it's been a little over a week ever since taehyung and jungkook officially got together and came out as a couple. some may say that their relationship was progressing way too fast, but the pair begged to differ. without bogum in the picture any longer, they currently were the happiest that they've ever been in a while and they were desperately keen on keeping it that way.

word quickly started passing around seoul after the pair was caught holding hands and giving each other short pecks on the lips at a small thai restaurant. however, they weren't afraid to get caught; not anymore.

they were now ready to show the world — and bogum, if he decided to abruptly return one day — that they were happy together and pretty much inseparable. thus, taehyung made a public statement a few days ago where he addressed the dozens upon dozens of rumors and claims of him and jungkook dating by confidently announcing that it was all true.

ever since news of their confirmed relationship spread around seoul like wildfire, jungkook and namjoon's tattoo parlor has been receiving way more customers than ever before. although their parlor was already known as the city's best from the start and they've always had a stable flow of customers throughout the years, nothing could compare to the insane rise they were experiencing at the moment.

it felt like a surreal dream; a dream they both never wanted to wake up from.

jungkook began stirring awake due to the warm sunlight pouring in through the curtains casting orange and yellow hues on the underside of his eyelids. cracking his eyes open slowly, he instantly realize two things despite his still-drowsy state:

1) he was stark naked. the comforter was barely covering his lower body, leaving his hickey-blemished upper body completely exposed to the cool air around him.

2) he was definitely in taehyung's room and on taehyung's bed.

he glanced to his side and almost jumped when he saw taehyung quietly sitting next to him on the bed, his back pressed against the headboard as he casually watched jungkook with a soft smile on his lips. his blond locks were messily tousled and he also happened to be shirtless, merely clad in a pair of white sweatpants which hung low on his hips.

"good morning, kook," he rasped out when he saw how the sleep was gradually dissipating from the younger's gleaming irises.

jungkook tiredly grinned up at the elder in response before taking a couple of long seconds to finally process the fact that taehyung has probably been staring at him the whole time. as a result, he immediately flushed bright-red all the way down to his hickey-littered neck and made haste to shield his face in embarrassment.

"c'mon, why are you the one that's shy right now when you were the one that did all the work last night?" taehyung teased. "besides, you're literally still naked, baby."

"i know, but it was different last night! ju-just don't stare at me like that," jungkook muttered from behind his palms. "it's making me... feel certain things."

taehyung let out a chuckle at his boyfriend's words and decided to not tease him any further, stretching his arm out to gently peel the other's hands away from his red face. "so, how are you feeling?" he soon asked, feeling jungkook briefly shift around to get into a more comfortable position under the covers.

"couldn't be better," jungkook answered in a tick, rolling onto his side and looking straight into taehyung's feline eyes. "thank you for last night, tae."

his positive reply brought the happiest beam onto taehyung's features. "you're always welcome, kook. but just saying, next time, i'm topping."

"mm. i should take a shower." the ravenet yawned, getting up from the bed to loudly stretch out his sore limbs, not minding that he was legitimately standing there, utterly butt-naked in front of taehyung.

"i've never seen all of your tattoos up close like this before," taehyung suddenly mumbled, trailing his gaze over jungkook's body and lingering on every single tattoo he could spot — ranging from the signature snake around jungkook's right arm, the tiny orchids lining his surprisingly thin waist, the larger orchids on the front of his broad chest, and the menacing tribal dragon curling along the side of his neck.

and a certain tattoo which taehyung wondered why he never really paid attention to until now.

well, he had never looked at jungkook's bare back properly, hence why he never truly admired the ethereal artwork of pure beauty plastered on the wide span of the younger's muscular back — a string of beautiful stars lined up together to form what seemed to be a constellation, covering the entire expanse of pale skin.

even though the tattoo was drawn in black ink only, the stars still managed to give off an alluring illusion of twinkling whenever the muscles on jungkook's back would flex even the slightest, almost as if they were all individually alive and real, in a way.

"that tattoo on your back," taehyung started breathlessly. "it's... stunning."

jungkook, akin to a panicked deer caught in headlights, evidently froze. subtly shaking his head, he swiftly threw a random shirt he picked up from the carpeted floor over his upper torso within milliseconds, not bothering to peer back at taehyung even once.

taehyung furrowed his brows in confusion. "kook, why are you trying to cover yourself up as if i just said something that—"

"i-i thought you didn't like my tattoos," jungkook nervously stammered whilst fiddling with his fingers as he kept his back facing the blond. "you, um, found them unprofessional, right? i don't want to force you to look at them any longer than you've already did."

taehyung's stomach sank in realization and he was wracked with guilt instantly. "you're— oh. oh, no. fuck, no, i'm— shit, i'm sorry. i'm so sorry. i was an asshole back then and i didn't realize how hurtful my words were when i—"

"no, please don't apologize. i'm the one who should be sorry. i shouldn't have brought that up," the tattooist returned, eventually turning back around so he could meet taehyung's solemn eyes. "that was nearly half a year ago and i know that was never really you saying those things to me. that was how your father and the industry taught you to speak. they planted those views inside your head and raised you to believe that tattoos should be a ridiculed taboo." he paused with a frown at how taehyung visibly tensed up. "but i know that the taehyung i developed feelings for would never criticize me or my tattoos for being too unprofessional. i know that the taehyung who's laying next to me right now would've never insulted me back then if he was given the chance to rewind time."

taehyung emitted a heavy sigh. "that still doesn't change the fact that i said and did some cruel things to you in the beginning. i don't think i'll ever stop regretting that day i poured my coffee down your shirt without even hesitating for a second or considering how painful it must've been for you. i'm so sorry, kook, i really am. and i would take all the shit i did to you back then in a heartbeat if i could."

