Universe A

Seoul moved slowly in the early morning.

The streets were quiet, the sky was soft, and the dorm was still sleepy—except for two boys in the kitchen.

Taehyung leaned on the counter with a warm mug in his hands. The steam touched his face while he watched Jungkook cooking.

Jungkook was focused, the way he always was when he cooked or performed. He hummed a small tune, probably something he made up on the spot.

“Always stirring clockwise?” Taehyung asked.

Jungkook didn’t turn, but a small smile appeared. “Only when I’m cooking for you.”

Taehyung felt something warm settle in his chest. It was the kind of warmth you don’t question. It just feels right.

He stepped closer and gently bumped Jungkook’s shoulder. “You spoil me.”

“And you like it,” Jungkook said.

He placed the omelette on a plate and pushed it toward Taehyung. The way he looked at him—soft, steady, familiar—always made Taehyung’s breath pause for a second.

They sat across from each other. Their legs brushed under the table. The dorm was quiet, but their silence felt full and comfortable.

Taehyung watched Jungkook’s hair fall over his eyes and reached out to push it back. Jungkook didn’t move away. He leaned into his touch instead.

“Tonight,” Taehyung said, “after rehearsal… let’s talk about the trip again.”

Jungkook stopped for a moment. “You still want to go?”

“It’s been our dream for years. I think it’s time.”

Something in Jungkook’s eyes softened. He wanted it too—maybe more than Taehyung.

He nodded with quiet confidence. “We’ll go. No matter what.”

For a few seconds, the world felt small and gentle.

Just two boys, knees touching, planning a future they had held in their hearts for a long time.

Taehyung leaned forward. “Can I get a kiss before we face reality?”

Jungkook laughed under his breath. He stood, bent down, and kissed him.

Soft. Warm. Familiar.

Taehyung closed his eyes.

He didn’t know this would be the last moment with this version of Jungkook for a long time.

Universe B

Same city.

Same group.

Different silence.

Taehyung sat at the far end of the rehearsal room, stretching his legs. He could feel Jungkook on the other side, tying his shoelaces—quiet, distant, focused.

They weren’t unfriendly.

They just weren’t close.

They talked politely.

Only about work.

Nothing more.

Sometimes Taehyung wondered if things could have been different. But the thought always passed.

Jungkook stood up, fixed his hoodie, and walked past him.

Their eyes met for half a second.

Jungkook gave a small nod.

Taehyung nodded back.

A simple moment, easy to forget.

But it left a small echo in Taehyung’s chest.

Namjoon called everyone together.

“We’ll run the whole performance before the tech team checks the special effects.”

Taehyung took his spot.

Jungkook took his.

They faced the empty stadium as the lights warmed up.

The air smelled like rain.

Thunder rolled in the sky even though the weather was supposed to be clear.

Taehyung wasn’t nervous usually, but today something felt heavy.

Jungkook must have felt the same, because he looked at Taehyung again.

This time for longer.

Almost like he was asking something.

“You okay?” Jungkook asked quietly.

Simple words. But they hit deeper than Taehyung expected.

He nodded. “Yeah. You?”

Jungkook hesitated, then nodded too.

The music started.

They moved into formation.

The lights dropped.

Small sparks were supposed to appear on the floor for the final test.

But something went wrong.

A wave of bright white light spread across the stage.

Not loud. Not painful.

Just sudden.

Blinding.

Like the world stopped for one heartbeat.

Taehyung reached out without thinking.

Jungkook did too.

Thunder cracked again, louder.

The air shook.

The light swallowed everything.

And for a moment, time stopped.

Their worlds shifted.

Universe A

(Stranger Jungkook wakes up in the lovers’ world)

Jungkook opened his eyes to soft sheets and a warm scent he didn’t recognize at first. There was a faint trace of lavender and something woody. It felt familiar but not his.

His head throbbed.

For a second he thought he was still in the rehearsal room.

But when he sat up, he wasn’t.

He was in a bedroom.

A bedroom that wasn’t his.

The curtains let in gentle morning light, the kind that painted everything gold. There were photos on the wall — pictures of him and Taehyung. Smiling. Matching clothes. Foreheads touching. Arms around each other.

His chest tightened.

These weren’t memories he owned.

He threw the blanket aside. The bed was warm on one side, like someone had just been sleeping next to him. His heart jumped when he heard footsteps.

