Thread by @vantmin

taekook au

tae’s been annoyed with his friends constantly asking for relationship advice even though he’s single

“what makes you think i’m an expert at relationships?” he asks.

“idk, maybe bc you’re the hottest guy in class.” jeongguk, who sits next to him, responds cheekily.

- quote don’t reply please

- feedback is always appreciated and loved

- i hope you like it!

profiles 1/2

profiles 2/2

1

2

3

“Taehyung, help me.” A voice whined from beside him and Taehyung looked up to see one of his classmates, Joyce holding her hands together in a pleading motion. She sat down next to Taehyung and scooting her chair over so they could be closer and

Taehyung was a little confused as to why she would come to him for help. It’s not like they were really close and they don’t usually talk too much besides casual conversation in class.

“With what?” Taehyung twirled a pen around his fingers, spinning it to pass time and wait for the 8 am class to start. Or at least he was before Joyce showed up. “Did you not write the essay for Comp?”

“No, not that.” She responded. “See....there’s this girl I like in OChem.”

“...Okay and?” Taehyung has a perplexed look on his face while Jimin, who was sitting a row in front of him immediately turned around with an “I told you so,” look. The other was stopping himself from laughing and Taehyung tried his best to ignore his best friend.

“Should I ask her out on a cafe date or like a dinner date?”

“I don’t know...pick one?” Taehyung wasn’t sure what else to say because they were both good ideas and he didn’t know who the girl was so he didn’t know if she had a preference over the two.

“But I’m indecisive. Taehyung, please help me. You know the most when it comes to these things.”

“And what makes you think I’m such an expert at relationships?”

“i don’t know, maybe because you’re the hottest guy in class.” Jeongguk, who sits next to him, responds for her.

A moment of silence followed Jeongguk’s statement and Taehyung wasn’t sure what to say back to him.

His lips were open and he blinked before he felt the rush of heat climb to his cheeks and Taehyung caught himself blushing all the way down to his neck.

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11, the next day

"Good morning, Jeongguk." Taehyung tried to sound as casual as possible greeting his classmate as the other sat down next to him, setting his bag on the ground.

Jeongguk seemed surprised that he said anything to him because there was a startled look on his face but he quickly

recovered and proceeded to flash Taehyung a sweet smile.

"Good morning cutie." He replied softly.

Taehyung felt himself blush again, taken aback at the words Jeongguk used and he panicked, tripping over his words as he tried to muster a response.

"I dont- You think I'm cute?" Taehyung turned his statement into a question and this time Jeongguk looked at him like he was bizarre.

"You’re adorable. I thought I made that very clear yesterday." And then Taehyung’s at a lost of words again. Oh god, he was blushing deeper now.

Taehyung has this impulse to hide his face behind his biology textbook but it wasn’t like that would work since Jeongguk sits right next to him. His second resort was to try and laugh it off or better yet, change the subject so he tried clearing his throat. Fortunately, that’s

when the professor walked in and saved him from even more embarassment. However, as much as Taehyung tried to pay attention to the slides the professor pulled up, he couldn’t shove away the presence of Jeongguk by his side. Occasionally, he’d catch Jeongguk looking

at him, or looking in his direction and he’d find his cheeks heating again but he’d try his best to stay focused to the lecture.

Although it was useless because he couldn’t remember anything they went over once the class was dismissed. Jeongguk was too distracting.

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

Taehyung glances at Jeongguk who casually walks over to their shared table while typing away on his phone and he internally prepares himself. It was going to be simple, nothing too pushy or abrupt, he’s just going to say hi and start small talk. Nothing too hard to do.

However, even after he takes a deep breath, he couldn’t find where to start. It suddenly seems so complicated and it’s even more nerve wrecking when Jeongguk seemed to notice him staring and turned around so they made eye contact.

Taehyung gulped.

Oh dear.

Now he has to say something because it’s becoming awkward and uncomfortable really quick. Taehyung finds himself chewing on the inside of his cheek before he finally gets the courage to actually start talking.

