Posted originally on the Archive_of_Our_Own at https://archiveofourown.org/
works/10064372.
  Rating:
      Explicit
  Archive Warning:
      Underage
  Category:
      M/M
  Fandom:
      방탄소년단_|_Bangtan_Boys_|_BTS
  Relationship:
      Min_Yoongi_|_Suga/Park_Jimin
  Character:
      Min_Yoongi_|_Suga, Park_Jimin_(BTS), Kim_Taehyung_|_V, Jeon_Jungkook,
      Jung_Hoseok_|_J-Hope, Kim_Seokjin_|_Jin, Kim_Namjoon_|_Rap_Monster
  Additional Tags:
      Alternate_Universe_-_High_School, Alternate_Universe_-_Teenagers,
      Alternate_Universe_-_Rock_Band, Alternate_Universe_-_1990s,
      drummer!Yoongi, top!yoongi, vocal!Jimin, bottom!jimin, bassist!Taehyung,
      guitarist!Jeongguk, guitarist!Hoseok, songwriter!Namjoon, roadie!Seokjin,
      Yoonmin_Centric, alternating_povs, Minor_Jeon_Jungkook/Kim_Taehyung_|_V,
      platonic_yoonseok, OT7_feels, Mutual_Pining, Slow_Build, Smut, Explicit
      Sexual_Content, Semi-Public_Sex, Consensual_Underage_Sex, Mention_of_past
      dub-con_and_mental_abuse, Loss_of_Virginity, Explicit_Language, Underage
      Smoking, Underage_Drinking, Coming_of_Age, teenage_angst, Angst, Coming
      Out, discovering_one's_sexuality, Friendship, Summer, Fluff, Nostalgia,
      ALL_THE_90S_THINGS, they_love_Pokemon_and_Tamagotchis, inspired_by_YNWA
      concept_photos_and_HYYH_era, it's_all_about_friendship_and_blossoming
      young_love, yoonmin_are_Super_Soft™_for_each_other
  Stats:
      Published: 2017-03-03 Updated: 2018-03-29 Chapters: 20/? Words: 182859
****** Cotton Candy ******
by mintsoda
Summary
     "He could get used to sitting next to Yoongi like this. To have him
     around. To have the band around. To smile and feel happy. To see
     Yoongi sitting in front of an instrument and having him play just for
     him.
     'If this was my happy ending,' Jimin thinks, resisting the urge to
     lean his head on Yoongi's shoulder, 'if I wasn't who I am, I'd just
     let you have me whenever you want. You could have me anytime.'"
      
     As spring turns into summer, school band Cotton Candy unexpectedly
     loses its singer and the members are forced to look for a new
     vocalist. Six boys find one in the form of the promiscuous pink
     haired boy Park Jimin who makes a home in their hearts and finally
     finds a place he belongs.
Notes
     This fic plays in the 90s, THERE ARE NO SMART PHONES JUST NOKIAS. The
     world this plays in is kind of made up, as in, this is not really
     Seoul/Korea or any other existent city/country, it's just “the city”
     and their neighbourhood is based on our imagination so that it has
     everything that’s needed :)
     We also changed their ages so that they’re all of high school age (we
     kept their birthdays but put them in the same years, that's what came
     out of that, from youngest to oldest):
     Taehyung (16) - Jimin (16) - Jeongguk (16) - Namjoon (17) - Hoseok
     (18) - Seokjin (18) - Yoongi (19)
     So be warned that there will be underage sex, underage drinking,
     underage smoking, basically underage everything, the things that come
     with writing high school AUs orz but well they’re just wild,
     rebellious teenage boys, take it as you will haha. We_have_answered_a
     question_about_the_rating_here if you wanna know why it's rated E.
     As always, this fic has two authors, Cat and Mei. We are not native
     speakers of English (please correct us if there are any grave
     mistakes ♡). OCs’ names are made up.
     THIS FIC IS ALSO OUR NEW BABY thank you for blessing it with love ;;
     ENJOY ❤︎
     ✗ Twitter_threads
     ✗ Padlet_♡ (← there are A LOT of pictures loading)
     ☾ = Yoongi
***** Prologue. *****
                                      –☾–
When Yoongi arrives at the practice room in the late sunny afternoon of a
beautiful late spring day, his band mates are all sitting on the floor or lying
down on the battered couch, making faces as if someone has died.
 
They don’t even really acknowledge him when he puts his bag down and yawns
heartily before scratching his belly lazily, even the sound of his fingernails
grazing over his skin audible in their practice room that is actually just the
school’s music room they're allowed to use. He looks into the dejected faces of
his friends and slowly starts to find it a little discomforting that none of
them says a word. He’s not really used to this silence, for usually at least
one of them would always be loud and obnoxious, either bothering one of his
friends or Yoongi himself. It’s especially weird for Taehyung and Jeongguk who
just sit there and stare holes into space.
 
“Um,” Yoongi clears his throat, searching for the eyes of his best friend,
Hoseok, hoping that he will explain to him what kind of funeral service this
is. There's also something amiss, but so far he doesn't know what. “What
happened? Has someone died?” he just asks bluntly and then he realises that
their vocal is not here. “Wait, where’s Chigyu?” he snaps his head to Namjoon
who’s currently absentmindedly drawing dark black circles into his notebook,
half expecting him to say that Chigyu is indeed pushing the daisies now.
 
“Nah, Chigyu is not dead, but close enough. He quit, that fucker,” Namjoon
mutters solemnly, “he’s basically fled us before you came. He said he’s ‘too
old for that shit’ now, so as of today we’re without a singer.”
 
The words hit Yoongi straight in the gut.
 
“He did what?”
 
There are a lot of things that Yoongi can handle. He can handle doing extra
homework, or teachers yelling at him, maybe even going to the principal’s
office when that one teacher has it in for him again. In fact, he doesn’t give
a lot of fucks about that many things, but if there’s one thing Yoongi gives a
huge fuck about, then it’s this band.
 
He carefully lets his gaze wander to Hoseok, who’s still staring at the floor,
mouth shaped into a triangular frown that looks as if he’s screaming all the
agony of the world out through his sad, brokenhearted eyes, and Yoongi's heart
breaks a little with it.
 
He sighs and slumps down beside Taehyung on the couch, rubbing his eyes
frustratedly when the room falls silent again, wondering what the fuck has
happened before he arrived here. He curses his history teacher for making him
stay longer just because he forgot to hand in his homework last week. It's not
like he's going to be in this school for much longer, him graduating soon and
stuff. He should have been here when Chigyu announced that he'd quit, he would
have given him a piece of his mind.
 
The only sound being heard in the small room now is Namjoon’s scribbling,
Jeongguk absentmindedly plucking some strings on his guitar from time to time
and the faint sound of some students playing basketball on the school’s
basketball court, the dribbling of the ball and the occasional clear, bell-like
‘clink’when the ball hits the iron fencing behind the basketball basket. It
makes Yoongi feel all the more nervous and antsy.
 
“Well, fuck,” he eventually provides helpfully, not knowing what to say either,
just feeling angry at their former vocal of five years for letting them down
like that just before graduation. He could have at least waited until the end
of the school year. “And what are we going to do now?”
 
“Dunno, but if we want to win the prize money, we need to find a new vocal, as
soon as possible,” Seokjin speaks up, blinking a few times before looking at
Namjoon, expecting some sort of reaction. He gets it in form of a sage nod.
 
“We will have to hold an audition then!” Namjoon snaps his notebook closed and
stands up, determination burning in his eyes.
 
At this, even Hoseok lifts his head and looks at their friend. “An audition?”
he asks weakly, and Yoongi senses how his best friend has almost given up
already before they have even tried to fix anything. Yoongi can’t even really
be miffed about it, he understands that after years of working with the same
singer, it will be hard to suddenly find someone else who will blend in nicely
with their members and their songs. Especially their songs.
 
How will anyone ever sound the same as Chigyu?
 
Nevertheless, they immediately start discussing their plan of action and start
preparing to hold an audition on the coming Saturday.
 
Jeongguk and Seokjin are responsible for creating fliers they can hand out at
school and for going to the copy shop to print them, while they send Namjoon
and Taehyung to ask the principal if they’re allowed to also hang some up at
the school’s message board.
 
Yoongi and Hoseok make a plan on how to conduct the actual audition, what songs
they want to hear if possible, if they should hand out numbers to the
applicants, if they should already plan for recalls and so on. Of course they
don’t know how many people will come, maybe only one person will come, maybe no
one comes at all, but they should account for every outcome possible.
 
After all, it won’t be the first audition they hold.
 
When Hoseok and Yoongi were looking for a new bassist, they found Taehyung that
way, something they’ve never regretted in the slightest, even if they were a
little worried in the beginning that their youngest might have been a tad bit
too young for being in a band. But that was almost three years ago. Now they
can’t imagine their band without him. Moreover, Taehyung also brought Jeongguk
into the band, so that certainly was an added bonus they wouldn't want to miss
now.
 
Therefore they’re full of hope that their next audition is going to be a
success as well.
 
Saturday rolls around and Yoongi has been sitting inside the stuffy practice
room for hours now while the sun is shining outside and they could have gone to
the park or to the lake, the weather already warm enough for a short swim or
hanging out in the grass like they usually do in summer while one of their
ghetto blasters is blaring their favourite music.
 
He already daydreams about all the nice stuff they could be doing. Going to the
convenience store to buy ice cream, drive to the hill on their bicycles just to
have the best view over their suburb, going to the huge highway bridge to spray
some more graffiti on the broad concrete pillars underneath it. Or even just
going to the skate park with their skateboards.
 
Everything would be a thousand times more exciting than being here.
 
But they need a vocal and they need it now.
 
He isn’t excited to be here at all, but Hoseok wanted all of them to judge the
candidates and he isn’t one to say no to his best friend. Many wanna-be singers
have come and gone, but their voices either had the grace of a donkey throwing
a fit or they just came to the audition for shits and giggles. One sang in
opera style, one wanted to be paid for their services, and one insisted that
they can only come to rehearsals on Tuesday evenings.
 
Yoongi huffs, having had enough already at least five hours ago when this whole
thing started. The sun is setting now, and the hot air in their stuffy practice
room has gotten unbearable at this point. His ears practically bleed and his
friends aren’t really in the best mood possible either, everyone cranky and
demotivated. The last candidate has also just left the room and they haven’t
found one single person who could possibly fit in their band.
 
If there was a right moment to give up hope, it would probably be now.
 
“Forget it guys, we’re gonna be vocal-less from now on,” he mutters, leaning
back in his too uncomfortable chair, “Taehyung and Jeongguk will have to sing
from now on.”
 
“What? But who’s going to do the background vocals then? You, Yoongi hyung?”
Taehyung pouts, crossing his arms over his chest.
 
“Ts,” Yoongi clicks his tongue, “if you so desperately want to lose the
contest, then make me.”
 
It’s in that moment that the door swings open again and all of their heads snap
towards it to look at the newcomer who's entering the room. A guy comes in that
throws Yoongi so off guard that he almost drops his drumstick that he’s been
skilfully spinning between his fingers for the past half an hour at least. He
barely catches it before it falls to the floor with a clattering sound, saving
him from some embarrassment.
 
“Uh, hey,” Hoseok greets the boy with a smile, flipping his notebook open again
into which he’s jotted down some notes about the candidates during the
audition, “are you here to audition for the vocal position?” Yoongi can hear
the hope in Hoseok’s voice, almost can’t bear to expect them to be crushed all
over again.
 
He sceptically glances at the guy, takes in his pastel pink hair, the lollipop
that is sticking out from between his lips, the bored expression on his face;
curiously glances at his outfit consisting of ripped denim shorts, knee high
socks and a grey hoodie that is fluffier than the butt of a bunny. A stark
contrast to Yoongi's own black and blue hair, black jeans and simple black T-
shirt.
 
But what Yoongi finds especially curious are all the hickeys littering the
boy’s neckline, mottled blue and green and brown bruises in all sorts of shapes
and various degrees of intensity, as if they’ve been put there steadily over a
longer period of time.
 
The pink haired guy speaks up then, and his voice pierces through Yoongi's
heart, resounds through the practice room a little hollow but also cocky and
self-assured, and it makes Yoongi's stomach drop to the floor before he shakes
off the funny feeling in his tummy.
 
“Yep, I heard you’re looking for a new vocal? I’ll do it,” he hears him say
confidently, almost as if he doesn’t really care about actually being here, and
Yoongi eyes him even more doubtfully. He wonders how he’s never seen him at
school before, because if he’s always looking as garish as that, then he’s
actually pretty eye-catching.
 
“Well, you gotta sing first. We need to see if you fit our style,” Hoseok
reminds the other boy. They’re certainly not just gonna take anyone who’s
simply willing to do it. They’re not that desperate. Or well, maybe they are.
 
Yoongi then hears Jeongguk and Taehyung whisper next to him while they’re
staring at the candidate, and he only catches short phrases like ‘why ishe
here?’ and ‘why would he like to be in a band?’. He kicks Jeongguk a little
with his foot because it’s rude to whisper about strangers directly in front of
them, sends him a reprimanding glare, making his younger friend pout and avert
his gaze to the floor guiltily.
 
The stranger seems to have taken note of their brief exchange, for when Yoongi
looks back at him, he’s staring at him with those weary, dark brown eyes that
seem to strip him down to the very core of his soul, making him shift a little
uncomfortable in his chair. Then the boy looks away again, languid expression
never leaving his face before he lets the lollipop pop between his lips as he
delicately takes it between his fingers.
 
“Well, okay, if you insist. I’ll sing,” he shrugs, letting his hoodie glide
down his upper arms so that the sleeves are pooling at the crooks of his
elbows, revealing the black and white striped shirt underneath it better.
 
“Alright. What’s your name, by the way?” Hoseok asks, getting ready for the
stranger’s performance, legs crossed, pen in hand, leader expression on his
face.
 
“Jimin. Park Jimin,” the pink haired boy says and Yoongi is surprised by how
well that name somehow suits him.
 
He copies Hoseok then and also straightens his back, is ready to listen to
Jimin sing, tries to not let himself be too influenced by the memory of how
Chigyu usually sang, tries to give Jimin a chance like he gave everyone else a
chance until they had proven to not be what they are looking for.
 
And then Jimin sings.
 
And he sings so well that they decide to get behind their instruments and play
a song from their infinite repertoire of cover songs that Jimin knows, too.
 
And then it sounds even better, and they play another one, everyone drinking in
Jimin’s singing, everyone taken in by the mere presence of that boy with the
small stature but even bigger voice and powerful stage presence. Everyone
mesmerised by how easily he makes the song his.
 
When they’re done, everyone exchanges excited glances, Taehyung and Jeongguk
whispering again, this time about how they never thought Jimin could be a
thousand times better than their old vocal.
 
And Yoongi has to agree.
 
Jimin is simply stunning.
 
“So, am I in?” Jimin asks then, and Yoongi can read on his face that he knows
exactly how excited everyone is, expression cocksure and victorious. Hoseok
tries to reign in his emotions, straightens his face and clears his throat.
 
“Well, not sure, we’ll have to evaluate the other people first. Can you give us
your phone number in case that we decide on you?” Hoseok declares
professionally, writing something down on his notebook.
 
Yoongi’s mouth pops slightly open. He really doesn’t know why the fuck Hoseok
needs to drag this out unnecessarily.
 
“Hobi, are you kidding me? Just take him, for fuck’s sake, no one was better
than him, obviously, and even if we keep looking we won’t find anyone who fits
so well. Let’s call it a day,” Jimin smirks at that and lets the lollipop smack
between his full lips before his tongue darts out and he licks over them, a
tongue piercing glistening briefly before it disappears inside his mouth again.
 
He lets his fingers run through his pink hair and when he lowers his arm again,
his hoodie rides down his shoulder, and this time Yoongi notices how his wide-
cut shirt exposes a great deal of neck and collarbone and even more hickeys
littering the skin.
 
Who is this guy, and why does he look the way he looks being in high school, at
that young age and all? Yoongi is certain that he’s not a senior like him, he
would have seen him before, for sure. He looks so young that he rather looks
like a freshman. And since Taehyung and Jeongguk seem to know him, he’s
probably right about that.
 
“Fine, okay. If everybody is okay with that, you’re in,” Hoseok gives up and
everyone nods while Taehyung starts applauding happily.
 
“Cool. When’s rehearsal?” Jimin asks, lollipop between his lips again, hoodie
still pooling at the crooks of his elbows.
 
“Tuesday, Thursday and Friday evening. If we got time, we also come here on
Saturdays at the moment. We want to win the school’s talent competition before
school’s out for summer. After that, you’re free to choose if you want to stay
or if you want to leave the band,” Hoseok explains calmly, looking at Jimin
with hopeful eyes.
 
“Every Tuesday, Thursday and Friday?” Jimin looks contemplative for a few
moments, lollipop disappearing behind his lips again, looking so sinfully
pursed against its white stick that Yoongi has to avert his gaze. “Well okay,
I’ll do it if I get half of the prize money,” Jimin demands, making everyone in
the room gasp out loud, Namjoon even getting up from his seated position.
 
“Forget it, you’ll get a seventh of it,” their songwriter disagrees
immediately, making a gloomy scowl appear on Jimin’s face.
 
“A seventh? Why? I only see five band members here,” Jimin retorts cockily, and
somehow Yoongi doesn’t like the way he talks, all demanding and as if the world
belongs to him.
 
“We count our two roadies to our band members as well,” he explains therefore,
“in the end we just need the money for our summer road trip to the beach.”
 
Jimin turns his head to him, scrunches up his nose at that and huffs haughtily
before seemingly overthinking his options again. “When’s the competition
again?”
 
“At the school festival in about two and a half months,” Yoongi replies, trying
not to judge Jimin too much for his sort of unpleasant and stipulating
behaviour. Yoongi doesn’t know him well enough yet to form an opinion about
him, so he’ll just wait and see how Jimin will affect the band’s dynamics. And
after all, he is an amazing singer and they need him.
 
“Okay, fine, whatever. I’ll do it, but there’s one condition,” Jimin continues,
and everyone groans exasperatedly at his antics, looking at him expectantly.
 
“What is it?”
 
“If we win, you will have to take me with you on your road trip.”
***** One. *****
Chapter Notes
     We… we updated this fic? Holy shit! (exactly 3 months after posting
     the prologue, it looks like we planned this. Spoiler: we did not.)
     We only have this chapter and the prologue written so far. What
     happened to “we only upload fics when they’re done”? hahaha… haha…
     ha…… (we are so going to regret this)
     But this is a summer fic with lots of feels and it currently is
     summer here, so we’ll do our best to upload more soon! :)
     ☾ = Yoongi
     ☼ = Jimin
See the end of the chapter for more notes
                                      –☾–
 
Yoongi has been breaking his head over a certain pink-haired vocalist named
Park Jimin ever since the younger boy has entered their practice room on that
fateful Saturday afternoon of the audition.
 
It's a little disconcerting, in fact, that he won't leave Yoongi's head at all,
his face constantly flashing behind Yoongi's eyelids, cocky smile and
mischievous eyes burning into Yoongi's skull, effectively driving him crazy.
Yoongi has had crushes in the past, all of them lasting for a little over a
week perhaps, and Yoongi expects this to not go much differently. That’s why he
doesn’t really question it, it’s just that he doesn’t really know why it had to
be Jimin that caught his eyes so much, the other man being three years younger
than him. He also practically took flight when they invited him to hang out
after the audition was over which isn’t really an indicator for anything coming
of Yoongi’s crush.
 
Yoongi has no idea why Jimin wants to join them on their trip, has even made it
a condition for him to help them out as their vocalist. Why the fuck would you
want to go on vacation with strangers?
 
Whatever, he doesn’t care, especially not if Jimin should become their regular
singer after the competition – so far, every member that joined them over the
years became close friends to him and Hoseok and gradually also the other
members.
 
Even Seokjin and Namjoon, who have never played an instrument in the band but
have been introduced to them by other members, have become good friends. All of
them are inseparable and even if Yoongi has never told any of those idiots,
he’s sure all of them know how much he loves them.
 
That’s why he wants to keep an eye on Jimin, not only to see if he could
potentially join their group permanently, but also to see if he’s an okay guy –
especially since their youngest, Taehyung, seems to be very happy about the
fact that someone from his and Jeongguk’s class joined the band despite them –
as Yoongi has learned – not being friends.
 
Yoongi hasn’t seen Jimin since the audition and now it’s Tuesday already and
they will have their first band practice with him and he feels a little like
he’s dying behind his drumset, tapping his fingers rhythmically against his
knees, a clear sign that he’s nervous.
 
“He kind of looks like a Jigglypuff.”
 
“No, Jeonggukkie,” Taehyung giggles, “more like a Clefairy!”
 
“Well, his hair colour really suits our band name, that much is clear,”
Jeongguk retorts, and both of their youngest band members start to snicker at
their own witticisms.
 
“Boys, please,” Hoseok tries to calm them down, and not a minute too late, for
the door swings open and in comes Park Jimin. Taehyung’s face lights up.
 
“Hello, Jimin!” he chirps and waves at him with a big smile on his face,
Jeongguk imitating the motion a little more guarded.
 
Yoongi has to agree with Taehyung and Jeongguk, Jimin’s hair really reminds him
of several pink Pokémon, but he would never ever say this out loud. He just
blankly stares at the younger man who still seems to have that no-fucks-given
attitude written all over his body.
 
“Hey,” Jimin just mutters before he takes off his hoodie and throws it on the
battered couch without a single care, not even saying sorry for being too late
for practice. Nevertheless, Yoongi can’t really bring himself to be angry
either, for he can’t seem to avert his gaze from Jimin’s smooth neck, a huge
hickey adorning the otherwise smooth skin, the black tattoo choker Jimin is
wearing not even trying to cover up the mess that is his neck.
 
He briefly wonders what Jimin’s parents have to say about this, but dispels the
thoughts when Hoseok speaks up.
 
“Hey, Jimin. Did something hold you up?” Hoseok asks, tone a little too
friendly, and Yoongi knows immediately that he’s sour about Jimin coming too
late. Jimin, however, doesn’t seem to be fazed.
 
“Nah, just forgot the time,” he shrugs and actually unpacks a lollipop right in
front of Hoseok’s eyes before putting it into his mouth. Yoongi’s jaw would
drop if he wasn’t so bewildered.
 
Hoseok just scowls before he huffs.
 
“Just be on time from now on, please. Well then guys, let’s start, shall we?
We’ve already wasted enough time,” Hoseok announces in his leader voice and
everyone gets ready for the first song, one of about ten that they have in
their repertoire.
 
Yoongi hopes that Jimin has at least learned some of them.
 
Jimin just takes the microphone into his hand, lollipop in his mouth as he runs
his fingers through his hair brushing it back and revealing his smooth forehead
and his perfectly made eyebrows before he takes the lollipop out of his mouth
with his free hand. Yoongi takes a deep breath, checks if everyone else is
ready, too, and counts loudly to three before he starts the first beats of the
song.
 
He doesn’t need to concentrate too hard on his movements anymore, plays the
drums mainly by muscle memory and that’s why he has no problem watching Jimin’s
back. He’s certain that they have made the right decision with choosing him
when Jimin starts singing. He is good, his voice carries natural emotions and
he hits the right notes without fail.
 
Yoongi would even go as far as to claim that he likes his voice better than the
voice of their former singer. He was good too, an asshole in the end for
dropping them after almost five years, but still had a good, firm voice but it
was nothing compared to the raw emotion in Jimin’s.
 
After the first song, they play two more and the only problem Jimin seems to
have is to find the right timing at the beginning to join the band at the right
moment, but that’s something he’ll manage to get used to quickly if they keep
practising.
 
When half an hour is over, Hoseok wants a short break though and leaves for the
toilet. Yoongi is surprised when Jimin approaches him behind his drum kit,
fingertips gliding over the cymbals as he walks up beside him.
 
“What’s the band called, by the way?” Yoongi blinks at him confusedly,
wondering how Jimin doesn’t even know the name of the freaking band he’s part
of. It was written in big, capital letters on the fliers they had distributed
and handed out. Now he’d reallylike to know how on earth Jimin even got to know
about the audition.
 
