friend," Taehyung says, "He's trying to cheer me up about the flight by telling me an hour already passed."
"Did it?" Yoongi frowns, "Damn, time is passing quick today."
"It surely is," Taehyung agrees, "Do you want to, maybe, I don't know, watch something? Just so we won't be talking the whole time, or we might run out of things to talk about."
He doesn't exactly expects Yoongi to accept it. As a matter of fact, he imagines that the elder will gently refuse it and go back to whatever he has to do in his cell phone, which he has been sending quick glances to for the entire hour, although never really grabbing it and putting it to use.
However, what Taehyung gets from Yoongi is a small nod followed by a hum of compliance, "Why not? Do you have something in mind?'
Taehyung pauses, thinking about it. He has his tastes and preferences, of course, but something solemnly tells him not to try and force it to Yoongi; it doesn't seem like the kind of stuff he would be in, anyway. He is too mature to be into Taehyung's boyish inclinations.
"How about a horror movie?" Taehyung finally spits out, unable of thinking of anything better than that.
Yoongi's nose wrinkles, "Really? I mean, I've got nothing against it, but in a flight? I bet we can come up with something less noisy to the rest of the passengers."
Taehyung nods, chewing on his own bottom lip, "Comedy?"
Yoongi's eyes run to Taehyung's, causing the dongsaeng to freeze for a second, "Why does something tell me neither of those are your tastes? Let me re-do my question. What would you be watching already if I wasn't here?"
Taehyung shakes his head, "It's childish."
"So?" Yoongi proceeds, "Everyone's childish in something."
"Yeah?" Taehyung raises one eyebrow, amused by the statement, "What makes you childish?"
Yoongi stops and actually thinks about it, and Taehyung finds it adorable how his nose wrinkles and his eyes move up while he ponders. The dongsaeng is starting to think that Yoongi won't say anything, but, before he can open his mouth, Yoongi starts talking.
"Basketball," Yoongi finally says, and saying that Taehyung's expression turns simply surprised would be an euphemism, "I love it. I play it since I was a child and it has always been a passion. Nowadays, it brings me back to being a child. See? Your turn."
Taehyung is impressed. Not only by Yoongi's capacity of expressing, but also because of the safety in his voice, and the emotion he clearly carries while talking about that. When taking a long look at Yoongi for the first time, Taehyung would never take the elder as someone who enjoys sports. Therefore, it's nice that he is managing to learn about his airplane colleague. He thinks, then, that it's fair to let Yoongi learn about him as well.
"Animes," Taehyung lets out, and Yoongi stares at him, curiosity coloring his dark eyes, "I love watching it, honestly. Always have."
Yoongi nods, and, surprisingly, he doesn't seem amused or shocked; he treats it completely normal, "Do you have a favorite one? I have to admit, I've never watched any. Probably because of my schedule, but mainly because I have no knowledge over anything that isn't related to my job."
Taehyung resists the urge to ask Yoongi about his job again and follows with the subject, "I've got a few favorite ones, like One Piece. Ever heard of it?"
Yoongi shakes his head slightly, "Never. What is it about?"
So Taehyung tells him. He explains, and rambles, and he doesn't stop himself, because Yoongi doesn't look like he wants him to. He seems genuinely interested; Taehyung can't tell whether it is truthfully because of the history of simply because he is polite enough to pretend interest, but he enjoys it.
As soon as he finishes explaining, Yoongi nods, "I think I get it. Should we watch?"
"Do you really wanna?"
"Sure," Yoongi smiles, "Let's watch it."
And so they do.
III.
The alarm causes Taehyung's phone to buzz softly and he turns it down in a second, starting to feel his stomach empty with a bit more intensity now. He still got one of the earphones connected to his right ear and they're halfway to end the episode of the anime going on in Yoongi's phone, and he feels sorry for having to interrupt it, but hunger isn't something that he feels often when he's uneasy, like, in a flight, so he must take this opportunity to feed himself.
