Long chapter ahead 💜
It was the day of the festival and BTS + Taehyung are on their way to Jirisan Mountain where the festival is taking place. They decided to go early so that they can experience other activities too. To not risk getting recognized by anyone, they all had to wear masks, caps / bucket hats (except for Taehyung, of course) and had to split up so as not to call attention. So, the group was divided into three: YoonMinSeok, NamJin and TaeKook.
Jungkook and Taehyung brought their own cameras. — a digital SLR for Jk and a manual film LSR for Taehyung. The moment they reached the field full of Sansuyu trees, Taehyung saw children playing under the beautiful yellow trees. He grabbed his camera and started taking photos. He was taking several angles and Jungkook was observing him the entire time. Taehyung taking photos is a shoot subject by itself so while Tae was shooting, Jungkook took photos of him.
A few moments later, Taehyung ran back to Jungkook to check the photos of the latter. But, Jungkook didn't want to show him just yet.
"Come on Kookie, why can't I see them?" Taehyung pouted.
"Let's view them together when you're done developing yours. Then, let's compare notes."
"But, did you get beautiful shots?"
"Definitely. I think I got the best ones." Jungkook smirked.
"Huh. Let's see about that." Taehyung smugly said.
Suddenly, Jungkook's phone vibrated. Manager Sejin was calling.
J: Hello, Sejin-sshi?
S: JK, you're on social media. Someone recognized you. The van is back where it dropped you off. Go back there, change your clothes then you'll get dropped off near the stage area. Don't bring Taehyung. Tell him to stay there. Min-ho and Yuna are on their way there to meet him.
J: Ok.
Jungkook looked around and saw two girls taking his photo. He went beside Taehyung, kept a friendly distance, and explained to him what's happening. Taehyung simply nodded and Jungkook left.
As the younger left, one of the girls ran after him and the other one went to Taehyung. Right then and there he understood what was happening.
"Who are you? And why are you with Jungkook?"
The girl looked so furious. Taehyung was a bit shaken, but since he had the presence of mind he started acting.
"Jungkook?"
"Stop pretending that you don't know him."
"Oh, were you referring to the guy who was just here a while ago? I didn't have a chance to get his name. We just bumped into each other when I was taking photos. I thought he was another photographer."
"Do you think I'm stupid?" The girl said as she repeatedly pushed Taehyung. He was about to push back when Min-ho and Yuna came running to him.
"Taehyung!" Min-ho shouted from afar.
When the girl saw Min-ho and Yuna coming, she ran away. Yuna quickly grabbed her phone and took photos of the girl.
"Taetae, are you okay? Hyung called me to come here immediately he was worried that some obsessive fans might be in the area." Min-ho asked.
Taehyung was shaking. "Well, that girl was definitely one of them. That was some scary shit." Taehyung said.
"I got a photo of the girl. I'll send it to hyung so that he can send it to the security and the bodyguards in the area." Yuna told Min-ho.
Taehyung's knees suddenly buckled. It just dawned on him the gravity of the situation. Min-ho was fast enough to catch him.
"Hey, it's alright, Tae. You're okay. We're here now." Min-ho said, hugging his bestfriend. Suddenly, Taehyung got worried about Jungkook, so he grabbed his phone to call him.
T: Hello, Kookie?! Are you in the van now?
J: Yes, I'm on my way to the stage area. I'll just meet you at the backstage.
T: That's good. One of the girls went to me and —
J: What!?!? Are you okay?!
T: Yeah, I'm okay. Min-ho and Yuna are already here with me. The girl's gone.
J: Fuck, Tae. I'm so sorry (his voice breaking). I wasn't expecting that they would split up. I swear, if something happened to you, I won't forgive myself for leaving you there.
T: It's fine. We're both okay. Don't think about it, yeah? I'll see you later.
"Come on, Taehyung. We need to go. Can you walk?" Min-ho asked.
Taehyung nodded and all three of them left to go meet the others.
***
"Fuck fuck fuck!" Jungkook entered the backstage furious. The rest of the BTS, including Sejin, were already there. They already know what happened as Min-ho called Sejin and told him everything.
Jimin ran to Jungkook who was now seated with his face on his hands. Jimin started rubbing his bestfriend's back. "Calm down, Kook, Taehyung's okay."
Jungkook stood up, "Yeah, but what if something happened to him?!?! I left him there. I'm so stupid!!!"
"Nothing happened, Jungkook. What matters now is that you're both safe." Yoongi said.
"You don't understand. I told him that I'd do everything to protect him from this. And what did I do? I ran away and left him there!!"
"Kook, that was the best option at that time. If you dragged him with you, they would know that you were together. Taehyung didn't have his mask on." Jin said.
"They didn't post anything about him. Probably because they weren't sure that you two were there together." Sejin said.
"Do you know if she hurt him?!" Jungkook asked.
"I don't know the full story yet." Sejin said.
A few moments later, Taehyung, Min-ho and Yuna arrived. Taehyung was still a bit shaken but was able to compose himself when he saw Jungkook.
"Tae!" Jungkook ran to him and hugged him tightly.
"I'm so sorry for leaving you there." Jungkook said, tears forming in his eyes again.
