the moon pleaded

Where: Astoria university

When: March 22nd, 12:41 pm

Status: Closed | @bong-taerin·

It hadn’t eludedanyone in the department that Liv was a caffeine junkie, that much was clear, but itwas a very fine line between feeling energized and ending up a twitchy mess. Twentyminutes before she’d normally take her lunch break, the brunette had alreadyworked herself into a nervous wreck. When she wasn’t randomly rearranging stuff on herdesk, she was fidgeting in different ways – nails tapping against the wooden desk, legsbouncing, heels scraping against the floor, all while her mind was anywhere butthe paper in front of her. Only when a hand reached to turn the paper did shesnap back into a certain degree of alertness, peering up at Teddy with wideeyes. “What…” She trailed off, eyes flitting between the paper and hercolleague until it slowly but surely dawned on her what had happened. “I – thatdefinitely wasn’t upside down this whole time.” She shook her head adamantly, but her eyes narrowed in doubt. “Right?”

―

Watching someone who was in their own world when it wasn’t him was an odd experience. Granted, Teddy hadn’t noticed that Olivia’s page was upside down because he had been in his own world marking papers. The mildly shaking table had been enough to draw him from his thoughts but before Taerin can even ask Olivia to stop shaking the table he notices the paper. ...She didn’t mean to have that upside down, right? Slowly he reaches across the table, righting the page that she’s been staring at for who knows how long. It’s enough to snap the woman out of her trance. “You might hav been,” he says wincing apologetically before pausing his music and slipping one of his earpods out of his ear. “Everything okay? Or is it just the Monday’s? Maybe one too many cups of coffee?” 

What had started as Taerin’s personal hell (ie. a networking event), had actually come up with something good. He hadn’t expected to keep in contact with someone from there; he wasn’t the most charismatic or extroverted of people, but despite that, here he was, getting coffee with Sahid. “Am I the only one glad that we got a break this week?” he asks, arriving back at their table with two coffees. “I feel like I’ve been running myself thin with chasing down last minute assignments because I know they aren’t going to hand them back in after they get back from their break.” 

The more she wanted to push Taerin away, the more she wanted to hold onto him, which, of course offered no room for growth and, before he ended up resenting her, Sara thought it might be best to take a step back and revaluate her priorities. “Are you busy?” In great Teddy fashion, Sara answered his question with one of her own as she stepped further into his office, stopping by Buddy’s bed to greet the dog, hopefully giving her some time to think about how to approach the subject.

Is everything okay? The question echoed in the room, as if there was nothing there except for them. No Buddy, no furniture, no nothing. Just them and this distance between them that Sara, herself, had placed. Turning to face him, the petite brunette leaned back against his desk, hands gripping on the edge of the wood as she watched him for a moment. “Oppa, I–” What a coward. She couldn’t even hold his gaze at the moment. Words came out in Korean while her nails apparently dug holes in the wood. “I don’t know how to do this without feeling like I’m going to hurt you, but…” Sara pressed her lips together for a second, before puffing some air out. “If I keep doing this, it’ll hurt you so much more in the end.” There. Her gaze lifted up from this random spot on the floor and found his eyes. “I haven’t been fair to you.” Pause. “I realize that now.” Pause, followed by a light nod of her head. “And I’m sorry about that. For taking so long to realize it. I… thought I was ready, but… there are things I still need to work on. On my own. So um…” Another pause. This one, longer than the others, as if it was hard to make the words come out. “We should break up.”

―

“I’m never busy for you,” he starts, a tender smile coming to his face almost naturally as he leans back against his desk, arms crossed over his chest. But the smile fades as quickly as it comes. 

His heart sinks in his chest as she tries to explain to him her reasoning and what finally led her to this conclusion. In many ways, he knew that this moment had been coming. The conversation he’d had with Leon echoed in his mind and Teddy feels his heart finally hit the bottom of his chest with a soft thud. Of course Teddy had known. He was a man who almost had his PhD, a man that knew Sara, and he was slowly beginning to trust his own intuition outside academia for the first time in a long while. Teddy just hadn’t wanted to be the one to pull the curtain on their time together. 

Teddy’s gaze flits away from her, unable to hold her gaze and he remains where he stands unmoving. “It’s okay,” he starts, the sound of unmistakeable sadness creeping into his voice as he slips into Korean as well. “I think I knew that this wasn’t what you needed right now. I just wanted to be a little selfish and be there for you. But you’re right. It hasn’t been fair.” The truth is hard for him to admit. But he knows that they both might need this, even if he doesn’t want to admit it fully. A breath leaves his lips as he turns to look at Sara. “But that’s okay. I mean - it isn’t okay. But - shit.” His words cut off, with a frustrated sound. “What I mean to say is...I understand.” 