"Hyung, I'm kinda hungry," Taehyung says, trying his best not to sound loud while removing his earphone, "Do you mind if we pause it?"
"Oh, no, not at all," Yoongi replies, and it doesn't sound like he's uninterested in the anime, it's more like he's okay with giving Taehyung his time to do whatever he wants.
Taehyung unbuttons his belt and stands up slowly, hands clenching tightly on the top part of the seat in front of him, fearing that a turbulence might happen while he's on his feet. Yoongi pulls his own knees back a little, allowing Taehyung to pass easily, and the dongsaeng looks terrified of falling once he's standing without something to hold on, except for the bags compartment above Yoongi's head. Taehyung reaches for his own bag, unzips it and grabs one of his snacks package inside, closing the bag as fast as he can and also returning as soon as possible to his seat, putting on his belt like his life depends on it.
He doesn't miss the slight, cautious smile on Yoongi's lips, but he doesn't comment it, either. It's the elder's right to find Taehyung's hurry funny, even he would if it was anyone else.
"You good?" Yoongi asks him, one eyebrow lifted up imperceptibly.
Taehyung nods, "Yeah, now I'm good," he states, opening the snacks package on his hands and reaching to grab a snack and quickly starting eating. By all means, he isn't a teenager or an uneducated person, so he rushes to lean the package to Yoongi's direction, "Hey, do you want some?"
Yoongi shakes his head politely, "I'm not hungry, thanks."
Taehyung simply nods again, going back to eating, and he watches sideways as Yoongi types on his own phone, squinting the slighlest — besides, Taehyung can see the impressive amount of texts received, and he wonders whether he is sitting beside someone famous somewhere, still unaware of it.
"So," Taehyung starts as he finishes swallowing a unusually spicy snack, and he coughs a bit, hand on the heart.
Yoongi smiles discreetly, "You okay?"
"Yeah," the younger male replies, and he voice sounds hoarse, even deeper than usual, "I'm great. So, I was gonna ask, when am I going to know what you are travelling for?"
"You're really curious, aren't you?"
"Indeed, I am."
Yoongi laughs softly, "How about that, we still have a few more hours to travel, and I'll give you a clue as each one goes by. You'll have three chances per hour. If you can't guess until we land, I'll only tell you once we're outside the airplane. That sounds good to you?"
"Definitely," Taehyung affirms, smiling mischievously, "Come on, give me my clue."
"Let's see," Yoongi ponders, nose wrinkling a bit, and Taehyung resists the urge to tell him how adorable that looks, "I work behind curtains."
"Makeup artist," Taehyung tries, eyes widdening in expectation, and he nearly appears to be a child waiting for the mother's reply about buying them a candy.
Yoongi shakes his head, "Wrong. Two more."
Taehyung squints, "Coreographer."
"I'm a terrible dancer."
"Screenwriter!"
Yoongi chuckles, and Taehyung pouts, disappointed at himself, "Sorry, Taehyung, you're wrong about each one. I do hope you can wait until the next hour, but I need to warn you that the difficulty will be increased."
"Aish, I'll never figure that out, hyung," Taehyung cries, and he sounds close to Yoongi, almost like they've been friends for more than four hours now. At the moment he finishes his sentence, his body stiffens, all of his senses yelling that he might just have screwed up while trying to seem natural — which had happened before, he doesn't need to be reminded.
Gladly, Yoongi merely smiles while shrugging, "You won't know if you don't try."
"That's really profound."
"I have profound friends," Yoongi tells him, and he clearly can see as Taehyung's eyes light up with a sparkle of interest, "There's this friend of mine, Kim Namjoon, who's constantly calling us over to his place just so we can sit at the porch together and talk about the universe. Since we're friends, it never gets boring, but I worry for the person he dates in the future sometimes. Not everyone can get easily used to him."
Taehyung nods, "I kind of understand. I'm not exactly easily to deal myself, and I guess I've always kind of wondered what kind of guy would handle it well once I dated him."