“Huh? Don't you know that? It’s called ‘Cotton Candy’!” Taehyung interjects and
smiles brightly, a certain pride swinging in his voice as he explains to Jimin
that their band is named after a sugary, pink, fluffy candy.
 
Yoongi stares at Jimin’s hair and is taken aback by how he suddenly thinks that
it actually strongly reminds him of the same sugary sweetness.
 
“Cotton candy? Why’s that?” Jimin asks further and that’s when the bassist and
Jeongguk turn to look at Yoongi.
 
“Yeah, why’s that, hyung?” Jeongguk asks and Yoongi suddenly feels very
exposed, for he doesn’t know the answer either. He just shrugs.
 
“Hobi and his friends started the band when he was around thirteen. When I
joined half a year later it was already called like that and I didn't really
care. I originally was only planned to be their drummer temporarily. But I
guess they just thought it’d be cool to use something in English and ‘Cotton
Candy’ must have sounded hella awesome to a teenager or something. I’m not
sure, ask him when he’s back.”
 
“That sounds so lame,” Jimin mutters, boredom apparent in his voice, and Yoongi
tries to not take it personally. Why Jimin has to portray such a snotty
attitude Yoongi doesn't know, but if this continues he sure as hell won't just
let it slide like that again.
 
“I like cotton candy,” Taehyung pipes up again with a huge smile on his face,
always positive about everything, “so I like our band name as well! It’s cute.
Everybody likes cute stuff!” he continues before he puts his chin on Jeongguk’s
shoulder and gets his hair ruffled by him, a fond gaze on the guitarist’s face.
 
“As I said, I’m not sure,” Yoongi tries again, “I never really asked, but I bet
he told me before. Just ask him.”
 
“Yeah, fine,” Jimin says with disinterest as he taps his fingers on the snare
drum and sure enough he doesn’t ask about the meaning any further once Hoseok
is back. They just continue with practice instead. Yoongi isn't even really
that surprised.
 
When practice ends Taehyung practically tackles Jimin, much to the displeasure
of the other, as it seems.
 
“Do you want to go and eat dinner with us, Jiminnie?” Taehyung asks him with
sparkling eyes and a bright smile on his lips, “we’ll go to our favourite fast
food restaurant and maybe hang out a little later. You wanna join?”
 
Yet unsurprisingly, Jimin declines again.
 
“Sorry, I already have plans. Maybe some other time,” Jimin replies with a
half-smirk before he just lifts his hand in a short wave and walks out of the
music room, not even looking back.
 
“Something about him really is a little weird,” Jeongguk mumbles but Yoongi
hears him clearly, wonders where these bad manners come from again
 
“Yah, Jeon Jeongguk. Haven’t I told you not to talk about someone behind their
back? That’s rude,” Yoongi reprimands his younger band mate and immediately has
a pair of pouty lips and a set of even more miffed eyes on him.
 
“But Jeonggukkie is right, hyung. It's strange. We haven't expected Jimin of
all people to join a band – our band – in the first place,” Taehyung defends
his best friend and Yoongi rolls his eyes a little because why do these two
always have to stick together like fucking superglue. “But he's awesome!”
Taehyung still adds with a bright smile.
 
“Well, that’s debatable,” Jeongguk mutters under his breath and Yoongi raises
his eyebrows, can’t believe that there’s actually something that Jeongguk
doesn’t agree with Taehyung for once.
 
“What's the deal with Jimin, anyway? Why’d you never expected him to join a
band?” Yoongi asks curiously.
 
“He's never shown any interest in singing or anything like that. In fact, Jimin
doesn’t really show any interest in anything. He’s also hardly ever in class.
The teachers don’t really seem to like him,” Taehyung adds, a little sadly,
lips pursed and eyes contemplative, fingers pressing some buttons on his
tamagotchi.
 
“His singing voice is really good though, and it suits our music perfectly,
what more do we want?” Hoseok butts in while he's packing up his guitar, and
Yoongi guesses that if he says that about the singer’s voice, it really must be
true.
 
“That he comes to practice on time,” Yoongi retorts.
 
“Why do you want to know anyway, hyung?” Jeongguk asks cheekily, a little glint
in his eyes, and Yoongi shrugs defensively.
 
“Just because,” it's not like he's super intrigued by Park Jimin, it's not like
his pink, fluffy hair does things to him he's never thought possible, it's not
like he finds his long fucking eyelashes absolutely mesmerising or anything.
And it's definitely not how his eyes twinkle like a whole goddamn galaxy when
he sings and forgets the world around him.
 
“Well, for one, Jimin never hangs out with people from our class. In fact,
people say that he always hangs out with older guys. You know, the ones who
smoke and have motorbikes and drink a lot of alcohol,” Jeongguk explains,
Taehyung nodding along sagely with every new information their friend reveals.
 
“You two always hang out with us, too, so you are, in fact, always around older
guys as well, aren't you,” Yoongi muses and snorts when he sees the stupid
expressions on his friends’ faces.
 
“But it’s differentwith him, hyung. He—, I don’t know how to explain,” Taehyung
murmurs, playing with the too-long sleeves of his sweater now, his tamagotchi
probably well fed and cared for.
 
“He doesn’t seem to be close with them?” Jeongguk tries, “everyone says he
never hangs out with the same guys twice; sometimes they aren’t even students
here. They say he—,”
 
“Aish, since when do we listen to what everyone says, Jeonggukkie? Maybe he was
just simply busy today. I don’t wanna hear you guys talk like that again, ‘kay?
I know you’re excited to have someone from your class with us now, but if he
wants to stay after the competition, we wanna try and be friends.”
 
“I wanna be friends with him! That’s why I asked him to hang out with us,” and
is there actually anyone on the planet that Taehyung doesn't want to be friends
with? Yoongi thinks not.
 
“I know, it’s okay. Just don’t forget about our code. We don’t talk about each
other, we talk with each other,” Yoongi takes his role as their eldest very
serious, and if there's one thing he doesn't want for his younger friends, then
it's them talking behind other people's back and forming biased opinions on
them just from hearsay.
 
After all, there are always two sides of the same coin.
 
“Yes, hyung. Sorry,” Taehyung and Jeongguk mumble in unison, taking up their
respective instrument bags while Yoongi just has to carry his drumsticks around
in the back pocket of his jeans.
 
“No biggie. Now let’s go, the others are waiting already.”
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                      –☼–
 
It’s not a secret at school that Jimin isn't exactly what everyone, including
his mum and his teachers, wants him to be.
 
At sixteen years of age, Jimin frequently skips school, doesn’t do homework,
hangs out with all the wrong people, drinks, smokes and has sex with random
strangers when he feels like it (desperate college guys, mostly; he also isn’t
exactly straight just to add fuel to the infuriating list of things he has done
or is that apparently pisses off all the adults). He has no regrets about
anything, lives his life just like he wants it to be, just has a good time
whenever he can because life’s too short for anything else.
 
That's also why he's currently hanging out with the seniors in the designated
smoking area of the school during their short ten minute break, greedily
inhaling the smoke from the cigarette he’s bummed from one of the random guys
who looked like he had a mental breakdown when he approached him despite Jimin
even smiling at him nicely when he asked.
 
One of the other dudes, however, is currently giving him a headache.
 
“Rough night?” the idiot asks with a tacky smile on his face before he takes a
drag of his own almost finished cig. Jimin just scowls at him with a blankness
in his eyes that he has practised to perfection.
 
He remembers him from yesterday night. Jimin was getting wasted together with
some other guys before one of them asked him if he was up to getting laid in
his car. He said yes.
 
A small smirk creeps on his lips.
 
“Jealous it wasn’t you?” he asks cockily, drags lasciviously on his cigarette
before puffing the smoke out again and biting his plush bottom lip. That gets
them every time. He’s just playing, though; this dude is not his type.
 
The other just scoffs before he stomps the butt of his cigarette out on the
floor. He doesn’t say anything to Jimin anymore before he weasels away quickly
and Jimin is glad he didn’t even try to hit on him any further.
 
He leans against the wall and closes his eyes, smoke coming out of his nose as
he blissfully exhales again, hangover at bay for now.
 
He's pretending to not notice the stares or listen to their whispers as they
openly gape at his naked bruised collarbones, at his tummy that's revealed
under his short top that has ridden up as he arches his back slightly, exposing
his belly button piercing, his pink hair that he's taking painstaking care of
because he knows it makes the guys weak. He doesn't give a fuck about them
whispering what a slut he must be, what a slut he is, because he couldn't care
less about their pathetic existence and their pseudo-analysis of his quite
fucked up personal life.
 
He lets them think what they want, lets them have a good time gossiping about
the misery of him or others. It's a pleasure to have provided them with some
kind of amusement in their otherwise boring lives.
 
He can only laugh at those hypocrites who fuck him at night and treat him like
air during the waking hours of the day. Laughs at how some of those guys moan
his name like a prayer when he has his lips wrapped around their cocks and then
kick him like a dog when he does as much as look at them when they're
surrounded by their friends at school or elsewhere.
 
He doesn't need them. Doesn't need any of them, is good when he's alone. Can
take care of himself just fine. Is himself the only one who's ever actually
there for him.
 
So why the fuck did he audition for that stupid pseudo band and even said yes
when they took him in? Just for the attention he would get? All that trouble
just for some warped sense of validation?
 
He angrily huffs out more smoke, flips the cig with his thumb to get rid of the
ash, and quickly takes another drag. Someone is staring at him, probably
thinking they’re subtle, but Jimin catches them anyway. He looks up, eyes
narrow, brows furrowed, and the girl hastily averts her eyes and pretends to
talk to her friend.
 
Jimin scoffs, rolling his eyes.
 
It was a spur of the moment thing when he heard some of his classmates talk
about that band looking for a new singer. It was an ache deep in his chest when
he thought about someone else than him being chosen when he knows he's the best
they could get. It was the satisfying feeling that spread through his body when
he realised how much they need him, how much they're fucked without his help.
 
It was good to have them in the palm of his hands.
 
It was agonising to feel their bond and to pretend to fit in somewhere he
doesn't belong.
 
He knows he isn’t a part of their apparently very tight knit group, doesn’t
even intend to try to become a part of them. And yet when he heard about their
road trip he saw the perfect opportunity for his escape from this shithole he’s
forced to call home.
 
He looks up from the ground and spots them, ‘his’ band members.
 
It’s still weird to see them outside of practice. He’s gotten used, more or
less, to meeting up with them after school sometimes, he’s gotten used to
singing with them when they play their instruments, and it’s strange for him.
He has even assimilated to the fact that they’re completely different from the
people he’s usually hanging out with. But that is exactly what throws him off
greatly and bewilders him to a certain extent, too.
 
It's the fact that all of them are so annoyingly childish.
 
He can't believe that grown-up men of the same age as him, or even older than
him, actually still play with tamagotchis and trade those goddamn Pokémon cards
with each other. The kids at kindergarten are doing this, maybe elementary
school, but certainly not high schoolers.
 
“Hey, Jimin,” someone else walks up to him and he wonders if there’s a sign
somewhere above his head that says something like ‘talk to me, I’m not fucking
hungover’ or ‘free blowjobs here’ because why the fuck does everyone feel like
being a fucking bother to him today?
 
He glares at them but they’re not impressed. A senior again. Jimin might have
had something with him before, but he doesn’t remember.
 
“Wassup,” Jimin mumbles disinterestedly, gaze flickering back to the band. Some
of them are sitting on the cement blocks that the school offers their students
as a generous means to sit down on, some of them on the grass next to those
seats. They’re all looking so carefree, talkative and happy, and Jimin’s gut
twists with annoyance and something that he doesn’t want to admit to himself.
 
“You have a smoke? I ran out earlier,” dude number two wants to know and Jimin
smiles saccharinely before briefly licking his lips, his throat still hurting
from yesterday night when he swallows.
 
“Sorry, was my last one,” he replies almost honestly, for it wasn’t even his
own cig to begin with. Still, he doesn’t want to admit that.
 
“Well, shit. Hey, you up tomorrow night?”
 
He knows the other guy is speaking to him but he’s already distracted again. He
observes how Taehyung says something to Jeongguk that Jimin can’t catch as he’s
too far away. Both laugh as the tall guy with the brown, boring hair seems to
look shocked and chides them, both of Jimin’s classmates running away as the
other wants to smack their upper arms. The name of the broad-shouldered guy
escapes Jimin though, and he only knows Taehyung's and Jeongguk's names because
they share the same class.
 
The tall guy is cute, handsome really, but acting like a twelve-year-old and
therefore he is not Jimin's type either. How can they all be so childish?
Especially their seniors.
 
And yet, he has to admit that their drummer with the blank face and black-blue
hair… excites him. Excites him in the best possible way when he watches him
play the drums, hands firmly gripping those drumsticks, arm muscles that have
been well shaped by playing that instrument for so long rippling under his T-
shirt, eyes honest and rough, voice melting like honey in Jimin's ears when he
talks.
 
He's delicious and Jimin wants him.
 
If only the guy in question wasn’t currently sitting quietly next to his
friends playing on his fucking gameboy.
 
Maybe he should just quit this singer thing after all. Maybe it's not worth it.
 
Maybe he simply isn't cut out for that.
 
But there's that small voice at the back of his mind that tells him he enjoys
being needed by them; enjoys how he’s the center of attention while they’re
practicing; enjoys receiving compliments about learning the songs so fast and
how he sounds better than their former vocalist; because there's one thing in
his life that Jimin enjoys more than all the attention in the world, and that
something is singing.
 
“Hey, earth to Jimin,” Jimin snaps out of his stupor when the guy he was
talking to earlier speaks up again, now with a cigarette between his mouth. He
didn’t even notice how he got that. “Tomorrow? You coming?”
 
“To that party at Jiwon’s? Nah, dunno. Might have other plans already,” Jimin
says nonchalantly with a flirtatious smile before he flicks the cigarette butt
to the floor and stomps it out with his shoe, too lazy to walk the short
distance to the ash tray, too tired to walk past the other smoking students
surrounding it and having to deal with the heavy, awkward silence that falls
whenever he approaches them. “Have fun though,” he adds with a sweet smile, not
really meaning it because he simply doesn’t care.
 
He's too annoyed now to stay here any longer. All the guys hitting on him, all
the boring classes, his band mates having something he will never know – he
cannot stand that right now.
 
Everything is just a bother and his head hurts too fucking much.
 
There's no band practice today, so he just skips the last lesson and goes home.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
When he gets home he realises belatedly that his mother is there, too.
 
She was supposed to be at work and only come home long after school has ended,
but apparently that's not the case today.
 
Fucking hell.
 
It's too late to turn around and sneak away now, for she's already heard him
coming in.
 
“Jiminnie, is that you? What are you doing here at this hour?” she asks from
out of the kitchen and it doesn't even sound accusing, sounds worried, and
Jimin wants to scream.
 
“The teacher got sick,” he shouts back, the lie rolling off his tongue easily,
as his lies always do. He starts walking towards his room.
 
“Oh dear, I hope they’ll be better soon. Your exams are soon, right?” she
banters, appearing behind him, and Jimin rolls his eyes, can't believe she's
still buying all the blatant lies he’s always feeding her. Ever since his
parents divorced she seems to have transformed into this overprotective mother
hen that wants to meddle with every aspect of Jimin's life and Jimin cannot
stand it.
 
“Yeah, in about a month. What’s for lunch?” Jimin asks, not really hungry, more
asking out of habit because there's not much more he can talk about with his
mother.
 
“I could make some fried rice?”
 
“Again? Don’t we have anything else?” he regrets asking now.
 
“I’m sorry, Jiminnie, but I had to pay the repair costs for your window
yesterday and my paycheck only comes next week.”
 
Jimin suppresses a snort. He sneaked out at night for the umpteenth time two
weeks ago and somehow his shitty window broke when he tried to close it from
the outside. His mother wasn’t even mad at him when he told her about the
window being broken the next day.
 
“Forget it. I’m not hungry.”
 
“But you have to eat something, sweetheart,” she tries again and somehow it
makes Jimin mad.
 
Does no one ever listen to him?
 
“I said I’m not hungry, mum. Can I go to my room now?” he snaps and glares at
her as if she was responsible for everything bad that happens in his life.
 
And maybe she is.
 
But Jimin knows deep down inside of him she isn't.
 
“Sorry, of course you can. Do you have a lot of homework to do?”
 
“Yeah,” another lie. As if he would ever do something like homework. They both
know it but she doesn't say another word before he retreats to his room in
brooding silence and shuts his door.
 
Why him?
 
Why does it have to be him who’s stuck here? Why does it have to be him who
suffers from his parents’ divorce? Why can’t he live in the city anymore where
he belongs, where his life wouldn’t be so immensely and infinitely shitty and
miserable?
 
If only his mother still had someone else to take care of, then she would maybe
just finally leave him alone for once. He isn’t a baby anymore and she knows
that.
 
Ever since the day she got him out of jail for having been caught with underage
drinking and smoking weed, she knew.
 
It was the day everything got even worse because now there’s this sheer worry
in her eyes, that unmistaken sorrow that shines through her irises that reminds
Jimin of what he’s done — of what he is — every time she looks at him. And it
almost kills him.
 
He throws himself onto his bed and sighs in frustration. Stares at the small
plastic star stickers on his ceiling that glow in the dark and thinks about
finally getting rid of them.
 
But then a shattering weariness seeps deep into his bones, makes him feel tired
and drained, and he closes his eyes as if he could shut out reality.
 
He’s going to take those childish stars down soon.
 
But not today.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
It’s in the late afternoon when Jimin stops in front of the convenience store
with his skateboard and kicks it up into his hand when he gets off of it.
 
The sun is already slowly setting behind the hills of the forest, plunging the
scenery in an orange glow that paints the town in a utopian, surreal hue
straight out of a fantasy world.
 
The weather has gradually become warmer, it being almost summer, and Jimin has
already gotten his denim hot pants out of the deepest corner of his dresser in
preparation for the hotter days. He wouldn’t mind wearing them to school but
even he understands that putting them on would cause more trouble than
necessary, so he usually just wears them when he goes to have fun at the disco
or at the park where he picks up most of his company.
 
Those guys like it when he wears them, not like his stuck up teachers who all
think he has some hidden agenda he's displaying by wearing skimpy clothes.
 
But right now he’s dressed pretty tamely.
 
Light blue ripped jeans and a black sweater with various random neon pink and
yellow and pastel blue and green words stitched into it, neckline not even
revealing much of his collarbones.
 
He struts into the convenience store, skateboard dangling from his hand at his
side, pushes back his hair with his other hand as he affects a studied bored
expression on his face.
 
His eyes twitch only a little when he sees who is currently manning the
counter.
 
Jimin didn’t even know he’s got a job.
 
But how would he know? It’s not like Jimin has talked to him all that much yet
except for asking him about their stupid band name.
 
‘Cotton Candy’.
 
What a lamename for a tryhard punk-pop band.
 
“Hey,” he says nonchalantly, making Yoongi startle a little before he looks up
from the magazine he’s been reading until now. The other man only seems to
realise that it’s him when their gazes meet.
 
“Oh. Hi, Jimin,” Yoongi slurs, a sexy drawl to his voice as always, but Jimin
is pretty sure that the other man doesn’t really do it on purpose, is probably
not even aware of what his voice does to him. It’s probably just his natural
way of talking, and it’s hot.
 
And it’s not the only thing that is pleasing to Jimin’s senses in all the best
ways possible.
 
Yoongi’s bluish black hair looks dishevelled, a little as if he’s just gotten
out of bed and he actually has piercings lining the shell of his ears, one more
piercing adorning his right eyebrow. His skin looks like the softest cream,
delicious and sweet, some stubbles on his chin probably from not shaving
properly this morning, the hands that hold the magazine he's reading large and
his fingers long.
 
Oh, what these fingers could do to him, Jimin barely wants to imagine.
 
The thought is only making him grin a little wider.
 
He walks up straight to the counter, coming to a halt in front of him before he
continues speaking. “Didn’t know you were working here. Never saw you here
before, Yoongi,” he’s actually proud of remembering Yoongi’s name. He’s usually
not one to memorise the names of the guys he wants to get under the sheets
with. Although most of the time, there are no sheets involved at all since he
usually gets what he wants in public bathrooms, on backseats of a car or at a
dark park at night.
 
He leans his skateboard against the counter and props up his elbows on the
surface in front of him, looks at Yoongi with his coy smile that he has
practised to perfection. Eyes crinkling a little at the corners, lips set in a
perfect curve.
 
“Been only working here for a few weeks. You know, ‘cause of our trip,” Yoongi
replies, and Jimin tries to ignore the dull pang in his chest when he’s
reminded of that, of how he had to invite himself because otherwise he would
never be part of it. And yet he isn’t even sure if he really wants to be a part
of it. Only wants to get away from here.
 
“Oh, I see,” he says a little absentmindedly, glancing at the box full of
Pokémon bubblegums that are all wrapped up in red paper with little Pikachus
printed on it, a sign above the box advertising the collector stickers that are
inside of each of them. For a moment he had thought about buying one, but when
he sees the sign he dismisses the idea again. “Give me a pack of Luckies,” he
looks back at Yoongi, who seems to have been studying him, and briefly lets the
tip of his tongue lick over his dry lips.
 
The other man seems to be totally unaffected by his presence, though, and Jimin
has half a mind to just pull him by the collar of his perfectly straight work
polo shirt and kiss some sense into him.
 
“Can I see your ID?” Yoongi asks and Jimin scoffs.
 
“You know that I’m sixteen, what the fuck,” Jimin laughs, tries to play it cool
but he’s actually a little miffed. If this is Yoongi’s attempt at flirting with
him, he’s doing a really terrible job.
 
Yoongi just shrugs and curves his lips into a lopsided grin. “Sorry, I gotta
ask everyone.”
 
“I don’t have my ID with me. Can’t you just give me the cigs? I’m gonna show
you my ID some other time, if you want,” Jimin tries and Yoongi arches his
eyebrows at that, seemingly in thought and inner conflict for a moment.
 
“Well, fine. Just this once, though. Next time you’re gonna show me.”
 
“Sure,” Jimin smiles, biting his lower lip triumphantly as Yoongi moves to get
a box of his favourite cigarette brand out of the cabinet behind him. Jimin
uses the opportunity to pick one of his beloved strawberry-and-cream lollipops
out of the small lollipop tree next to the Pokémon bubblegums and puts it on
the counter.
 
When Yoongi turns back at him and beeps the cigarettes, he blinks when he
notices the lonely candy lying on the white surface in front of him and moves
to grab it, too.
 
“Can I have it for free?” Jimin interrupts his movement, and Yoongi’s hand
hovers comically over the lollipop as he snaps his eyes up to look at him.
“Since we’re bandmates, you could give it to me for free,” Jimin smiles
sweetly, batting his eyelashes innocently, cupping his cheeks with his hands as
he’s staring up into Yoongi’s face with big eyes, elbows still resting on the
counter, one foot behind him tapping against the tiles of the floor with the
tips of his shoes.
 
Jimin usually gets what he wants.
 
Jimin always gets what he wants.
 
“Since we’re bandmates, you could also just do what everyone else does and pay
for it,” Yoongi retorts dryly and doesn’t hesitate a second before he checks
out the lollipop as well, the ‘beep’ resounding loudly through the otherwise
empty store.
 
Jimin can only stare at Yoongi as he flatly announces the total price and waits
for Jimin to hand him the money, the tapping of his foot halting abruptly.
 
Still flabbergasted he pays, takes his things and leaves, only muttering a
muffled ‘bye’.
 
When he steps out of the store again he throws his skateboard to the floor and
stops it with one foot before he hastily lights himself one of his newly
acquired Lucky Strikes. He puts the cigarette between his lips and inhales
deeply, putting his simple lighter back into the pocket of his jeans together
with the cigarette box.
 
He then starts rolling off on his board, leisurely, taking a drag from his
cigarette from time to time.
 
Yoongi’s got a job.
 
That’s interesting because that also means he has money. And Jimin likes guys
who have money; who have the ability to spoil him if he so desires. What’s
more, Yoongi also knows how to make witty retorts and that might just be right
up Jimin’s alley.
 
