Archive of Our Own ^beta

It’s never easy to be away from your loved ones — Yoongi would know. He has spent years on years being away from his family: missing big holidays, birthdays, and other important events due to his busy work schedules. It sucked but, at the same time, he understood that success came with a price. He was doing what he loved and what he was passionate about—something not many get the chance for in life—and it was everything he could ever ask for. 

He’s been living side by side with the six most amazing people who've never let him feel bored. It has been a fun journey that has had just as many upsides and it has had its down ones. 

With time, Yoongi came to a realization that in order to be a family you don’t have to share the same DNA. Sometimes, there are six strangers who come into your life and become the best part of it — become your second family. So staying away from them for such a long period of time was hard after almost a whole decade of being one with them. 

Yoongi was aware that slow and healthy recovery was for the best if he wanted to go back to his usual lifestyle, but he still missed his friends, their practices till late nights, and standing on stage beside them while giving his all into it. He missed the adrenaline rush that music and performances would send through his whole body.

But most importantly — Yoongi missed Taehyung. 

And don’t get him wrong, of course, he missed every single one of his bandmates because each of them held a special place in his heart. 

But Taehyung…  Taehyung was Taehyung and that was all the reasons Yoongi had to explain why the younger was the one he’d missed the most. 

Well, maybe also the fact that he was madly in love with the younger. 

Love. He was afraid of it first, and it wasn’t because he feared the younger not feeling the same, no. Yoongi knew that Taehyung felt something for him, and the latter was aware of his hyung’s feelings, too. They had confessed to one another about some weeks—maybe even months already—ago. 

“I lo-  I like you, too,” Yoongi’s voice had trembled after hearing the younger confess . 

“Are you- Yoongi hyung, are you scared too?” Taehyung had asked, the words leaving his mouth in almost a whisper. 

Yoongi had nodded then, lips pressing into a thin line. “I am.”

“What do we do then?”

“We go slow. There’s no rush, right?” He had smiled gently and the younger returned one with a slight nod. 

“We go slow,” he repeated and took his hyung’s hand in his own, not letting go until the sun rose and the next day came. 

So no, it wasn’t the one-sided feelings that Yoongi was afraid of — it was love that scared him. Crushing was fine, it was nice, but love…. The word itself sent shivers running down his spine. The thought of being that vulnerable with someone terrified him. So, throughout the first little while of his life, Yoongi preferred not to think much about the “L-word” and just let himself feel whatever. 

Then he met Taehyung. He was fascinated by the boy and everything he did, and the fondness he had for him had no borders. Soon enough Yoongi realized that no person had ever managed to occupy his mind as much as the younger did. He’d catch himself thinking about whether the younger had eaten enough before practice or if he was sleeping well, or if, maybe, he had any worries he didn’t want to tell anyone about not to worry them, and so on, and so on. And even if Yoongi was a caring person, someone who always cared about those around him, it was unusual for him to act and feel the way he did when Taehyung was around. 

And Yoongi was never a fan of skinship but he liked Taehyung in a way that had his body constantly longing for the younger to wrap his arms around his slightly smaller figure and hold him without letting go. Whenever they’d hold hands, Yoongi’s heart would beat at a crazy pace, making his chest burn, and he found it silly cause it was just hand holding… Right?

The more he felt his body react to things as simple as them holding hands or sitting next to one another with their legs touching — the closer he’d get to the understanding that it was, in fact, love that tickled ever so much in his chest — the one thing he’d been so afraid of until Taehyung had barged into his life. 

He spent most of his days musing about Taehyung, especially after he had found out that the younger shared the same—or almost—type of feelings for him.

After their confessions—where Yoongi hadn’t been fully honest as it was much more than a simple crush for him—they started spending more time with each other. Not that it was too hard since they had to work together almost every single day, sometimes, even throughout the nights. But now… Now Yoongi was stuck in his apartment with a cast supporting his shoulder, having to spend most of his days alone(or more like without Taehyung by his side). He, obviously, had friends and family coming over here and there, but it wasn’t the same. As an introvert, he loved being by himself but after years of being surrounded by people a change, as sudden as his, was a little hard to adjust to. 

Especially because he could no longer see Taehyung as often. Yes, perhaps, he missed him a little too much . 

It was a relief when he came over to the studio a couple of days ago, but it still wasn’t enough. Maybe he was greedy, but no matter how much time he’d spend with the younger — he always wanted more. 