He says it before he can realize what's going on. The moment the word "guy" leaves his mouth, his mind is already finished, and Taehyung is scared again, because he hadn't made any comments about being into guys before and he doesn't really know Yoongi for long enough to trust him not to be rude about that.
For Taehyung's unmeasured relief, all Yoongi does is agree with his head, "You don't seem that hard to be with, though? I'm saying it because my three best friends, Namjoon and two other guys, had always said the guy I dated would have to be either exactly like me or the complete opposite."
Taehyung really tries to contain the smile that spreads through his face once he hears "guy" in Yoongi's phrase as well, but he fails, feeling forced to speak as soon as possible not to seem awkward or creepy, "Have you ever met someone who's exactly like you or the complete opposite?"
"I know someone who's my complete opposite, but he's my best friend, I can't seem to see him as anything other than a brother and I'm helping him with his crush on one of the girls that work with him," Yoongi explains, smiling lightly, "As you may realize, it's not happening."
Taehyung laughs, "Who is it?"
"His name is Jung Hoseok," Yoongi says, "He's part of my three best friends. They're Namjoon, Hoseok, and Kim Seokjin."
The dongsaeng nods, "I see. I have only two best friends, although I used to be closer to them than they are to each other, but, now, they're dating, and I'm out of it."
Yoongi's nose wrinkles again and he smiles kindly, "That seems to suck."
"Yeah, I love them both anyway," Taehyung smiles, "Hey, wanna find someone else for us to do?"
"Sure," Yoongi says, "Like what?"
"Like, telling each other funny histories about our best friends," the dongsaeng suggest, and he knows he might sound childish, but, honestly, with the way Yoongi's been nice and gentle on everything, he isn't worried about the elder being rude at some point anymore, "I have thousands about Jiminie and Jungkook. I could spend the whole day talking."
"We don't have the whole day," Yoongi comments, smiling, "But I do wanna hear some of those. I also may have one or two histories, but they're mostly around Namjoon's philosophies and Hoseok's adventures."
"What about Seokjin?"
"He's the quiet one," Yoongi says, "When it's about making histories, at least."
Taehyung smiles, "I have so many histories, if you're okay with hearing it."
"Hey, there's still a few hours before leaving," Yoongi says, "Until we're out, I'm all ears."
That does it.
Taehyung tells him quickly who Jimin and Jungkook are, and the histories begin from the moment Jimin met Taehyng, when they were only ten and didn't know life was going to put them through lots of stuff so they could get responsible. He tells Yoongi about how Jimin has always attracted girls' attention better than Taehyung and tries to ignore how flustered he gets once Yoongi says something similar to "I honestly can't see how", proceeding with the telling.
Jungkook arrives at the history pretty soon, when Taehyung's sixteen and he's fourteen, and things get actually good after that. Taehyung, Jimin and Jungkook become inseparable and their bond is the strongest in the whole world. Then there's every funny tale on how they managed to break into somewhere or make a fuss out of a decent event, and Yoongi smiles softly, eyes sparkling more than just once, and it makes Taehyung even more glad than he is used to get by entertaining people.
After Taehyung, it's Yoongi's time to tell about his best friends' adventures, and, if Taehyung already thought he liked talking to Yoongi, listening to the male's calm and smooth voice as he speaks the chronicles of events is even better. He tells Taehyung about each one of them properly, introducing Namjoon as the philosopher and the one in the group who seemed to try and take care of others the most; then, moving on to Hoseok, the ball of sunshine, the hope of all their days — and Taehyung can tell he's extremely special to Yoongi, even a little bit more than Namjoon, by the way he talks, since that's the same way Taehyung talks about Jungkook and Jimin —; then, about Seokjin, who's apparently someone who tries to be the best version of himself, always cheering others up.
Yoongi has some pretty funny stories himself. Taehyung nearly lets out a laugh that is a little bit too loud if compared to the atmosphere as Yoongi tells him about the one time when they all bungee jumped and Hoseok tried to hold Yoongi and Namjoon while trying to save his own life, while Seokjin felt sufficient with watching and laughing.