On top of that Yoongi is good-looking and he’s older, so starting something
with the drummer could make the whole ‘being in a band’ thing a hundred times
more interesting.
 
And interesting is just what he needs right now.
 
For all of his regular fuck buddies have really become boring as heck lately
and he needs something to take his mind off the daily misery that is his life.
Chapter End Notes
     We will go to hell. Please don't hate us. This is going to be happy
     and fluffy and shit eventually. Promise. It will just be a roller-
     coster until we get there, so be prepared for lots and lots of pining
     and stuff :D
      
     We don’t know when the next update will be as we still have to write
     everything and also have a ton of other stuff planned (and almost
     ready) so please anticipate <3
     Come scream at us on twitter and let’s be friends! (ﾉ´ヮ´)ﾉ*: ･ﾟ
***** Two. *****
Chapter Notes
     In which Jimin is just a little cringey, and Yoongi somewhat dense
     (and maybe somewhat shy).
     ☾ = Yoongi
     ☼ = Jimin
See the end of the chapter for more notes
                                      –☾–
                                        
If there is something in this world that Yoongi hates – it’s Monday mornings.
 
Not only because Mondays are the first days after weekends – and he loves
weekends (despite having to work on Saturdays and Sundays sometimes but he can
handle it) – but also because the first two lessons of the week are actually
math.
 
His math teacher cannot stand him.
 
Sure, he isn’t the best student, never aspired to be, especially not when it’s
about math, but he isn’t a troublemaker either. No, it’s certainly not that and
Yoongi knows that for a fact.
 
Yoongi’s math teacher doesn’t pick on Yoongi because he sucks at math or
anything of that sort, he simply hates him for being Min Yoongi, son of Min
Sungho who so happens to be a teacher at this school as well and Yoongi’s math
teacher hates his father’s guts.
 
Yoongi doesn’t exactly know why that is, but he knows that the two teachers
often get into heated arguments with each other. However, Yoongi has no idea
what they are about, only listens to his father complain and bitch about the
other teacher at home to his mother sometimes when his dad isn’t aware that
Yoongi can hear him.
 
Another downside of Yoongi’s dad being a teacher at his school is certainly
that a lot of students throw him hateful gazes sometimes because his father is
their teacher and a strict one at that and Yoongi understands; he wouldn’t want
his father to be his teacher either, but what can he do? It’s not his fault
that his dad is working at this school.
 
He's still scribbling down some music notes into his battered notebook when the
teacher enters and, without a word – instead he claps his hands a few times
(something Yoongi finds decidedly annoying) – makes everyone in the room shut
up.
 
“Class, we will do exercises A, B and F today but before that go to page 132 of
your theory book and—,” Yoongi is already shutting off. He won’t grasp the
subject anyway, so why should he bother and listen? Maybe Taehyung will be able
to help him later, much better than this so called teacher ever could.
 
His gaze wanders to the window and he starts to think about summer holidays,
about the days at the lake with his friends, about late night adventures in the
park or sleepovers in their tents in Seokjin’s and Taehyung’s shared garden. He
thinks about the contest, daydreams a little about how they’re going to win,
about how happy they all will be, about how Jimin will smile at him when they
do—
 
He squints his eyes briefly and tries to banish the thoughts of the pink-haired
vocalist to the farthest corner of his mind before he pretends to listen to his
teacher’s ramblings again. But soon enough, his thoughts are back to square
one. He thinks about lying at the shore of the lake next to Jimin, he thinks
about sneaking out at night to meet up with Jimin at the park, he thinks about
things he shouldn’t think about like how pretty his lips are and how his eyes
shimmer with light when he sings.
 
He’s staring at his math book without actually seeing any letters and numbers
when his train of thought gets interrupted by a tiny paper ball that lands
directly on his desk in front of his nose. He furrows his eyebrows before he
unfolds it and recognises Seokjin’s handwriting. He peeks at his friend who is
sitting at the table next to his and raises an eyebrow.
 
‘You did the hw, right?
He wants to collect it
after the lesson and
I don’t have shit.’
 
Yoongi makes a face at that and scribbles down his reply in tiny letters next
to Seokjin’s question.
 
‘I don’t have much.
we’ll see in the
five min break?’
 
He crumples the paper again and just as he wants to throw it back to Seokjin
the teacher says his name and he knows he is fucked.
 
“Min Yoongi,” he booms, “stop distracting other students or I’ll send you to
the principal. You really want to meet him again after what happened last
week?” Yoongi didn’t do shit last week. It was another student who drew a big
ass ugly comic version of their teacher on the blackboard and he was the one to
pay for it just because he laughed about it. It was funny as heck, what could
he do?
 
“But I haven’t done anything,” he retorts, annoyed by how he’s the centre of
attention again. But once he's said it out loud, he regrets it – immensely. He
knows it was of no use to try and defend himself as soon as he sees the scowl
on his teacher’s face.
 
“I’ve had enough of you. Get out of my classroom, you will catch up what you’re
missing out on during this lesson after school at detention,” Yoongi has to
swallow down the huff that’s lodged in his throat to prevent an even worse
reaction as he stands up. As he passes Seokjin he puts his half-finished
homework next to his friend and leaves the class.
 
The teacher must be fucking kidding him.
 
The huff he’s suppressed comes out once the door is closed. What an asshole of
a teacher. Yoongi won’t miss him at all when he finally graduates. And by god,
he cannot wait to finally graduate. To finally go to college. The only thing
that worries him about the fact that he will go to college and move to another
city is that he won’t live as close to his friends anymore. His friends who
have been with him for years, who have always supported him, went through thick
and thin with him, are his second family.
 
He loves them all dearly and he’s so scared that once they won’t be able to see
each other every day, they are going to lose sight of each other and drift
apart.
 
He never wants to let that happen.
 
He leans against the wall next to the door of the classroom and stares a hole
into space. The hallway is cool compared to the classroom but the air is still
lukewarm against his skin. Through the wide windows opposite of him, he can see
the schoolyard. It’s currently empty and he wonders if he could just go out
there until the bell rings, just to get some fresh air, but he decides against
it.
 
He sighs. His father won’t be happy when he hears about him getting detention.
 
The five-minute break comes and goes with no Seokjin coming out and Yoongi
assumes he's currently copying his homework. He can just hope that fucker
finishes his homework, too, with the help of others. He sighs and once his legs
get too tired he sits down cross-legged on the floor. He half expects the
teacher with his anti-Min Yoongi sensors to come barging out of the room just
to scold him for sitting down – but it doesn’t happen.
 
Instead, Yoongi’s mind drifts off to the lyrics Namjoon gave him yesterday so
that he could help him with the melody. He starts playing around with the
rhythm inside of his head while quietly drumming on his thighs with his flat
hands and the pads of his fingers. He’s totally feeling it when suddenly the
bell rings, indicating the end of the lesson. He wonders for how long he's been
in thought but scrambles onto his feet quickly before the door flies open and
his classmates start filing out of the room.
 
He waits until the majority of the students have left and then walks back in
again. He receives the detention slip from the teacher, who doesn’t even look
at him, and then goes back to his desk where Seokjin is already waiting. He
gets his stuff and then leaves the room with his friend, groans once they’re
out while crumpling his detention slip up a little between his fingers and
shoving it into his pocket.
 
Great, now he’ll have to rush to work after school directly instead of having
an hour to chill at home.
 
“I’m so sorry, Yoongi. I didn’t know he was watching,” Seokjin apologises,
worry written on his face. Yoongi can see that he’s genuinely feeling guilty
for getting him into trouble.
 
“Don’t worry, Jin-ah. You know he hates me. At least you could get away with
your homework,” Yoongi knows his half-assed homework isn’t the best but he does
have his tricks on how to get away with things. He’s also had Taehyung and
Jeongguk help him a little. It’s still weird that his younger friends,
especially Taehyung, seem to be little geniuses who don’t have any trouble with
grasping whatever subject with ease while Yoongi feels like he doesn't even
grasp the easiest concepts.
 
“Yeah, thanks again. I really should keep my diary updated. I got totally
distracted with Jihae yesterday,” and that’s something Yoongi doesn’t want to
know more about. What Seokjin and his girlfriend do instead of doing homework
is for sure none of his business and interest.
 
“TMI, Jin. Keep that to yourself,” Yoongi smacks the back of his head and
laughs when Seokjin grumbles at him with a scandalised expression on his face.





The rest of the school day passes without any other incident. Yoongi goes about
his classes, as usual, tries to pay attention, tries to not get into even more
trouble than he already is. His father had already gotten wind of his detention
and dictated him to the teacher’s room, giving him a lecture about paying
attention in class. He’s accepted the scolding with dignity and tried to forget
about it as quickly as possible afterwards.

When school is out, he meets his friends in the hallway, but just briefly.

“I gotta go to the detention room now. 'twas nice knowing y’all. Farewell,”
Yoongi mutters dramatically, his theatrical rendition only jarred by the fact
that he does so with a completely blank face.

“Your sacrifice will not be forgotten, comrade,” Namjoon murmurs sagely with
eyes closed and hand on his heart, the two youngest snickering at him behind
their fists.

“No, but really, Yoongi. Thank you for bearing the brunt for me,” Seokjin adds,
pats Yoongi’s shoulder and presses his lips into a thin line, “I owe you one.”

“Nah, it’s chill. Just take care of the little ones while I’m suffocating in
that classroom,” Yoongi replies with a lopsided grin, mussing up Taehyung’s
hair not caring about the fact that the younger boy is already half a head
taller than him. “Just don’t go and eat ice cream without me or I’ll kill you,”
Yoongi says sweetly before he lifts his hand to wave briefly and then turns to
leave.

He shuffles towards where the detention will take place and wants to get over
with the whole ordeal as quickly as possible.

He wrenches the door open and suddenly it’s like in one of those television
dramas when the time slows down for a moment and the protagonist looks into the
eyes of his love interest for the very first time.

Yoongi’s breath hitches in his throat.

Jimin is sitting there, pink fluffy hair pushed back to reveal his forehead.
It’s illuminated by the orange glow of the late afternoon sun, swaying softly
as he whips his head towards the door when he hears it open. Blank eyes are
staring at Yoongi before they go a little bigger in recognition. It only lasts
for a second though before they narrow again, a faint smirk appearing on the
other boy’s plush lips.

“Hey, drummer boy,” Jimin drawls and Yoongi just stands there on the threshold
of the room, backpack slung around one of his shoulders, before he finally
finds the ability to move again. “Didn’t think I’d meet youhere.”

He can only briefly take in Jimin’s form, clad in a leather jacket and ripped
jeans. He really looks like the rebel everyone says he is, but Yoongi doesn’t
give a rat's ass about the rumours. Only about his own heartbeat obnoxiously
picking up. He reluctantly takes a step into the room before he goes to sit in
the front row, two desks away from Jimin.

“Hi,” he mutters with a shrug, doesn’t manage to say more than that not only
because his throat suddenly feels very tight, but also because the teacher who
will keep an eye on them enters the classroom as well.

They both hand him their detention slips – Yoongi's crumpled almost beyond
recognition but Jimin's not looking any better, as Yoongi joyfully discovers –
and get their paperwork in return.

Yoongi rifles through his backpack for his pencils, getting chills down his
spine because he can feel Jimin’s gaze burning into the back of his head. The
classroom suddenly feels cramped despite them being the only people here. The
chair next to his creaks then and when Yoongi looks up again, Jimin is sitting
at the desk next to his. He startles briefly before he reassumes a nonchalant
expression.

"Um, can I help you?" he mutters, gaze flickering over Jimin's face, something
glinting in the other's eyes.

“Can I borrow a pen?” Jimin asks sweetly, elbow propped up on the desk while
his chin is resting on his palm. His lips are shaped like a smiling pout and
his eyes almost half-lidded, a lollipop dangling from the fingers of his other
hand which he's twisting between his fingers. Yoongi briefly forgets how to
breathe when Jimin lifts it to his lips and just presses them against it,
making them look even more plump and sinful than they already are.

Yoongi feels something stir low in his gut that he would really, really not
like to think about right now.

“Sure,” he says as casually as he can muster, takes an extra pencil out of his
pencil case and hands it to Jimin who puts the lollipop into his mouth before
he extends his hand and plucks the pencil from between his fingers.

“Thanks,” Yoongi feels the tips of his ears turn warmer when Jimin mouths the
word around the candy with a grin, teeth clacking against its hard surface.

"No problem, just give it back later," he reminds Jimin, not keen on losing any
more pencils than he already did lately. Seokjin is a notorious pencil thief.
He turns back to his things again then, finally starting with the tasks his
math teacher has so graciously prepared for him. He wants to get the hell out
of here as fast as possible. He also shouldn’t be late for work.

Even as the teacher who keeps an eye on them announces that he’ll go and fetch
some coffee for himself, he doesn’t look up from the sheets of paper in front
of him, eyes firmly fixed on the letters and numbers on there. That doesn’t
necessarily mean that he is able to concentrate much on them.

As soon as the teacher has left the room, the chair next to him creaks again,
accompanied by dragging sounds on the floor. When he turns his head, Jimin is
sitting right next to him, looking at his sheets of paper with a bored
expression on his face.

“Math, hm?” he mutters before he swirls his pierced tongue around the lollipop
that has shrunken in size considerably since the last time Yoongi saw it.
Yoongi quickly averts his gaze. His heart, however, doesn’t stop beating
erratically, not with Jimin’s sweet scent in his nose, sweet floral mixed with
heavy cigarettes and something that is undeniably unique, a scent composed by
the life Jimin lives.

“Mhm,” Yoongi hums, not really knowing what to say. What are you supposed to do
in such a situation? How do people make superfluous small talk? Why is he not
privy to the wisdoms of idle banter? Fuck, it's not like he’s never talked to
Jimin before but Jimin's the most beautiful boy he’s ever seen and he just
doesn't want to say anything stupid now.

“So,” Jimin tries again, leaning his elbow on Yoongi’s desk, smirking a little,
“why are you here?"

His voice sounds almost playful, almost as if he genuinely wants to know what
has brought Yoongi here, but somehow Yoongi knows that that’s only half the
truth. Nevertheless, he is glad that Jimin has asked him a question that he can
answer with more than just a monosyllabic noise.

“Jin wanted to exchange notes with me during math class. The teacher seems to
have it in for me, so I ended up here for ‘disturbing the class’ while Jin is
probably out with the others eating ice cream or something,” Yoongi shares but
he doesn’t reveal the fact that his teacher has an unfounded dislike for him
because of his father.

Jimin guffaws airily at that, a sound so crisp and clear that Yoongi's heart
stutters.

“Cute,” Jimin smirks, and Yoongi is not sure if he’s mocking him or if he’s
being serious. He doesn’t really want to know.

“Pft. And why are you here then? Have you cussed at a teacher?” he retorts,
going poker-faced, arching an eyebrow quizzically. Jimin scoffs, offering him
an incredulous smirk before rolling his eyes in annoyance.

“Nah, got caught smoking on the school grounds."

“Aren’t you allowed to smoke here?” Yoongi asks, knowing from firsthand
experience that there is a designated smoking area where students are allowed
to have a smoke during the breaks. He’s done it countless times before.

Jimin laughs at that, a sweet sound that reverberates through the room.

“Yeah, sure,” he grins, licking his lips before biting his bottom lip, “but I
did it behind the school building. During class. As if it would matter where
you smoke your cigarette,” he grumbles, and Yoongi sort of comprehends where
Jimin is coming from. But Yoongi is also used to follow the rules if there are
any. Yoongi eyes him for a few moments before he turns his gaze back to his
papers. He should really get this shit done and over with.

“Well, the smoking areas are there for a reason, but I get that those rules
don't always make sense.”

"Rules are there to be broken, Yoongi, don't you—," but he doesn’t get to say
anything further as the teacher reenters the room with a steaming cup of coffee
in his hand. When he sees Jimin sitting so close to Yoongi, he furrows his
brows and admonishes Jimin for disturbing Yoongi, something that seems to leave
Jimin utterly unimpressed.

He just haughtily gives the teacher a once over before he drags his chair back
to his desk, the leg of the chair making a deafening grinding sound as he does
so.

Yoongi is taken aback a little by how Jimin behaves.

Sure, he knew that Jimin isn’t exactly the most well-behaved boy at this
school. He knows that he’s often late for practice, that he doesn’t want to
hang out with the band, that he seems to avoid them at school, but he never
thought Jimin would actually ooze this sort of hostility in a setting such as
this.

Yoongi briefly glances at him before he glues his eyes back on his assignment.

Jimin doesn’t try to talk to him again after that. Yoongi quickly finishes his
math tasks with various levels of confidence and hands it in as soon as he’s
filled out the last one of the problems on his sheets.

He hesitates briefly when he remembers that Jimin still has his pencil, but the
other is still scribbling away on his own assignments and Yoongi assumes that
it’s not too grave to lose a pencil when he still has a ton of others at home.
He can keep it for now as long as he gives it back later.

He packs his things into his backpack and slings it onto his shoulder,
intending to leave the room with not much more than a grunt as a goodbye. But
then Jimin does it again.

“Bye, drummer boy,” Jimin looks at him as he says it, doesn’t seem to care a
single bit about the teacher being present as perfect white teeth create little
indents on the plush cushion of his bottom lip.

Yoongi feels his insides combust and he only manages a small smirk before he
shuffles out of the room.


 
 
 
 
 
                                      –☼–
                                        
Jimin is proud for actually being a little early for practice just this one
time.
 
Sure, he’s skipped class again today, but that was only because he forgot to do
his homework and didn’t feel like facing the wrath of his teacher. He’s already
gotten into enough trouble this week and that teacher always makes that funny
face as his head turns as red as a ripe cherry, his mouth blubbering and the
words he spies getting on Jimin's nerves so much that he's often just very
annoyed and angry afterwards. Talking back would definitely just result in even
more trouble.
 
He's sauntering through the corridor into the direction of the music room and
when he gets closer to it, he can hear the muffled noises of drumming behind
the closed door. He steps in front of the door and hesitates for a moment,
listens to the hard beat that resounds behind it.
 
Somehow it makes his heart beat faster, too.
 
He giddily bites his lips, eyes twinkling wickedly for the split of a second,
and grips the door handle before he pushes it open. The sound of the drums
immediately hit his eardrums a lot louder than just a moment ago.
 
Yoongi doesn’t seem to notice him at first, stays focused on the drum kit and
his drumsticks as he hits the cymbals and toms with practised precision, the
base drum vibrating deeply in Jimin’s bones, making his chest almost vibrate
from sheer power. Jimin walks into the room calmly, eyes fixed on Yoongi,
before he plops down on the sofa opposite of him, legs spread wide and
comfortable. There’s no one else in the room, so when Yoongi seems to notice
movement in front of him, he briefly glances up but doesn’t stop playing before
he gets lost in his own world again.
 
It's almost as if he's showing off.
 
Jimin's breath briefly hitches in his throat and he feels like he would like to
touch himself, right then and there, run his hands over his body and down past
the waistband of his denim shorts. There's nothing really that would hold him
back except for the thought of the other band members arriving soon. Too soon.
 
Ever since the other day at detention, his interest for the gruff drummer boy
has just increased by a tenfold, his ambition to somehow conquer him a little
seed in his mind that starts to bloom now.
 
He presses his lips together and has to keep himself from letting his eyes
flutter closed. He bites his bottom lip as if that could keep the wild thoughts
at bay, shrugs off his leather jacket because he's getting warm and then gets
up and intends to walk over to the drums and behind where Yoongi is sitting.
But before he has even taken two steps, the door flies open and in comes Jung
Hoseok.
 
“Min Yoongi, my mate, I have a surprise for—, oh. Oh, hi, Jimin,” Hoseok’s
voice starts off as a loud almost-yell, but when he notices Jimin standing
there, he seems to censor himself immediately. There’s a magazine in his hand
that he’s been waving around but then lowers again as he eyes Jimin with
surprise on his face.
 
Jimin tries not to overthink it. He’s probably just not used to him being
punctual.
 
Jung Hoseok, as Jimin has learned, is strict, very strict when he's in his
element. He's the true born leader of the band. As the founder, he seems to
love it dearly, encourages and motivates the members but also chides them when
they're not concentrating and just fooling around. He also keeps an eye on all
of their activities, even more so than Namjoon and Seokjin who both seem to be
something like their managers and sometimes their roadies. Jimin thinks it's a
little exaggerated for a small school band to actually have two managers but
since those six all seem to be close friends, it probably makes sense.
 
Jimin really still needs to get a hang of all this.
 
But he thinks he's doing pretty well.
 
“Hey, Hoseok,” Jimin mutters back, a little miffed because before Hoseok
arrived he actually saw him and Yoongi being both early as the perfect
opportunity to be alone with the drummer. Fate doesn’t seem to be very kind to
Jimin at the moment. Or well, ever.
 
Yoongi has stopped playing when Hoseok came in. He lets his drumsticks rest on
the surface of the snare drum and gets up from his small stool. Jimin glances
at him from the side as he emerges from behind the drum set. He looks as
flawless as always, dark hair tousled and half covering his eyes and the
delicate silver eyebrow piercing Jimin has noticed the other day, jeans ripped
and T-shirt hugging his broad shoulders just right. He’s a sight to behold and
to Jimin there has never been someone he would have liked to get intimate with
as much as he currently does with Min Yoongi.
 
The only problem is: Min Yoongi doesn’t seem to be particularly keen on
intimately getting to know him.
 
Hoseok waves his magazine again then and grins at Yoongi slyly, sitting down on
the couch before Yoongi joins him there. Jimin stands a little awkwardly to the
side now, not really feeling like he’d be allowed in on their conversation.
After all, he’s still not really a part of them. Doesn't really want to. He
doesn't want to, he doesn't want to—
 
He eavesdrops on their conversation anyway.
 
“A porn magazine. Really, Hobi?” Yoongi deadpans without a hint of hesitation
or embarrassment anywhere in his voice or on his face.
 
“Yeah, isn’t that awesome? Cost me a fortune but wow, you should see the girl
on page—,”
 
“Hobi, if there is anyone on this planet who should know that I’m not
interested in tits, then it’s you,” Yoongi groans, a little exasperatedly, and
Jimin’s stomach does a happy flip when he realises what that sentence coming
out of Yoongi’s mouth just meant.
 
I'm not interested in tits.
 
The corner of Jimin's mouth lifts into a small, excited grin.
 
Well, that makes two of them.
 
He does an internal victory dance, his chances of starting something with the
older man suddenly increased by a thousandfold. Not that it would have been a
problem if Yoongi was straight. Jimin usually knows how to use the fact that
some guys are curious about their sexuality to his advantage.
 
“I know, hyung, but Joonie isn’t here, so be a best friend and just have a peek
with me, okay?” Yoongi groans again, pinches the bridge of his nose before he
gives in.
 
“Fine, show me those boobs but don’t expect me to drool with you,” Yoongi
grumbles and Hoseok shows him the pictures of the more and less naked women in
his magazine. Yoongi props up his elbow on his friend's shoulder, bored face
cupped by his hand. He leans in so close to Hoseok and is so casual with him,
smiles at him fondly actually, that Jimin cannot help but feel a strange bout
of—, of jealousy burning in his veins. At least he assumes that's what it is.
 
He glances at them, expression sulky and displeased, before he licks his lips.
 
"Why would you look at those cheap pictures and not go out there and get you a
real woman?" he asks, miffed, the comment intended to be a jab at Hoseok. Both
of them look up at him when he talks, Hoseok's lips pursed and Yoongi's pulled
into a small frown.
 
"Don't be such a killjoy, Jimin," Yoongi puts an arm around his friend's
shoulder whose lips are now almost forming a triangle from being pulled down so
much, "he's not interested in that right now. He just wants to see some nice,
firm tits," Yoongi pats Hoseok's back and Jimin arches an eyebrow, even more
peeved about Yoongi taking his friend's side so casually.
 
He doesn't know why he feels jealous. It's not like he seeks anything else from
Yoongi than some fun. Maybe he just wants Yoongi's attention the same way
everyone else is giving him their attention – teachers, his mother, the guys
who want his mouth around their dicks.
 