ᵔᴥᵔ

It was already late and Yoongi was sleepy but he couldn’t get Taehyung out of his head. The darkness of the room seemed to make his brain work in one direction: thinking about the one his heart longed for. The elder watched Taehyung on screen just some minutes ago so it made Yoongi miss him even more; miss his voice, which he heard on the phone when they called him as they were accepting the award. And the younger’s little “miss you” whispered to him into the phone, before they hung up, made Yoongi’s heart clench because he didn’t get to say it back. 

He thought it’d be a good excuse to call Taehyung close to midnight. Not that he needed one, though, since he knew that the younger never slept before the clock struck at least 3am. Well, unless he would hear Yoongi’s voice; that’s what Taehyung usually told him.

“Hearing your voice calms me down,” Taehyung had confessed. “And whenever we talk at night, falling asleep stops being a difficult task.” 

Yoongi searched for his phone under the pillow where he’d put it right after the show had ended and groaned when he’d almost dropped it trying to unlock it. And there he thought he was already getting used to using only one hand. 

Hesitant, he dialed a familiar number, in hopes to hear his favorite voice on the other side. His heart was beating far too fast for his own liking.

“Hyung?” Yoongi suddenly heard the beeps being replaced with Taehyung’s baritone. 

“Hi,” he breathed out. 

“Hi. It’s almost midnight, why aren’t you sleeping?”

“I was watching the show. It took forever for you guys to appear on the screen.” 

Taehyung giggled into the phone . “You were excited for everyone to see you, weren’t you?”

“Yeah, even if I wasn’t actually there. You guys were amazing.”

“We’d be even more amazing if hyung was there.”

“It’s not true, you’re just as amazing without me there.”

“Don’t be silly,” the younger spoke gently, “Hobi-hyung didn’t lie when he said we shine brighter with you here. Seven people make BTS, no more no less.”

Yoongi smiled to himself then and got the sudden urge to tell Taehyung just how much he missed him. He was never the one to say those things first, as he felt far too shy but he tried his best, knowing how much the younger longed for affection. Because, before they confessed, Taehyung would always tell Yoongi how he loved hearing him say when he’d missed him, or when he’d throw random finger hearts and ‘i love you’s’ here and there. But the younger wasn’t aware of how hard it’d been for Yoongi to say those words even in abbreviation through texts since all he ever wanted was to stop being a coward and let Taehyung know he meant it every single time but… it was too soon . It was too soon back then and now he just didn’t want to pressure him into saying it back if he didn’t feel the same just yet. Plus, Yoongi was content with whatever they had going on between them for now. 

“I miss you,” he mumbled almost silently. 

“We miss you, too.”

“No I-,” Yoongi paused, “I miss you.” 

“ What was it, hyung?” Taehyung asked and the older swore it sounded as if he’d bit down a grin. “I couldn’t hear that.”

“Hyung misses you, Taehyung-ah,” he said, this time much louder but with his voice being the softest melody. 

If only Yoongi could see him, he’d know that the younger had the widest smile splayed on his face with his cheeks scrunched up. However, Taehyung remained silent, which was confusing — he’d usually always say it back. 

“Why aren’t you-” Why aren’t you saying it back, don’t you miss me? Yoongi was about to ask, but the doorbell of his apartment interrupted him. “Shit, don’t hang up. There’s someone at the door.”

Yoongi hissed as he took his cover off himself, his bare feet then hitting the cold floor of his bedroom—he definitely needed a rug. He mentally cursed whoever it was who decided to bother him at that hour. And no matter who the the person was, they were clearly ridic-

“Taehyung?” Yoongi’s mouth fell open as he opened the door of his apartment and saw the younger in front of him. 

“What was it you just said?” Taehyung grinned with his phone still next to his ear. “That you missed me?” Yoongi could only nod, with how his brain kept processing what was happening at that moment. “Good, cause I’ve missed you like crazy, too,” the younger smiled wide and his eyes twinkled. “Are you going to let me in or will you just keep staring at me?” He chuckled at the older’s confused expression. 

Yoongi shook himself out of it and stepped to the side, letting the younger in. “What are you doing here? Why didn’t you go home?”

“You’re here, this is home,” Taehyung said casually as he put the plastic bag—the one Yoongi hadn’t even noticed before—down and started taking his shoes off. “We’re free tomorrow so I thought I’d come, unless you want me to leave?” He paused when taking the second shoe off, looking up at the older.