"hey hey hey, no. don't beat yourself up because of something like that from the past, tae," jungkook told him, rushing over to climb back into bed just to drape his free arm across taehyung's toned stomach, soothingly caressing the older man's waist. "i have to be frank; the coffee stung like a bitch and i won't lie by saying that i didn't absolutely despise you after that. but what matters is that you're not that taehyung anymore. i love the you that you are right now. i love you enough to forget the person you once were."

"jungkook—"

"can you also do that for me? forget the person you were in the past — just focus on the present and the future with me."

"fuck, i really don't deserve you," taehyung murmured, clawing at his arms with all the frustration, irritation, and disappointment he directed towards himself. "you're too good for me."

"don't say that," jungkook tutted, moving to grab both of taehyung's large hands into his own. "we deserve each other, yeah? don't let anyone else tell you otherwise."

"thank you, kook," said taehyung, voice cracking with how much sincerity and love he felt weighing down onto his chest. he couldn't believe how lucky he was to have captured the heart of such a wonderful man like jungkook. "baby, i've always liked how your tattoos looked on you. you managed to make tattoos seem like divine pieces of art. these tattoos... all of them are a part of you, and i love you, so i'll naturally love every single part of you. from that faint little scar on your cheekbone, to your pair of adorable doe eyes which contain the very meaning of life itself, to that gorgeously tattooed cluster of stars on your back."

jungkook's hand flew up to cover his mouth, tears weakly prickling at the corners of his eyes while a strong wave of fondness and admiration for his lover flooded into the cages of his heart.

"i love all of you, jeon jungkook, and i'm sorry for not doing it sooner." taehyung bent down to press a light kiss against the crown of the black-haired male's head.

"i love you too, tae, so much," jungkook uttered back with a content sigh at the short-lived and gentle pressure on the top of his head, grinning like a fool at the other's simple yet affectionate gesture. "and in case if you were curious, it's virgo," he added after a moment.

taehyung blinked. "what?"

"the constellation on my back. it's virgo, my zodiac sign," jungkook proceeded to explain.

the elder's mouth fell open in an 'o' shape. "ah. it's gorgeous, beyond gorgeous," he complimented once more.

jungkook's heart fluttered. he was elated that taehyung was appreciating his tattoos.

"they— they say that no matter what the tattoo is, there's got to be some backstory or reason behind why someone would get the tattoo they'd want to get," taehyung soon began, to which jungkook hummed in acknowledgment, pondering where the older man was possibly going with this. "you have quite a few tattoos and you're a tattoo artist yourself. um, so can you — i-if you don't mind, of course — tell me the meanings and inspirations behind every one of your tattoos? i'm not trying to sound nosy or anything, but i occasionally wonder why you chose to get each of your tattoos in the first place, why you chose to make each of them a unique piece of you. i-i love you, and i truly want to know more about you, kook," he finished, anxiously glancing over at jungkook and attempting to gauge his reaction.

jungkook wore an unreadable expression, eyes narrowed. "taehyung..."

"but, uh, it's okay if you don't feel comfortable with—"

a bright toothy smile then stretched itself across jungkook's face, momentarily shocking taehyung. he couldn't stop himself before he rushed towards the other and wrapped him in the tightest hug he could muster, hearing the elder let out a relieved laugh right next to his ear.

"yeah. yeah, of course, tae," jungkook nearly exclaimed in delight, pulling away from the embrace and unaware of the huge breath taehyung was holding in just now. "i'll tell you whatever you want to know, baby, anytime and anywhere. i can talk to you about my tattoos for hours if that's what you want. god, you have no idea how happy i am to hear you ask me that, to hear that you want to know more about me and my tattoos."

"i'll always want to know more about you. thank you, kook." taehyung leaned forward to gleefully slot their mouths together, both males beaming into the kiss as his arms automatically found their way around jungkook's waist as if it was second nature at this point.

a sudden idea popped into jungkook's mind once the pair parted away from lack of oxygen and he went rigid in thought. "actually, why don't we start now?" the tattoo artist proposed with a tilt of his head.

"now?" taehyung echoed in confusion.

"i want to bring you somewhere," jungkook revealed, meekly rubbing the back of his neck. "uh, do you mind if i drive? it might be easier than me just giving you directions and trying to—"

"it's all yours for today," taehyung cut him off, grabbing his car keys and tossing them over to jungkook, who effortlessly caught it with a grateful nod. "didn't you want to shower earlier, though?"

"oh, right." jungkook completely forgot about his initial plan of hopping into a nice, warm morning shower. but then again, he usually forgets about the entire world around him when he's with taehyung. "yeah, i'll go take a quick shower first," he declared, striding towards the bathroom.

"wait, but where are we going, exactly?" taehyung decided to query due to his peaked interest, gaze following after the younger's figure.

"we're going to visit my mother," jungkook calmly answered, halting in his steps to turn around with one hand resting on the doorframe of the bathroom, catching the look of surprise which overcame taehyung. "i've been wanting to introduce you to her for a while now."

a/n: to everyone who's interested in apply fics or looking for some new apply fics to apply for, my good buddy old pal astonixing recently published two gr8 apply fics (one is a male idol group af, while the other is a stray kids af)!! please kindly drop by her profile and check out her apply fics if interested!