"Hey-“ They both spoke at the same time and Taehyung blushes once more. He doesn’t know why he keeps blushing around Jeongguk, this was the third time now, but he finds solace since Jeongguk was blushing too.

"You go first." They both suggested again, in unison.

“Do you want to grab coffee together?”
“Do you want to study together sometime?”
They asked simultaneously and then both blinked. The thought of the other asking them out dawned on them and they froze, not like an uncomfortable freeze but a short pause to register the information

Taehyung was the first one to exit the trance, giggling at the sweet enlightenment.

“So, a study date over coffee?” He asked.

Jeongguk smiles, his eyes beaming and creasing as he scoots his chair closer to Taehyung.

“I’d like that very much.”

21

22

23

24

25

26

27

28

29

30

''Oh my god, Tae...''Jimin's lips were slightly parted in pretend shock. ''You have the biggest and darkest eye bags right now.''

''Shut up.'' Taehyung mumbled, sitting down at his desk before burying his face into his arms.

''Look's like somebody stayed up all night.'' Seokjin pointed out the obvious, casually snickering to Jimin.

''I wonder who...?'' Jimin played along with the other before turning back to Taehyung.

Taehyung decided to ignore his friends, not forgetting to swat Jimin's poking hands away since his best friend was such a physical questioner. He was usually this physically affectionate whenever he wanted details, especially details about his love life and

Taehyung tried his best to not give in.

''Hey, Aislinn, could you forward me the notes you took from econ? I wasn't there yesterday.'' Taehyung tried to divert the conversation,

or rather end the conversation of his friends joking about his apparent lack of sleep by turning to a girl sitting behind him in class. He knew she usually took notes on her laptop so it'd be easier to copy them down.

The other gave him a confused look before tilting her head towards the door. ''Why don't you get them from your boyfriend?'' She asked, genuinely puzzled at why Taehyung would come to her for notes when Jeongguk was just walking in, always a few minutes later than Taehyung.

There were a few short seconds of silence before Taehyung could feel steam rising up from the top of his head.

Oh, fuck.

To make matters worse, Jimin and Seokjin burst out laughing, smacking each other on the arm or the back before they started hugging their tummy.

It was a chaotic scenario that made Jeongguk extremely bewildered as he took his seat, wondering what got into these sleepy college students to make them this loud in an 8 am morning class. And Taehyung, too. The other wasn’t looking him in the eye.

''What are you guys talking about?'' He asked, wanting to be notified of what's so funny.

''Nothing! Really, it's nothing.'' Taehyung immediately waved his hands up in defense, stuttering along his sentences as his mind kept repeating how Aislinn called Jeongguk, his boyfriend.

Needless to say, Taehyung felt uneasy throughout the whole lecture and even when it ended, he only gave Jeongguk a sweet but hurried goodbye before walking away. Or more like he ran away, zooming out of the door before anything else could happen.

31

32

33

Taehyung was originally studying for calculus 2, and believe me, he tried his best to concentrate on the numbers in the textbook and not his phone.

He ignored twitter notifications and snaps sent, properly immersed in his studies.

It was only when the name “gguk 💖” flashed across his screen that he reached for the cellular device, immediately opening it and then typing away.

Needless to say the textbook was thrown to the side immediately as Taehyung squealed on his bed, clutching his phone while his thumbs danced to send another response to Jeongguk’s replies.

Taehyung couldn’t stop smiling and his current stage reminded him of when he had his first crush in high school, no, even stronger than that. It was a silly yet budding love and there was nothing he could do to stop it but the thing is, he didn’t want it to stop.

Not when Jeongguk sent another text that had him instantly burst into laughter before he too, typed out another answer.

“I cant wait for tomorrow.” Taehyung murmured to himself softly, his eyes beaming onto his phone screen.

34 - time skip

35

36

37

38

There was the soft chime of the tiny bell ringing above their heads when they entered the cafe. Taehyung had to first wipe off the dirt and precipitation off of his shoes before patting fallen snow off of his coat, not wanting to taint the warm, clean atmosphere of the place.

