Freshly groomed, dressed and sprayed with a decent amount of his favorite scent, MYSLF by Yves Saint Laurent, Taehyung was ready to leave the house. Checking his appearance one more time in the bathroom mirror, he squared his shoulders, ready to face the world.
The ten minute walk to the supermarket extended by at least seven minutes, in which Tae slipped, shambled, and stopped at every streetlight on the way, speaking words of gratitude for not breaking his bones every time he had reached a pole. The Santa Claus rip-off from the day before still stood in the same place. Either his coat was frozen to the ground, or he was the king of early birds.
Taehyung reached the supermarket at 7:35 am, ten whole minutes later than estimated. At this time of the day and with the current weather situation, the supermarket was pleasantly empty. Only an elderly couple taking their time as they strolled arm in arm between the aisles and two office workers who were warming their hands with the plastic cups of coffee from the vending machine were present.
None of them threw even a tiny glance at Tae. Relieved, he pulled a tiny shopping cart from the row standing next to the entrance and picked up the same things he ceased to buy the day before, plus some groceries, including a ready-to-eat hot pot set serving one person.
'I can't believe I'm celebrating Christmas by myself,' Taehyung thought and stared at the content of his cart. 'Have I ever been alone on Christmas Eve? I don't think so...'
The middle-aged woman at the checkout gave Taehyung a curious look. While scanning his purchase, she couldn't help but smirk.
"What?" Taehyung asked in an altered voice, bracing himself for a squeal that blasted his eardrums.
The woman giggled. "Aren't you… V of BTS?"
"Huh? I'm not V." Tae rolled his eyes upward, pretending to be thinking. "Besides… Aren't BTS in the US right now?"
"Well, you are here." The woman gave him a wink, and minimized her speed of scanning to the max.
Taehyung laughed. "Do you think BTS would leave one of their members at home? I don't think so!"
"Why do you wear a mask?"
"I have a cold."
"Not to hide your face?"
"Why would I hide my face?"
"Mind to take the mask off?"
"No."
"Why not?"
"I don't want to infect you."
Both broke out into a silly laughter.
"Celebrating alone?" The woman changed topic and held up the hot pot set. "I bought one of those for me as well. I'll feast the heck out of this, but first I'll have a blast at the party. Will you come too?"
"What party?" Tae squinted his eyes.
"Mrs Chang hosts a party every year. Every lonely person is welcome. It starts tonight at six pm. It's the building with the green door, just across the street. You can't miss it."
"Thanks. I'll think about it," Tae replied and prepared his phone for paying.
"I hope to see you again, not-V." The woman winked at him again. "That's 25,987 won."
Waiting for the internet connection to build, Tae let his gaze wander. It fell right onto a palette with small Christmas trees, each wrapped in a tight plastic net.
'Hey, even if I have to spend Christmas alone, why not make it great?'
Taehyung smiled and nodded into the direction of the trees. "Add one of those, please."
*10 Days Left Until Christmas Eve*
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