There is certainty in Teddy’s words, and despite not making eye contact with his friend at the time, Leon could feel it that he had meant it, which was a relief. Granted, Leon was far from getting any ‘father of the year’ awards, but he was just trying to make sure that Teddy knew what he was getting himself into. He couldn’t begin to think about the amount of times he’d been scolded by Aleyna, and within good reason, of course, for messing up with Andy’s sleep pattern or their diet. As frustrating as it was, his therapist had been helping him accept that while Aleyna had had almost six years to adapt to motherhood, Leon was having to learn on a different pace and trying to catch up. He was bound to make mistakes. Still, it was frustrating… and Leon didn’t want to think about Teddy being scolded too. Thankfully, the change in the subject was good enough to distract him.

“Yeah?” He turned around, leaning back against the counter as the stew brewed on the stove. “Have you got a date yet? I want to be there for moral support.” Leon smiled, but as Teddy went on, he couldn’t help but cross his arms in front of his chest, furrowing his brows in slight confusion. “Did something happen? You were just talking about being a dad and now you’re worried about your relationship?”

―

“It’s at the end of May. I’ll send you the date - but if you’re busy that day don’t worry about it.” Teddy grins, returning his friend’s smile. “We can get food after to celebrate.” He purposely leaves out the date, but something that important is seared into his mind so it’s impossible to forget. Even thinking about brings on a wave of anxiety that he can’t quite quell despite his best efforts. It doesn’t matter what he does it seems: hiking, running, busying himself so that he can’t think about it - the looming action of defending his thesis is enough to make him break out in a sweat. And because he was nervous, Taerin knew it mattered. He hadn’t yet become disenchanted with his work like some of his other colleagues who were slogging through to the end. If anything, it only made him more excited for the things to come. 

But ah. The other topic that made him nervous. “Ah...Well,” he starts wondering what he can say and what he can’t in order to respect Sara’s privacy. “Imbolc took a toll on her and she’s had a bit of a rough go of it.” His hand subconsciously goes to the back of his neck. “I’m doing what I can to be there for her and she’s been understandably distant but,” he pauses, unable to voice his thoughts, “this might not be what she needs. We might not be what she needs.” 

set: tuesday, march 9th

location: astoria u, teddy’s office

availability: closed | @bong-taerin​

FLASHBACK​

               — Breathe, Sara told herself as she stood in front of the door leading to Taerin’s office. Twice now, she had almost given up on the idea of having this conversation, especially at his work place, but the more she thought about it, the more angry at herself she would get… so no, it would be best to just rip off the band aid and hurt Teddy one last time. Let him down easy, or however people called it nowadays. She raised her hand to knock on the door, but before her knuckles were able to reach the wood, the door flung open and she saw Teddy standing there, offering her that adorable grin of his that would turn his eyes into thin lines. One that made her heart skip a beat everytime she’d see it. This time, however, it skipped a beat because he’d startled her.

“Jesus!” She gasped, moving her hand to rest against her chest. “You scared me.” Sara shook her head, drawing in a breath once again. “Can–I come in?”

―

“Sorry,” Teddy laughs at the surprise he illicit from Sara as he finds her at his office door before leaning down to give her a kiss on the top of her head. Buddy had been with him today and perks up from the bed in the corner that he’s been snoozing on for the better part of the day. “What are you doing here?” He opens the door a little wider, ushering her into the office space before closing the door behind her.

When it came to parenting, their situations were completely different. If he could trade places with Teddy, he definitely would. While he would no longer lose sleep on the amount of important parts of Andy’s life he had missed, Leon still wished he were there to see his baby become the amazing human being they were right now. Nonetheless, they were grateful, because if Aleyna wanted, she would still have kept Andy from him, and Leon would have gone through life without knowing he was a father. But… he figured that Teddy’s case was a little more complicated than that, because Sara and him were in a relationship, and Woobin was someone else’s kid… which brought forth the question about him being on daddy duty, and now, was about to bring another one. “But–do you want to? Like, that’s a shitload of responsibility, hyung. And it’s more than just being a babysitter for an afternoon.” Fuck it not being any of his business, to be honest. 

When Teddy offered help with lunch, Leon just shook his head. “No, I got this, shoo. Take your sticky paws away from my food.” He teased, picking up the bottle of beer he had set on the counter prior to Teddy’s arrival. “And how are things going on your end? Research, pack, Sara?”