It had started snowing lightly when they started driving and it isn’t bad for December weather but it accumulates which is to be expected

“What do you want?” Jeongguk asked him energetically, already taking off his thick jacket and placing it on a chair to save the spot.

“A warm cappuccino frappioca, please.” Taehyung responded, smiling.

“Gotcha.”

Taehyung went to sit down but after a while he nearly jumped out of his seat because he remembered he didn’t give Jeongguk any money to pay for his portion.

However, his worries seemed to be unnecessary since Jeongguk was already walking back to their table for two, tucking his wallet back into his pocket.

It was such a simple gesture but it was enough to make him feel warm inside, even more than the heating did when they walked in.

“I’ll pay next time.” Taehyung hurried promised.

For a second Jeongguk seemed to be blank, then Taehyung could see the corners of his lips curls upwards into a semi smirk, or rather a charming smile.

“So what I’m hearing is... there’ll be a ‘next time’?” He asked slowly.

Taehyung gaped at him, wondering how Jungkook linked the two together but then again, he supposed it actually did connect. This was a date after all and the fluttery impact of his heart racing in his chest right now was more than enough to prove it.

Fortunately, he didn’t have to dwell in his shyness for too long because soon the barista called out Jeongguk’s name and he had to go back to get their drinks. It was a blessing because Taehyung would’ve melted in seconds if Jeongguk kept looking at him the way he did.

He doesn’t know why Jeongguk has this affect on him. It’s as if he could read Taehyung like an open book. He feels comfortable with him and yet he always seems to be freaking out or blushing whenever Jeongguk is in the room. Just like now, with him looking down

at the table with his bangs falling into his eyes while Jeongguk sat back down.

“What did you get?” Taehyung asked, initiating another conversation while biting his lip.

“Iced french vanilla mocha.” Jeongguk took a sip of his drink before offering it to him.

“Wanna try some?”

“I...uh-“

“Go ahead. It’s really good.” Jeongguk pushes the drink in front of him and every time Taehyung wants to say no, his mouth runs dry so he ended up nodding timidly while bringing the cup to his lips and then drinking.

It’s more bitter than his own coffee but for some reason, Taehyung felt like it’s the sweetest thing he’s ever had. Especially when he saw Jeongguk taking a sip from his frappioca too.

“Do you like it?” Taehyung asks, only a nanosecond after Jeongguk put his cup down.

“Hmm,” Jeongguk playfully pretends like he’s contemplating the question, crossing his arms and all that.

“I don’t usually like really sweet drinks but this was savory,” He started. “It’s almost candy like. Reminds me of the person who ordered it.”

Taehyung nearly missed the last comment if it wasn’t for the flirtatious ending of the statement and he ended up tripping over his words while trying to think of a reply, stuttering like a fool in love.

He couldn’t help it. His mind went blank the second he realized what Jeongguk was saying.

However, he was sure of one thing. If Jeongguk was going to be this...enticing for the rest of the date, his composure wasn’t going to last very long.

39

40

41

42 - a few days later

43

44

45 - the nth date

Taehyung let out a contented sigh, his breath immediately turning into a visible gust of crystallized wind as he did so. They had just left the restaurant and since the small diner was local and close to their place, they had decided to walk back home.

Well, it wasn’t like they had much of a choice since they didn’t drive here either. Their only options are walking or calling a taxi but Taehyung doesn’t feel the bother to do that or risk calling a Uber.

It’s too troublesome and plus, walking is better for digesting and for their wallets. It’s just about 10 minutes anyways so it’s easier for them and plus, it was kind of...subtly romantic in a way.

Taehyung decided to ignore the fact that the reason why they, at least why he didn’t want to drive or catch a ride, was because he wanted to spend more time with Jeongguk. Call him simple minded or love stricken but even a few more minutes is valuable when it’s well spent with

the person next to him.

10 minutes may be a short amount of time but that could be allocated for 10 minutes more of just...being with him. A drive would cut that down to a miserable 3 minutes and it isn’t a good bargain to go for. Plus, a drive would be awkward and hostile for

conversation and that would be such a bad end to the amazing night they just had.
The dinner was sweet, and Taehyung has been able to know a lot about Jeongguk through their meal, well, meals since they did go on a lot of dates, many with which ended just like this one. Perfect.

