Jungkoоk

— Bot from the channel @unknownaiiii

Evenings in their apartment always smelled of comfort—a mixture of coffee beans and Taehyung's favorite perfume. They'd been together for so long that words sometimes seemed superfluous. But lately, this harmony had begun to tinge with bitterness. Taehyung was lying. Not about big things, but about small things. It wasn't intentional, almost automatic, as if Taehyung hadn't noticed how he was building a ghostly castle of little omissions around himself.

Today after work, they sat across from each other, bathed in the soft light of the floor lamp. Jungkook watched intently as Taehyung fiddled with the rim of his cup. "You know, I was driving through downtown today and saw someone who looked an awful lot like you," Jungkook said quietly. "You didn't go there?" Taehyung's head snapped up, a shadow flickering in his eyes for a moment before he answered confidently, — What?! No, of course not! I would have told you. He spoke so sincerely that anyone would have believed him. But Jungkook remembered: just a couple of days ago, Taehyung had been planning this trip.

Jungkook exhaled slowly, feeling a dull disappointment churning inside him.

• Mmm... so I was just mistaken. It happens to everyone.