Why, just why, is Yoongi different?
 
He sucks the barbell of his tongue piercing between his teeth just as the door
flies open again. Jimin jerks a little from surprise but he is instantly glad
that he’s not alone with the other two men anymore when Taehyung and Jeongguk
file into the room.
 
Taehyung, however, looks close to tears.
 
“My tamagotchi has died!” he laments, voice wavering, and he looks so upset
that Jimin almost feels pity for him. But just almost. Who the fuck cries about
their fucking tamagotchi? The younger boy holds up his pink egg-shaped toy and
waves it around as if something would magically happen by doing so.
 
Jimin’s eyes grow bigger when Jeongguk cuddles his friend at that, when Hoseok
drops his magazine in favour of jumping onto his feet and walking over to
Taehyung to hug him as well, and when even Yoongi stands to go and ruffle
Taehyung’s hair, his jaw goes slack completely.
 
"Don't worry, Taetae, your next try will go better. We can care for it
together, okay?" Jeongguk asks and Taehyung's smile immediately returns to his
face, spreading a warm feeling in the entire room that doesn't quite reach
Jimin. He feels rather cold.
 
Even though he's tried, even though he's got plenty of opportunities in the
classroom with both Jeongguk and Taehyung sharing the same class as him, he's
never really managed to gauge their characters or what they think of him.
Usually, they throw glances at him that could mean anything, but Jimin never
stays long enough to find out. Even though they could potentially mean well
with him, Jimin knows that beneath all those layers of friendliness there could
still lurk all those bad intentions Jimin knows all too well.
 
No, he certainly isn't keen on finding out what they really think of him.
 
Jimin can only stare at them and try not to feel so out of place while he’s
still standing there to the side, not feeling like it would be okay if he went
over to them right now. If ever, for even only a second, he felt any stirring
urge to comfort Taehyung too, as someone who is grown up, an adult – despite
only being a little older than the youngest – that feeling is certainly gone
now.
 
He just cannot do friendships. He's never learned how. All he knows is emptying
beer bottles in a park under the starlight, being spoiled by older dudes who
want to buy his attention with concert tickets, cheap alcohol and the
occasional joint that he usually desperately needs to loosen up and would never
pass on.
 
And it stings to know that he will never fit but at least when he's singing he
feels like he's worth something, needed and not just an empty shell that lives
from day to day.
 
A small light among the darkness of his mind.
 
That's why he stays.
 
Taehyung eventually calms down and practice soon starts. Jimin sings his lungs
out. Every little emotion that is still in him he puts into his voice, makes
himself forget, sings the words that someone else – probably Namjoon or Yoongi
– has written with all the passion he can muster.
 
He wishes he could write his own lyrics one day, but he also knows that if he
tries he has to lay his whole heart bare in front of everyone.
 
And he just cannot do that.
 
After a few songs, they have their usual break and Yoongi gets up from behind
the drumset, moves into the middle of the room and flaps a few papers in his
hand. Yoongi glances at him warily while Jimin fetches a bottle of water one of
the others has placed on a low shelf that is filled with music theory books. He
takes a few sips, not bothering to ask the owner if he actually can.
 
"I wrote a new song, guys. Not sure if we should start practising this one
before the gig, but—, you know. Just wanted to show you," he announces and
Jimin sees that there are lyrics and music notes scribbled on the sheets of
paper.
 
The gig is an actual gig, not the school's contest; it's a solid, real concert
that Namjoon magically secured them in the next bigger city over. Not the big
city, but one with an actual live house. It's bands night in two days,
apparently, and everyone and their mother can apply for a short performance
just for fun if they want to.
 
And they have unanimously decided that, yes, they want to.
 
Of course, they won't be paid, but they also don't have to pay a fee or
anything, so it's all good. It will be a good practice run before the actual
contest in some weeks time. And for Jimin this will be the perfect opportunity
to get out of this shithole for at least one evening.
 
He puts the bottle back down and takes a curious peek at the sheets that Yoongi
is distributing but Taehyung and Jeongguk have already hogged Yoongi's sides,
leaving no room for Jimin to get any closer.
 
"Awesome, hyung! This looks hella good!" Hoseok cheers, taking one sheet into
his hands, studying it intently. "The lyrics sound pretty cool already!" Yoongi
abashedly rubs his nape at the praise before he ruffles his own hair a little.
 
"Yeah—, well. I composed it using my old acoustic, pretty sure some things are
gonna change when we start practising it," he says with faux nonchalance and a
small, proud grin on his face.
 
"We could play it right now! We're just gonna read the sheet music," Taehyung
says chipperly and Jimin's stomach drops. He watches how Yoongi distributes the
sheets to the members and takes his own between his fingers when Yoongi hands
it to him, their gazes meeting briefly, wordlessly, before Yoongi goes back to
his drumset.
 
Jimin sucks his tongue piercing between his teeth again, almost hurting himself
while doing so, and stares at the music notes in front of him.
 
He has no idea how to read them.
 
His mother had tried to teach him to read them when he was a kid, but back then
he never had a real interest in music on that level. His music teachers in the
past tried to make him read them, but he never really got it. His current music
teacher—
 
Well, he will make Jimin fail the class when he doesn't manage to get his shit
together for the final exams.
 
But that won't magically enable Jimin to read sheet music now.
 
"Jimin?" he's still staring at the papers, pretending to read them, at least
being able to read the lyrics in Yoongi's sleek handwriting, when Hoseok's
voice resounds a little blurry in the background, addressing him. "Hey, Jimin,
are you listening?" he snaps out of it, looks at the others who are all
watching him and he suddenly feels defensive, a cold little tingle trickling
down his spine, like he just wants to stomp out of the room and not come back.
 
They will ridicule him, laugh at him for not being able to read what's written
on there while all of them apparently can with ease and he just wants to run.
 
"I'm—, yeah, I'm—," he glances at the exit but Hoseok already continues.
 
"Alright, so you just have a look at the lyrics and the melody while we try to
play through it a few times," apparently the group has decided to indeed
practise the song despite having to rehearse for the contest and the gig. Jimin
would be fine with that, doesn't really care, but he has no idea about how to
read the melody.
 
"Y-yeah, sure. I'm gonna do that," he says after all, not wanting to give them
the satisfaction of finding out that he's stupid.
 
The band gets down to practice and Jimin goes to sit on the battered couch,
trying to at least cram the lyrics into his head. If there's anything he's good
at, it's learning lyrics by heart to the point of being able to sing them in
his sleep.
 
He's listening to what the band is playing, the melody for the vocals hidden in
the chords of the guitars, in the bass line and the rhythm of the drums, but
Jimin cannot be sure how Yoongi really intended it to be because he cannot read
the fucking sheets. He's gripping the papers, hard, almost to the point of
scrunching them up, when he notices that the band is playing without the drums.
 
And then someone sits down beside him.
 
He looks up from the sheets and stares directly into Yoongi's cat-like dark
eyes.
 
His breath hitches in his throat.
 
"You look upset. Don't like it?" Yoongi asks, nodding towards the music in
Jimin's hands. Jimin looks back down at it again and bites his bottom lip
before the piercing snaps against his teeth again.
 
"No—, no, that's not it. The lyrics are awesome, to be honest," and for once,
he really ishonest. Yoongi has a real talent for writing music. They're all
talented, he can't deny that. For a simple school band, they're really, really
good and he wishes more than anything that they won't find out that he isn’t as
talented as they think.
 
If only he could read those fucking music notes.
 
He has so many regrets about not paying attention in class right now, about not
listening to his mother and actually putting an effort into learning how to
read music.
 
"So, why are you looking as if it's going to rain all summer long?" Yoongi's
voice is so goddamn soothing, deep and raspy, and Jimin wants to drown in it.
His heart hammers in his throat and he doesn't know why. He doesn't want it to
but he's probably so fucking nervous about letting Yoongi know that he's dumb
that he cannot calm down his raging nerves right now.
 
"It's just—, I mean. This—, I can't read this," Jimin mutters under his breath
and hopes that Yoongi didn't hear him just now. That he won't ask him about it.
But tough luck.
 
"Sorry, I know my handwriting is horrible," Yoongi retorts and it sounds
actually lighthearted and—, kind.
 
Jimin wants to run more than ever.
 
"No! No, it's not that. It's just—," Jimin hesitates, crumpling the sheets even
more, "I can't read the music notes," he mumbles, waiting for the laughter,
some amused chuckle at least. But it doesn't come.
 
"O-oh," Yoongi says instead, "'kay, um, why didn't you just say so? You know
that's—, nothing we would have expected from anyone, it's really tough, to be
honest. We can play the melody for you if you want us to, y'know," Jimin never
gives any fucks about anything, or anyone for that matter, and he intends to
keep it that way. But he could—, hug Yoongi right now. Hug him for not laughing
at him, for treating him just like a normal human being.
 
But he doesn't hug him. He doesn't even say anything for a moment.
 
He just looks at him and starts to smile.
 
"That'd be great," he says, smoothing the papers out again, scooting a little
closer to Yoongi, leaning in. "Hyung," he starts, drawing his lower lip between
his teeth, a small grin fueled by newfound confidence because Yoongi didn't
laugh at him, "you're pretty good at reading that stuff, right? I mean, you can
even write it on your own!"
 
"Yeah, uh, I—, I mean I'm pretty good at it," Yoongi agrees and Jimin notices
how he tries to lean away from him. How the tips of his ears gradually turn
red. Jimin's grin grows. He briefly licks his lips before he leans his elbow on
the back of the couch, letting his head rest on his hand, eyes briefly
flickering to Yoongi's lips.
 
"Could you teach me?" he asks, pressing his lips together, briefly, "I'd
actually really like to be able to read what you wrote, Yoongi. I'd really like
you—, to teach me," he can't help it. He sees an opportunity and he takes it.
 
He looks into Yoongi's eyes and he wants him.
 
Yoongi quickly clears his throat and looks away to where the others are, his
cheeks now red, too, and the skin of his face glistening with sweat.
 
"You mean—, like, tutoring?"
 
"Yep. That's exactly what I mean. How about you come to mine and show me how to
read those hieroglyphs, hm? Please, Yoongi, it would help me so much! For
school, too! If I fail my exams, I'm gonna fail the class," Jimin juts his
lower lip out, trying to wrap Yoongi around his little finger. The older man
still doesn't look at him but at the other members, Jimin's eyes staying fixed
on him.
 
"I don't know, I—, maybe Taehyung could help you better with that, he—,"
 
"I'll give you a reward," Jimin blurts out before his brain catches up with his
glorious persuasive ideas and Yoongi's head snaps back to him.
 
"A reward?" Yoongi deadpans, one eyebrow raised in suspicion.
 
Before Jimin can backpedal and save the situation, however, someone is beside
them and picks up the water bottle from the shelf Jimin has been drinking from
earlier. Jimin finds out that it is Hoseok's.
 
Oops.
 
"Just do it, hyung. If he fails the class he might not be allowed to be in the
band any longer and we need him," Jimin looks up at Hoseok who is Yoongi's best
friend, who is able to casually look at porn magazines with him, who Yoongi
doesn't shy away from when their faces are close, who Yoongi is comfortable
with – unlike with Jimin.
 
And Jimin cannot help but not like him pretty much because of all of that.
 
But Jimin is also kind of grateful for the other's intervention and oblivious
support right now.
 
For Yoongi seems to mull over his proposition once more, purses his beautiful
full lips before he nods slowly. Jimin just looks at him expectantly, playing
with his tongue piercing, before Yoongi finally agrees.
 
“Okay, fine. But I don’t have much time to come over to your’s more than once a
week. Have enough to do with work,” Yoongi mumbles looking away again. Jimin
almost fancies seeing a slight pink shadow on Yoongi's cheeks. Hoseok just
smiles and pats Yoongi’s shoulder before he goes back to his guitar and the
other two boys.
 
Jimin grins triumphantly and nods.
 
“We’ll meet whenever you want, Yoongi. Just tell me,” he gets up and resists
unwrapping a lollipop and putting it into his mouth to absentmindedly suck on
it because he wouldn't be able to sing with it in his mouth. But the craving is
really bad right now. He looks back down at Yoongi, wide smile and playful eyes
still in place, and enjoys how Yoongi looks back at him. The elder's eyes are
studying his, making Jimin wonder if drummer boy finally picked up on what’s
going on.
 
He would really like him to finally pick up on it.
 
But then Yoongi simply gets up and shuffles past him.
 
“I’m off work on Saturday in a week. But let’s start a little now already.
It’ll be easier with the others around to play the melody,” and with that he’s
back behind the drums leaving Jimin dry and hanging, feeling a little rebuffed
and very much frustrated.
 
Yet he still smiles and walks back to the microphone where the others get to
demonstrate him how they are perfectly capable of reading the melody of the
song and he is not.
Chapter End Notes
     This fic is our main focus right now, so we hope we can upload more
     soon :)
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***** Three. *****
Chapter Notes
     pls protect Jimin at all costs ♡
     The end of this chapter turned out angstier and more painful than we
     thought, oh well.
     Also did we ever say we wanted to do short chapters for CC? No? Well,
     good because we're already failing hard.
     ☼ = Jimin
See the end of the chapter for more notes
                                      –☼–
                                        
After one more practice run, the day of the gig arrives on Saturday, two days
later. Jimin is well aware of the fact that the concert is the reason why
tutoring with Yoongi, alone, in his room, still has to wait for another week
but somehow he doesn't mind. Securing those private lessons with Yoongi is
still a triumph for him, an achievement he's actually proud of; the best thing
that could have ever happened to him. He's so pleased with himself that he can
manage waiting for another week if absolutely necessary.
 
Jimin is also hellbent on giving Yoongi that reward that he promised him if he
teaches him how to learn sheet music. In which form, he doesn't know yet, but
he's sure he will be able to come up with something that Yoongi likes. He would
actually chuckle about that thought, but right now, he cannot.
 
Right now, he's pretty content with having Yoongi sitting next to him as close
as he currently is. He just got into the white and juniper coloured van, an old
VW T1, a textbook example of hippie vehicle, and looks around the old looking
interior a little as he tries to distract himself from Yoongi's leg pressing
against his. The air is stuffy inside the warm van and with five other people
sitting in there, that's no surprise. The faint scent of a magic tree that
diffuses a soft underlying lime smell penetrates the car obnoxiously, making
Jimin feel dizzy.
 
Just like Yoongi's proximity makes Jimin's skin tingle.
 
The van belongs to Seokjin or his parents, probably, as he's the one who is
driving. Namjoon is sitting next to the driver on the passenger seat and
Taehyung on the other side of Yoongi. Hoseok is in the back, squeezed between
their equipment and—
 
"Where's Jeongguk?" Jimin asks as he realises they’re only six.
 
“Gonna pick him up now, it’s just around the corner. Did you really not know
that you live so close to each other?” Jimin blinks when he looks at Seokjin
who’s talking and purses his lips a little. No, he had no idea and actually he
still doesn’t care. So he just shakes his head with a shrug.
 
It's weird for him to be with them, anyway, when usually he's out at some bar
on Friday nights or at the park, securing his next hook up. But somehow he
doesn't really miss it right now, his mind too preoccupied with other things.
 
His gaze wanders to Yoongi and for a brief second, he thinks that maybe he'll
get the chance for some fun after the gig because who knows what will happen
tonight.
 
The car comes to a halt in a quiet street when they reach the house that must
be Jeongguk's. When Hoseok gets out, Yoongi follows him, climbing over Jimin’s
lap with his crotch facing Jimin and he is definitely not shy of staring
shamelessly before Yoongi is out of the van and out of his field of view again.
He briefly licks his lips and leans his head back against the headrest,
wondering if tonight will bring him any fun.
 
His mind wanders back to why Hoseok and Yoongi got out of the car instead of
just waiting for Jeongguk to come out. But when he looks out of the door that’s
been luckily left open to let in some fresh air, he can see the front door of
the house open and Jeongguk exiting with a middle aged woman in tow. Probably
his mother judging from the same facial features she shares with her son.
 
“Good evening, Yoongi-yah and Hoseok-ah. It’s nice that you pick up our
Jeonggukkie. Are you planning on leaving right away?” Jimin blinks for a second
when he realises that the van is already packed. So where is Jeongguk going to
sit? Underneath the instruments? But what does he care, at least he has secured
a comfy seat for himself.
 
“Hello, Mrs Jeon, hey Gukkie. Yeah, we’d like to leave now, we’re already
running quite late, to be honest,” Hoseok smiles and picks up Jeongguk’s guitar
so that he can put it into the van to the other instruments. Jimin quirks an
eyebrow, observing the scene, studying Jeongguk who tells his mother that they
really got to go now.
 
“Oh, okay,” Jeongguk’s mother says, a little reluctantly, “but don’t drive too
fast, please. It is okay if you’re not on time, just ask the people there
nicely to let you play anyway, okay? Be careful,” Mrs Jeon looks at the car and
then Jimin has her eyes on him, making him feel a little exposed and queasy
because she's an adult and he just can't with adults. He tries to smile either
way, glad when Taehyung distracts her by waving and shouting a loud ‘hello,
Shinhye-ssi’ even though he's almost leaning over him – luckily for Taehyung
without touching him.
 
“We’ll be careful, yes,” Yoongi answers with a bright smile that Jimin hasn’t
seen all that many times yet as he puts an arm around Jeongguk’s shoulder.
“Right, Gukkie? Safety first,” Yoongi adds for good measure and somehow Jimin
thinks that what is playing out in front of him is just one big, fat comedy. He
almost laughs, but he doesn't.
 
“Yes, hyung,” Jeongguk can be barely heard but he looks at the van and then
back at his mother, his ears and cheeks flushed red. “See you later, mum,” he
wants to turn away but before he can, he has her hand on his cheek, rubbing
away something Jimin can’t even see from where he's sitting, awkwardly watching
Jeongguk being babied.
 
Wow, Jeongguk’s mother seems to even top his own mum when it comes to being
overprotective. He does his best to not wrinkle his nose out of second hand
embarrassment and observes how Jeongguk stands still with a mumbled 'mum,
please'. But she is relentless, the worried but fond expression on her face not
fading for a second.
 
“Okay, off you go. Be good and listen to Yoongi and the others. Yoongi-yah, you
will be back before midnight, right?" Jimin almost feels his eyes detaching
from their sockets. Before midnight. He wants to laugh. "I can’t find any rest
without knowing Jeongguk is safe at home."
 
Yoongi’s smile wavers for a second before he nods again. "We’ll do our very
best, Mrs Jeon. Have a nice evening,” Jimin hopes this is another lie, just
part of the show because being back before midnight? How old are they – ten?
 
And then Jimin watches how Yoongi pulls Jeongguk with him, muttering something
to him that Jimin can’t hear but Jeongguk nods and then climbs into the back
after shouting another bye to his mother.
 
“Good bye, son. I love you! Take care," Jimin watches Jeongguk's face contort
with embarrassment when he's not facing her anymore.
 
Meanwhile, Yoongi comes to stand next to Jimin outside of the car, looking at
him imploringly. Jimin can’t help but grin a little because if Yoongi thinks
he’ll move so that he doesn’t have to climb over him again – he is wrong.
 
The drummer seems to get it, for he closes his eyes for a second before he
climbs into the van again. Jimin looks up at him when he places his hand next
to Jimin’s head on the headrest. Only for a second Jimin contemplates just
leaning up and smashing their lips together in front of everyone’s eyes, but
then Yoongi is in his seat again and Jimin averts his gaze to Hoseok who climbs
into the back. He squeezes himself under one of the guitars and looks somewhat
in pain but keeps still, waiting for Jeongguk to sit down next to him with
curved up lips as he waves at Jeongguk’s mother before the door is closed.
 
“Jin, start the damn car, I think Taehyung's amp wants to kill me. It drills a
hole into my back,” their band leader whines with a faked smile still on his
face as soon as Jeongguk’s mother can’t hear them anymore.
 
“Shut up and chill. I'm doing my best here," Seokjin moans before the van is
set into motion again, "let’s figure something out when we're around the
corner."
 
“I’m sorry, hyung,” Jeongguk mumbles to Hoseok, a huge blush still blooming on
his cheeks. Jimin just raises his eyebrows and watches them silently as the car
rolls off. The other five, except for Seokjin who’s driving, wave at Jeongguk's
mother again, everyone's faces straining to smile.
 
They don't come far, only go around the next corner where they slowly halt the
van again. Jimin actually observes the whole situation with interest because
he's just so fucking confused and no one is telling him what's going on.
 
When the door flies open again, Hoseok groans from pain as he basically falls
out off the van. "God, finally! Fuck,” he curses and when Taehyung snickers he
throws him a pointed look but it only leads to all of them laughing. Jimin just
gapes at them dumbfoundedly.
 
“I’ll give you a massage later, okay, Hobi hyung?” Jeongguk pats Hoseok’s back
gently and grins apologetically to him, blush having now vanished, expression
replaced by the usual boyish and boisterous one he usually teases Taehyung and
his hyungs with.
 
“Come on, Hobi, it can’t be that bad. We really have to hit the road now,”
Seokjin urges and Namjoon agrees.
 
"Yeah, you know safety first and shit,” Hoseok just snorts at that and shows
his two friend’s in the front seats his middle finger but starts grinning again
nonetheless.
 
“Jimin-ah, get out for a second, will you? Jeongguk and Taehyung will sit
together,” Yoongi speaks up calmly next to him and Jimin instantly hopes his
eyes don't get bigger noticeably because Yoongi has finally addressed him.
 
“Yeah, sure, whatever,” he mutters, not even questioning this chaos anymore. He
feels a little out of place because everyone seems to know exactly what is
going on except for him. He briefly wonders if they just planned everything
without telling him. He wouldn't be surprised. After all they only told him
where they're going today and when he had to be ready to be picked up.
 
Taehyung grins and nods when Jimin glances at him, but he gets out anyway and
is followed by Yoongi who comes to stand next to him, not looking at him but at
Jeongguk.
 
“Okay, in you go, Gukkie, but remember if the police passes by or—,”
 
“Taehyung needs to hide, yeah, got it, hyung. It’s not the first time,”
Jeongguk smiles at him before climbs back into the van again, middle row this
time. Taehyung lifts his ass off the seat and when Jeongguk is squeezed in at
the end of the row, Taehyung sits down onto his lap, making himself feel
comfortable, ignoring Jeongguk’s groan of pain. Their youngest snickers
devilishly and earns a light smack to his thigh by Jeongguk before the other
wraps his arms around him and nuzzles his face into his shoulder.
 
Jimin knew they were close but he didn't really expect this level of comfort
with each other.
 
As soon as they hit the road again, the music is turned up to a volume that has
Jimin's insides vibrate. They're only listening to radio, however, so the songs
they get all let Jimin sit there in mild embarrassment and annoyance. It starts
pretty tame with ‘Bittersweet Symphony’ before ‘Men in Black’ starts playing
and Taehyung lifts his arms and starts moving his shoulders to the beat, much
to the distress of Jeongguk who tries to hold him still on his lap at first.
 
He looks at his two classmates and has to smile a little before his gaze falls
on Yoongi who sits between them and him. The elder has a fond gaze on his face
and tells Taehyung to tone it down a little, but then the Spice Girls start
playing with ‘Wannabe’ and nothing is holding Taehyung back anymore.
 
Everyone except for Taehyung groans but Taehyung almost squeaks before he
starts belting out the fast lyrics, and Jimin can't believe Jeongguk joins in
shortly after.
 
"Oh god, kids, stop abusing your voices before the gig!" Hoseok shouts over the
volume of the music, but it's quite futile. Even Namjoon is joining in before
long while Seokjin is tapping his fingers on the wheel to the rhythm of the
song. Jimin, admittedly, is a little ashamed of knowing the lyrics, too, but he
does his best to not start singing along with them, even though there's an itch
beneath his skin his really wants to scratch.
 
