jeongguk's eyes fluttered open, squinting just moments after when the sunlight touched his pupils. he had left his curtains open on purpose so he would feel the heat and warmth of the sun when he woke up, but he didn't take into account the star's ultraviolet rays shining on his irises. the comfort of his bed urged him to stay for a few moments, so he did, temporarily rebelling against his plans for today.

said plans included going to one of his many art museums today.

after taking a few breaths and reflecting on what today would unfold for him, he lazily sat and stood up from his bed. the fact that he was wearing comfortable pajamas didn't help his laziness, but he had to change in proper attire to look his best for when he arrived at his museum.

he ran a hot bath to cool down his nerves; after all, it's not like he was in a rush to meet anyone in the first place. most people wouldn't be nervous to just go out and have chat with people. but, jeongguk's condition was quite different. 

after all, he was the one who was the quiet kid in school. he was the one who always read books, hardly talked, and scored amazing grades. of course, people would always admire him for that: admire him for being the typical "smart" kid. however, he did not want to be admired for that, much less admired at all. it wasn't his fault he chose to be this, considering he was always pressured by his background all the time.

he shook his head. having hot baths were meant to make him more relaxed, and jeongguk definitely needed that right now. signing so much paperwork just to make a deal with a friend of his was already so tiring, and he didn't want to imagine what it would feel like if he were to sign off with someone he didn't know.

he stripped himself of his clothes and stepped into the water cautiously, adjusting to the temperature of the bath. he dipped himself into the tub after a while, letting the water surround him as he submerged further. his whole body was in the water except his head moments later. he stared at the white ceiling so far above him, and he started counting the seconds that went by. his mind shut off completely, and after counting to a mere thirty seconds in his brain, his head dived under the water, joining the rest of his body.

during his beneath the water, his mind suddenly sprung to life and rushed through all of his thoughts. his consciousness always did this to itself when he was submerged; that was expected, since his oxygen was cut off and his mind didn't take a liking to such a sudden change. his seemingly perpetual ideas would scatter, and he would find himself in his own little world for awhile. well, that is, until he ran out of oxygen in his lungs and needed to surface above the water to catch his own breath. 

he spent all of his time in the bathtub thinking about everything that was going on so far until his mind halted to a stop at a certain memory in his film of recent memories: his encounter with that boy at the park. of course, jeongguk didn't know why he decided to stop there, but he did. it was probably because he's barely talked to anyone else besides the few people he knew already. he sighed, aware of how much time he's spent in almost total recluse.

he finally got out of the tub and dried himself off while walking towards his closet. it was filled with a variety of clothes, all equally lined up with one another as he inspected which one to take. they were all decorated with designs of his liking, creating a distinguished look from one another. most of his shirts had a form of white in them, though. he loved the color; it was such an empty color, so barren and lifeless. however, it could all be changed when just one drop of life made its way to it, just like a blank canvas.

(of course, that's not implying of the time he accidentally spilled a plate of curry onto his white pajamas.)

after picking out attire he was content with, he put on his shoes, and headed out, but not before telling one his maids that he would be gone. his feet stepped out of his mansion, and he walked to one of his cars. it looked as if jeongguk was too young to drive, but it surprised quite a few people when he answered that he could when they interrogated him. he turned on the engine that gave a satisfying rumbling sound a few seconds later. he began to drive, focusing his eyes on the road.

the drive took about twenty minutes more or less, and he stepped out of his vehicle to be greeted by not-so-subtle gasps from his surroundings. people had all sorts of reactions, like mouths gaping, fans taking pictures, and people just standing there, acting awestruck. he chuckled at the sight; it wasn't like he didn't expect these results.

he entered through the glass doors, pulling the metal handle that was attached to them. however, that only created an even more awkward scene for him since his muscles were showing and fangirls were admiring a bit too much. sighing to himself, jeongguk stepped inside as he reminded himself to not put that much force into a metal handle anymore.

the place was just like jeongguk remembered: in top-notch shape. the floor was decorated with tiles of white marble running across the entire store. the walls were coated with jeongguk's paintings, each one carrying a unique story. hordes of bodies swarmed the area each and everyday, admiring at every one of his masterpieces. there were even different rooms that held certain artworks, most likely to set certain moods in the vicinity.

he liked visiting his museums, because although everyone knew of his presence here, they didn't approach him and try to hog his attention. they knew better than to act so immaturely in a regal place like this. 

he waved to one of his co-workers, who waved back with a gentle smile. he chatted with a few more people, from little kids who had a passion for art to college students who wanted inspiration to get away from an artist's block. each individual he talked with seemed like they had a fiery spark in their eyes; it was almost like they were getting influenced just from jeongguk's presence alone with every second that passed by.