The door opened.

Taehyung walked in, drying his hair with a towel, wearing a loose T-shirt and a calm smile that froze when he saw Jungkook sitting upright, alert like a cornered animal.

“You’re awake,” Taehyung said softly. “You scared me last night. You wouldn’t open your eyes for ten minutes.”

Jungkook stared at him. The way Taehyung’s voice carried worry. The way his eyes glowed with relief.

It was affection. Deep, lived-in affection.

“I… where am I?” Jungkook asked.

Taehyung paused. “Our room.”

The words dropped between them like stones.

Jungkook shook his head. “Our what?”

Taehyung blinked. Something fragile cracked behind his eyes. “Jungkook, are you messing with me right now?”

“I don’t remember any of this,” Jungkook said quietly. “I don’t know why I’m here.”

Taehyung took a slow step back, his hands tightening around the towel. “You don’t remember us?”

Jungkook’s breath caught. “Us?”

Taehyung let out a shaky laugh, like he was trying to keep calm. “You and me. Three years. Living together. Everything.”

The room felt small. Jungkook felt smaller.

“I don’t… I can’t… I’m sorry,” Jungkook whispered.

He had never seen Taehyung look like that. Hurt. Confused. Lost.

“Maybe you hit your head harder than I thought,” Taehyung said. “Let me call Jin hyung.”

But before he could move, Jungkook reached out and grabbed his wrist without thinking.

Taehyung froze.

For a heartbeat, neither of them spoke.

Jungkook released him. “Please don’t worry. I just… need time to understand what happened.”

Taehyung nodded slowly, but his eyes said he was breaking inside.

“Whatever it is,” Taehyung whispered, “we’ll figure it out.”

Jungkook wanted to say something comforting. Something helpful.

But this wasn’t his world.

This wasn’t his relationship.

And this Taehyung wasn’t his Taehyung.

The storm had taken him somewhere he didn’t belong.

Universe B

(Lover Taehyung wakes up in the strangers’ world)

The hospital lights were too bright.

Taehyung blinked, his vision blurry, trying to piece together how he got here. His body felt heavy. His head throbbed.

Voices buzzed around him until one cut through the rest.

“Taehyung? Hey… you okay?”

It was Jungkook.

Taehyung looked toward the voice and felt relief flood his chest. He reached for him automatically, grabbing Jungkook’s hand tightly.

Jungkook stiffened in surprise.

Taehyung didn’t notice at first. He was too shaken, too desperate to feel something steady. “Thank god. I thought something happened to you.”

Jungkook blinked. “Uh… I’m fine.”

Taehyung finally realized the hand he was holding wasn’t responding the way he knew. Jungkook usually held his hand back. Warm and gentle. This one was still. Awkward.

He slowly let go.

Jungkook cleared his throat and stepped back a little. “You gave everyone a scare. You fainted after the light hit the stage.”

Taehyung sat up.

The room shifted a little.

Something felt different. Too different.

“How long was I out?” he asked.

“About an hour.”

Taehyung studied Jungkook’s face. His expression was polite. Concerned, but distant. Not like the Jungkook he knew, who hugged him the moment he was hurt.

Taehyung’s heart tugged uncomfortably.

“What happened to the others?” he asked.

“They’re fine. Jimin said the tech team is checking the stage. Namjoon hyung is talking to the staff.”

Taehyung wasn’t listening anymore.

He was staring at Jungkook.

At the way he stood.

At the way he avoided holding his gaze too long.

This Jungkook wasn’t his Jungkook.

This wasn’t their world.

Taehyung swallowed hard. “Jungkook… did something happen between us?”

Jungkook frowned. “Between us?”

Taehyung nodded slowly, trying to keep calm.

“We feel… far.”

Jungkook looked away. “We’ve always been like this.”

The words hit him like cold water.

Always been like this?

Taehyung’s chest tightened. “We’re not close?”

Jungkook hesitated. “We’re teammates. We work well. That’s all.”

Love.

History.

Memories.

Three years of mornings and shared dreams—

Gone.

He wasn’t in his world anymore.

And somewhere out there…

His Jungkook was lost too.

Universe A

(Stranger Jungkook tries to understand the life he has stepped into)

Jungkook followed Taehyung into the living room, feeling like he was walking inside someone else’s memories. The space looked lived-in. Soft blankets on the couch. Candles near the window. A pair of slippers placed neatly next to another.