IV.
Yoongi is in the middle of a narrative when something happens to the airplane. Taehyung isn't sure of what it is, but he can sense it isn't good. His entire body tenses and his jaw stiffens at the movement, mind going blank as he feels the enormous vehicle swings in the air.
"Attention, please, passengers," the flight attendant's voice resounds around them and Taehyung freezes, "We are now going through turbulence. Please, maintain the passenger safety instructions."
Taehyung's heartbeats increases utterly fast and he feels his throat overly dry. By his side, Yoongi turns on his seat so his body is angled in Taehyung's direction.
"Hey," Yoongi nearly whispers, loud enough so he can be heard above the mumbling people around them, "It's fine, okay? It's just turbulence."
"It's— It's dangerous," Taehyung stutters.
"It's really not," Yoongi says, "It's just a change, might be in the pressure, the flow velocity, and other stuff, but it really isn't dangerous. We can't crash with it."
Taehyung's lips are so dry he feels the urge to wet them, but he can't seem to breath right, let alone do something else, "Are you sure?"
Another abrupt movement of the airplane and Taehyung and Yoongi are both forced forward, the belts holding them in place, and Taehyung closes his eyes with all his strenght.
"Taehyung," Yoongi calls, and Taehyung doesn't notice how shaky his hands are until Yoongi grabs them, fingers tangling with his own kindly and squeezing, "Taehyung, pay attention to me. Hey, Tae."
"Y—yeah?" Taehyung tries to say, but it comes out mumbled and inaudible.
"Why did you color your hair purple?"
Taehyung's eyes snap open for a moment, "What?"
"Why purple?" Yoongi echoes his question, "I mean, it's a pretty different color. People usually have a reason."
"Why— why is that important now—"
Yoongi squeezes his hand again in a comforting gesture, "I colored my hair green because it reminded me of freedom. It reminds me that, doesn't matter what happens to the world outside and doesn't matter how scary things get, everything that is represented by the green color, the whole nature, it won't disappear. I needed that remind to move on from every single bad thing in my life."
For a few seconds, Taehyung stares into Yoongi's mind, and it nearly feels like the elder is trying to get inside his soul and forbid it from paying attention to the turbulence, forcing his focus to remain on him. Surprisingly, for the next several seconds, it works, and, little by little, the turbulence drifts away. Taehyung blinks as Yoongi sighs in relief, breaking their eye contact, the sudden moment shattering. They can hear mothers calming down their children and a guy requesting a wet cloth to the flight attendant, probably due coffee or juice's pouring during the turbulence.
"Wait a second," Yoongi undoes his belt and stands up, too quick for Taehyung to protest, unsteady heart telling him that the turbulence could return at any moment. Yoongi takes something from his own backpack and returns to his seat, belt back on, stretching out his arm in Taehyung direction, "Here. Are you feeling okay?"
It's a watter bottle. Taehyung laughs inside, nodding as he takes the bottle from Yoongi's hand and drinks a swig, "Yes. Woah, hyung, I have no idea how to thank you for just now."
"I did nothing," Yoongi shakes his head, "I'm thankful that you didn't have bigger reaction, I'm not very good with dealing with people, but I'm glad I managed to help you somehow."
"Somehow? You basically just saved my life," Taehyung says, and he might be overreacting, but, in his defense, it should be compreensible. He just went through one of the experiences he was fearing the most, and Yoongi helped him go through it. It's his right to act like the elder is the brad new Knight in Shinning Armor.
"Are you feeling better?"
"Yes," Taehyung says, and he means it, taking a tiny sip of water, "I'm sorry about my reaction. I wasn't expecting that."
"Hey, it's perfectly normal," Yoongi says, and he sounds like he means it, "I'm not bothered at all. I'm just glad you're okay now."
Taehyung smiles warmly, taking a deep breath before looking at Yoongi again, "I colored my hair purple because of my first school play."
Yoongi blinks, "What?"