―

The firmness in Leon’s tone takes him aback and for a moment, all Teddy can do is stand there and stare at his friend. It wasn’t like he was offended by the question and insistence; he knew that it was coming from a good place. And of course, it hadn’t been the first time someone had asked him that question. Izzy hadn’t been subtle in her line of questioning. They had gone out for lunch just the two of them during his time had home and he’d been on the end of her concern. Instinctively he casts a glance towards Woobin who’s gurgling on the play mat as he busies himself with his toys and his eyes soften, his gaze lingering as he answers Leon. And he know that the answers he gave his sister then hadn’t changed now. “I’m sure.” 

With that though he lets out a laugh, the moment seemingly melting away. “Fine, fine.” This next set of questions is harder to answer. Or really, just the last one. “Research is going well. I’m almost done and I’ll be defending in the spring. And Sara...” A breath escapes his lips. “It’s not as fine. I’m worried about her.” He pauses, leaning against the counter. “I’m worried about us.”

                — The whole ‘taking a sabbatical’ ordeal had landed Sofia in some sort of a predicament: she didn’t know how to feel about it. While Sofia knew it had been for the best to take some time away from work, especially since she hadn’t been able to properly focus on the pack due to being way too focused in her career. It had made people think even more that she wasn’t worth being the alpha, and a couple had even up and left the pack, which, of course wasn’t easy for her to deal with… so when Teddy called and said he needed to talk, Sofia was worried. Mortified, actually. Which, wasn’t something she was used to feeling.

Upon hearing the knocks on the door, Sofia opened it and let her friend in. “Hey. What’s up? You sounded… off–? Is everything alright?”

―

“Oh god, hi -,” the door opening suddenly surprised him and in typical Teddy fashion, he’d been lost in thought in the short time he’d been waiting for Sofia. Clearing his throat he gives her what he hopes is a reassuring smile. “Nothing’s wrong. Just...nervous.” It was impossible trying to lie to Sofia. Not only was she his alpha, but they’d dated and were friends. Lying was fruitless. Really it was. 

“How have you been?” Trying to deflect the topic wasn’t intentional by any means, but in true Teddy fashion, he’d be remiss to ask any of his loved ones how  they were doing. “Sabbatical helping at all?” 

               — Sara would be lying if she’d said that she wasn’t a sucker for romance. Her whole life had been some kind of fairy tale up until her husband died, and in all honesty, these last few months with Teddy had been–surprisingly good. For someone who had once felt like she was drowning, Teddy didn’t feel like a lifeboat, but a lighthouse… you know, a beacon of light in the darkness, showing her where to swim to? Yeah, that was how it felt. There was so much she wished to be able to give him, and she knew it wasn’t fair to him, to place her safety in his hands, but gosh! How she enjoyed feeling safe in his arms…

After the whole disaster of the week that followed Imbolc, Sara felt like she’d been pushed back onto that dark place she had been when her husband had died. Her anxiety was through the roof and she was having a hard time detaching herself from her son, too scared that he might vanish before her eyes once again… except Teddy was there this time. And once again, he was showing her the way home, guiding her to him with his light.

With their fingers intertwined, Sara realized that for the first time in a while, she hadn’t felt like calling the babysitter to check in on Binnie. For the first time in a while, she felt safe again. The second he told her to close her eyes, however, Sara hesitated. She did it, but she hesitated. And when her eyelids fluttered shut, she held tightly onto his hands, more scared of Taerin slipping through her fingers than tripping and falling, which, of course, caused Sara to pull him closer, her feet hesitating in stepping further.

Eventually, they’ve reached their destination, and when Teddy allowed her to open her eyes, it was hard not to smile. Everything he had been doing… everything he’s always done for her? Yeah, it was hard to miss. Art surrounded them, and anyone who knew Sara, knew how much art was part of her life. Her arms when around his middle, once again, finding refuge in his arms, before looking up at him. “Thank you, you know? For… everything. Most of all, thank you for being here, and for being so patient with me.” Because she knew that, not only the last few days had been hard, but also, she couldn’t possibly understand how it was for Teddy to be so patient with someone’s feelings. 

Despite the high heels she was wearing, Sara still leaned up to press a kiss to his lips. “Thank you for being so good to me…” She gently brushed the tip of her nose against his, before stealing another kiss from his lips. “Do we have the gallery to ourselves? We should look around, right?”

―

When he finally steps back and tells her to open her eyes, Taerin can’t help but wait anxiously for her reaction. He’d never had to help someone through the things that Sara had gone through before in his life. You couldn’t even compare breakups to this. But he knew that he had to be there for whatever she needed because it wasn’t about him. Her smiles becoming fewer, her lack of motivation to get out of bed some days - all of it added up to Taerin knowing that he needed to be there for Sara and Bin more than ever. He’d taken the time off from work too, asking for an extension on his thesis even though he knew that he was up against a looming deadline. 