When the Backstreet Boys' ‘Everybody’ comes on next, even Yoongi starts
laughing at Taehyung's and Jeongguk's exaggerated rendition of the dance they
undoubtedly know from the music video. It looks funny enough, Taehyung bumping
his head on the ceiling of the van as he bounces enthusiastically, Jeongguk not
really able to move much underneath him, and Yoongi—
 
Yoongi is leaning away from them so that he won't be hit by flailing arms,
almost leaning flush against Jimin who bites his lip as he can smell the scent
of cigarettes on Yoongi's black hoodie mixed with a tart fragrance that is so
inherently Yoongi Jimin almost feels dizzy. He closes his eyes for a second,
inhaling greedily, before the song changes again and is now more rock and less
pop, the song having even Yoongi and Hoseok sing along now. Jimin thinks it's
one by a band called Blur but he doesn't know the title.
 
Still he can't help but also join in during the chorus, not shy of doing so,
and when he does he has Yoongi's smiling face directed at him for a moment
before Taehyung's flailing arm finally hits the drummer in the head and he
whirls around to attack the younger boy and tickle him to death.
 
"You little shit," Yoongi yells, pressing his whole weight onto the other to
hold him in place.
 
"Hyung, stop, stop!" Jeongguk rattles from underneath Taehyung and looks like
on the brink of death. Jimin can't help but burst out laughing, carefree and
genuine, and somehow, for the first time in years, he doesn't feel so hollow
inside. He wipes a tear from his eye when Yoongi sits back down and freezes a
little when their legs press together again.
 
"Stop it now, brats. We have to preserve our energy for later," Yoongi mutters
and musses up Jeongguk's hair a little in way of apologising.
 
Jimin stares at their legs, wishes he could just put his hand on Yoongi's
thigh, roam over it with his fingertips and—
 
He sighs and shakes his head, telling himself to be patient. He turns his head
away from the others, looking out of the window. He still hears the bickering
going on in the background and Namjoon and Seokjin discussing what to set up
first later but his ears are more focused on No Doubt's ‘Don't Speak’ playing
over the speakers now, the mellow tune calming everyone down eventually. Jimin
zones out then, watching the gradually changing scenery flying past the window
in mute melancholy.
 
In the window Jimin sees the reflection of the others, Taehyung and Jeongguk
taking care of their pixel pets, Yoongi staring ahead out of the front window.
Jimin only sees his profile – the soft slope of his nose, his alluring pouty
lips, his eyes that are half covered by his dark hair – but he's so damn
attractive Jimin would like to grab the collar of his shirt and pull him
towards him so that their lips would finally clash together.
 
A desire starts burning in his veins not only because he would like to feel the
other man close to him but also because he could need some distraction right
now. Distraction from the funny feeling in his stomach when the thought of
going on stage in about two hours suddenly pops up in his mind again.
 
Jimin still has no idea how many people are going to be there, didn’t know how
to ask the others without showing too much interest, and a part of him feels
like he actually doesn’t care at all because what does it matter if there will
be five or fifty people?
 
But the other part of him makes his stomach clench and his leg that’s still
pressed against Yoongi’s wobble at the unbidden reminder.
 
“Jimin, could you pleasestop this? Are you that nervous?” Yoongi speaks up
after what feels like an eternity but Jimin knows it’s only been ten minutes
because he has been staring at the radio clock the entire time.
 
“Huh? No, just need to go to the toilet," he says offhandedly, his bladder
actually not full at all. He still makes a conscious effort to stop his leg
from moving on its own. "How much longer do we have to sit in this stuffed
snail of a car?” he feels like running away, needs to get out of here.
 
“Twenty minutes. I’m not pulling over, we’ve got no time for this. You guys can
go pee or be nervous while we set up the instruments,” Seokjin sounds stern and
unrelenting and Jimin would like to smack him in the head for that. He'd kill
for a cigarette at this point but he remains perfectly calm.
 
“Cool with me. As I said, just gotta pee,” Jimin fakes a grin, forces his leg
to not start wobbling again and looks out of the window instead. He tries his
best to ignore Taehyung and Jeongguk joking around together, tickling each
other playfully somewhere next to Yoongi and him as he watches the street pass
by for the next twenty minutes.
 
From time to time he can't help stealing glances at Yoongi who looks perfectly
calm, not a hint of nervousness present on his face or in his body. The only
thing he moves is his fingers, drumming them on his thigh to the rhythm of the
music that is playing and Jimin’s pretty sure he doesn’t even realise that he’s
doing it.
 
“We’re here,” Hoseok suddenly announces and everyone looks out of the window.
The city is definitely bigger than theirs, not quite as big as Jimin's hometown
of course, but he instantly feels more at home here. It's definitely better
than the shithole they just left.
 
There are neon lights blinking on the front of some buildings and people are
actually out and about enjoying their Friday evening and the promise of a fun
weekend. It has apparently rained a little here and through one of the open
windows Jimin can smell the scent of rain mixed with asphalt and exhaust gas in
the lukewarm summer air. When the van stops and he gets out of the car along
with everyone else, he takes a deep breath and enjoys how for once it doesn't
smell like cut grass and fields and forest, not the way their small town smells
like.
 
And he loves it.
 
Loves the dirty smell of the city, would like to shout out from excitement and
run away and never look back at those small town boys. Just wants to stay here
in the foreign city where he feels like he belongs already. He could run away
right now, without waiting for the band's trip they promised to take him with
that he's planned to use as his escape route.
 
But he doesn’t run when he looks up and sees that Yoongi has taken off his
hoodie, stretching his arms in the air, muscles moving and flexing under his
black T-shirt alluringly before Yoongi turns around and receives a box from
Hoseok who shoves it into his arms.
 
“Jimin, can you help me with this? It’s so heavy,” Taehyung whines and Jimin
looks at him contemplatively before he moves and helps him with one of the
amps. After all, Jimin is – next to Yoongi – the only one who doesn't have to
carry much except for his own bag that isn't all too heavy. He slings it onto
his shoulder and carries the amp inside, following the others who are led by
Namjoon and Seokjin who seem to know where to go.
 
He puts down the amp and his bag and then has a look out for the toilet. He
still doesn't have to pee really, but since he lied about that he might as well
go there briefly.
 
"Yoongi hyung, do you know where the restrooms are?" he asks sweetly, hands
clasped behind his back.
 
Yoongi looks up at him briefly before he looks behind him and purses his lips a
little. "Over there, I'd guess," he slurs, nodding his head in the direction of
where he assumes the restrooms to be. Jimin follows him with his eyes before he
looks back and smiles cheekily.
 
"Thanks, hyung," he bites his bottom lip briefly before he takes a few steps
backwards and then turns around, his short black leather booty pants hopefully
offering Yoongi a nice view of his behind. For a moment he's hopeful that
Yoongi will follow him, but of course, nothing of that sort happens.
 
The backstage area they're supposed to wait in isn't really backstage per se,
so he has to fight his way through a throng of people who are actually
attending the concert in the crowd. The ceiling of the live hall isn't
particularly high and there are actual cobwebs and lots of dirt and dust
hanging from it but Jimin doesn't really mind. He passes the bar on his way to
the restrooms and wishes he could go and buy something to clear his mind but
he's sixteen and usually bartenders don't serve drinks to minors. He also
doesn't see someone right now who he could wrap around his little finger to buy
him something, so he just keeps it in mind for later.
 
After all, there is at least one person in the band who's not a minor anymore
and Jimin is pretty sure he will be able to help him out.
 
In the restroom that actually doesn't look all too shabby – he's definitely
seen worse – he goes to relieve himself after all before he tries to get his
shit together for a minute or two, just telling himself that he doesn't have to
be nervous; that he's awesome, good looking, charismatic and that he knows what
he's doing.
 
He takes a deep breath before he leaves the room again and walks straight into
a tall guy outside the entrance of the restrooms. Jimin startles only briefly,
just shy of bumping into his broad chest before he looks up at him with big
eyes.
 
When the stranger gives him a once over, his lips curve into a smile.
 
"Hey, you got a cig?" Jimin asks, licking his lips briefly, making a show of
flaunting his tongue piercing. He immediately has the other's attention.
 
"Sure, chicken," Jimin doesn't like the nickname. It sounds derogatory to his
ears. But the guy holds his pack of cigarettes out for him where he plucks one
out, holding it between his thumb and index finger, and decides not to care.
"You free right now?"
 
"Nah, I'm actually gonna perform in a bit. But maybe afterwards?" Jimin replies
with a coquettish smile on his lips, biting his bottom lip a little. He doesn't
even bother asking the other's name. He also doesn't think about going back
with the band afterwards. He can take a bus tomorrow or just hop in someone's
car who goes in that direction, no big deal.
 
"You do bareback?" Jimin is not surprised about the direct question, but he
scrunches up his nose nevertheless before he juts out his lips.
 
"Nope, never, honey," he lets his index finger slide over the guy's chest, "but
it'll be worth it anyway, trust me."
 
"Well, you seem to be a little chick who knows what he's doing, hm? I like
that. I got a car, we could go there right now, it won't take long," Jimin
wonders if that means that the guy will be done in five seconds and he's really
not up for that at the moment. He needs a little more than that.
 
Just when Jimin wants to say something back to the stranger he turns his head a
little and sees a pair of eyes burning into him. A pair of eyes he's familiar
with by now. A pair of eyes he would like to have on him all the fucking time
but never does. He grins a little when he finally puts the cigarette he got
earlier between his lips and leans forward so that the guy can give him a
light, never taking his eyes off of Yoongi.
 
"No, sorry dude, gotta blast for now. Later," he says with a sultry voice,
taking the lapels of the stranger's jacket between his fingers, rubbing them
briefly before he detaches himself and passes by Yoongi, hips swaying, walking
back to the back of the hall where the band already waits minus the drummer who
has gone to the toilet himself, apparently.
 
Their soundcheck will only be just before their turn so the others are already
preparing their equipment backstage while Jimin, as the vocal, doesn't really
have to do anything for now. He quickly smokes up his cigarette and then spends
his time putting makeup on and making himself pretty.
 
He feels attractive with black eyeliner and smudged eyeshadow, the dark tint
complementing his pink hair prettily, making his brown eyes pop nicely. Makeup
has something magical about it and Jimin would certainly never say no to making
use of its charms. Most of the bands he's listening to do so, too, and he feels
the pressing desire to emulate them as best as he can.
 
He sits in a corner with his things and a small hand mirror on his knees when
all of a sudden Taehyung's huge eyes appear in front of him, face staring at
him with a slightly agape mouth. Jimin stares back dumbfoundedly for a second
before he blinks, eyes flickering over Taehyung's face that is definitely too
close for comfort.
 
"Waaah, you look so pretty, Jiminnie!" the other says and Jimin is taken aback
somewhat, just scowls a little from being so startled. He observes Taehyung,
his hair that is freshly dyed with a purple toner falling messily into his
face, his eyes really fucking huge, expression genuinely astonished. He has
changed into more colorful clothes now, the fabric of his denim gilet here and
there garnished with spikes and patches and tin badges, his shorts going just
above the knees, loose-fitted leg warmers that are fastened to the pants by
leather strips starting just below them giving his outfit a really soft touch.
 
Jimin wishes they'd all put on a little makeup as well, just to finish off the
look properly, but apparently they don't even bother with that.
 
Strangely enough, he's sure Taehyung would look really pretty with some makeup
on.
 
At that thought, Jimin huffs inwardly.
 
What is he even thinking?
 
He certainly won't be the gay dude who gives makeup tips to his straight not-
even-close-to-friends. They probably wouldn't even want that anyway.
 
Taehyung plops down next to him then and Jeongguk next to Taehyung. Jimin
didn't even realise the guitarist was there too, but actually, he should have
known. There's never a Taehyung without a Jeongguk, or vice-versa. These two
always stick together, as if they couldn't breathe when they're separated.
Jimin wonders what it feels like to have a friend who is this close to you.
 
The older boy is dressed more tamely than Taehyung, but wilder than when they
had picked him up. He's wearing black ripped jeans, a colorful tank top
combined with an equally sleeveless thin cardigan that accentuates his defined
upper arms perfectly. While Taehyung's hair is adorned with a bandana he's
wrapped around his forehead, Jeongguk is wearing a black beanie on his head
that kind of looks like it's got a hint of cat ears at the corners. Jimin
doesn't even question it.
 
"Jimin, my dad has gotten a new computer!" Taehyung starts enthusiastically,
looking at Jimin who's arrived at putting on some mascara now. Jimin faintly
wonders why neither Jeongguk nor Taehyung comment on it, the fact that he, as a
guy, is putting on makeup seemingly not concerning them in the slightest.
 
"So?" Jimin asks, rolling his eyes up so he can paint his lower lashes, too. He
doesn't really know why Taehyung's dad buying a new computer should concern him
in any way.
 
"It's got Windows 95 and there are so many games you can play on there! It's so
much fun, Jimin-ah, Jeonggukkie and I do it all the time!" Jimin dreads where
this is going, "I could show you sometimes?" shit, there it is, "only if you
want to of course," of fucking course, "we could all play games like ‘Rayman’
or ‘Myst’ on it together! Oh, I also have a Nintendo with Mario and even more
games for that!" Taehyung beams at him and Jimin thinks he must be fucking
rich. He probably is.
 
He briefly glances at Taehyung and smiles reservedly. "Um, yeah. I'm pretty
busy usually but maybe someday," he excuses himself and hopes that this will be
enough to make Taehyung forget about it again.
 
"Oh, yeah. Sure," Taehyung says a little more quietly now before he smiles
again, "just tell us whenever you feel like it!" Jimin answers with a small
smile again before he quickly finishes his look with a little lip gloss, making
his lips pop as well before he puts his things away. When he looks back up
again he can't believe that the other two are actually playing on their
freaking game boys together in the dim light, heads leaning against each other.
 
Their handhelds are linked by a cable and Jimin knows instantly what they're
playing. He is almost ashamed of actually knowing what it is.
 
It's that stupid monster game.
 
He rolls his eyes and can't believe those two have the actual nerves to play
video games before the performance, completely at ease. Just when he wants to
scoff about it, however, he sees that Yoongi is back, too. He immediately
starts observing him, his lean figure, broad shoulders, strong arms and messy
hair. He's so goddamn hot Jimin wants to die.
 
He stares at him intensely, hopes that he will feel his burning gaze on him so
that he would turn around and look at him, notice his makeup and pretty face
and comment on it but—
 
He just walks straight up to Hoseok and sits down next to him, says something
into his ear that makes the other grin and Jimin frown. He doesn’t know why but
it annoys him to no end that Yoongi never does what he expects him to do; never
reacts like everyone else does. Never gives him the attention that he craves so
much.
 
And why, just why the fuck is he so jealous?
 
On the other hand, it starts a fire in him, challenges him to show Yoongi what
he’s missing out on and he decides to go for it right then and there.
 
He gets back on his feet and walks up to them, ignores Hoseok when he crouches
down next to Yoongi, patting his shoulder with a cute smile on his lips.
 
Yoongi looks at him, obviously surprised and astonished, but Jimin smiles at
him sweetly, noticing that, now that he's so close to him, Yoongi has changed
his eyebrow piercing to a black one with little cones at the end instead of his
usual silver one. It makes him even more delicious.
 
“When's our turn?” he looks straight into his eyes, has his own half-lidded so
that there is no way Yoongi could miss his makeup. However, as always, Yoongi
does not do what Jimin wants him to do, just studies his eyes briefly before he
looks at Seokjin.
 
“Yah, Jin-ah, how many more before us?”
 
“Two bands, why?” Seokjin hollers back over the sound of the other band that is
playing. Yoongi just nods his head and looks back at Jimin as if he just gave
him the answers to all the questions in the universe, telling him with his eyes
'there you go' before he wants to turn back to Hoseok.
 
But Jimin won't have it.
 
“I’m thirsty,” he says before Yoongi gets the chance to turn away completely.
The drummer looks back at him again, raising his eyebrows.
 
“And?”
 
“And," Jimin accentuates the word, "I want a beer. Are you getting me one,
hyung?” his voice is mellifluous, his movements flowing silk on a naked body,
his gaze intense and smoky like burning embers. If Yoongi says no now, he will
give up. But if he doesn't—
 
Jimin will never let it go if he doesn't.
 
Yoongi just stares at him for a moment as if he was trying to figure out what
exactly Jimin wants from him. Oh, Jimin would be so ready to show Yoongi just
what he desires from him if the other wasn’t always glued to his best friend
like Taehyung and Jeongguk always are. Jimin doesn’t waver however, smiles
prettily at him, big puppy eyes on display and a slight pout on his lips to
hopefully woo Yoongi into buying him a drink.
 
Yoongi intense eyes burn into him, his careful gaze seemingly muting everything
around them until Jimin feels like everyone around them has disappeared and
it's only them left in the room – but the bubble bursts and the silence crashes
the moment Yoongi seems to finally make up his mind, sighing before he gets up.
 
“Anyone else who wants to drink something? First round is on me,” Jimin almost
wants to protest about Yoongi bringing the others into this as well. It's not
exactly what Jimin had imagined – again – but it's not exactly a no either. So
he just takes what he can get.
 
He's biting his lip as the others all shout their drink preferences at Yoongi –
pretty much all of them are taking a beer except for Seokjin who doesn't want
to since he's driving – and when Yoongi gets up to leave for the bar, Jimin
stands as well and follows him.
 
"I'm helping you carry, hyung," he says chipperly, resisting the urge to wrap
his arms around Yoongi's that he could just grab and claim as his now that
they're standing beside each other. Yoongi just nods, a small half-smirk on his
lips.
 
"Well, I hope you will, wouldn't know how to carry seven drinks on my own
otherwise," Jimin huffs but returns the grin, staying by Yoongi's side as the
other yells their order to the bar man.
 
And then he looks back at Jimin, dark hair falling into his eyes, lips looking
full and soft despite being a little chapped, and Jimin feels a sudden pull
deep down in his core as if they're two magnets repelling each other while at
the same time drawing each other in.
 
Shit, Jimin knows how this goes. He knows how to always get what he wants but
for some weird unknown reason, it's impossible for him to form any coherent
sentence in his mind right now.
 
The words jumble together, forming strings of half-finished sentences before he
drops them again and before he manages to actually complete one Yoongi speaks
again and robs Jimin of all the words that have just been on his mind.
 
“You know, it’s okay to be nervous. We all were at our first gig. But you
practised well, Jimin-ah, you’ll be alright. They’ll like you.”
 
Jimin stares at him, his heart doing strange flip-flops and his mouth running
dry. He hasn't thought of his nervousness at all while trying to win Yoongi's
attention, but now that Yoongi mentions it again it comes back to him with full
force.
 
How did the other even notice? Jimin didn't give anything away, did he?
 
He feels as if Yoongi is able to look right through him, feels bare in front of
him and somehow he doesn’t like it, so he huffs and looks away from those
piercing eyes.
 
“Told you already: I’m not nervous,” he grumbles pointedly and starts playing
with his tongue piercing a little too vigorously as to not be noticed. Yoongi
just offers him a knowing smile in return and something in Jimin clicks that
almost triggers his standoffish self-defense mode again. But it's not like
Yoongi is taunting him, mocking him or anything of that sort – he merely stated
the obvious, so he keeps quiet.
 
When they receive the drinks, Yoongi hands him some of them and Jimin
concentrates on not spilling everything over himself, presses his lips together
before he follows Yoongi until he's next to him again.
 
"Thank you, Yoongi. For the beer," he says and enjoys the sensation of Yoongi's
arm against his when they softly brush against each other. Yoongi just shows
him a lopsided grin at that.
 
"Sure, for the beer," he says flatly just as they arrive and the other members
swarm them to pluck their drinks out of their hands. "Hurry up a little, mates,
it's our turn soon," Yoongi reminds everyone and they all gulp down their
drinks greedily as if they had been stranded in a desert for a week or two.
 
Jimin also drinks his beer quickly, the bitter taste on his tongue not really
fading when he thinks about having to go up to the stage soon. It doesn't take
long before the band on stage ends their set and it's their time to go and
rock'n'roll.
 
Cotton Candy's time to shine.
 
Jimin's time to shine.
 
They all gather and wait for the other band to clear the stage before they all
start hurrying to get the setup and the soundcheck done as fast as possible.
Jimin follows them and stumbles onto the stage, his breathing immediately
becoming more ragged and shallow. He stares at the audience like a deer caught
in the headlights, and quite literally so for there is one spotlight that is
directed at the stage, right at him. His eyes sting a little as he gawks at the
featureless faces in the crowd.
 
It's only a small establishment, a small gig, and nothing here is really
professional. It's just a way for small bands to get started, to maybe be
discovered by someone who likes their style, so the mood of the audience is
merry and chipper, most of the people present having a smile on their face or
their lips pressed against someone else's. Cigarette smoke is heavy in the
stuffy hall but no one seems to care, everyone too preoccupied with chattering
and having a good time.
 
He feels a little lost, being the vocal and having his mic already set up as
it's one provided by the live house, leaving him with nothing to do. He keeps
staring at the audience from where he's standing at the left side of the stage,
his breath coming out in shallow puffs and his heartbeat pounding hard in his
neck as he watches the colourful blinking dots of the spotlights dance and
bounce off the walls of the hall.
 
Suddenly, he feels someone tapping his shoulder and when everything rushes back
into focus, he turns his head and sees that Taehyung is next to him again.
 
"Jiminnie, the strap of my bass is weird somehow, can you check it?" Jimin
blinks in confusion before he gets what Taehyung wants from him and tries to
fix it. He actually manages to do it, Taehyung beaming at him with a thank you
on his lips that is almost drowned out by the loud chatter in the narrow live
hall. Jimin offers a small smile in return, clenches his fists to keep his
hands from trembling so much.
 
"Alright, guys. We're all set," Hoseok's voice can be heard then and the others
gather in front of Yoongi's drum set in a half circle facing the drummer, backs
to the audience. Jimin knows that's what they have rehearsed but somehow it's
different than when they did it in the practice room. This time it takes
courage to turn his back to what seems to be a hundred people watching him
intently.
 
But when he stands directly in front of Yoongi, he sees that the other has an
encouraging smile directed at him, eyes gentle and sincere.
 
Jimin takes a deep breath, gaze slowly wandering from Jeongguk and Taehyung on
his left to Hoseok to his right before it falls on Yoongi again who nods and
then sets the pace by hitting his drumsticks against each other four times.
 
Hoseok's guitar starts playing solo then, deep and heavy, their first song a
melodic, sombre tune, a soliloquy about personal freedom and the struggle with
everyday life. The lyrics are interspersed with random English words that are
undoubtedly there because they're deemed cool, but Jimin doesn't mind.
 
It's one of his favourite songs because it resonates deeply within him, the
emotions it evokes inside of him like an explosion that wants to burst out but
can't – not yet, at least, not as long as it's not his turn yet.
 
Jeongguk's rhythm guitar and Taehyung's thumping bass set in as well as
Yoongi's drumming. They're all moving to the beat, the music seeping deep into
their bodies, making them all feel it before the rhythm changes and gets more
upbeat. That's when they all whirl around and finally face the audience in
front of them.
 
Jimin feels a rush in that moment, an exhilaration in his chest as the
adrenaline in his body spikes and makes him feel lightheaded and – free. Free
of all the nervousness he's felt before.
 
A few people have their arms in the air already, some just bop their heads
tentatively, checking out carefully what they have to offer.
 
That's not enough for Jimin.
 
It's his first time standing on stage and he wants more.
 
"Come on, jump, jump!" he shouts in the mic for the audience to jump with the
beat and another buzz of electricity surges through him when some really do,
the lights wrapping around him while the sounds swallow his body whole.
Encouraged by the reaction he gets he steps closer to the edge of the stage,
firing them up even further before it's his turn to set in with his singing.
 
When he sings the first lines, his eyes fall shut and he's standing completely
still. His voice light and void of tremors but full with the pain of all his
struggles that can finally burst out of him without anyone ever knowing.
 
His face contorts with emotion at some of the lines he's singing, the guitars
and drums and the heavy bass are reverberating through his body just like his
voice does over the speakers.
 
He doesn't care if anyone's listening but when he opens his eyes again he has
countless faces directed at him and he feels – like a prince, like a king.
 