"What you asked before?" Taehyung reminds him, "That was the first time I was able to go in public and show what I thought that could be my best talent, and, when we were finished, the whole school gave us a round of applause, and I became the main actor of every other play we had in our school. That was what made my life into what it is today, what gave me the opportunity. And the color of my outfit was purple."
Little by little, Yoongi nods, and there's an unsual sparke in his eyes — Taehyung doesn't know what it means, but he likes it.
"Want another clue on my job?" Yoongi asks, and Taehyung nods, "I'm related to an artist, too."
Taehyung squints, "Photographer?"
"Uh, close," Yoongi smirks.
"What, really?"
"No, not really," the elder laughs, mainly as he sees Taehyung pout, "Sorry, Taehyung. You have two more chances, though."
"Producer!"
Yoongi squints, "Okay, now you're actually close."
"Assistant Engineer?" Taehyung tries, nose wrinkled."
"You're getting closer," Yoongi tells him, shrugging as he smiles, "Perhaps in two hours."
"That's basically all the time we have."
"Exactly. We should talk for the rest of the hour, figure out more stuff. Maybe you will find out before we land."
Taehyung smiles, "Then, talk we should.
V.
And they do.
They talk for the rest of the hour and don't even realize once the fifth hour arrives. It happens that Taehyung feels like he has been talking to Yoongi since forever, and definitely not just for a small while. He finds out about a lot of stuff about Yoongi, like the age he left Daegu, and a few cities he travelled to, but he can't seem to find clues enough to take a conclusion on his job.
"I'm starting to think you're a secret agent or something," Taehyung says, "I can't think of anything else!"
Yoongi chuckles, taking a look at the watch, "Hey, it's been an hour. You can ask for another clue."
"Tell me!"
"Well, let's think," Yoongi says, squinting slightly, "I use my brain and my hands. A lot."
Taehyung frowns, "What—"
"Don't think of weird things, please? Keep on going with the suggestions you were trying before."
"Personal manager!" Taehyung tries, excited.
"Wrong."
"Concert promoter?"
"Still no."
"Stage manager!"
"You're really bad at it, aren't you?" Yoongi laughs, a sound so nice Taehyung can't help but mirror it, althought he fakes an upset expression.
"You'll still tell me when we land, right?" Taehyung asks, and Yoongi squints, pretending to ponder, "Oh, come on. I need to know. My life won't be complete if I don't get to know that."
Yoongi chuckles, "You're a dramatic one, aren't you? You know, that's like, the last thing in the world I am. It's amazing how you can recognize something about someone if they're different from you."
Taehyung pretends to be offended with a scoff, "I'm not dramatic."
"Did you just hear me?" Yoongi smiles, "I can recognize it."
"Aish, hyung."
Yoongi seems like he is about to say something when Taehyung's phone buzzes, the familiar ring of a video call causing him to chew on his bottom lip.
"I feel like I should answer it," Taehyung says, reaching for his earphones quickly, "You don't mind, right?"
"Sure not, go ahead," Yoongi says, smiling gently, and, as Taehyung clicks on the screen, he can see Yoongi reaching for his own phone. He kind of wonders whether their talking is bugging Yoongi's business, but he guesses the elder would tell him in case of that happening.
As soon as the image on the screen appears, a huge smile spreads through Taehyung's face. Jungkook and Jimin are sitting beside each other on bed, the elder's arm around the dongsaeng's shoulders, and they look both equally excited for the call, most likely to hear the news from Taehyung about how calm and quiet his trip is going.
"Hi, Taehyungie!" Jimin pratically screams, excited.
"How are things, hyung?" Jungkook hurries to ask, "Is everything alright? You sitting next to someone nice?"
"Everything's peachy," Taehyung says, grinning, "Just one turbulence, but I'm good."
"What, really?" Jimin's eyes widden, "Are you sure you're okay? The first time on a flight is already scary enough, a turbulence is just too much. Aish, how did you manage to stay okay through it?"
