Taehyung's P.O.V

The battle of the bands was less than a week away. And I couldn't concentrate on it at all. I could not, since our apologies, direct my thoughts elsewhere. All I could think about was Nabi. Whenever I saw her, color flooded to my cheeks, my heart sped up, my palms sweat. It was horrible. I'd never felt like it before, and I had no idea what to do about it. If only I hadn't realized my feelings. I would've been confused, but things wouldn't have been so awkward. I hated that we couldn't be normal without me stuttering or blushing. Luckily, Nabi seemed oblivious, although, I knew she was way more intuitive than she let on. And the worst part was, I had no idea how she felt.

"V! Taehyung! You!" I jumped at the sound of my name.

"Huh?" I blinked at Namjoon, who sat across from me.

"Have you been listening at all?"

We were sitting, waiting for Hoseok, who was supposed to join us for lunch.

"Yeah...not really," I admitted.

"Are you okay? You've been zoning out way more than usual." He frowned.

I looked down at the table, quiet.

"Taehyung. What is up?"

"I...I think..." I paused and sighed, covering my forehead with one hand. "I think I like Nabi. A lot."

He was silent. So I tentatively glanced up after a second. He was staring at me in disgust.

"What's that look for?!"

"She's...she's your cousin, man."

I couldn't help cracking a huge grin and shaking my head. Whoops.

"Yeah, about that," I said, "That was a lie, or a cover I guess, I had to think of something in the heat of the moment. We were being confronted by Hoseok."

"You have no idea how relieved I am to hear that." Namjoon shook his head. "I wish you told me sooner."

"Anyway...that's why I've been zoning out a lot more lately," I continued after a moment. "I think I really like her."

Namjoon tilted his head, studying me for a moment.

"Confess to her, then," he finally said.

"No way!" I replied loudly, receiving a few questions glances from other tables.

"Why? You just said you like her."

"Yeah, but...Nabi's...I have no idea how she feels."

"That's why you confess to her. She can tell you how she feels then."

"No. It's hard to explain. Nabi's just..." I struggled to find the words. "She's sensitive, you know? Shy. If she knew how I felt, she'd probably avoid me completely."

"You'll never know unless you tell her, though," he insisted. "I know it seems hard, but it'll be even harder if she never learns your feelings."

"I know. But I'd rather have her as at least a friend than never see her at all."

Hoseok was suddenly collapsing onto a chair beside me.

"What's up, guys? Omo, you'll never guess why I ran all the way here," he panted.

My conversation with Namjoon was done. We couldn't really talk about it when anyone else was around, since everyone thought Nabi and I were related. Sadly, what he'd said hadn't helped. His advice was just what I'd already been considering.

Nabi's P.O.V

"You're coming to the competition, right?" His text said.

My frown turned into a small smile. I had been annoyed with my phone buzzing during my studying time, but his eagerness seemed to just seep out of the phone and into my room.

"I don't know." I replied, truthfully.

"You have to! You need to be there when we gain vengeance for you!"

"I know your mocking my vocabulary."

"I am. But I need to emphasize how much you need to be there."

I shook my head, but the smile stayed.

"Okay. I'll go. Just stop texting me please. I'm studying." I told him.

"Daebak!" He replied in a second. "Whoops, sorry. No more texts, got it."

I chewed my lips, closing the phone. There sure would be a lot of people at the competition. Including Got7, whom V kept promising he would get back at. I didn't really care much about revenge or anything. I was just kind of terrified of them now. Being beaten up was sort of mentally scarring, especially for someone like me. I didn't tell V though, I felt like he would overreact. He'd been doing that a lot since we'd switched back. If Jimin said something to me, he would suddenly be right next to me. If Got7 was mentioned, he would sort of tense up and begin bantering about what "losers" they were. He was just acting sort of strange. Different. He was still V, but something was off. I had no idea what.

My thoughts returned to the show. I told him I would go, so there really was no going back now. But I was dreading seeing Got7 so much, my stomach hurt.

•••••

"What are we going to do about the cousin situation?" V asked as we walked to lunch.

It took me a moment to realize what he was talking about.

"Oh. I don't know," I replied. "I mean it doesn't really matter, does it? Why don't we just let people keep assuming we're cousins? It does sort of keep things easier."

"Yeah. Okay. You're right," he agreed, quietly.

I turned to him, questioning of his sudden behavior.

"I mean, unless, you don't want people to think we're cousins? We are sort of lying," I continued.

"No, no. It's easier, really. What's the point?" He said, quickly.

"Yeah..." I frowned in confusion.

What's up with him?

"I'm going do sit with Rachel today, okay? I'll see you later," I told him, giving him a small wave as we entered the cafeteria.

"Yeah. See you." he waved back.

My frown stuck as I headed towards Rachel and I's usual table. Why was he acting so weird? I shook my head as I sat, alone, as Rachel had yet to arrive.

There was one thought in the back of my head. One I kept forcing away as soon as it tried to be heard. A thought that couldn't possibly be correct. Because that would never happen. He would never...

"Hello, hello!" Rachel's voice greeted.

I quickly glanced up, clearing my head.

"Hi," I replied.

She sat down across from me.

"What're you eating today?" She asked.

We had our normal lunch and our usual conversation. We talked about the competition, and who we thought would win. We were our normal selves.

I shoved the thought farther and farther away with each word spoken.