and then, out of the corner of his eye, jeongguk noticed him. a flash of blonde hair walking in the midst of several people caught his attention. after greeting a few more fans and making small talk with them, he finally approached the boy he had met at the park. and then, he saw something else as well; the boy had a bow-tie on.

he must've gone to a fancy party, but the bow-tie was somehow slanted to one side, and it was quiet noticeable. he didn't know how it became like that since it looked like it was about to choke the poor boy at any moment. something that tight around someone's neck shouldn't have been able to move at all. but, jeongguk's senses were itching to just fix it nonetheless.

he walked up to the boy, tapping him on the shoulder. the latter turned around, his eyes curious at first. as soon as his eyes met jeongguk, his pupils widened, and jeongguk could see that he gulped heavily. 

jeongguk sighed, which caught the boy off guard. he was expecting to be asked a question, like 'what do you think?' or 'beautiful, isn't it?' from him. suddenly, he thought he had upset jeongguk somehow. was his posture not right? were his clothes not appropriate for the occasion? the questions in his mind raced almost endlessly throughout himself.

"hello," the boy muttered out a greeting the best he could.

"nice to meet you again," jeongguk replied. he extended his hand out to greet him, as he did with all the people he had talked with.

"yes, sir, it's nice to meet you again as well!" he suddenly blabbered out, nervously shaking jeongguk's hand.

jeongguk chuckled, amused at the boy's reaction. "there's no need to be so nervous. if i may ask, what's your name?"

"taehyung, sir. kim taehyung."

jeongguk pondered at the name for a bit. it sounded nice.

and then jeongguk started up a small conversation with him. taehyung was amazed; his nerves were settling down and his hands weren't fidgeting anymore. it was almost as if his thoughts were being pushed away as jeongguk exchanged polite words to him. he started feeling calmer, and he was enjoying their talk about his various art pieces, from underrated to some of the most famous ones.

it was a few minutes into the conversation that jeongguk suddenly cleared his throat a bit. 

"i know this may be a bit sudden, taehyung, but," he pointed at taehyung's bow-tie, "your bow-tie is a bit crooked. this might seem like a weird request, but do you mind if i fix it for you?"

taehyung looked down at his bow-tie, and he indeed found that it was slightly uneven. he quickly grew embarrassed; he had been talking to one of the most influential people in his life, and not once did he notice the apparel around his neck? 

'so that's why he sighed,' taehyung thought. 'well, crap.'

he had no other choice but to nod his head at jeongguk's request. it was an honor and a bit disgraceful at the same time; a famous, pristine artist fixing a crappy commoner's mistake like his. while his anxiety wasn't getting much better, jeongguk seemed the exact opposite. he grinned a bit, happy with the fact that taehyung didn't reject his almost sudden demand.

his hands reached out to his neck, aiming for the blue bow-tie that was fastened around the other's collar. he gripped the ends gently as to not flatten out the fabric and mess it up even further than it already was. he tilted the bow-tie to one side, and stretched it out to match taehyung's proportions. he removed his hands and inspected his work. he smiled as he was more than satisfied with taehyung's awestruck face. 

"done," jeongguk declared, almost in a merry way.

meanwhile, taehyung felt like sweat was polluting his back the entire time. he never had anyone that close to his face before, save for his parents and a special teacher/friend of his. he had his eyes closed the entire time, and he thought his cheeks were as warm as the sun.

he mentally slapped himself. 'pull yourself together, you idiot!'

and he did, by managing a few words. "t-thank you."

'fuck, i stuttered.'

jeongguk hummed, indicating he was listening. "so then, taehyung, it's quite a coincidence that we met up again, isn't it?"

"yes, indeed it is, mr. jeon."

"if you don't mind, would you like to walk around and see all my paintings? it'd be very interesting to see your perspective on them."

"of course, sir!" taehyung almost had the urge to salute him like a boy scout.

"no need for such formalities." jeongguk chuckled at his efforts. "just call me jeongguk. that's all there is to it."

"of course, j-jeongguk!" it felt foreign to him to say such a name.

jeongguk made his famous bunny smile, only shown on very rare t.v. interviews that were genuinely funny to him. taehyung didn't know why, but he found it quite amusing.

and just like jeongguk had asked to, they walked throughout the museum, with taehyung marveling at every single one. he couldn't bring himself to not ramble on and on about each piece. he gave out his opinion, his praise, and even his critique, but not before he asked jeongguk if he was fine with that. they hadn't realized that it relatively late until taehyung had finished explaining only half of the entire museum to him.

➴

hi lol

school is finally over yay

sorry for going on an unexpected hiatus, school took so much out of me eeeeeek

i hope you all enjoyed this chapter! <3