"Why are you apologizing, Kookie? You didn't do anything wrong. No one could have foreseen that happening." Taehyung said as he cupped Jungkook's cheek.
"Did she do anything to you?" Jungkook asked.
"No, she —" Yuna cut Taehyung because she knew that he wouldn't tell Jungkook so the latter won't worry. But, she wants the girl to get caught and for Taehyung to press charges.
"She assaulted Taehyung. That's why I decided to take her photo and sent it to Sejin hyung." Yuna said.
"She did what?!" Now it was RM's turn to get mad. Being the leader of BTS, he's always been a protective hyung. He doesn't like it when fans do this to any of the members, their families and friends.
"Sejin-sshi, have you sent the photos to the security? Since it's public knowledge that we are performing, they wouldn't have left the grounds." RM added.
"Yes, I already did and they're already on the lookout."
The rest of the members were quiet but angry as this is not the first time that something like this happened. They knew how some fans can go overboard and they themselves experienced it. They're all frustrated that it had to happen to Taehyung.
Taehyung could feel the tension in the room so he spoke up.
"Guys, it's okay. I'm okay. Nothing serious happened. Can we all just focus on the performance?"
"Are you sure you want to push through with it after what happened? The moment you perform with us, the more likely something unfortunate can happen again." Jungkook said.
"Kookie, Yoongi said so himself that you guys have experienced this before. I don't see anyone of you backing down and stopping. I worked my ass off for this and I want to do it. For the first time I'm willing to do something inspite off the risks." Taehyung said with conviction.
Jungkook sighed. He knows Taehyung is right, but he can't help but worry.
"Wait, did I hear it right? You're performing with BTS?!" Yuna asked.
"Yes, he's performing with us." Hobi jumped in.
Min-ho was shocked and confused. "To do what?!"
"Ahhh, sing and dance?" Yoongi said with a deadpan tone.
"You sing?!?! I can imagine you dance since I've seen you do it when we were cheerleading, but sing???" Yuna found it unbelievable.
"Oh, you'll be surprised. Pleasantly surprised." Hobi smiled.
Just then, the door to the backstage tent opened.
"Hi fellas, you're on in 10 minutes." the stage staff said.
"This is it, Taehyung!" Jin squealed.
"Waaaaah. I'm so excited for you!" Yuna said, jumping and hugging Taehyung.
"So proud of you, Taetae." Min-ho hugged his best friend. As he pulled away, he said, "Yuna and I will go ahead and find ourselves a seat."
RM gathered BTS for a huddle. He calls Taehyung to join them and briefly tells him what to do.They put their hands together as RM goes,
"Ok, guys, here we go. Bangtan, Bangtan, Bangbangtan!"
One by one, they left the backstage but before Taehyung could go out, Jungkook pulled him back and smashed their lips together. He wrapped his arms around Taehyung's waist; while the latter, wrapped his arms around his neck. It was a quick but passionate kiss.
"That's for good luck. I'm so proud of you, Tae. I love you so much." Jungkook said.
"I love you too, Kookie." Taehyung said. He gave Jungkook one last peck on the lips before going out.
***
The lights on the stage were closed As the boys made their way to their positions. They were starting with a song Boy with Luv and placed Taehyung at the center.
Music starts, lights open and the performance begins.
(Credits to Bangtan TV for the video)
When the performance started, Min-ho and Yuna noticed a lot of people looking confused. They were asking who the guy with blue hair was. For those who were from Gurye who knew Taehyung, they were shouting his name. And, by the time the song ended, everyone seem to caught on the name and were all screaming, "Kim Taehyung, Kim Taehyung!"
On stage, the BTS members were all smiling looking proudly at Taehyung. Taehyung looked at Jungkook and the latter winked at him. Taehyung got flustered.
For the next song, Hobi suggested during rehearsals for them to wear their names so people would know who Taehyung was (just imagine V (boi) being replaced by Taehyung).
The song Mic Drop starts...
(Credits to Bangtan TV for the video)
"Is that really Taehyung?! I think he's my bias wrecker now." Yuna said, crying of pride.
Just then, they heard someone calling her and Min-ho's name. It was Hee-ae and Yong Jun.
"What is going on?!? Is that my son on stage?" Hee-ae asked.
"You'd better believe it, Aunty." Min-ho said.
"I always knew he had it in him." Yong Jun said proudly. "Who else would he get it from?"
Hee-ae playfully slapped his husband's arm.
Just then, the third song starts...Life Goes On.
(Credits to MTV for the video)
"Omo! He sounds so beautiful." Hee-ae said with tears in her eyes. She then hears some girls behind her.
"Taehyung is amazing. Is he part of BTS now? Where in the world did he come from?" The girl said.
"Oh, he came from me. He's my son." Hee-ae told the girl. Yong Jun nudged his wife and shook his head, embarassed.
The girl who Hee-ae talked to blushed and bowed at her. "Annyeonghaseyo, your son sounds wonderful, ajumma."
Hee-ae gave her a gesture of thanks as they hear the next song playing.
The boys performed Permission to Dance and Butter next. After the entire performance. RM took the mic and addressed the crowd.