Taehyung glances at Yoongi, mouthing "do you mind if I talk about you?" and gets a polite shake of the elder's head as his answer.
"The guy who's sitting next to me," Taehyung explains, then, "He's really nice and he's been in lots of flights before—"
"Okay, not lots, just a few."
Jimin coughs as he hears Yoongi's voice, "Holy crap, his voice is deep."
"He sounds about our age!" Jungkook exclaims, pointing at Jungkook on the screen, "Did you find an airplane crush and did not tell us?"
"Okay, you're making me embarassed right beside him," Taehyung hisses, "He is not an airplane crush, he is just a really nice person who's helping me with all this first flight thing."
"If you're saying that, I bet he's not even cute," Jimin accuses.
Taehyung's eyebrows furrow, "He is."
"I doubt it."
"Uhm, hyung?" Taehyung calls Yoongi in a low tone, drawing his attention, "I'm sorry I'm interrupting you again and all, but it's just— Can I show your face on the screen once?"
Yoongi smiles, "Sure. If you hand me one of those earphones and let me know what they said."
"Oh, yeah, that's gonna be fun," Jungkook mumbles, but Taehyung ignores it, handing Yoongi the proper earphone.
Slowly, he turns the camera, nearly in a thriller atmosphere, and finally gets it in front of Yoongi's face. He can hear Jungkook gasping and Jimin disappears from the screen, muttering something inaudible around the room. Taehyung discreetly glances at Yoongi, satisfied as he notices the man smiling due the couple's reaction.
"Hi," Jungkook says, rather timidly without Jimin sharing the spotlight, "I'm Jungkook."
"I'm Yoongi," Yoongi greets him, "I've heard of you."
"Have you, huh."
"Okay, I surrender," Jimin finally returns, throwing himself at Jungkook's side, hooking his arm around his boyfriend's neck and leaning in closer to the screen, "Hey, you're really cute, please take care of our friend—"
"Hyung, don't be a brat," Jungkook complains, elbowing his boyfriend's ribs, and Jimin simply laughs.
While Taehyung's cheeks suddenly feel like they're burning, all Yoongi does is laugh softly, "I'm guessing you're Jimin."
"The one and only," Jimin says, blinking, "Just so you know, anyone who dates Taehyung is basically by brother in law, so—"
"You can't get enough of being a brat, can you?" Taehyung cries, rubbing his face with his hands, feeling embarassament from his tip toes to the top of his head.
"Relax, it's fine," Yoongi reassures him, smile soft, "I have that kind of friends too, remember? You're like a friend of mine, Jimin-ssi."
Jimin blinks, suddenly seeming interested, "Really?"
"Jimin-hyung," Jungkook's eyebrows go up, and Jimin laughs happily, hugging his boyfriend.
"Rest well, Jungkookie, I'm not leaving you for anyone," Jimin says, "So, let's talk about potential friends to us."
Taehyung feels himself burning with awkwardness during the whole conversation, but he can't help but feel glad that Yoongi is being nice to Jimin, which means he actually is naturally a gentle and kind person, and Taehyung isn't wrong about him. He likes it when he isn't wrong about people, mainly when it's cool pe0ple.
VI.
Taehyung doesn't even notice that time is going by before he checks his cell phone.
There's only one hour left now. Yoongi is still talking to Jimin and Jungkook, and Taehyung is also included in the conversation by now, but, somehow, he feels like he doesn't want to spend the last hour like that. He can talk to Jungkook and Jimin anytime, and they also need their time together, so there must be no harm in trying to not let that sixty minutes go to waste.
Taeyung slowly runs his fingers through his pocket, typing absently on his cell phone, and thanks mentally for Jungkook's habit of keeping the texts on silent. He can see Jungkook looking down at his phone on the other side of the screen and his mouth dropping slightly, forming the shape of an "oh", and then he stares at Taehyung and Yoongi again.
"Jimin-hyung, we should probably get going," Jungkook says, "It's getting late and they must be tired, let's allow them to rest a bit."
