"Hyung!" Taehyung called into the house as he entered the front door. "Hyungie, are you here?!"

There was no answer. Seokjin must not be home. It was so quiet within the house, silent. If Seokjin was home, there would be some sound from either the kitchen or the bedroom. After all, Seokjin would surely be cooking or gaming.

As he closed the front door behind himself, Taehyung remembered that Seokjin had planned to go to the store today to buy certain things he needed for tonight's dinner.

This realization gave Taehyung a sense of relief. He didn't have to hide what he had. In his hand was a small bag, containing a single item.

Taehyung hurried to the bedroom with the bag, wanting to put this new item away before Seokjin would return home. Once he entered the bedroom, he opened the door to their closet and seated himself on the floor. He pushed some hanging clothes to the side and uncovered a box that was mostly hidden.

He had once told Seokjin that this box was just full of junk, but he hoped that keeping the box covered would cause his boyfriend to forget about it. After all, this box wasn't actually full of junk. It was full of little things Taehyung liked.

Opening the box, Taehyung peered inside at all the things it contained. There were little figurines, collectible cards, and small trinkets. Then, he took his one new item out of the bag.

It was a snow globe, white with a cupcake made of plaster in the center. Taehyung had been wanting this snow globe for the past week. He loved cute things like that. But he didn't want Seokjin to know he had bought it.

Placing the snow globe into the box with care, Taehyung was startled by the sound of the front door opening. He quickly closed the box and pulled the hanging clothes back to their original spot, covering the box the best he could. Then, he stood and closed the closet door.

"Taehyung-ah~"

With his heart thumping, Taehyung made his way to the kitchen, seeing Seokjin as he set some bags of groceries onto the dining table. "Ooh did you get everything we need for tonight?"

"Yup!" Seokjin grinned, clearly proud of himself. "I needed to go to a couple stores because the first one was out of some things, but I managed to get it all." Happy, he put an arm around Taehyung's shoulders and kissed the side of his head. "What about you? Did you do anything fun today?"

Taehyung shook his head, lying. "No, I haven't really done much today." How could he possibly tell Seokjin that he bought a snow globe? He didn't need it. Wasn't it a waste of money? What if his boyfriend got mad at him for buying something so useless?

"Well, we can make the rest of the day fun." Of course, Seokjin would never get mad at Taehyung for buying something he liked. He wished Taehyung would stop hiding his purchases, but he knew why it happened.

It was a survival mechanism Taehyung had developed a long time ago. He'd been taught by toxic people in the past that spending money on himself was selfish and a waste. No matter how many times Seokjin tried to tell him that it was okay, Taehyung would hide whatever he bought then sit in the bathroom in the middle of the night and cry because he felt guilty.

"You know, I'm tired from shopping." This was just a dumb excuse from Seokjin. "How about we order food instead and cook this stuff tomorrow?"

"That's fine with me." Taehyung loved ordering food as much as he also loved Seokjin's cooking.

"What should we order?" Seokjin asked, though he knew what the answer was going to be.

And the assumption of Taehyung's answer was correct. "We can get whatever you want. I'm fine with anything." The people-pleaser was at work, giving the pleasing answer.

Seokjin's whole demeanor softened. "I know exactly what we'll get then." He knew Taehyung's favorite food and would definitely order it. He just wished Taehyung could learn to do more things for himself.

"I can put the groceries away for you." Taehyung knew what he was doing. He was sucking up to Seokjin, being extra sweet in case his boyfriend found the things he had been buying for himself. Seokjin had never been bad toward him, but he couldn't stop being afraid every time he did anything for himself. He was trying to unlearn the behaviors he'd developed while being with toxic people, but it was so hard.

"We can put them away together." Seokjin knew it was going to take more time. Until then, he would be patient and do his best to be supportive.