"Annyeong everyone, we are BTS and tonight, as you can see, we have an addition to the group. We have invited our friend to join us in tonight's show. Taehyung is a Gurye resident and since we came here to celebrate your festival, we thought it would be fitting for us to invite someone who can represent the hospitality of your people and the beauty of your town." RM said and the crowd cheers.
Jin spoke next. "We do hope that you enjoyed our show. We would like to congratulate the mayor and all the residents for such a successful festival."
"We would also like to thank Army who traveled all the way here to watch us perform. From the bottom of our hearts, thank you. Please do enjoy the rest of the festival." Jimin said.
"Annyeong! I hope you enjoyed the show. This has been an enjoyable experience for all of us. For those who are not from Gurye, and who traveled here for the festival, please do keep coming back there's so much to experience in this town. So, please visit more often." J-hope said.
"We've come here to relax and recharge. And, that's how we all feel at the moment. We couldn't be more thankful to the people who took us in and for spending their time to tour us around. We're really grateful." Suga said.
"Our stay here has been very eventful. This town has a lot of beautiful places and amazing people. I'm really happy that we came here." Jungkook then looks at Teahyung and continued, "The time we spent here will forever be ingrained in our minds and in our hearts. It has truly changed us...changed me for the better. For this, we thank you."
"Thank you again everyone for coming. Thank you Taehyung, for accepting our invitation to perform with us." Taehyung gracefully and respectfully bowed to RM, giving the latter his adorable boxy smile.
"To everyone, have a good night and enjoy the rest of the festival." RM said.
The crowd was screaming. Some shouting BTS; while some, Kim Taehyung. And it seemed like they have no plans of stopping at all.
RM had an idea.
"Taehyung why don't you do an encore."
"By myself?!"
"Yes! Can't you hear them calling for you?" RM smiled.
Taehyung nodded.
"What will you sing?" Jungkook asked.
"It's a surprise."
Taehyung decided to sing Epiphany. He went to the sound booth, informing them what he will be singing. He then went to the middle of the stage.
"Annyeong, my name is Kim Taehyung. First of all I would like to thank BTS for making me their guest performer. It is truly an honor to sing with these guys. I know them on and off stage and they're the most sincere, grounded and passionate individuals I've ever known. They always give their all. From the lyrics that they write, to the music that they create, down to the performances they do. They are truly inspiring. And, they're very generous too — they shared with us their talent just to help boost tourism for our town.
On a personal note, when I got to know them more, they made me feel good about myself. They made me realize how important it is for someone to love himself, to give oneself more credit. Thank you again, Jungkook and hyungs. So, tonight I think this BTS song I'm about to sing is the most fitting one to express how I feel at this very moment."
(Credits to the owner of this video; I know this is not V, but let's just all imagine, shall we? 💜)
When Taehyung finished singing, a lot of people had tears in their eyes, except for Hee-ae and Yuna who were full on crying. They were so proud of Taehyung.
Taehyung was about to leave the stage when people started to shout, "More! More! More!" He looked over to Jungkook and the other BTS members standing on the side of the stage. All of them were gesturing for Taehyung to do one more song.
So, he can't think of anything but to sing Jungkook's Stigma (yes, I know it's V's solo, but, again this is a fanfic so let's just pretend that it's Jk's 💜). Taehyung looked at Jungkook one last time and mouthed "This is for you."
(Credits to the owner of this video)
Taehyung's performance blew everyone's mind, including BTS' and Sejin's. They didn't know the range of Taehyung's voice until now.
Taehyung did one last bow and waved to the crowd. He ran to the side of the stage and was met with the arms of all the members. They were all praising Taehyung. The group hugged and then RM ruffled Taehyung's hair.
"Taehyung you're a superstar. You were so natural on stage. You should consider doing this more often." RM said.
"Thank you, hyung."
Taehyung turned to Jungkook. "I hope I did your song justice."
"Are you kidding me ? It didn't sound like mine at all. It sounded much better as you made it your own. I'm so proud of you, Tae." Jungkook hugged Taehyung tightly, forgetting that they were still on stage. He snapped back to reality when he was distracted by a flash from a camera. He was about to shout at the one taking photos, but then he saw that it was Taehyung's mother.
"Eomma!" Taehyung ran to Hee-ae and gave him a hug.
"Taebear, I'm so proud of you. But, I can't believe you didn't tell your own mother that you sing that way." Hee-ae said.
"How would I? I didn't even know." Taehyung said, giggling.
"But, I did." Yong Jun said.
Taehyung looked at his father. He knew for a fact that he wasn't just referring to his singing. Yong Jun always tried pushing him to be more and not settle. He was just too stubborn and oblivious. He didn't know any better and was too scared to try. But, his father never gave up on him. Taehyung went to him and gave him a hug and started crying.
"Thank you for believing in me, when I didn't. I love you, Appa."
"I love you too, son. I'm so proud of you."
Jungkook was watching their interaction and was crying himself. As he was looking at Taehyung, their eyes met. Taehyung felt so grateful for Jungkook. He owes it all to him — for making him realize that he can be better. And at that moment, he vows to do the same for Jungkook and be with him always.