Jimin nods, "Alright. It was really nice talking to you, Yoongi-ssi."
"Same for me, Jimin-ssi."
"Talk to you later, Taehyungie," Jimin waves with his hand, "We love you."
"I love you two too," Taehyung smiles, and he catches Jungkook's last grin before the call goes off.
"They're nice," Yoongi says, expression smooth as he looks at Taehyung, "They fit you."
Taehyung nods in agreement, "I don't know what I would do of my life if it wasn't for them, really. They're like my brothers. Which is weird, because they are a couple."
"It's only weird if you say it out loud."
Taehyung squints, "Makes sense."
Yoongi laughs, and so does Taehyung, and, suddenly, he realizes this friendship might be about to come to an end. They are about to land, and, once they do, they are going on separate ways, and Yoongi will be Taehyung's one day friend.
"Hyung," Taehyung calls, carefully, "Give me the last clue."
Yoongi looks at him through his eyelashes, "I use a lot of inspiration."
Taehyung smiles, proud of himself as he speaks, "You're a composer, aren't you?"
Yoongi's eyes go wide and Taehyung laughs as celebration, "How did you guess that?"
"That's amazing!" Taehyung exclaims, ignoring the question, receiving a shush from someone sitting behind them, and he apologizes lowly, turning back to Yoongi with the huggest smile, "Hyung, you're a composer! That's, like, the soul of any performance!"
"Okay, it's not something that great," Yoongi tells him, but he sounds proud and satisfied by Taehyung's point of view, "I just write the lyrics and the guys go up on the stage and sing it. They are the soul."
"They are the body," Taehyung states, "You are the soul. People don't like music because of the body only, they need the soul to work!"
Yoongi smiles, "Thank you, Taehyung."
"You don't have to be so formal either, you know," Taehyung comments, shrugging slightly, not daring to look into Yoongi's eyes as he says that, "You did call me Tae early, and I know it was only to calm me down, but—"
"Okay," Yoongi cuts him, uncomplicated, "I can work with Tae."
Taehyung's lips purse, "Too bad the trip is ending, huh."
"But you don't like airplanes," Yoongi argues.
"I know, it's just— It wasn't as scary as I thought it would be," Taehyung explains, "And I know of owe it to you, you know? I thought I was going to be anxious the whole trip, looking outside the window and thinking about how life could get worse than being trapped inside a big box flying around the sky. You helped me. It was really nice being your sky friend."
Yoongi blinks, expression slowly getting tender, "It was really nice being your sky friend too, Tae."
Taehyung feels an invisible fist wrapping around his heart and squeezing, nearly like he is about to say goodbye to a friend he has met for years. And it does feel like Yoongi is the kind of friend he has met for years.
"Can I read it?" Taehyung asks, out of nowhere, because he doesn't want their last hour to be silent, not even the last minutes, "I mean, one of your lyrics. If you don't bother."
"Oh, I don't have any complete ones with me right now," Yoongi says, glancing at his cell phone, "Just a draft of the new one. It's not ready or reviewed, which means it won't be the best I can do, but if you want to read it, I'm fine with it."
"If you're fine, I'm fine," Taehyung says, smiling, "And, oh, if you want to — really, only if you want to —, I have the video I made to practice for the audition in my phone. But again, you don't have to watch it. I'm just trying not to leave you hanging while I read your lyrics."
Yoongi smiles, "I want to watch it."
So Taehyung gives Yoongi his cell phone and Yoongi gives Taehyung his own. The lyrics Taehyung sees on the screen as soon as he grabs the phone isn't big, but it has enough lines, and he reads each one of them, chin dropping to the ground at each word. It nearly feels like he is part of Yoongi right now, while he reads, because every word gives him a different sensation, and that's how a composer should be. He can't believe he met and talked for hours to someone who has that much feelings in less than twenty lines.
He finishes reading before Yoongi finishes watching, and he glances at the elder while he frowns at the screen, and Taehyung can tell which part is going on, because everyone's expression is always the same. He doesn't like to brag, really, but his acting skills are amazing, and people would never let that be taken for granted.