His education and research were important to him. It always had been. But here right now, this was and always would be more important. Warmth fills his chest as she wraps herself around him and he presses a lingering kiss to her head. “Sara,” Taerin pauses with a chuckle, “You don’t have to thank me. I just want you to remember that you’re loved no matter what.” He returns her kiss, nuzzling her close for another moment before pulling reluctantly away and leading her gently further into the art gallery. “It’s all ours. I pulled a favour through some colleagues so if someone comes asking for me this is probably why.” 

“No, it’s alright.” Leon shook his head. His eyes immediately started searching for his cats, because they would need to be kept away from the baby, both for safety and health reasons. The last thing he needed right now was both Sara and MJ on his ass for allowing something like that to happen. “I haven’t seen him in a while, so that’s all good. Just… Let me–hang on.” He found King first and brought the orange tabby cat to the small area by the balcony, then he went on to find Tiger lounging by the kitchen and did the same with him. “There. All clear.” Once Teddy had placed Binnie on the play mat and joined Leon in the kitchen area, the warlock chuckled. “I’ve been alright. I forgot how much I didn’t really despise school. It’s weird to see these people who are like–ten years younger than me, complaining about classes and such. Andy is good. They’re with their mom. After the whole–split realities thing… I think they’re having a hard time being away from one another.” 

There was a small pause in between his previous words and his following question. Maybe it was hesitation in actually asking it, but oh well. If no one asked, Leon would. “So–what’s up with that? Are you on daddy duty?” He said, motioning his head towards the general area where Bin was. There wasn’t much that Leon remembered about Moonbin. The gap in their ages and the fact that the Mins had moved to another country for a few years, contributed to that, but from what Leon remembered… he was a nice kid. He’d probably be happy to see Teddy stepping up and taking care of his kid.

―

Teddy waited patiently for Leon’s own fur children to be moved around before settling Bin in. If anything though the child’s bright curious eyes seemed to follow them as Leon bustled around moving them out of his reach. Hearing Leon talk about school positively brought a goofy smile to Teddy’s face. He couldn’t help it as nerdy as it was. He knew that not everyone had a good experience when it came to academics, but Teddy hoped that anyone - regardless of whether or not he personally taught them - would enjoy it in some way shape or form. “Well believe it or not teachers and professors complain about it too,” he chuckles. “Unsurprisingly it’s also about the students. I’m glad that Andy and Ally are doing okay too - all things considered.” 

He straightens up wandering over to help Leon with dinner. Contemplating Leon’s question for a moment, he pauses before saying, “I guess I am,” he says with a light laugh. “At least figuratively. Sara and I haven’t really...talked about that.” It was something that he’d thought about though. And it was something that he’d really just woken up and thought about like it was the most natural thing in the world. “Can I help with any of that?” he asks after a beat and motions to the food.     

              — The whole ‘taking a sabbatical’ ordeal had landed Santiago into a some sort of predicament: he didn’t know how to feel about it. While he knew it had been for the best to take some time away from work, especially since he hadn’t been able to properly focus on the pack due to being way too focused in his career. It had made people think even more that he wasn’t worth being the alpha, and a couple even up and left the pack, which, of course wasn’t easy for him… so when Teddy called and said he needed to talk, Tiago was worried. Mortified, actually. Which, wasn’t something he was used to feeling. 

Upon hearing the knocks on the door, he opened it and let his friend in. “Hey. What’s up? You sounded… off–? Is everything alright?”

―

Teddy can’t help the startled look that flashes across his face when the door suddenly opens. Perhaps more worryingly though is that Santi also feels just as worried. He supposes though that that’s what he gets for sending him a cryptic message. “Yeah of course I just -,” he cuts himself short as he walks through the door, a hand rubbing worriedly on the back of his neck. “I’m not bothering you am I? I just figured that I should see you in person if I’m going to ask this.” He and Santi had always had the type of relationship where they could be honest with one another even when they had been dating. They both knew that they could turn to one another if they needed to. It was exactly for that reason that Teddy knew he couldn’t back down from this. 

taerin “teddy” bong @ novaverse ( @astoriainspo )

Teddy didn’t know why he was so nervous as he killed the engine on his car out front of Santi’s building. He had talked it over with Sara so many times now in so many iterations that he was positive she was sick of hearing him talk about it. But it was clearer now more than ever that Teddy had settled on a decision that he knew had been a long time in the making. He takes the steps up to the building several at a time before he arrives at Santi’s door, knocking twice and waiting there for his friend to arrive at the door. All he’d told Santiago before he’d arrived was that he had something he wanted to talk to him about. Hopefully the ask wouldn’t come as too much of a shock or be received poorly.