He's flushed from excitement when the song ends and seamlessly flows into their
next one that is a lot bolder, a lot bouncier. Soon they all have the audience
jump around recklessly to the rhythm, bodies bumping into each other
everywhere.
 
Yes.
 
This is his world, this is what he's breathing for.
 
Now that he's standing on this narrow stage, bathed in the ever changing
lights, drenched in his own sweat and passion, he knows that this is exactly
what he wants and what makes him happy. What makes him forget everything else
and lets him be just how he is.
 
He stands at the edge of the stage, shouting into the mic, all hands in front
of him outstretched towards him, sometimes touching him but only with their
fingertips, and he flirts shamelessly with every single pair of eyes that he
can find in the audience. He has them squealing for him and he loves it, boy or
girl, it doesn't matter, he wraps all of them around his little finger.
 
He runs and hops over the stage, from side to side, fires everyone up with
random shouts of 'come on' and 'louder, I can't hear you' and 'jump, jump,
jump'. His voice threatens to give out sometimes and his breath is becoming
short, but there's a fire burning in his veins that he hasn't felt in—
 
He's probably never felt like this before.
 
He's smiling.
 
He's smiling happily when the last song starts. It's equally bouncy as the
second one of their set list, the entire live house shouting with him at some
no brainer 'woh-wow' text that accompanies the chorus.
 
He's so into it that he even walks over to Jeongguk and leans his arm around
his shoulders, holding the mic to his mouth, letting him sing into it for one
of the last rounds of the chorus before he walks over to Hoseok and does a
little dance with him, jealousy momentarily forgotten. Especially when Hoseok
seems to be genuinely surprised for a second before he's beaming at him,
imitating his movements.
 
Jimin quickly realises that standing on stage with his members and not just as
their singer is actually – fun. It's a lot more fun than he had ever imagined
and when the song ends soon after, Jimin's body is pumped with adrenaline and
euphoria.
 
It's positively the best rush he's ever felt.
 
"Wow!" he shouts when they get back down from the stage, turning to the others,
"wow, that was—, that was fucking amazing!" the happiness coursing through his
whole body makes him feel all sorts of things he hasn't felt in so long.
Excitement, lightheartedness, joy. The feeling of having done something
meaningful.
Hoseok and Namjoon are smiling at him when he looks at them and when he
searches for Yoongi's face he sees that he's looking at him softly, the
faintest hint of a smile on his lips. Warmth spreads in his chest and time
seems to stand still for a moment before his lips quirk up, too, causing
Yoongi's to curve up a little more in return.
 
But then Taehyung squeals next to him as he jumps onto Jeongguk's back for a
piggy-back ride, his bass slung over his back. Jimin snaps out of his moment
with Yoongi then and looks at the two before he gets pulled along by Taehyung
towards where they have left their things while Hoseok, Seokjin and Namjoon get
their equipment back from the stage.
 
"Jimin, you were really good, as if you've never done anything else," Jeongguk
says calmly but Jimin can hear the actual praise in his voice. Jeongguk barely
ever talks to him first, the guitarist usually only acting like a brat around
Taehyung or the other members but never around him, so the mere fact of him
doing that comes as a surprise to Jimin. The kind words startle him even more.
 
"You're much better than Chigyu," Taehyung adds indignantly with a pout on his
lips before he's jostled a little by Jeongguk who adjusts his friend's weight
on his back, "Chigyu never bounced around on stage so much. He also never let
us sing." Jimin purses his lips, remembering how he let Jeongguk sing into the
mic for a bit. He only now realises how startled Jeongguk was when he did that.
 
"Huh, sounds like an asshole," Jimin shrugs, internally glowing with his band
mates' words of praise.
 
Everything is fucking perfect.
 
When they leave the venue, the thought of having been promised sex in a
probably dirty old car is not even a faint murmur in his mind anymore. It
simply is not even an option right now.
 
He only thinks about the guy he met earlier when they're already sitting in the
van on the way back home. Jimin is only somewhat bummed, but he soon sings
along to the songs on the radio again together with Taehyung who seems to be
the only one having any energy left.
 
Jeongguk, who's holding him on his lap again, has his head lolling against his
shoulder blades and is snoring softly despite Taehyung not holding still for
even one moment. Yoongi, who's sitting next to Jimin again, is also rather calm
and somehow he has a 'don't disturb me or you're dead' aura about him that
Jimin automatically feels like respecting without question.
 
Somehow that's really hot.
 
When they're finally about to arrive at Jeongguk's house, everyone becomes a
little more chipper again. Limbs are stretched out, necks get cracked, and
Taehyung starts getting whiney because Jeongguk has to leave them now.
 
"Can't I just come with you and sleep at your place, Jeonggukkie?" he whines,
clutching at Jeongguk's arm, lips jutted out into a big pout.
 
"You can't, Taehyungie, your parents wouldn't know about it."
 
"But Jin hyung, you could just tell them," Taehyung retorts when Seokjin
doesn't want to let him have his way. Seokjin sighs.
 
"Tae, I'll just crash into my bed when I arrive at home, I won't go over to
your parents'. Moreover, Jeongguk's parents probably aren't prepared to have
someone sleep over today," at that Taehyung huffs indignantly and wraps his
arms around Jeongguk, clinging to his best friend who smiles at him softly.
Jimin arches an eyebrow at the picture that presents itself in front of him.
For the briefest of seconds, he wonders if those two really are just friends
because sometimes it sure doesn't look like it.
 
"You can sleep over next weekend, Tae, 'kay? I'll ask my parents," Jeongguk
promises and hugs Taehyung properly despite them being in a very awkward
position on the seat. That seems to appease Taehyung and makes him happy again.
 
The car halts and everyone moves a little so that Jeongguk can get out. Jimin
looks after him as he walks to the door with his guitar and amp, everyone
waving at him when he enters the house.
 
Jimin knows he's the next one in line and when he eventually gets dropped off
at his housing complex and the good feelings have gradually subsided, he
realises that whatever happened tonight was nothing lasting, nothing permanent,
and the shame of having actually forgotten about that crashes into him like a
comet colliding with earth.
 
It was just a fleeting form of escapism and now he's back in the real world.
 
"Thank you for tonight, Jimin," Hoseok leans out of the van door and smiles at
him, "we really did the right thing by making you our singer."
 
Jimin's chest gets tight and he has to swallow down a lump that has formed in
his throat.
 
"You sure did," Jimin says cockily despite feeling as if he's underwater. All
he does is only for himself. He doesn't like how these people seem to think he
did it for anyone else but himself.
 
Because he doesn't want to admit how fucking good it felt to be a part of them
for a little while.
 
It makes him scared shitless.
 
"Well then, good night Jimin," Hoseok adds with a terse nod that Jimin returns.
 
"Good night, Jiminnie!" Taehyung yells, waving, making Yoongi groan next to
him. The older man instantly scoots onto the seat that Jimin has left empty.
 
Jimin just lifts his hand and then waits until the van has vanished around a
corner.
 
He sighs, reaches into his bag and pulls out a crumpled pack of cigarettes.
Only one is left. He sighs again. While he starts walking into the opposite
direction of his flat, he lights the cancer stick and inhales the smoke
greedily.
 
It doesn't take long before Jimin stands in front of the door of one of his
acquaintances. Without even knowing if the other is there he knocks at his
door, still trying to get rid of that crushing feeling inside his chest. Shakes
all the thoughts of the band out of his mind and goes back to not giving a fuck
just like he always did.
 
Of course the other is home. He usually is.
 
Asking if the other wants sex is easy, they’re used to it, and when the other
says ‘yeah, why not’, Jimin walks in and, well, just passes some time.
 
It's kind of boring, he's not really into it tonight and he wishes he’d have
had some more alcohol beforehand than just that one beer earlier tonight, just
to loosen up a little, just to forget a little more. But as he’s lying there,
the other's teeth biting the crook of his neck, skin slapping on skin
uncoordinatedly, the reality of everything catches up with him and all of a
sudden he wants to shut everything out.
 
Wants to shut out the band, the concert, the fun he had.
 
The loneliness he feels even when he's around other people.
 
The guy offers to smoke some pot with him afterwards, and he doesn't say no,
his nerves finally starting to calm down when he's on his way home.
 
When he enters the flat he finds his mother sitting at the kitchen table,
waiting for him as she often does, even though he's told her about fifty
million times that he's not a child anymore and that he doesn't need to be
babied.
 
"Hey, Jiminnie, there you are," she says calmly, tiredness written all over his
face.
 
"Hey ma," he replies, clipped, proceeding to go to his room, not really paying
her any attention when she tells him that she was worried. He's stoned and his
back hurts a little, his attention span the one of a goldfish. He doesn't feel
like fighting back right now.
 
"Jiminnie—," she calls out but Jimin already slams the door shut and pretends
he doesn't hear her faint sobs through the slit in the threshold.
 
He sits down on his bed and succumbs to the sleepiness that's finally crashing
over him.
Chapter End Notes
     Next chapter will be a little teenage angsty, too, but after that
     it'll hopefully get lighter again omg
     at least there will finally be the yoonmin action you all crave
     (probably not like you're expecting tho hehe)
     Please scream at us about yoonmin on twitter ♡
***** Four. *****
Chapter Notes
     Plot progression = 0
     Yoonmin's relationship = oh boy…
     Yoongi is more whipped than whipped cream and Jimin… well, see for
     yourselves (pls don't kill us).
     ☾ = Yoongi
See the end of the chapter for more notes
                                      –☾–
 
It's a week after the gig that Yoongi is on his way to Jimin's just as he's
promised. It doesn't take him too long on his bicycle to go from his house to
the housing complex Jimin lives in, his acoustic guitar on his back and his
heart in his throat.

He's visited all of his friends' houses in the past but not once has he been as
tense as he is now.

Because with Jimin, it's different.

Going to Jimin's house has him a little antsy for various reasons.

For one, he doesn't know how to approach this whole tutoring thing. He thought
about asking his dad a few days ago – him being a real music teacher and all –
but he ultimately decided against it. He really doesn't want to get his
father’s hopes up that he could possibly be interested in teaching (because he
is not, not at all). Instead, he went to the library and looked at some music
theory books before he actually picked one and took it with him. Yet, he still
has no idea at all what he's supposed to do.

And then, of course, it's Jimin he'll be spending time with; alone. In his
room. And while his heart is almost exploding he's also trying to not get his
hopes up too much. Jimin might not harbour the same feelings as he does but
even just receiving the other's undivided attention for a while has Yoongi's
heart revolting.

Ever since the gig where Yoongi saw Jimin singing and dancing and shining on
stage, so carefree and joyous, Yoongi's crush must have intensified by a
thousand. It certainly must be so, for when he tried to tell him goodnight that
day, no words came out of his mouth at seeing Jimin's pretty smile.

In fact, ever since that night Jimin has been even more on his mind and Yoongi
constantly behaves like an idiot whenever he's in front of him: one time he
dropped both of his drumsticks in front of him, one time he stared at Jimin too
long and missed the beat on his drums, and another time Hoseok threw him his
water bottle and hit him straight in the head because Yoongi couldn't take his
eyes off Jimin as he was stretching his arms above his head, revealing a stripe
of skin of his flat tummy and his belly button piercing, the little crystal
glistening in the hollow of his navel absolutely mesmerising. His friends all
laughed at him mercilessly. That's what he got for being so distracted.

Still deep in thought, he arrives in front of Jimin's housing complex and gets
off the bike which he pushes next to him until he reaches the plate with the
various doorbells. There are many family names on it and he has to familiarise
himself with them before he finds the one he's looking for. He hesitates for a
moment before he finally pushes the button.

The buzzer of the front door goes off shortly after and Yoongi pushes the door
open, taking his bike with him and leaving it in the entrance leaning against a
wall. Jimin told him he's living on the first floor so he glances up before he
takes the first step on the stairs. He can hear a door open and is pretty sure
it must be the one to Jimin's flat. He hates the awkward seconds of knowing
that someone is waiting upstairs while he cannot possibly walk any faster with
his bulky guitar case slung around his shoulder.

He can hear voices talking, hushed but intense, and he's surprised when he
doesn't see Jimin on the threshold but a young woman who is talking agitatedly
to someone in the flat, someone who is definitely Jimin judging from the voice.

“Mum, I told you it's for me. You don't have to wait, just go!”

“I just want to say hello,” she says softly in a hushed voice, but Yoongi hears
her anyway. He looks at her a little perplex before he stands in front of the
door and also sees Jimin standing in the entrance, pink hair pushed back,
wearing a huge sweater he's almost drowning in, its hem reaching the middle of
his thighs. And Yoongi is not sure if he's wearing any pants underneath it at
all.

When Jimin notices him, he looks a little pained, as if he just bit into a
lemon slice.

The woman – undoubtedly Jimin's mum – seems to read on her son's face that
someone is standing there and turns around to face him, too. She's pretty, the
same small nose as Jimin and lips that stretch into a smile that's just as
soft. Only her son's pink hair is a stark contrast to her natural long dark
brown one. She looks warm and welcoming and Yoongi relaxes instantly.

“Hello,” Yoongi bows briefly because he's polite, but he doesn't know yet what
to make of the whole situation he's being greeted with. Meeting new parents is
always a little awkward after all.

“Hello there, dear,” Jimin's mum starts and Jimin rolls his eyes before he's
biting his lips, a small huff escaping them, “you must be Jimin's—, friend?”
Yoongi doesn’t miss her surprised and a little sceptical expression, but it’s
okay. Jeongguk’s parents were looking at him like that, too, when he met them
for the first time. Might be because of his dark bluish dyed hair or his
eyebrow piercing; but then again, Ms Park’s son has got even wilder hair than
Yoongi himself and also enough piercings on his body to rival his own.

“Yeah, um—, something like that,” he means to say that band mates aren't
exactly friends but he only realises how wrong something like that sounds after
he's spoken the words out loud. He's cringing inwardly.

“Hey, Yoongi,” Jimin chimes up before his mum can say anything further, saving
Yoongi from the embarrassment of stuttering some lame ass excuses, “we’ll study
in my room, let’s go.”

“Study? Are you in the same class?” Ms Park speaks up again as she closes the
door after Yoongi has entered the flat. She sounds almost excited and Yoongi
feels bad for having to disprove her assumption.

“Oh, no, I’m in my last year, actually. I’m just teaching Jimin how to read
sheet music,” he cannot decipher why Ms Park's gaze shifts at this and why she
looks at Jimin the way she does. And why Jimin prefers to look at a wall
instead of at his mum but then again he's never really been able to perfectly
figure out Jimin's behaviour anyway. He quickly slips out of his sneakers to
distract himself.

“Oh, so you're older then? Well, that’s so nice of you, Yoongi. I didn’t know
you wanted to learn about music, Jimin-ah.”

“Well, I thought I might give it a shot. We’re in my room. Come on, Yoongi,”
Jimin grabs his wrist at that and Yoongi hastily bows to the woman again before
he follows Jimin, somewhat confused about the exchange that just happened.

The door to Jimin's room is already open when they enter, but Jimin immediately
closes it behind them before he walks two, three steps to the bed, no other
opportunities to sit anywhere in sight except for the only chair in the room at
the white desk.

Yoongi follows Jimin with his eyes and curiously takes in the other boy’s room,
having not seen it before. He's surprised a little about how impeccable and
tidy it is and smiles at the baby blue walls and the cute white blanket with
the black polka dots on the bed, the glowing star stickers on the ceiling, the
neatly stacked CDs and VCR tapes on a shelf on the wall, some animal plush
dolls lined up next to them.

It's a cute room suitable for a cute boy.

And definitely a lot more organised and cleaner than Yoongi's own room. He
could never ever let Jimin enter there in its current state. He shudders when
he thinks about his clothes strewn about the floor and the unorganised mess on
his desk.

“Your mum doesn’t know that you joined our band? What did you tell her about
last weekend then?” Yoongi asks curiously, not having missed how Jimin avoided
the topic altogether. He sits down next to Jimin with a considerable gap
between them and puts his guitar down on the floor.

“Just that I was hanging out with some guys,” he replies, with a shrug. His
sweater rides down his shoulder at the movement, revealing more collarbone than
Yoongi would like to currently see, for there's a new hickey adorning Jimin's
neck. It makes Yoongi feels a strange tightness spread in his chest. He plays
the weird sensation down and snorts at Jimin's reply instead.

“Just some guys, huh?” he smirks and holds Jimin's gaze when the other snaps
his head towards him, a small indignant pout on his lips.

“You know how I mean it,” Jimin rolls his eyes briefly and Yoongi can't help
but think that, nope, he doesn't really know how he means it at all.

Are they really just some guys for Jimin? The answer is probably: yes.

“And yep," Jimin suddenly adds, making Yoongi start briefly, "I didn't tell her
about the band. To be honest, I didn't know if I'd pull through with it, you
know. Didn't know if I'd stay. But don't worry about the competition, I'll be
there,” Jimin continues and waves him off when he must see Yoongi's wary gaze.
Yoongi had already suspected that Jimin isn't really the guy for any longer-
lasting commitments but he would still be really disappointed if Jimin left
them hanging now. At the same time, however, he also appreciates his honesty.

“You're going to leave again. After the competition. Right? No hard feelings,
just wanna know,” Yoongi pulls the book he's brought out of the guitar case so
that he at least appears prepared. He feels protective of the band, of Hoseok's
feelings when it comes to it; he wouldn't want Jimin to fuck them over like
Chigyu did.

“The concert the other day was fun. I liked it. Dunno yet if I'll stay after
the contest. It depends,” Yoongi looks up from the book and at the other boy.
Oh, he bets it was funfor him, flirting with some guy in front of the restrooms
as if that was what they went there for.

Yoongi takes a deep breath because – shit, he shouldn't think like that about
Jimin. It's chill. Jimin can do whatever he wants. Maybe Yoongi just reacts
like that because Jimin has never flirted with him like that and he kind of
wished he had.

It's just hard to forget about the fluffy pink hair and soft cheeks no matter
where he is because lately, Jimin seems to be everywhere. He's never noticed
Jimin before he joined the band but now Yoongi sees him at work when Jimin
comes in to buy candy or a new pack of cigarettes, at the park, on the
schoolyard, in the school's corridors, in the smoking area, loitering about
next to the gym with other guys and girls.

Yoongi catches himself thinking about Jimin constantly.

He takes a deep breath and wets his lips briefly, flipping through the pages of
the music theory book.

“Depends on what exactly?” he asks in a sluggish voice. Jimin is talking in
riddles again and it almost drives Yoongi up the wall. Especially when Jimin
just offers a cryptic smile as a response, biting his lip briefly before he
inhales sharply through his nose and stretches his arms over his head, spine
cracking a little.

“Maybe I'll tell you one day,” he replies nonchalantly before he reaches for
some creased sheets of paper and a pencil, “well then, let's not talk about
that any longer. We got stuff to do!” Yoongi can't help but think that he
sounds uncharacteristically enthusiastic. He looks over the piece of paper
Jimin hands him, notices the handwriting of Jimin’s teacher perfectly well but
decides to ignore it because somehow he doesn’t want Jimin to know that it’s
his dad who gave him a shitty grade on the test.

"Fine, um—," he’s so concentrated on what to say and where to start that he
doesn’t notice Jimin scooting closer to him first – until he feels Jimin’s
shoulder against his own.

A jolt of electricity runs through his entire body when Jimin touches him, the
sweet scent of Jimin's floral perfume hitting his nose, and suddenly he's aware
of how Jimin's naked thigh is so close to his jeans-clad one that he could just
let his hand sink onto it if he lowered his arm. Jimin's bare forearm where he
has pushed the sleeve of the sweater up brushes against his own softly, just
the slightest bit, but it's enough to make his stomach drop.

“And? Any idea where we should start, hyung?” Jimin asks and Yoongi swears to
god he sees Jimin’s gaze flicker down to his lips for a moment, prompting him
to gulp down the lump in his throat despite himself.

“Yeah, we should pick up where we left last week and just do some simple stuff.
I don’t have much time, my parents want me back around dinner time, we’ll have
guests over,” he tries to discreetly move away from Jimin before his body can
do something stupid.

Usually,he doesn't have a problem with being touched.

He’s close with all of his friends despite them knowing about him being gay.
He's never had a problem with having Hoseok lying half over him in a small
tent, with being abused as a teddy bear by Taehyung or with comforting Jeongguk
with hugs when he’s down because his parents once more didn't know what
harmless fun is.

But one simple touch by Jimin and Yoongi feels like he's burning up; like his
whole system just shuts down all at once and renders him completely out of
order.

“Oh, yeah. Sure. We just have to focus, I guess,” Jimin smiles, amused, but
he's also pursing his fucking lips and Yoongi has to physically force himself
to tear his gaze away from them.

He tries to subtly take a deep breath but startles when there's a knock on the
door which opens without waiting for Jimin to give his okay. A short glance at
the younger boy confirms that he's instantly pissed, sweet expression having
vanished from his face.

Yeah, that's probably the death-glare everyone is talking about when he hears
the rumours about Jimin on the schoolyard.

Yoongi finds it oddly handsome and mesmerising.

“Can I get you anything to drink, boys? Maybe some iced tea?” the mother asks
and Yoongi thinks he would like to bathe in iced tea right now just to cool
himself down.

Outwardly, he remains, of course, completely calm.

“No, mum, I got coke,” Jimin tells her with a frown and Yoongi observes him for
a second, wonders if they perhaps had a fight just before he arrived. That
would explain the animated talking they were doing when he came up the stairs.
When he looks back at Ms Park he feels her eyes on him as if she was expecting
an answer from him. A corner of his mouth quirks up in a half-smile.

“Iced tea sounds great, Ms Park. But it’s okay, I’m fine with coke, please
don't trouble yourself because of me,” Jimin's mother starts beaming at him and
Yoongi can’t help but think that Jimin and her really have the same smile.

“It’s no trouble at all, Yoongi-yah. I’ll make some for you. Oh, and please
call me Sohyun,” she says with an easy smile before she walks away from the
door again – and leaves it ajar. Jimin huffs at that and sniffs briefly before
he collects himself again and looks at Yoongi's face.

“We did this in class recently,” Jimin explains once his expression has gone
back to being neutral, holding the paper with one hand near where Yoongi comes
to hold it himself on the other side. Their heads are so close now, and when
Yoongi notices that Jimin is using the pencil he gave him during detention, his
heart skips a beat.

“Nice pencil you got there,” Yoongi jerks his chin towards the pen in Jimin's
hand, a small smirk playing on his lips, “looks vaguely familiar.”

“Oh, really?” Jimin plays dumb. He obviously knows it's Yoongi's pencil. The
way he's biting his lips that threaten to curl up into a grin is giving it
away.

“Weren't you supposed to give that back to me?”

“Was I? Hm, can't seem to remember,” Jimin holds the pencil out in front of his
face and that's when Yoongi sees the small indents on the end of it. Bite marks
made by little teeth. “Well, anyway, I chewed on it, not sure if you still want
that thing,” Yoongi snorts, briefly shaking his head, amused.

“You seem to be really fond of it, so just keep it,” Yoongi waves him off,
trying not to think about the fact that he had been chewing on that very pencil
even before Jimin did. That didn't seem to faze Jimin in the slightest as he
bit right over the marks he had left there before.

“Maybe I am,” Jimin grins, and there he goes again, cryptic as always, “but
thanks. I would have kept it anyway,” Yoongi scoffs in disbelief. What a
spoiled little brat.

“Of course, Park Jimin,” he shakes his head again and tries to focus on the
sheet of paper in Jimin's hands once more. “Alright,” Yoongi clears his throat
when he has familiarised himself with the contents of the sheet, realising that
Jimin still makes mistakes with drawing the actual music notes.

This won't be easy.

He picks up the book again and flips onto the page where he's stuck a note on
and decides to just wing it somehow.

He feels Jimin's soft sweater sleeve against his own bare skin but he tries to
ignore it expertly.

“Starting from B, which is on the middle line, the stems actually go down and
are on the left side of the head, ‘kay?” Yoongi explains when Jimin tries to
draw the stem on the right side going up again when he comes to the B, and
Jimin smiles at him brightly.

