17

“I’m sorry…” Taehyung apologized quietly, approaching him slowly with his head hung in defeat. “I don’t want to lie to you, or sugarcoat the truth, but—I-I don’t know what to do anymore. Every time I open you up—I only have more questions. I can’t figure this out on my own, I’m sorry.”

Don’t be.

Jeongguk reached out for Taehyung's hand, squeezing it gently in reassurance. He had no reason to feel defeated, he did his best. Jeongguk bore no ill will towards him, he did more for him in a month than anyone had done in decades. That counted for something—no. That counted for everything.

“I want to fix you…” He continued. “I’m going to fix you. I’m—I’m just—I’m stuck for a minute. I’m so sorry...”

As tears fell from Taehyung's eyes, Jeongguk couldn’t bare to helplessly watch his sadness any longer. Taehyung didn’t have anything to be sorry for. With every ounce of strength he had and then some Jeongguk managed to push himself up onto his elbow. That seemingly small action alone was enough to drain him, he could feel the metal in his arm almost splintering from his weight. His joints shouted in deviance, red letters flashed across his display warning him to stop, but he didn’t care. He kept pushing his limits until he was sitting upright and Taehyung was looking at him in shock.

“You—you can move?” He stammered in disbelief. “How—how are you doing that all on your own?”

Because of you.

His movements were limited, he could feel his power cells working in overdrive to compensate for the sudden surge of activity. Up until that point he had never tested the boundaries of his own capabilities, Taehyung wanted him to play it safe and he had listened. He would always listen because Taehyung knew best. This would be an exception, because Taehyung needed to know that everything would be alright. He needed to know that no matter what happened, Jeongguk appreciated everything he had done for him. That he believed in him. That he trusted him.

 Looking directly into his eyes, Jeongguk wiped away Taehyung's tears with a smile. He had always been envious of humans because they could express the emotions he wasn’t even allowed to feel. Everything was different now. For the first time in years, Jeongguk’s own sadness was outweighed by the happiness Taehyung instilled in him. Hope truly was eternal, because in the face of dread and defeat, Jeongguk couldn’t feel any of that anymore. He was numb to the emotions that once crippled him. He wished that Taehyung couldn’t feel them either.

“H—How..do” Taehyung hesitated, choking on his sobs. “How do you keep surprising me Jungkook? Sometimes—sometimes I forget that—I forget that you’re an android. You’re—you’re different.”

So are you.

Taehyung...

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