accidental encore | taegyu

chapter twenty one

his thumb hesitates above the keyboard. his heartbeat is erratic, still reeling from all of taehyun's messages, from the sheer urgency in them. taehyun had been genuinely worried, almost desperate.

but then, a memory slices through the fog in his brain.

that blurry photo. the one soobin showed him last night. the one of taehyun—or someone who looked like taehyun—holding hands with some famous female singer.

his stomach churns, though he's not sure if it's from his hangover or something else entirely.

his fingers curl slightly around his phone.

soobin's voice cuts through his thoughts. "why'd you stop typing?"

beomgyu doesn't answer. he just stares at the screen, at the half-written apology sitting there.

soobin notices. "oh my god," he deadpans. "are you seriously thinking about that dumb picture right now?"

beomgyu's jaw clenches. "it's not dumb."

"it's not real either," soobin huffs, getting up and stretching. "it's some blurry ass image taken from god knows where, and the dude doesn't even have taehyun's build."

"but the fans—"

"the fans are delusional."

beomgyu doesn't respond. he just stares at his phone, mind running a million miles per hour.

he knows he's probably overthinking. he knows soobin is usually right about these things. but something about that picture is making his chest feel tight.

the worst part? he doesn't even know why.

beomgyu exhales sharply through his nose and shakes his head, trying to push the stupid thoughts away.

soobin's probably right. he is right. beomgyu shouldn't let some blurry picture mess with his head like this. besides, it's not like taehyun owes him an explanation for anything. it's not like—

he shuts his eyes, groaning. god, shut up.

his phone is still open to the unsent apology, so he quickly erases the half-written message and starts over.

gyu
    was drunk lol. didn't mean to worry u. randomly sent that n passed out. mb

he stares at it for a moment before pressing send. short. casual. normal.

he locks his phone immediately after, like that'll somehow stop him from anxiously waiting for a reply. soobin watches from the other side of the couch, sipping on his coffee like he's watching some reality show.

"good. now, stop being weird about it," he says, plopping back down beside beomgyu and nudging his shoulder. "if it really bugs you, just ask him about it later. but don't be a freak and start ignoring him over nothing."

"i'm not ignoring him," beomgyu mutters, picking at a loose thread on his blanket.

soobin hums in disbelief. "sure. we'll see about that."

—

soobin disappears into the bathroom, leaving beomgyu alone in the living room. the sound of the shower turning on barely registers as he slumps further into the couch, his fingers automatically opening twitter before he can think twice about it.

the rumors are still spreading.

the blurry picture of taehyun and that singer is everywhere. some fans are analyzing it like their lives depend on it, zooming in on the details, debating whether it's actually taehyun at all. others are already spiraling, making up stories, talking about how they "saw it coming" or how "it makes sense."

@usera: this can't be taehyun, he literally left for the hotel right after soundcheck.

@userb: you guys are so naive lol. of course they'd be careful. jus because no one saw doesn't mean it didn't happen.

@userc: even if it's real, let's not overreact. he's allowed to date??

@userd: oh, now y'all wanna act rational when you spent years saying he's married to the music.

beomgyu's lips part slightly in disbelief. some of these people are insane.

he scrolls past more posts, past the speculation and the theories, past the ones treating it like a personal betrayal, until his screen refreshes with a new notification at the top.

a text from taehyun.

he freezes, eyes flicking to the lock screen preview.

tyun:
ohhh lol don't worry about it. i thought you were upset for real for a second
i would've kept spamming if i knew you were just passed out lmao

tyun:
you okay now though?

beomgyu swallows and quickly locks his phone, heat creeping up his neck.

he's so embarrassed.

he can't believe he really sent that last night. he should've just knocked out in peace instead of—ugh.

but at least taehyun doesn't seem mad or anything.

he debates responding right away, but something holds him back. instead, he stares at the locked screen for a moment longer before dropping his phone onto his lap and exhaling deeply.

he can reply later. once he figures out how to do it without feeling like an idiot.

—

soobin walks out of the bathroom, hair still damp as he towel-dries it lazily. the second he glances at beomgyu, still slumped on the couch and mindlessly scrolling through his phone, he groans.

"oh my god. again?"

beomgyu doesn't even look up. "shut up."

soobin tosses the towel over his shoulder and makes his way over, leaning down to catch a glimpse of beomgyu's screen. the faintest smirk tugs at his lips when he sees the twitter tab still open.

"let me help you," he says, holding out his hand expectantly.

"help me with wh—" before beomgyu can process what's happening, his fingers move on instinct, placing his phone in soobin's palm without a second thought.

a fatal mistake.

because the second soobin takes it, he immediately exits twitter and taps open beomgyu's dms with taehyun.

beomgyu blinks. "wait—"

"r u dating that singer" soobin types at lightning speed. then he hits send.

beomgyu stares in horror.

then, he lunges.

"SOOBIN, YOU BITCH—"

his palm smacks the back of soobin's head with enough force to make the taller man stumble forward with a loud ow!

"what the hell is wrong with you?!" beomgyu screeches, snatching his phone back like it's a lifeline. "are you out of your damn mind?!"

soobin rubs the back of his head, unfazed. "you're welcome."

"welcome?!" beomgyu glares at him, tapping furiously at his screen to unsend the message—

message seen at 2:37 pm.

beomgyu's soul leaves his body.

soobin peeks at the screen, then bursts out laughing. "ohhh, he saw it. you're so screwed."

beomgyu contemplates murder.