Falling for the Omega Idol

HANEUL thought again about those rumors claiming Taeyang came from a chaebol family. It was never confirmed, but seeing him clueless about riding a public bus made those stories seem a little more believable.

His thoughts cut off when he noticed the driver frowning at Taeyang's back. He quickly pulled out his T-money card and tapped it twice on the card reader near the fare box.

"For me and my friend back there," he said with a sweet smile. He even removed his glasses so he could easily divert the driver's attention.

It seemed to work. The crease between the driver's brows finally smoothed out, his expression even shifting to a smile aimed at Haneul. As if he had already moved past the earlier incident. Haneul let out a small sigh of relief before turning to make his way down the aisle.

But he nearly stopped walking when he noticed Taeyang still standing there. His back was stiff, like he was frozen in place. Did he not know where to sit?

Haneul quickly moved to Taeyang's side and whispered in a low voice, "You can sit in any empty seat."

Without waiting for a response, he took an empty spot. Surprisingly, Taeyang settled into the seat next to him. Haneul shot him a sideways glance, one eyebrow lifting slightly.

"Thank you. For what you did back there." Taeyang's voice was stiff, his eyes fixed on the seat in front of them rather than meeting Haneul's gaze. "I'll pay you back later."

Oh? Was he talking about the bus fare? Was that why he'd stayed standing until Haneul sat down? Maybe he had frozen because he heard Haneul's conversation with the driver, not because he didn't know he could sit in any free seats.

He put his glasses back on before responding, "You don't have to."

Taeyang looked like he wanted to say more, but when the rest of their group began taking their seats, he closed his mouth and stayed quiet.

Then the bus started moving.

Haneul glanced at Taeyang. He thought the other would stand up by now and pick another seat. Although they had spent more time together lately because of the vocal mission, the two of them never really interacted outside of anything related to the group performance. So he'd assumed Taeyang would sit elsewhere after thanking him.

But since he had long been used to the other's hot-and-cold attitude toward him, he didn't dwell on Taeyang's actions. Still, now that they were sitting together with plenty of time before their stop, he figured he should at least try to start a conversation.

And he already had the perfect topic ready.

"Is this your first time riding a bus?" he asked, genuinely curious.

Taeyang tensed up. He cleared his throat before answering. "I rode one once. A long time ago. When I was little. Someone was with me, and I didn't pay attention to how they paid." He paused. "So I ended up making a fool of myself just now."

Haneul saw the tips of Taeyang's ears turn red. What happened must have really embarrassed him. And for some reason, Haneul found that unexpectedly adorable. He paused, mentally scolding himself for that thought. He quickly focused back on what Taeyang had just said instead.

Taeyang mentioned he last rode a bus when he was very young, meaning he hadn't used one since then. Avoiding public transport fit the typical chaebol image perfectly. But that made Haneul wonder, why would Taeyang have ever ridden a bus in the first place, especially as a child?

Weren't chaebol families supposed to provide bodyguards and nannies for their kids? There'd be no reason for a young Taeyang to take a bus unless something unusual happened. It wasn't like he suddenly became a chaebol later. He would've been born into that life. Supposedly.

Haneul's imagination ran wild with family drama plots. Maybe Taeyang had been kidnapped, and the kidnappers transported him by bus. Though that seemed unlikely. What kind of kidnapper would risk public transportation? A switched-at-birth scenario made more sense. Perhaps his real chaebol family discovered the mix-up when he was three or four years old and brought him home.

"What are you thinking?"

Still lost in his own thoughts, Haneul answered without thinking, "I was wondering if you were switched at birth and your chaebol family only found you later. That would explain why your bus experience is like that."

By the time he realized what he'd just said, the words were already out. He looked at Taeyang, embarrassed, only to see the other blink at him before bursting into laughter.

Haneul froze at the sudden laughter, but instead of feeling more embarrassed, he found himself staring. This was the first time he'd seen Taeyang laugh so freely, without any guarded edges or polite restraint. His smile was bright and unfiltered, softening his sharp features in a way Haneul had never noticed before.

He looked younger like this, more alive, and Haneul couldn't look away. Then he felt it, the hard, insistent thump of his own pulse in his ears, beating too fast and too loud. He barely stopped himself from pressing a hand to his chest, as if that could somehow steady his racing heartbeat.

Taeyang wiped the tears from laughing at the corners of his eyes. "How I wish that were the case."

Haneul had been about to look away, but he didn't. Because the moment Taeyang spoke, his shoulders tensed just slightly. The warmth in his eyes dulled, like a light switching off behind glass. His fingers, which had been loosely curled against his knee, pressed down until his knuckles paled. It lasted less than a breath before his face smoothed over again.

Taeyang's reaction told Haneul there had to be some history behind this. And whatever it was, it must have left a deep scar on Taeyang. So deep that even now, years later, just the memory of it could steal the light from his eyes.

Before he could stop himself, he reached out and placed his hand over Taeyang's, giving it a gentle squeeze. He hoped it could give the other some small comfort.