“Ah, I see. You’re great at teaching, Yoongi. So much better than my music
teacher. He’s so boring, I wonder how anyone can actually listen to him,”
Yoongi pulls one corner of his mouth into a lopsided smile, tries not to
comment on Jimin saying stuff about his dad but forgets about it anyway when he
feels Jimin’s fingers, that seemingly come out of nowhere, ghost over his
thigh.

His breath briefly catches in his throat and his eyes shoot down to where
Jimin's nimble fingers are resting on his thigh. His brain short-circuits for a
moment.

What the fuck, what the fuck, what the fuck—

“Y-yeah, thanks, um—,” he coughs briefly, inhaling subtly through his nose lest
he would suffocate, “the—, the flag. The flag is always on the right side of
the stem, no matter where it's pointing,” Yoongi tries to speak calmly but he's
not sure if he's just doing well in his imagination or if his voice actually
trembles as much as he thinks right now.

“The flag, hm? What's that used for?” Jimin's voice melts like honey in
Yoongi's eardrums, vibrates in his core and makes his insides evaporate.

“Um, Jimin, what are you—,” his voice trails off when Jimin's hand wanders from
his knee higher up, delicately kneading his thigh through the fabric of his
jeans. “What are you doing?”

“You're so tense, hyung. Relax,” Jimin's voice is now molten lava and Yoongi
feels a pull of arousal tighten in his nether regions that makes his toes curl.

He stares at the shelf that holds Jimin's CDs, sees an album he has on a
cassette tape and forcefully distracts himself from getting a boner right then
and there by thinking about the fact that he and Jimin both own at least three
albums of three different bands they both seem to like instead of Park Jimin's
delicate fingers massaging his fucking thigh.

Just when he fears that Jimin doesn't stop his hand's pilgrimage towards his
middle, the door flies open again.

Jimin's fingers are gone faster than at light's speed and Yoongi takes that
chance and places the book over his crotch. He's not hard, he certainly isn't,
but he knows that it was a close call and that it's currently much safer to
keep Jimin from doing anything further that could potentially embarrass Yoongi
to the bones.

He smiles nervously at Sohyun as she places down cookies as well and tells them
she’s found them in the kitchen.

“Thank you, Sohyun,” he finds his voice again, thank fuck, even though he has
no idea how he was just capable of actually speaking just now. Jimin’s mum only
shakes her head, waving him off.

“You’re very welcome, Yoongi-yah. You seem to be a really good boy, I’m glad my
Jiminnie brings over friends from school,” she says lightheartedly and almost
proud. Yoongi can filter from her words that Jimin bringing someone home must
be a pretty rare occurrence.

“Mu-hum,” Jimin whines, avoiding to look at Yoongi, an embarrassed blush
blooming on his cheeks. It's a stark contrast to the coquettish boy he had been
just mere moments ago.

“Okay. Okay, alright,” she says, lifting her arms in a defensive motion, “I’ll
leave you two alone now to study. If you need anything just tell me. Have fun,
boys.”

“Yeah, we will. Thanks, mum,” Jimin retorts pointedly and it's obvious to
Yoongi how much he wants her gone. His mouth twitches briefly before one corner
stretches into an awkward smile and he quickly gulps down a considerable bit of
his iced tea.

When Jimin's mother walks out of the door, she leaves it open again. Jimin lets
out an annoyed huff, jumps up briskly and closes it himself and Yoongi can’t
help but raise his eyebrows.

“You can leave it open, you know, I don't mind,” don't mind it at all. Jimin
starts and looks at him for a moment with astonishment written on his face.
Yoongi wonders if he's said anything wrong but Jimin just shakes his head and
sits down next to him again.

“No, it would only disturb her when you show me the notes on the guitar later,”
Jimin mumbles, making Yoongi nod in understanding before realisation hits him.

“Oh, right! The guitar! Let me show you right now,” Yoongi suggests, unpacking
the guitar from its case. He instantly relaxes next to Jimin as soon as he's
cradling the guitar in his arms, holding the instrument making him feel much
less nervous. “I can show you what you’ve learned so far so that you get a
better sense of what the notes actually sound like.”

Jimin has big eyes while he watches Yoongi’s finger play the different notes.
His crooked tooth peeks out from between his plush lips because he is so
concentrated on memorising what Yoongi is teaching and showing him. And somehow
that’s adorable. Yoongi has never seen Jimin like that before. Has usually only
seen the other playing it tough and confident, pretending to be ‘all mature’.

This feels so much nicer than Jimin being all touchy and making him nervous.

“Could you teach me playing the guitar, too, should I manage to read music
soon?” Jimin asks after they've practised for a while.

“Not enough to make you a solo rock star. You better ask Gukkie or Hobi for
that,” Yoongi smiles, happy about the way Jimin seems to be really interested
in it.

“Oh, I'm sure with some practice you could be just as good as them, hyung!”
Jimin grins, eyes crinkling at the corners. Yoongi feels his face warming up at
the flattery. He snorts briefly in amusement.

“Stop diverting from the subject, brat,” Yoongi bumps his shoulder against
Jimin's, making the other giggle. The sound does strange things to his heart,
like making it beat faster and somewhat out of rhythm.

He shows Jimin more music theory with a focus on the exam during the next hour,
tries to cram in as much of the subject matter as possible, but he realises
soon enough that Jimin's concentration is waning quickly.

“You've already learned a lot and for the rest, we can always help you," he
says eventually with the intention to wrap this tutoring session up. He has to
leave soon, anyway.

“I know, Yoongi. But you can't help me when I'm in class messing up my exams,”
Jimin is still grinning but Yoongi can see in his eyes that there's something
akin to shame hidden behind his brown eyes.

“Don't worry, we won't let you fail,” Yoongi offers him a well-meaning smile
and their eyes meet. If he was worried about tutoring someone before, that fear
has now almost completely evaporated. Actually, he feels pretty comfortable in
Jimin's small and tidy room, sitting on his soft bed with him by his side.

At least until Jimin does it again.

As soon as he's put the guitar down to gather up his things, Jimin scoots
closer to him once more.

"Does that mean you will teach me again, hyung?" he asks, lifting his fingers
and placing them on Yoongi's chest. Yoongi feels his face flaming up.

"I—, uh," nonchalance, he screams in his mind, trying hard not to look down at
Jimin's fingers on his chest. He doesn't necessarily want to let the other know
how much this is really affecting him. "Sure. I mean, there's—, there's a lot
left I could teach you," Jimin's hand remains on his chest and burns right
through the T-shirt.

Can Jimin feel his racing heart against his ribcage?

Oh god, he certainly can—

"Hmm, that sounds good," Jimin purrs and Yoongi gets the weird feeling Jimin
means to imply something else entirely. His mind is just a little too hazy
right now to grasp what that something is.

"Yeah, after all, you need to—, to practise reading and singing the notes,
right? I still have to teach you that properly," Jimin's hand moves down on
Yoongi's chest then, and they're so fucking close and Jimin is so damn
beautiful and he's looking at him with that small smirk on his lips and with
half-lidded bedroom eyes that promise him the universe and Yoongi could just
lean in and take it—

Just then Jimin's mum bursts into the room again and Yoongi feels like he just
fell from a high place and exploded on the ground.

He hastily shoves his guitar into his guitar case before he jumps up.

"Yoongi, would you like to stay for dinner?" she asks but Yoongi just briefly
smiles at her nervously and shakes his head quickly.

"Thank you for the offer, Sohyun, but I really have to go now. My parents are
waiting," he pretends that his pulse isn't currently racing at the speed of a
rocket and feigns complete indifference. At least one thing is true: he really
has to leave now. "Bye Jimin, see you at rehearsal, I guess," he says dumbly,
letting his hair fall into his face, worrying at his lips before he briefly
lifts his hand.

"Hyung, your book," Jimin remains seated as he holds it out for him with a
small smirk on his lips that doesn't quite reach his eyes, still so
effortlessly at ease with himself.

"O-oh, yeah, sure. Thanks," Yoongi quickly grabs it and clumsily shoves it into
the guitar case before he bows in front of Sohyun and then rushes out of
Jimin's room.






It's not easy for Yoongi to forget about the afternoon he's spent at Jimin's
during the following two days. He didn't tell anyone about it, not even Hoseok,
too abashed about his lack of Casanovian skills.

He wishes there was a ‘How to not embarrass yourself in front of your crush – a
guide for teenagers who haven’t been in any relationships yet and are
pathetically awkward whenever it comes to talking to their object of desire’-
book in the library that he could borrow for a while. He's sure if he just knew
what to do, he could have approached the whole situation a little more
skillfully.

Instead, the sleepless nights got even worse and more unbearable after that,
the mortification eating him up alive, making him toss and turn in his bed
until he would finally be too exhausted to think and fall asleep.

School seems like a place of escape and comfort right now – as long as he
doesn't run into Jimin, something he was miraculously able to avoid ever since
the week started. Granted, though, it's only Tuesday and they'll have rehearsal
after school.

He will have to face Jimin today but he quickly pushes the thought away again
and chooses to concentrate on the good and easy things in his life instead.

He pulls a can of Fanta Lime from the vending machine and plops back down on
his chair next to Seokjin and his girlfriend, Jihae, at their round table in
the cafeteria. Yes, one thing Yoongi definitely likes about being in his last
year of high school is that he has relatively many free periods during which he
can just lazy around or hurriedly get some last minute homework done that he
had forgotten about.

Just like now.

"Yoongi, do you know if we also have to solve number nine?" Jihae asks as soon
as his ass meets the chair, and Yoongi glances up briefly before he turns his
focus back on his can of soda.

"Dunno, just look at my sheets, I circled the ones we have to do," he mutters,
opening the can with his thumb. A loud fizz followed by a gurgling, sputtering
sound bubbles up from the mouth of the can when he cracks it open and spills
all over the can. Yoongi's eyes widen but before he can save himself, the
poison-green liquid is running all over his fingers mercilessly, dripping down
on the table. "God fucking dammit," he curses loudly, springing up from his
chair, scrambling for the pack of tissues in his bag. Seokjin and Jihae –
instead of helping him – start cackling and snorting loudly like rabid hyenas.

"You should have seen your face just now," Seokjin wheezes, his annoying
laughter echoing through the entire cafeteria.

"Shut up, you guinea pig," Yoongi yells at him, flicking his fingers so that
some of the sticky drops on his fingers land in Seokjin's face. "God, I hate
you so much."

"Ew, stop it, you dumbass. Go wash your dirty fingers, that's gross!"

"Stop complaining. That's karma, you wet sack of potatoes."

"Um, guys, could you please tone it down a little?" Jihae interjects, trying to
calm them both down. She's always been the most reasonable one among their
group of rowdy teenage boys. Yoongi just huffs in annoyance and finishes
cleaning up the table and his can, the tissue not doing much for his tacky
hands. Luckily, his homework and his other things on the table had been
magically out of harm's way.

"I'm gonna wash my hands now, anyway. Don't you dare touch my soda!"

"As if one of us would touch that yucky thing," Seokjin tuts mockingly and
Yoongi kicks him in the shin before he dodges a counter attack and struts away.

He doesn't even bother going to the restrooms on the ground floor because he
knows them to be locked up ever since some jokesters thought it would be fun to
stuff the toilets with rolls of toilet paper the previous day. Needless to say,
everything flooded.

So he makes his way from the cafeteria to the male restrooms on the first
floor. The halls of the school building are practically deserted except for the
other seniors loitering about in the cafeteria while all the younger students
are in class. He shuffles up the flight of stairs and looks out of the windows
of the corridor as he passes them when he reaches the top.

The weather is a little overcast today, but still warm and heavy, the smell of
the rain from earlier this day still saturating the air even in the old school
building. The scent is mixed with the familiar fragrance of stale coffee and
lingering cigarette smoke coming from the faculty room.

It reminds him of Jimin again, except that Jimin smelled like cigarettes and
something really sweet, something really good, when he was so close to him a
few days ago. It was a scent Yoongi would really like to drown in again.

Yoongi just wishes he finally knew how to approach him properly.

He heaves a sigh, trying to dispel the thoughts about the boy with the cotton
candy hair but does not succeed in the slightest.

He stands in front of the restroom then and opens the door swiftly, a faint
scowl on his face and eyes averted to the floor in thought. The subliminal
smell of ammonia and some cheap cleaning agent immediately sting in his nose,
but that's not what makes him startle, makes him take a step backwards and
almost stumble out of the room again.

When he catches himself again, he's staring at no one else but Park Jimin,
leaning against the window sill on the other side of the room next to the sink,
apparently wanking himself off in broad daylight in the restroom of their
fucking school.

What the fuck?

Jimin has his eyes closed, head tipped back, the pink strands that falling into
his face framing it beautifully. The best and worst thing is that Jimin doesn't
even seem to notice him standing there, not until he opens his eyes a little, a
sultry smile immediately appearing on his lips.

Yoongi wants to be sucked up into a black hole.

"S-sorry, didn't want to—, uh, disturb?" he mumbles, heat creeping up his face
as he laboriously tries to not let his gaze wander to Jimin's dick again. He
only saw it for the briefest of moments before he was able to process what is
going on, but it was already enough.

The image is engraved in his mind.

Jimin just smirks, doesn't seem to give a fuck.

"You gotta pee?” Jimin asks as if masturbating at such a place was the most
normal thing to do in the world. He doesn’t stop stroking his cock languidly.
Yoongi gulps heavily because he’s never been confronted by something so sexual
ever before. He's so confused, because he knows the younger boy with the pink
hair has always got that carefree, comfortable-about-his-sexuality vibe about
him, but he would have never everthought that he would go and get himself off
in the school’s bathroom.

“N-no. Just—, wanted to wash my hands. What the fuck are you doing here anyway,
Jimin?” he asks despite himself, because it’s not every day he sees another
guy’s dick, especially not one that belongs to a boy that is so pretty and
breathtaking as Park Jimin.

Yoongi tries hard to ignore what Jimin is doing, assuming an air of
nonchalance, and steps next to him to the sink to wash his hands, the slick
sound of Jimin’s spit covered palm sliding over his cock making Yoongi feel all
sorts of things.

“Just passing time. School’s so boring today and I got really horny when I
thought of something earlier,” Jimin answers with a sigh, head still tipped
back against the window, face actually completely calm and blissed out. There’s
only a faint blush on his cheeks, but Yoongi knows it’s natural; it’s basically
always there. It’s no indication of how he could actually be as flustered as
Yoongi currently is. Not even a little.

“Shouldn’t you be in class?” Yoongi mutters, not daring to take his eyes off
his hands under the running water, trying his best to keep on talking so he
won’t hear too much of what’s going on next to him either, to at least be able
to pretendto keep his calm. But his heart is racing.

“Yeah, but like I said: it’s boring” Jimin retorts, voice a little strained
now, and when Yoongi has to turn slightly to grab a paper towel he sees Jimin
giving another flick to his hard cock.

He can’t help the blush that creeps up his neck at the absurdness of the entire
situation that slowly starts to sink in now.

Yoongi’s brain stutters again when Jimin moans softly as he comes in his fist,
hips bucking forward a little as his upper body bends down slightly. Yoongi's
chest tightens, the breathy noises sending a tingling shiver down his spine.

Yoongi wants to flee, wants to jump out of the narrow window just to get as far
away from here as fast as possible. The awkwardness nearly kills him and he’s
almost done with rubbing his hands dry but then Jimin speaks up again and ends
Yoongi’s life with one single, simple question.

“You need help with that?” the other asks, huskily, and Yoongi is confused at
first as to what he’s referring. He glances at Jimin’s smirking face before the
other’s gaze slowly and meaningfully shifts downwards, eyebrows rising as he’s
looking at Yoongi’s crotch.

Yoongi lets his own gaze drop down as well and realises with pure horrorthat
there’s a fully grown tent in his pants.

He didn’t even realise that he’s gotten hard just from the sight and the sounds
of Jimin masturbating, feels his heart pounding furiously against his ribcage,
a lump forming in his throat that makes him choke. He's feeling hot all over,
his neck almost bursting from the explosive heartbeat that is hammering in his
veins.

“F-fuck,” he lets slip, not knowing what to do about his erection. He stands
there with arms lifted, eyes on the bulge in his pants, and he briefly thinks
about plunging his head into the nearest toilet so that he could drown himself.

Why does this have to happen to him? Why does the world hate him so much? Why
in front of Jimin?

Jimin wipes his hand on one of the paper towels and throws it away without a
care. That’s when Yoongi sees him glancing back at the tent in his pants before
the other is suddenly crowding him, rendering Yoongi even more confused and a
little helpless while he’s being shoved into one of the stalls.

Yoongi is so dumbfounded that he just lets him do it and before he knows it
he’s being pressed up against the cubicle wall, the toilet seat digging
awkwardly into his calves, making it hard for him to stand.

“You don’t mind me taking care of it?” Jimin asks, still smirking that
lascivious smirk of his and Yoongi’s head starts spinning and his mind is
racing while his heart is about to combust in his chest when Jimin drops to his
knees in front of him.

Yoongi doesn’t know what to do, has no idea what such a situation requires of
him but he knows that this could be the only ever chance Jimin will actually
acknowledge his existence and he craves that so bad he thinks it would be
stupid to decline him now.

And then Jimin opens the zipper of his pants and simply pulls them down and
every coherent thought that tries to catch up with Yoongi’s brain just stutters
and evaporates into the tiniest particles of incoherent lifeless atoms.

Yoongi’s legs tremble a little as Jimin presses his nose against his underwear-
clad erection, a gasp-like whine escaping his lips despite himself, and before
he knows it Jimin is mouthing at his balls, breath hot and heavy against his
underwear, working his way up over his length to its head.

“Ji-jimin, what are you d-doing?” he asks dumbly, so incredibly dumbly because
what the fuck is Jimin supposed to answer to that except for the painfully,
blatantly obvious?

“You like that, hyung? You like it when I do this?” to his surprise, Jimin
simply ignores the question, rendering Yoongi even more speechless. His mind is
too clouded, his throat too tight and his heart pounding against his ribcage as
if he is about to get a fucking heart attack. He must be dreaming or
hallucinating. There's no other explanation for this.

“Y-yes, but I-I—,” he stutters but Jimin already pulls down his trunks, the
cold bathroom air hitting his flush and leaking cock. “Jimin, what are you
doin’? W-what if someone comes into the bathroom? I—,” he finds that he’s
scared shitless, not only because someone could enter the room and he could end
up at the principal’s because of this, but also because he’s never done
anything close to this before. Jimin is his new band mate and his crush but he
doesn’t even really know him yet, and he has no idea if this is a good idea,
and what if there’s something wrong with his dick or—, something, he’s never
had anyone judge his dick before, but it’s right in front of Jimin’s beautiful
mouth now and he wants to dig himself a grave.

“You just gotta be quiet then,” Jimin runs his tongue over his lips to wet them
before he circles his fingers around the base of Yoongi's cock. He slightly
leans forward and licks over its underside, excruciatingly slowly, his tongue
piercing grazing over the sensitive skin. The sensation makes Yoongi grab at
the smooth wall behind him where he cannot find any purchase, a suppressed
hiccup escaping his lips despite himself. His knees are getting weak at the
speed of light and he thinks he’s going to sink down on the toilet seat at any
moment now.

“O-oh, huh. C-could you at least close the—, the door?” Yoongi stutters, head
leaning against the wall, legs trembling, sweat breaking out on his back. His
mind is swimming with thoughts of how wrong this is, of how he cannot just let
himself get sucked off by the other boy in the bathroom of their school despite
not wanting him to stop.

Jimin huffs in annoyance but complies half-heartedly as he fumbles for the door
with his foot behind him and kicks it closed with a soft bang, still doesn’t
really bother to lock it or anything.

“Now just shut up and enjoy, hyung,” Jimin mutters with a grin, looking up
through his lashes and right at him, soft pink hair framing his face messily,
the spitting image of sinfulness.

Something is telling Yoongi that this is not the first time Jimin has done this
sort of thing.

His brain shuts off when Jimin’s breath ghosts over his erection again, making
every fibre in his body tingle with a pleasure he's never felt before and
Yoongi nods briefly without even realising it himself. He has no idea how this
can be happening right now that the boy he's had this huge crush on ever since
he first saw him ended up in front of him on his knees, making his heart pound
furiously up to his throat in excitement, anticipation, but also slight panic.

But he knows this isn’t another wet dream of his because this is already better
than anythinghe's ever imagined before and it leaves him wanting more.

Jimin leans in again, swirls his pierced tongue around the tip of his cock
before he just takes him into his mouth, making Yoongi buck his hips up as his
body reacts on its own to the foreign sensation. Jimin grabs his hips in
response, pinning him to the wall, hindering him from thrusting into his mouth
again, instead taking him all the way into the warm cavern of his mouth
himself, eyes closed and lips stretched tightly around his length as his cheek
bulges obscenely from Yoongi's cock pressing against its hollow inside.

“F-fuck, Jimin—,” Yoongi half moans, half sobs from being so terribly
overwhelmed, his gut clenching from a kind of heat and lust that he has never
felt before. A quaint mixture of nervousness and thrill.

Jimin’s mouth feels so hot and wet and slick and, fuck, Yoongi has imagined
what it would feel like to get sucked off by another man countless times, of
course he has, but he had never expected it to feel like this. Never expected
it to feel so firm and warm, Jimin’s lips so plump and soft, tongue piercing
rubbing over the head and through the slit, making sparks of arousal explode in
Yoongi’s groin. Suddenly it's so hard to breathe.

Jimin seems to be savouring every little moment when he gently sucks Yoongi’s
hot flesh in and rubs his tongue broadly over the underside of his cock before
he looks up at Yoongi with those intense eyes that lock with his and fucking
swallows. Yoongi can’t even really feel the pressure build up before it just
hits him full force and he comes in Jimin’s mouth, uncontrollably releasing his
cum down his throat. He clasps his hands over his mouth to keep himself from
moaning so damn loudly, only strangled sounds leaving his lips as his body
trembles from the force of his climax.

Jimin lets out a surprised, muffled sound around his length, swallowing even
more, sucking him dry as if on instinct. Yoongi is breathing heavily as he just
gapes at him with wide open, horrified eyes when Jimin pulls away and blinks at
him, wiping over his mouth with the back of his hand. Cum is dribbling down his
chin in the most vulgar way possible, so obscenely that even Hoseok’s porn
magazines would look like happy, colourful children’s books compared to the
picture that currently presents itself in front of Yoongi’s eyes.

“Wow, I know that I’m good, but that was—. Quick.”

Yoongi wants to evaporate and crumble to dust.

Wants to dig out his grave, at least fifty feet deep, wants to bury himself
inside and cover the top with concrete and never come out again.

“It’s—. I... I’ve never, uh, never done this before. It was—, it was really—,”

“You what?” Jimin exclaims and looks at him as if he’s seen a ghost, eyes wide
and disbelief written all over his face, even as he wipes the cum off his chin
with his finger before he sucks it into his mouth and licks it clean.

Yoongi is lost for words, just stares down at Jimin’s big eyes, feels the heat
creeping up his neck once more, trying to steady his wobbly legs.

“You’re a virgin?” Jimin asks incredulously and stumbles up onto his feet,
cursing a little when he knocks his knee on the toilet seat in his haste to
stand up straight.

Yoongi can only nod and hum quietly as a confirmation, gaze planted on the
floor before Jimin looks at him blankly, expression unreadable.

“Wow. Okay. Cool,” Jimin says flatly, the tone of his voice making Yoongi
wonder if he’s done the wrong thing by admitting his virginity right now.
“Well, in that case, sorry for attacking you like this,” Jimin adds flatly,
running his fingers through his pastel hair, licking his lips again, making
Yoongi’s heart clench vehemently in his chest.

Jimin, unlike him, is not a virgin, that much is painfully clear.

Three years younger than him and already going around sucking random guys’
dicks as if it was a fucking pastime activity like trading Pokémon cards on the
fucking school yard.

Three years younger than him, looking like a goddamn angel, looking at him with
these innocent brown eyes but telling him to be just quiet should someone come
into the room while he has his dick down his throat.

He can’t believe Jimin is so stunningly pretty even with some drops of cum
still sticking to the corners of his mouth.