“No!” Yoongi replied a little louder than intended. “N-no.. Stay,” he said a little calmer, making the younger beam at him as he straightened his posture. Yoongi got curious about what he’d brought, so he took a step closer to peek inside. 

“I brought tangerines,” the younger smiled as he hung his coat on the hanger, “and there’s some takeout.”

“It’s midnight.”

“When has it ever stopped us?” 

Yoongi smiled. “True.” 

“Oh! I almost forgot,” Taehyung crouched down and the next thing Yoongi knew, he held out a pair of socks for him. 

“Fuzzy socks?” Yoongi’s brows slowly rose up as he took the pair, noticing how the fabric felt soft to the touch. 

“Yeah, I remembered you mentioning that your heater was acting up. And I know how easily your feet get cold, so I thought I’d bring these along to keep you warm,” the younger shrugged. 

Right . Because Taehyung always paid attention to the smallest of details and always listened when people thought he wasn’t. Maybe, it was that Yoongi hadn’t seen him in a couple of days but the thought about Taehyung remembering about his feet getting cold all the time— even though he probably mentioned it once or twice years ago— and his heater breaking— which he didn’t tell him personally because they were all on the phone and he muttered it out while trying to get the thing working— made him emotional. God, it was almost pathetic how much it affected him. 

Without thinking much, he lunged forward and circled his arm—the one he could properly move—around the younger’s torso, left cheek pressing into his chest. 

The action startled Taehyung at first, but moments later he returned the tight hug, placing a kiss on the top of the older’s head. “What’s wrong?”

“Just missed you,” Yoongi murmured and felt a pair of lips stretch into a smile against his hair. 

ᵔᴥᵔ

“I should’ve known you wouldn’t have- ahhhhhhhh-  milk.”

Yoongi couldn’t stop laughing as the younger boy kept chugging on water, taking as many deep breaths as he could. “I told you it would be too spicy for you. Why’d you add it?”

“Cause you like it,” Taehyung confessed and a fond smile took over Yoongi’s face.

“Taehyung-ah, that’s very sweet, but,” he giggled again at the sight, “we could’ve put it in two different plates. That way you wouldn’t have the spice in your food, they give it separately for a reason.”

All Taehyung could do was groan in frustration as his mouth kept burning and the sting kept bringing tears into his eyes. 

ᵔᴥᵔ

After having eaten—or having suffered from eating, in Taehyung’s case—their food and chatted about some random things, they decided to turn on a movie. Yoongi warned that he would probably fall asleep, but the younger told him it was okay since he himself was tired so he would most likely drift away not longer after. 

Taehyung let his hyung choose the movie while he changed into comfortable clothes and got into bed, patiently waiting for Yoongi to get in while he peeled a few tangerines for the two of them. 

Before joining, the older put on the fuzzy socks Taehyung got for him and smiled—they were a pretty blue color with little kittens on them: his favorite color and Taehyung’s nickname for him. Kitten . He wasn’t using it often, but it slipped off his lips a couple of times before. 

When Yoongi climbed on, he didn't move too close to the younger; he just sat beside him instead, with his head and back hitting the headboard of the bed. He sighed in relief as his body was thankful to be finally back on the soft bed. The physiotherapy was tiring so he wasn’t even sure how he was still awake. It was most likely his will to spend as much time as he could with the younger that kept him awake. 

Taehyung frowned. "Why're you so far away?"

Yoongi bit the corner of his lip, staring down at the distance between them. There was barely any, Taehyung was a little dramatic, but it was still different from how they’d usually be during similar moments. "It's fine like this."

"Did I do something?"

"What? No! Taehyung-ah, no," he groaned. "It's my shoulder. It's not exactly comfortable for me to uhm, cuddle you."

"You mean not comfortable for you to literally curl up on my body," Taehyung teased and, with red cheeks, Yoongi nodded. "Hm, let's switch the sides we're on."

"Why?"

"You'll see, come on," he rolled to Yoongi's side and let him climb to the other one. "Now lay on my chest with your healthy shoulder."

The older complied, his own body relaxing at the warmth that the younger was radiating. It wasn't the most comfortable position ever, but at least his shoulder wasn't bugging him much and he had a great angle that let him stare up at Taehyung. (Yes, it was very important to at least have that if he couldn’t just wrap himself around the younger.)

“Comfy?” the Taehyung  asked and Yoongi hummed, body fully relaxed against him. 