"Woah," Yoongi mumbles as he finishes, taking the earphones off, "You don't have to audition, the role is yours."
"Oh, come on, you're the one who should be receiving a compliment right now," Taehyung says, "Your lyrics is amazing! I can feel everything, this is the best I've ever read."
For the first time, a slight flush takes over Yoongi's cheek, and it's adorable in every way, "Thanks, Tae. But, seriously, you're amazing. You don't have to worry about the other actors, you're already the main guy."
Taehyung smiles, "Thank you, too, Yoongi-hyung."
They fall into silence for several minutes after that, but they're both smiling, they're both happy, and Taehyung takes the initiative to speak first.
"Can I ask you something, hyung?"
"Sure you can."
"What if—" He starts, looking down, "What if I didn't want to be only sky friends with you? What if I said I want to be your ground friend too?"
Yoongi smiles, slowly, and he nods, "I want to be your ground friend too."
"Oh," Taehyung says, and it comes out along with a smile, and he blinks as Yoongi hands him his cell phone so he can put his number there, smiling not leaving his lips, "That's good."
Once Taehyung hands him the cell phone back, Yoongi laughs softly, "Yeah, it is."
Five minutes later, they are told to turn off their cell phones, and the landing procedure begins, slowly, with Yoongi's hand just a few inches away from Taehyung, the dongsaeng resisting the urge to grab it so he can be sure everything's going to be okay during the landing as well.
Gladly, they land properly, and people stand up and leave, one by one, until Taehyung and Yoongi do as well. They grab their backpacks, they check if there's nothing of theirs left on the seats, and they follow people out of the airplane. It feels refreshing and upsetting at the same time, the sensation of being outside, of having that flight finished. Taehyung could have bet it would be terrible, while it actually turned out to be great. He feels disappointed at the time for not taking longer to pass.
"So, we're here," Taehyung says, turning to Yoongi, smiling, "I'm taller than you."
He is. A few inches, but still, it gets Yoongi to playfully roll his eyes, "You had noticed that already."
"Kind of," Taehyung admits, "It's better outside, though. Having my confirmation of it and all."
Yoongi laughs softly, looking around, finding the clock on the wall and pursing his lips, "I should probably go. There's some lyrics I have to handle before delivering and my boss isn't the nicest person in the world. But, uhm, not trying to make it awkward or anything, but can I ask you something?"
Taehyung nods, "Of course."
"We went from sky friends to ground friends, right?" Yoongi asks, and Taehyung nods again, "What if I said... We could upgrade a level higher? If you want to?"
"You mean," Taehyung starts, stopping himself from smiling like a creep, "Like, more than ground friends? Like, ground—"
"You got me."
Taehyung chuckles, taking a step into Yoongi's direction, blinking happily, "I'd love that."
Yoongi nearly lets out a relief sigh and Taehyung finds it really cute, "Good. I'll be working during my week here, but you can text me and ask me out once we're back in Seoul."
"Alright," Taehyung says, nose wrinkling, "Will it be too intimate or awkward if we hug now or—"
"Why do you still ask?"
Taehyung lets another smooth laugh spin and, in the next second, he is hugging Yoongi, and he finds out Yoongi's hair doesn't only looks really nice, but it smells good too, and Yoongi's arms might be skinny and seem really cold, but they're warm, and he feels a weird sensation of being at the right place. He guesses Yoongi feels the same, because, just for a moment, he buries his face in the crook of Taehyung's neck.
Then, they pull apart, and they smile at each other.
Yoongi takes his own way the next minute, leaving a smiley Taehyung behind. The dongsaeng grabs his cell phone and goes to find Yoongi's number, to make sure it is there, and he smiles as he sees the way it is written.
Ground friend (hopefully more)
Yeah, Taehyung thinks while sighing contently and staring at the airplane. If it's with Yoongi, he can definitely get fond of those things.