While they’re walking, strolling along the street flooded by the flickering lights under the dark sky, Taehyung felt the back of his hand bump into Jeongguk’s hand and it amplified into the bumping of his heart against his chest.

He did his best to try and ignore it until it happened again, this time being more noticeable. Even though the air was chilly as it thrashed against his hand, Taehyung could only feel the warmth spreading to his palm from when it came into contact with Jeongguk.

It wasnt long before their fingers slowly laced together and even though they held hands before, Taehyung has never noticed how perfectly their hands fit together until now. . It was a couple fingers at first, starting from the pinky and then it’s interlocked,

strong and sturdy as it swayed in between the tiny distance of their bodies. And the more it swayed, the giddier he became. From the start of the evening to now, his jaw has been aching from keeping it in a smile such for a long time but even through the soreness, he could still

manage a grin. The happiness was too overwhelming and in this lighthearted atmosphere, the short walk quickly came to an end.

The last time they walked to Jeongguk’s dorm first so this time they came to his. The rotation was a good routine but Taehyung has never been so

disappointed at seeing the dorm entrance and knowing he’d have to go to bed soon.

“So, Saturday around the same time?”

Taehyung nodded energetically. They arranged to go see a movie together since there’s a whole bushload of new films to watch. They haven’t decided

on which one to watch but they’ve always been pretty spontaneous when it comes to decisions at the last minute.

“I’ll see you then.”

“Or maybe tomorrow in class.”

“...Right.” Taehyung couldn’t understand why his mind short circuited to forget they still had classes

in the afternoon on Thursdays but it wasn’t the time to ponder over it now. Jeongguk must’ve caught on because he quickly led the conversation to a different path.

“Make no promises though, you’ll only see me if I’m able to stop dreaming about you.”

“I-...Gosh, Gguk, why can’t you ever let me breathe for a second-“ Taehyung sunk the bottom portion of his face into and behind the confinements of the scarf he was wearing.

“Was that a little too much?” Jeongguk chuckled it off. After spending so much time with Taehyung

he’s gotten a lot more accustomed with Taehyung and his closeted shyness that seems to always jump whenever he gave a smart compliment or toed the line beyond flirtation. He’d try to stop himself but he could never contain the comments and plus, Taehyung was too adorable for him

to /not/ mess with the cutie.

“Maybe.” Taehyung murmured gently.

“But you seem to like it” Jeongguk naughtily pointed out, smirking as Taehyung blushed deeper. Sometimes he doesn’t even know how he gets the courage to say the things he does but whenever Taehyung smiles at him

it makes his heart warm and want to shower the other with even more love and endearment. Or just compliments with hidden loving connotation. That too would suffice.

“I do.” Taehyung admitted. “It’s just that…”

“Just what?” Jeongguk asked, stepping a little closer.

“I just never seem to know how to respond to you whenever you say things like that. I don’t have a way with words and don’t know how to express the adoration I have for you.”

Maybe it’s the cold air causing his mind to malfunction, maybe it was the heat of the moment and the

rushing of adrenaline and oxytocin in his blood or maybe it was just how the current circumstances felt right. Regardless of the reason, his lips started moving, like his mouth worked faster than his brain and then he’s spilling every emotion, concern and love out into the open.

He couldn’t control his self restraint and then his feelings flooded out of him like water overflowing a dam.

“I want to say sweet things to you too. I want to make you happy and make you smile but whenever we get into the mood, I blank and

I never seem to be able to even give a coherent reply. And so I don’t know why you’re always so ready to shower me with flattering phrases.” Taehyung rambled, his lips moving so fast he wasn’t even sure if Jeongguk could make sense of what he said but the more he talked,

the more he couldn’t end it.

