Felt, not possessed [completed KTH]

Chapter 17: Breaking the Silence

The air between Taehyung and Minho was thick with unspoken words as they stood face to face. It wasn't an encounter either of them had been expecting—two young men who had shared more than just space in each other's lives, now forced to confront the tension that had been brewing for months.

Minho was the first to speak, his voice quieter than usual, a hint of frustration underlying his words. "I didn't come here to fight with you, Taehyung. I just... we need to talk about this. About what's been going on with Yeri. For her sake."

Taehyung's eyes narrowed, his heart pounding in his chest. He had known this conversation would come, but he hadn't expected it to feel like this—raw, uncertain, and intense. Minho wasn't just trying to be friends anymore; he was trying to find his place in this mess of emotions and confusion.

"I don't know if I'm the one who needs to be talking about this," Taehyung said, his voice tight, "but we both know Yeri made her choice. She chose me."

Minho's jaw clenched, but he didn't back down. "It's not that simple, Taehyung. You know it, and I know it." He stepped closer, the gap between them shrinking ever so slightly. "She's confused, and she's not going to tell you this, but I think she's still fighting with herself. About what she really wants. About where we all stand."

The words hit Taehyung harder than he anticipated. His first instinct was to push back, to defend Yeri, to hold onto the little bit of certainty he had left, but Minho was right about one thing. It wasn't that simple.

"Are you trying to say that I should back off?" Taehyung asked, his voice lower now, almost dangerously calm. "That I should give her up because she's still figuring it out?"

Minho shook his head, his eyes softening. "I'm not saying that. But I'm saying we both need to understand where we stand before we keep moving forward. Yeri deserves that clarity. And so do we."

Taehyung's chest tightened at the mention of Yeri. Clarity. That was the one thing none of them seemed to have. None of them knew where they stood.

The wind picked up, rustling the trees around them, as Taehyung stood there, processing what Minho had said. His mind raced, trying to put the pieces together. There was still so much left unsaid between them—between him and Yeri, between him and Minho. But maybe that was the problem. Maybe they had all been avoiding the truth for so long that none of them could even see what was right in front of them anymore.

"I don't want to fight with you, Minho," Taehyung said finally, his voice a little steadier now. "But I'm not going to let her go. I'm not letting her slip away because we're both too afraid to face the truth."

Minho's gaze softened, and for the first time, Taehyung saw a flicker of understanding in his eyes. "I know. I don't want that either. I just... I need to know where we both stand, Taehyung. Because I can't keep pretending like everything is fine when it's not. We need to be honest with ourselves. We need to stop running from it."

Taehyung nodded slowly, the weight of Minho's words sinking in. They both needed to stop running. From their feelings, from the situation, from the truth that had been hiding in plain sight.

"You're right," Taehyung said quietly. "But it's not just about us. It's about her. And I don't want to hurt her. I don't want to be the reason she's caught in the middle."

"I know," Minho replied softly, "neither do I. But sometimes, the hardest thing to do is let her make her own choice. We can't force it, Taehyung. We have to let her decide for herself."

Taehyung's heart ached at the thought. Let her decide for herself. He wanted to be the one she chose. He wanted to believe that they could make it work, that all of this—this mess of emotions, confusion, and hesitation—could eventually fall into place. But what if she didn't choose him? What if, in the end, she chose someone else?

He clenched his fists, trying to calm the storm inside him. He had promised himself he would always be there for Yeri, no matter what. But now, it felt like his heart was hanging in the balance, waiting for something he had no control over.

Minho sighed, running a hand through his hair, and stepped back slightly. "I guess we'll have to wait and see. But I'm not going to fight you for her, Taehyung. I just want what's best for her. We all do. So whatever happens, we'll figure it out."

Taehyung's chest tightened, but he forced himself to relax, taking a slow breath. "I don't know what's going to happen, Minho. But I'm not walking away. I'm not leaving this until I know Yeri is happy. That's all I care about now."

Minho gave him a small nod, his expression serious. "I think we're on the same page, then. I'll back off. I'll give her the space she needs. But when she's ready, we both need to be honest with her. We need to stop pretending that everything is okay when it's not."

Taehyung felt something shift inside him. The tension that had been building between them, between all of them, seemed to loosen just a little. Maybe it wasn't going to be easy. Maybe it wasn't going to be quick. But it was a start. They had to stop pretending. And maybe that was the first step toward something real.

As they stood there in the fading light of the afternoon, neither of them knew what the future held, but one thing was clear: the silence between them had been broken. The truth had been spoken, and it was now up to them to decide what came next.

They both turned toward the park gates, each lost in their own thoughts. Taehyung's heart still pounded in his chest, unsure of what to do, unsure of where they would go from here. But for the first time, there was a small flicker of hope—a flicker that maybe, just maybe, they could all figure it out. Together.