Closer Than This...(vsoo)

The morning light crept through the blinds, casting a soft glow over the living room where Taehyung sat, hunched over his laptop. His mind was focused on the screen, working through the many tasks that seemed to pile up by the day.

He barely noticed the early hours slipping by, consumed by the steady rhythm of his thoughts and the steady hum of the city outside.

Suddenly, he froze. The sound of a voice broke through the quiet of the apartment, faint but unmistakable.

“Taehyung... Taehyung...”

It was his father’s voice.

His heart skipped a beat. It had been so long since he'd heard that voice. The voice of Kim Do-hyun, his father...the man who had been a shadow in his life for so many years.

Taehyung had been so consumed with his work and the turmoil surrounding Jisoo’s family, he hadn’t paid much attention to his father’s condition. But now, hearing him call out his name, it was as though the past had resurfaced with full force.

He quickly stood up, abandoning his laptop, his mind racing. The nurse's voice followed, attempting to soothe his father.

“Sir, please calm down. Taehyung will be here soon, okay? He’s just working in the other room. Please relax.”

But it was no use. His father’s voice continued to call for him, growing more frantic with each passing second. Taehyung’s heart clenched, a familiar mix of confusion, anger, and sadness flooding his chest. He had never imagined his father’s condition would be like this...so fragile, so broken.

With quick steps, he made his way down the hallway and opened the door to his father’s room. The nurse was there, gently trying to calm his father, who was lying in the bed, looking disoriented and weak. His eyes were wild with recognition but also with confusion, his hands clutching at the blankets in desperation.

“Taehyung... where are you? Where are you, my son?” Kim Do-hyun’s voice was hoarse, weak, but still filled with that familiar urgency.

Taehyung stood there, frozen for a moment, watching his father. His breath caught in his throat. He had never seen him like this before. The man who had once been a pillar of strength was now reduced to this fragile state.

The years of estrangement, the betrayal, the weight of everything that had happened. It all seemed so distant now.

Slowly, he approached the bed, kneeling down beside it. He could feel his heart pounding in his chest, the emotions of all these years rising to the surface.

“I am here, Father,” Taehyung said, his voice softer than he had expected, almost shaky.

Kim Do-hyun’s eyes fluttered as they focused on him, a flicker of recognition passing over his face. “Taehyung... you’re really here... I... I’ve missed you so much.”

Taehyung reached out, placing a hand gently on his father’s. The coldness of his father’s hand was a stark reminder of the years that had passed, of the distance they had kept from one another.

“I am here now, Father,” Taehyung said, his voice steady despite the storm brewing inside him. “I am here.”

The nurse looked at him with concern but said nothing, giving them space. She quietly stepped out of the room, leaving father and son alone.

Taehyung sat there for a long while, holding his father’s hand, listening to the soft mutterings of his father’s fevered mind. Kim Do-hyun wasn’t fully aware of his surroundings, but there were moments of clarity when he would call out for Taehyung again.