“I’m not like you Jeongguk. And by that I mean i don’t really have experience with stuff like this. I know I’ve always been the person that people come to for relationship advice but the truth is, I’ve only been in two relationships

and they were both short lived and they were so long ago I barely remember anything from that time. But you seem so natural at this. Relationships I mean. You always know what to say or what to do and even the smallest thing makes me so overjoyed I can’t sleep at night.

So if we do end up...confirming our status, I don’t know if I’m able to give you what you need or rather, what you truly deserve because all relationships should be equal but I’m not confident that I’ll be able to give you all the physical love you show me.”

”Oh, Tae." There was a brief silence on Jeongguk's end before he sucked in a deep and closed the gap between them.

Taehyung could now see a magnified view of Jeongguk's face, and the intimacy-...It was indescribable.

Their foreheads was almost pressed together and Jeongguk

was cupping his face with his warm, large hands and it made the adrenaline spike even higher and Taehyung could feel his breathing beginning to falter and become more fast paced.

“Yes?” He almost stammered out the reply.

‘’Do you think I knew how many relationships you had before I fell in love with you?’’ Jeongguk asked.

‘’W-what?’’ At first, he wanted to ask ‘What do you mean?’, but he wasn’t able to get the full question out before he started thinking about the answer. ‘’ I don't think so.’’

‘’I didn’t love you for your experience or how many relationships you've had. I love you for you.’’ Jeongguk states firmly. ‘’I like the way you get flustered, the way your eyes twinkle shyly every time we hang out, I love you just the way you are.

And experience doesn’t dictate everything. I mean, relationships are an experience all by itself, right? Each time we meet, I get to learn a little more about you and gain more knowledge of who you are and I want to keep doing that.

I’d love to watch the sunset with you, even go on a road trip maybe to spend a whole week together and do so many more wonderful and amazing things with you. I'd be delighted if I get to learn and grow with you as a duo and I think we'd make it work really well.

So if you don’t think you don’t deserve me because you’re not as affectionate or if you're inexperienced at love compared to me, you couldn’t be more wrong. There’s nothing more I could ask for other than you requiting my feelings so I ask you to give us a chance.’’

Taehyung was stunned silent, left with his mouth agape at Jeongguk’s confession but even though it sounded so dreamlike, the genuine look in Jeongguk’s eyes told him it was real, and Taehyung felt like melting into the comfort of that information.

‘’And maybe you’re not as ‘responsive’ but I like it like that. It's not one of your weaknesses or fault but rather a good thing. I like giving you all this love and if one day, you want to return that affection, I would be more than willing to be on the receiving end too.’’

Jeongguk smiled at him and it was at that moment Taehyung knew that he did a right thing. Starting from when they first met to their first date to now, everything felt so right and meant to be. It even seems silly thinking about his former worries about how this might not work.

He doesn't see why it couldn't since they were both willing to put in the effort and they're both so helplessly in love with the other. That's all that matters right? All they need is a strong will and persistence and they'd be able to not just walk home together, but walk

into the future too. Taehyung was sure of that."

"Plus, we’ll have a lot of time to figure this out because if I’m not wrong, you did say something about confirming our relationship…" Jeongguk smile turned mischievous at this but even so, Taehyung couldn’t help but smile too.

‘’Perhaps I did.’’ After regaining his confidence,Taehyung beamed back at him.

‘’Then I don’t see why we can’t do it right now,’’ Jeongguk whispered softly but since they were so close, Taehyung heard everything clearly.

‘’Who am I to ever say no to you?'' He whispered back.

There was no telling who leaned in first but needless to say, lips found their way to each other and softly clashed. It was gentle and passionate, and they didn't say anything during it but at the same time, all the words were said. It was already more than enough.

Taehyung closed his eyes and let himself fall into the kiss, wallowing in the warmth selfishly as their hands moved to wrap around each other.

Then he smiled contently, knowing this night was all he needed it to be.

Impeccable.

And this was just the very beginning for them.

46

47

48

49

50

[END]

i wrote this au because i really wanted to do something fluffy so i hoped it wasn’t too much of a disappointment since it was pure fluff but thanks for reading it to this point. i love you all and merry christmas 🎄