Everything here said together.

Taehyung sat on the edge of the couch, elbows on his knees, trying to process what was happening. He kept stealing glances at Jungkook like he was afraid to look too long and afraid not to look at all.

“Do you remember last night?” Taehyung asked.

Jungkook shook his head. “No.”

Taehyung closed his eyes for a moment, collecting himself. “You fainted on stage. I thought your head hit the floor. You scared all of us. When you didn’t wake up for ten minutes, I panicked.”

Panic.

The word lodged itself in Jungkook’s chest.

He sat across from Taehyung. “So… we’ve been together for three years.”

Taehyung’s eyes softened. “Yes.”

“That long?”

“You’re acting like it’s a surprise,” Taehyung said softly. There was a fragile humor in his voice, the kind you use when you’re trying not to break. “You were the one who confessed first. You don’t remember that either?”

Jungkook shook his head again.

Taehyung leaned back, staring at the ceiling as if searching for strength there. “You promised me you’d never forget.”

The words punched a hole right through Jungkook.

He didn’t know what to say.

He didn’t want to hurt him.

But every second he spent here was hurting him anyway.

“Taehyung,” Jungkook said quietly, “I’m not the Jungkook you know.”

Taehyung froze.

Jungkook continued, unsure how to explain something he didn’t understand himself. “I remember a different stage. A different rehearsal. A different us. In my world… we’re not together.”

Taehyung lowered his gaze. His voice was barely a whisper. “So you’re saying… you’re from somewhere else.”

“I think so.”

Taehyung’s throat bobbed as he swallowed. “And my Jungkook? Where is he?”

Jungkook didn’t answer.

Because he truly didn’t know.

Because the silence said enough.

Taehyung leaned forward, elbows on his knees, hands clasped like he was holding himself together. “He wouldn’t leave me. Not without a word. Not without a fight.”

Jungkook felt a strange ache.

Not jealousy.

Not fear.

Just guilt.

“I’ll do my best not to confuse you,” Jungkook said gently. “I won’t overstep. I won’t pretend.”

Taehyung met his eyes. “You already overstepped.”

Jungkook blinked. “When?”

Taehyung’s voice cracked faintly. “When you looked at me and didn’t see me.”

Jungkook didn’t know how to fix that kind of hurt.

And Taehyung didn’t know how to stop feeling it.

---

Universe B

(Lover Taehyung tries to reach a Jungkook who doesn’t know him)

The hospital discharged Taehyung within an hour, insisting he only needed rest. The rest of the members returned to the dorm ahead of him. Jungkook stayed behind, offering to take him home since Taehyung still looked pale.

The walk to the car was quiet.

Taehyung kept glancing at Jungkook the way someone looks at a familiar place that suddenly feels foreign. Jungkook walked a little ahead, hands in his pockets, shoulders tense.

“Tired?” Jungkook asked without turning.

Taehyung nodded. “A bit.”

“You should sleep when we get back,” Jungkook said. “Jin hyung said he’ll make something warm for you.”

Taehyung smiled faintly. “You’re being very gentle.”

Jungkook shrugged. “You fainted. Anyone would.”

Taehyung let out a small breath. “Not you.”

Jungkook looked at him, confused. “What do you mean?”

“In my world,” Taehyung said softly, “you’d be holding my hand right now.”

Jungkook stopped.

The air shifted between them.

Taehyung stepped closer. “You’d scold me for not eating enough. You’d tell me to rest properly. And you’d stand close like you always do.”

Jungkook took a quiet breath, steadying himself. “Taehyung… we’re not like that here.”

“I know,” Taehyung said. “But maybe we could be.”

Jungkook blinked. “You faint, and now you’re talking strange.”

Taehyung laughed once. It sounded tired and lonely.

“Maybe I am strange,” he whispered. “I woke up in a world where the person I love looks at me like I’m a stranger.”

Jungkook looked away, uneasy.

Taehyung’s voice gentled. “Did we ever get along here?”

“We respect each other,” Jungkook said. “That’s enough.”

“For you?” Taehyung asked. “Or for the you that belongs to this world?”

Jungkook didn’t answer.

Taehyung lowered his head. “I miss you. But you’re not him. And I can’t expect you to be.”

Jungkook stood there quietly, unsure what he was supposed to say to a heart he had never broken.

Or a heart he might break now.