“You can press start now,” he murmured and Taehyung complied. The movie was something Yoongi’s already seen — he always picked the films he’s already watched and excused it with “that way I know for sure that it's a good one”. Of course, that was a lie. A blatant one to that matter. He would never admit to it, though. 

“Want a tangerine?” The younger asked and Yoongi hummed, reaching his hand to take one, but Taehyung shook his head. “Relax, I’ll feed you. Okay?” His voice was soft and the older’s cheeks and chest felt warm. 

“Okay,” he whispered.   

ᵔᴥᵔ

As the plot of the movie kept unraveling, and the younger’s hand kept stroking his hair, Yoongi’s eyes stared up at Taehyung’s face. They stopped at every single detail on the younger’s skin: the moles he wanted to press kisses to so much, the little scars that could only be seen up close while Taehyung wasn’t wearing makeup. Yoongi even took his time to try and count his eyelashes at one point—they flattered so prettily when he was blinking that the older couldn’t resist. Taehyung would look down at him from time to time with his lips forming into a gentle smile as he did so when he saw his hyung’s eyes on himself. 

“You know,” he started with his eyes still on the screen, “I think I know why you always pick the movies you’ve already seen.”

“Why?” Yoongi’s eyebrows rose in curiosity. 

“So you could just stare at me and not worry about missing a scene or two,” Taehyung grinned, “or all of them. You like what you see that much?” The younger’s eyes lowered and he winked before turning back to the movie. His hand never stopped playing with Yoongi’s hair. 

“Can you blame me?” He murmured, hoping his cheeks weren’t visibly red already, although he didn’t care much, not anymore. 

“I have the prettiest man in existence pressed against my chest, and yet I am able to resist staring down at him.”

The corner of Yoongi’s lips quirked up. “What’s stopping you?”

“I’m afraid to ruin your view with a double chin if I keep looking down,” the younger chuckled and Yoongi rolled his eyes playfully.

“Dumbass.”

“You still like me, though,” he sniggered. 

Loves him. Yoongi dared for his eyes to look down at Taehyung’s lips. “Taehyung-ah?”

“Hm?” The younger hummed, eyes following the character on the screen.

“I’m no longer scared.” 

Taehyung averted his gaze from the TV, brows furrowing. “What do you mean, hyung?” His hand traveled to stroke the skin of his jaw. So gentle, so careful—as if he was scared to break it. 

“Kiss me?” Yoongi breathed out. 

“Oh,” his body stilled, “are you.. Are you sure?”

It was time . “I’m in love with you, Tae-yah.” 

The younger’s lips parted and eyes widened a little. “Y-you love me?” He stuttered out and Yoongi nodded his head slightly. “Hyuuung,” Taehyung whines this time, his hand was gripping his hyung’s jaw and the older could see his eyes getting glossy, “say it again. Hyung, say it again.” 

“I’m in love with you,” the words fell easily off his lips and it felt good— too good— to finally say it aloud without holding back. 

“I love you, too,” the younger whispered before he locked their lips in a chaste kiss, not leaving the older any time to process anything. 

The kiss was exactly and at the same time not at all what Yoongi had expected it to be. He felt his heart pounding like crazy in his chest and all his thoughts seemed to have been washed away by the taste of Taehyung’s lips. 

The latter broke the kiss, leaning back in to steal another small peck right after and both of them smiled. “I always imagined for your lips to taste like coffee and tangerines.”

“Do they?”

“No,” the younger shook his head and kissed him again, this time a little more than just a peck. “They taste like heaven,” he grinned.

Yoongi groaned. “You’re so—“

“You love me, Yoongi-yah.” 

The elder’s eyes widened a little at the absence of the honorific. “Yoongi-yah?”

Taehyung shrugged. “I thought it would only be fair if I’m informal with my boyfriend.”

“So we’re boyfriends now?”

“There’s no way I’m waiting any longer. I’ve been waiting to make you fully mine for too long,” he whispered the second phrase and Yoongi’s heart felt like bursting out of his ribcage. “Now let’s go sleep so we can wake up sooner and kiss, kiss, kiss, ki-“

“I think I got it the very first time,” Yoongi giggled. “Why not do it now?”

“You, sir,” he gently pushed him off his chest, “must rest. And I won’t take no for an answer.”

“A little kiss before we sleep, then?” He pouted before puckering his lips, making Taehyung’s eyes twinkle with happiness. 

“Who am I to say no?” 

And at that very moment, Yoongi felt the happiest he’s ever been.