Jimin just stares at him for a few more moments, unnerving Yoongi, shaking him
to the core, before he adjusts his own pants and opens the cubicle door again
to step out and wash his hands and face.

As soon as Jimin has stepped out of the stall the fact that he just came in
like three seconds rushes back to Yoongi’s mind, crashes over him like a
tsunami, makes him want to throw up from mortification, the embarrassment
burning in his veins making the tips of his ears flushed in a deep red. He
desperately tries to steady his ragged breathing.

Jimin’s reaction speaks for itself.

Yoongi doesn’t manage to utter a single word, not even when Jimin turns around
to face him inside the stall one last time and smiles at him cheekily.

“Well then, see you at rehearsal later.”

Yoongi really wants to off himself.

Jimin then leaves and Yoongi slowly pulls up his pants, goes back to wash his
face and shaky hands again before he also flees the bathroom and stumbles back
to Seokjin and his girlfriend even though he would much rather go home right
now.

What did he do in his past life to be as cursed as he is? How did he deserve to
embarrass himself so much in front of the boy he likes?

“I thought you only had to wash your hands. You could have told us you needed
to take a dump,” Seokjin sighs crudely even in the presence of his girlfriend
as soon as Yoongi is back. If Yoongi’s soul hadn’t already left his body, he
would actually counter with some snarky retort, but right now his mind is
blank, the adrenaline from earlier still pumping through his body.

The girl bursts out a laugh at that which she tries to hide with one of her
hands while she slaps her boyfriend's shoulder with the other; and rightly so,
that little fucker. It’s not like Yoongi has been embarrassed enough today
already.

“Fuck you, Jin, I don’t wanna talk about it,” Yoongi mumbles back, trying not
to think too much about having just been blown in the school’s bathroom by none
other than his beautiful band mate Park Jimin.

If Jimin didn't already know about his crush on him before, he very likely does
so now – and probably finds it amusing to no end. Yoongi feels so miserable
about it he would like to go home and crawl under his blanket and stay there
until everyone in the world has forgotten about him.

“Sorry dude, how should I have known that you have constipation?” Seokjin
teases and Yoongi just lets him. He sits back down on his chair and
absentmindedly stares at his soda can that has remained seemingly untouched.
His homework lies forgotten behind it.

What the fuck has just happened? Why did Jimin do that? Why the fuck did he
letJimin do that? Why on earth did he let him do that when he knew exactly that
he would just make the biggest fool out of himself?

He doesn’t really know the answer, only knows that he’s embarrassed himself so
much he will never ever be able to talk to the singer again.
Chapter End Notes
     brain: subvert all the tropes!
     us: huh?
     brain: make Yoongi the inexperienced virgin!
     us: what?
     brain: what?
     fingers: [type] "Yoongi comes in 3 seconds"
     We like to cry over yoonmin and our fics on twitter don't be shy to
     hit us up ♡
***** Five. *****
Chapter Notes
     Boys will be boys.
     Also just as a side note: we are using some real 90s music in this
     fic for the nostalgia feels, but if necessary we also invent stuff. A
     band they're talking about in this chapter is completely made-up.
     ☾ = Yoongi
     ☼ = Jimin
See the end of the chapter for more notes
                                      –☼–
 
“Well then, see you at rehearsal later.”
 
Oh wow, he did notjust say that.
 
The door falls shut behind Jimin with a click and that's when his face falls as
well, his feet rooted to the ground for a moment as he stands there with mild
bewilderment on his face.
 
He rakes his fingers through his hair, pushing it back before it falls into his
face obnoxiously again, the pink strands tickling his forehead. He rubs his
nose when he regains his senses and licks his lips, Yoongi's taste still
lingering on his tongue.
 
He was so astonished when someone came into that bathroom, didn't expect to
encounter anyone there at this time. He was, however, pleasantly surprised when
that someone turned out to be Yoongi, the very man he had been thinking about
for the most part of the day.
 
He had seen Yoongi the previous day and then earlier this morning, but the
other didn't seem to notice him at all, looked lost in his thoughts and he was
with his friends anyway. There was no way he could have approached him,
especially not after that disaster that was Yoongi's visit at his home. The
shame his mother put Jimin through was too unbearable to just forget about it.
 
But then Yoongi entered that bathroom and nothing of that mattered anymore.
 
Of course, he liked how Yoongi got hard from just the sight of him wanking
himself off. He liked how pliant Yoongi got once he was on his knees in front
of him, his gasps, how his muscles tensed when he touched him. He smelled and
tasted so good and if ever Jimin saw a pretty dick, that was it.
 
But maybeit should have crossed his mind that Yoongi could have potentially
never done something akin to what they just did before he came onto him like
that. He just didn't expect it, not at all. Yoongi looks so confident most of
the time, has a big mouth, carries himself with nonchalance and casual
indifference. He buys the younger ones drinks, he smokes, his face screams
mature and yet – he's a virgin. An untouched virgin who came before Jimin could
really get started with what he actually wanted to do with him.
 
Jimin lets out a disbelieving chuckle before he pushes his hair back again,
tongue piercing sucked in between his teeth. He looks out of the window before
he goes back down the stairs and to the smoking area near the main entrance.
 
Sure, he was a little pissed at first when Yoongi just came in his mouth
without the hint of a warning, but he didn't want to show it to the older boy.
Yoongi did seem totally mortified afterwards, so he just let it slip. Jimin's
not an asshole, he didn't want to embarrass him even further. That was clearly
not his goal and why should he want that?
 
Yoongi has always been good to him, he just wanted to be good to him, too, for
once.
 
For some reason, he really liked pleasing Yoongi by doing something for him
that he's confident about, thought that Yoongi would be happily accepting his
reward, imagined him moaning and carding his fingers through Jimin's hair as
he'd go down on him especially because—
 
Jimin sighs as he lights his cigarette that he quickly smokes up before going
to class, sits through it and can't stop thinking about what happened earlier.
His thoughts usually never linger on his hookups, but he can't seem to get
Yoongi out of his mind.
 
He sees him later when he's walking through the corridor.
 
"Hey, Yoongi hyung," he calls out to him with a smile on his face, but Yoongi
just stares at him for a millisecond with big gaping eyes before he averts his
gaze to the ground and power-walks past him. Jimin starts for a second,
worrying his lips. "Is he for real?" he mutters to himself, frowns and looks
after him with an irritated look on his face.
 
Some girls are looking at him while they're whispering to each other behind
their fists and probably think they're subtle about it. They're definitely not.
 
"What?" he hisses, glaring at them and they shut right up before they huff a
little and go away.
 
From the moment he enters the practice room later, nothing changes.
 
Yoongi's eyes are suddenly glued to some random object that seems to be way
more interesting to him than anything else. He surrounds himself with Taehyung
and Jeongguk who are already here, leaving Jimin no opportunity to talk to him
alone.
 
Yoongi is avoiding him at all costs and somehow – Jimin really hates it.
 
Somehow he doesn't like how there's a dull, hollow ache in his chest when
Yoongi keeps ignoring him.
 
Why does he not look at me at all anymore? Jimin thinks, studying Yoongi from
the other side of the room while he's playing some weird string game with the
younger ones, judging from his stuttering, his shy demeanour whenever I try to
approach him, the way he sometimes looks at me – I thought he's into me. And I
just gave him a blowjob? Sure, it could have lasted a little longer and who
would have thought that he's still a blushing virgin—, but that's no reason to
react like that, right? It wasn't a big deal… right?
 
It's weird. It's weird how Jimin has wanted Yoongi since forever and now that
he got what he craved so much, he doesn't feel satisfied at all.
 
Jimin scrunches up his face in deep thought, his brows drawing together as he
tries to figure out where he went wrong. Somehow it all doesn't feel quite
right, as if he's overlooking something important.
 
Yoongi goes behind the drum set then and that's when Jimin thinks that this is
his chance. The drummer certainly won't be able to escape now.
 
"Hey, drummer boy," Jimin tries again and approaches him with an alluring smile
on his lips, his best one, and Yoongi snaps his head towards him, eyes growing
bigger, tips of the ears turning red.
 
"Uh—," Yoongi makes and Jimin leans against the wall behind him before Yoongi
quickly averts his eyes again, spinning one drumstick between his fingers
distractingly. Jimin really feels the need to tell him that he should just
forget about what happened so that everything can be like it was before.
 
"Listen, earlier—," but that's when the door flies open and Hoseok arrives, the
last one to do so. The drumstick clatters to the floor and Yoongi curses before
he grabs it and quickly gets up from his stool, brushing past Jimin.
 
"Hey, Hobi, have you looked at the new lyrics Namjoon wrote?" Yoongi calls to
his friend and Jimin just stares after him, a frown forming on his face and an
odd sting in his chest. Suddenly, he feels very awkward and a little
disappointed and it's weird. Just so hella weird. Usually, the guys beg him to
suck him off a second time, but Yoongi, as always, does the contrary of what
he's expected him to do.
 
Rehearsal passes without a hitch and Jimin is sure that Yoongi kept what went
on between them to himself – at least for now. And he has to make sure it stays
that way. He doesn't want to be kicked out of the band for what happened
earlier because he cannot let the opportunity to accompany them on their trip
to the beach slip between his fingers.
 
"Hey, Jimin," Jeongguk speaks up after practice and Jimin isn't even surprised
anymore, "we're going to hang out at the skatepark, you coming with us?" Jimin
finds it amazing how they're still asking him to go with them even though he
has consistently refused to do such a thing. Yet here they go again and this
time, he feels an itch, the urge to say yes. That could be his chance to talk
to Yoongi alone.
 
A quick glance at the elder shows him his horrified eyes that he has directed
at Jeongguk, as if he wanted to yell at him 'what the fuck are you doing?' but
Jeongguk remains oblivious.
 
"Oh, yes Jimin, please come with us!" Taehyung appears in front of him,
startling him a little, his eyes flickering over the younger's pleading face.
He's really not sure if he should.
 
"Well, I—," he starts before the door to the practice room is yanked open.
 
"Good afternoon ladies and gentlemen!" a voice bursts through the door, one
that sounds familiar to Jimin, and when he turns his head he sees that it's
Namjoon – with two six packs of beer in his arms. Here. At school. Jimin's
eyebrows shoot to his hairline and he realises quickly that none of the others
seems to be fazed by that, even though alcohol on the school grounds is
strictly prohibited. They could be suspended for that.
 
Jimin would have expected them to admonish Namjoon for bringing that, but
Hoseok just cackles and cheers. They quickly do that handshake thing that turns
into a hug, Yoongi smiles a little again and not even Jeongguk looks all that
nervous about it. Taehyung just looks vaguely curious.
 
It's the first time Jimin thinks that they've actually got some serious balls.
 
"I'll come with you," he says to no one in particular and instantly has all
eyes on him. Taehyung squeals happily and grabs his arm in a deadlock. It's
much too close for comfort but Jimin manages to subtly entangle himself again
after a few seconds.
 
"Great, then let's go!" Jeongguk says contently before he and the others all
pick up their skateboards that they've brought with them. Jimin pouts a little
because he doesn't have his with him. They could have told him beforehand.
 
They go to the bus station because the park is on the other end of the town and
all of them get their bus tickets from the ticket machine at the bus stop.
Jimin regrets going with them now because he not only doesn't have his board
with him, he also doesn't have the money to buy himself a ticket.
 
He doesn't tell anyone, though, starts fidgeting and preparing himself for
riding the bus without a ticket. He's done it countless times before, he
doesn't know why he's nervous about it now. But then Yoongi looks at him
questioningly and Jimin pulls his lips into a lopsided smile, playing it cool,
not moving at all.
 
He looks somewhere else to distract himself but then hears the sounds of the
ticket machine again and a few seconds later a hand shoves a ticket against his
chest. When he looks up, it's Yoongi who's holding the ticket between his
fingers, waiting for Jimin to accept it. The drummer's ears are red again, and
even his cheeks somewhat, and it's—, it's cute.
 
It's so cute, oh god.
 
Jimin feels strange but he just starts smiling at Yoongi, brushing his fingers
deliberately against Yoongi's hand when he takes the ticket from him.
 
“Thanks, drummer boy,” he says with a big smile on his face but Yoongi only
hums lowly and looks away to observe the road as if he’s hoping the bus would
arrive soon.
 
When the bus does arrive they all sit in the very back – except for Jimin and
Namjoon who don't fit there because there are only four seats lined up in that
row. Instead, they sit one row in front of the others, Jimin on one side of the
aisle and Namjoon on the other. Jimin has his upper body slightly twisted so
that he faces them.
 
And wow, they're so loud.
 
They talk boisterously, they sing random songs, they squabble, smack each
other, hug each other afterwards, become quiet when one of them recounts a
story. Jimin listens, but somehow he doesn't find the right words to join in.
Somehow he's still feeling all alone despite being surrounded by people.
 
Suddenly, he doesn't know why he said yes to this.
 
This is the feeling he's most afraid of, this is what he's wanted to avoid at
all costs but now he's here in a bus with them and he feels so out of place he
would like to jump out at the next stop and go home.
 
"Jimin," someone says, completely out of the blue because he was in his own
world for a moment, "what about you?" Namjoon is actually addressing him and
rips him out of his gloomy thoughts.
 
"Huh?"
 
"Tits or ass?" Namjoon grins at him almost wickedly and Jimin huffs.
 
"Is that a joke?" Jimin retorts, can't believe Namjoon is seriously making him
choose between tits or ass. He doesn't know if he should be offended or amused.
 
"Nope," Namjoon shakes his head sagely, "come on, Yoongi said ass, too."
 
"Namu!" Yoongi hisses before he slightly kicks Namjoon's shoulder with his
foot.
 
"Cocks," Jimin blurts out, lips curving into a sly grin. It's the only logical
choice for him.
 
Yoongi starts coughing at that, Taehyung patting him on the back worriedly
while Namjoon snorts, slow-clapping a few times.
 
"Good one, Jimin," Namjoon leans over the aisle and lifts his hand, obviously
wanting to do a brotherly handshake with him. Jimin isn't used to that; the
guys he hangs out with usually aren't brotherly in any way. He hesitates for a
moment before he takes his hand and squeezes it briefly. "Yoongi, cocks or
ass?" Namjoon continues, earning another death glare by the older boy.
 
"I'll stick to the asses, thanks," this makes all of them snort and burst out
in laughter and even Jimin has to snicker at that.
 
"Hyung, you haven't even stuck your dick in—," Hoseok starts but is immediately
silenced again by Yoongi's hand over his mouth before he's being smothered by
the other's full weight on him, having Hoseok squeaking and struggling
underneath him.
 
"Good thing that asses aren't the only thing dicks can be stuck into," Jimin
says nonchalantly, teasingly, and has Taehyung and Jeongguk gasp out loud while
Namjoon dies from laughing. Hoseok peeps up from where he's being crushed and
Yoongi – Yoongi looks pale and on the brink of death.
 
Jimin only made a joke but then he remembers what happened earlier today and
suddenly he feels bad for it, feels like he went too far when he looks at
Yoongi's shocked and mortified eyes. Before he can say anything, however, their
stop is announced and they all get up.
 
"Come on now," Namjoon urges with a broad grin on his face when the bus halts
and ushers them out of the vehicle. Yoongi looks really upset when he passes
straight by Jimin and keeps to Hoseok's side as if Jimin was an evil demon
trying to eat him up. Jimin stares at their backs as Hoseok puts his arm around
Yoongi's shoulder and seems to ask him if something's wrong but Yoongi only
shakes his head, leaning against his friend.
 
Jimin definitelyfeels bad now, but he can't allow himself to do so, so he
quickly pushes the thoughts away again.
 
He was only joking after all.
 
They arrive at the skate park that is littered by various ramps and are greeted
by a happy Seokjin and two girls who seem to belong to this group as well.
Jimin realises pretty soon that they're all not as different as the guys he
usually hangs out with, just that things don't all revolve around sex, alcohol
or other drugs, that this is just about doing stupid things with their friends.
 
They’re loud and noisy and when the two six packs of beer are gone, another one
is provided quickly from the nearest convenience store by Seokjin who is
currently the only one over eighteen and with an ID card on him.
 
Jimin sits in their circle and smokes cigarettes and shares with Namjoon,
Hoseok and the girl called Soomi. The girl called Jihae seems to be close with
Seokjin but they both don't smoke, instead Seokjin takes candid snapshots of
her and the others when they're not aware of it. Taehyung and Jeongguk play
their Pokémon game on their handhelds again while Yoongi sits next to them
playing on a gameboy as well.
 
Yoongi is the only one who's been quiet so far, seemingly lost in his own
world, and maybe Jimin is partly to blame for that. That’s why he decides to
take matters into his own hands, gets up and plops down next to him on the low
concrete wall he's sitting on. Yoongi only briefly lifts his head but when he
sees who it is, he averts his gaze again.
 
“What are you playing?”
 
“Tetris,” Yoongi replies, mumbled, without looking up from the tiny, green
screen that can be hardly seen in the light of dusk. Jimin recognises the music
coming from the small device that resounds quietly through the air before
Hoseok turns up the ghetto blaster Seokjin brought, but Yoongi doesn’t seem to
care much. Jeongguk and Taehyung shove each other at their shoulders as they
battle with their monster thingies and bicker loudly, Seokjin, Namjoon, Hoseok
and the girls are talking animatedly, but Yoongi remains quiet.
 
"I see," Jimin tries again, taking a sip from his beer, staring at the ground,
“I'll have that melody stuck in my head for hours now," he tries to joke but
Yoongi still doesn't look up.
 
"Hm," Yoongi just hums and Jimin starts contemplating going home just as
Yoongi’s gameboy battery dies. Yoongi curses and then groans, putting the
device down before he digs out a cigarette from the pocket of his hoodie. Jimin
quickly gives him a fire when Yoongi pats at his jeans and hoodie pockets and
doesn’t seem to find his lighter, cigarette already dangling from his lips.
 
Yoongi just glances at him – genuinely looks him in the eyes for the first time
after their little something in the bathroom earlier – when the fire appears in
front of his face and then leans forward, sticking the end of the cig into the
flame.
 
Jimin likes his messy black hair with the blue strands, how broad his shoulders
are, how smooth his skin looks despite the slight stubble on his chin and below
his nose, how beautifully his eyelashes fan out on his cheeks when he looks
down at his cigarette.
 
The moment Jimin is able to admire the stunning view is over way too quickly
again.
 
“Thanks,” Yoongi mumbles and Jimin smiles.
 
“So, is this your definition of fun?” Jimin asks, just as Seokjin’s and the
girls' laughter resounds through the air and Hoseok joins them shortly after,
Namjoon just smiling at whatever was said. He glances at them and wonders how
they can all be so comfortable with each other.
 
Yoongi clears his throat.
 
“Well, I now know your definition of fun,” Yoongi replies with a shrug and
Jimin is perplexed for a second, before he starts grinning. Maybe Yoongi isn't
thatmad at him after all.
 
"Do you now?" he asks cheekily but Yoongi just scoffs.
 
"Mhm," Yoongi hums, and it's peculiar how Jimin feels oddly comfortable just
sitting next to Yoongi like this. He takes a drag from his own smoke and looks
over to where Hoseok and Namjoon are busy with doing tricks on their
skateboards, hopes for a second that one of them will fall on the ghetto
blaster when fucking ‘Macarena’ starts playing – god if he has to listen to
that song one more time he’ll go berserk.
 
"Concerts are the real fun, but I rarely get the opportunity to go to one, to
answer your question," Yoongi surprises Jimin as he continues. Jimin turns his
head to look at him.
 
"I know," Jimin sighs, somehow happy that Yoongi is still talking to him after
everything, "when I was still living in the city I would go to concerts all the
time," he boasts proudly, even though it's a lie. He was almost fourteen when
he moved here, so he never actually went to a concert in the big city, at least
not alone and not to anything cool; just to some old, embarrassing bands his
parents listened to.
 
"Cool. Who did you see?"
 
"Oh, many bands. You know, Guilty Pleasurefor example," he says the first band
at the top of his head as casually as he can with a small shrug, certain that
Yoongi probably wouldn't even know them.
 
"Really?" Yoongi asks flatly, arching an eyebrow.
 
"Yeah, sure," Jimin says it with such a confidence that he's sure that Yoongi
won't look through the lie.
 
"They're pretty cool. That one song of theirs, how was it called again? Ah,
‘The devil’s end’, I like that one."
 
"Oh, yeah! That's actually my favourite by them! It's really good," Jimin
replies enthusiastically, wondering vaguely if he remembers that song. But if
Yoongi says they have a song called like that, it must be true.
 
"Jimin-ah, they don't have a song called ‘The devil’s end’. That was the name
of their first album. And they've never been to our country," Yoongi says and
Jimin freezes, feels his stomach swoop for a second at being caught at lying so
blatantly.
 
"Oh," he mutters dumbly but he doesn't want to let Yoongi know that he's
actually embarrassed. Yoongi's lips twitch briefly but he doesn't laugh at him
or anything and that is all it takes to make Jimin’s heart beat faster.
 
"You don't have to lie to appear cool, Jimin. Just be honest, 'kay?" Yoongi
slurs, leaning back a little, “we're all honest with each other, that's just
how we work. And since you're part of that now, you should stick to that, too.
We don't judge each other or anything, you can always be honest."
 
He realises how he judged Yoongi for being a virgin just that afternoon, how he
simply made assumptions about him before, and now he regrets it immensely.
Jimin swallows heavily, not sure if it's anxiety or honest raw emotion welling
up in his chest at Yoongi's words.
 
"Why did you want to join the band, anyway?” Jimin is taken aback by the sudden
question, his mind still trying to wrap around the fact that Yoongi just said
he's a part of them.
 
He doesn't really know the answer himself. Maybe because of his mum, maybe just
because he wanted to try something different or because he plans to run away
during their trip.
 
“I dunno I just wanted to sing, I guess,” he shrugs but it's probably the
safest answer.
 
“I see. Well, you sure got talent. Your voice suits our songs well and it's
amazing how quickly you learned all the lyrics by heart," Jimin almost can't
handle all those nice words and compliments he's getting from Yoongi. Usually
the compliments he receives are of an entirely different nature, like how he
'can take it so well' or how nice his ass is or how sensitive his nipples are.
He doesn't understand how those compliments leave him completely unaffected but
Yoongi's simple words get him almost flustered.
 
“Thank you, Yoongi," he whispers, voice thick but lips smiling.
 
Taehyung and Jeongguk who are sitting close next to them on Yoongi's side
suddenly jump up and run away, and Yoongi visibly tenses as he looks after
them, his gaze almost longing and imploring.
 
"Hey, I'm getting up for a while, my ass hurts," Yoongi quickly stands, kicks
up his skateboard and Jimin gets up, too. He dusts off his behind before he
follows him hesitantly because for some reason he senses that Yoongi actually
wanted to get away from him. The wary gaze Yoongi throws him confirms his
suspicion.
 
"Ever tried skating on a ramp?" and there's actually the hint of a smile
adorning Yoongi's face now. Jimin is thrilled.
 
"Sure, I—," he wants to lie as to not appear like a coward, but then he
remembers Yoongi's words from before. "Well not really," Jimin decides to be
honest and Yoongi nods.
 
"Okay, I mean… we could try, if you want to."
 
"I want to," Jimin says, biting his smiling lips, and since he doesn't have his
board with him, Yoongi lets him use his. And usually, he is good on his board,
can roll along the pavement just fine, but on an unfamiliar one and in such a
new setting he still feels a little insecure and wobbly on his legs.
 
He wavers but Yoongi catches his arm, and suddenly they're holding hands and if
Jimin wasn't so focused on Yoongi's touch all of a sudden, he would probably
collapse. He feels a little faint and dizzy but blames the beer for it.
 
Yoongi appears calm, but he still doesn't look at him. His hands feel a little
clammy and when Jimin rolls into him by accident and stumbles from the board
Jimin tries his best to laugh it off and ignore the electric sparks whenever
their bodies touch or are close to each other.
 
When Jimin is a little surer on the board, he tries rolling down the ramp and
actually succeeds, letting out a little 'whooo' when he goes down, and when he
looks back at Yoongi to see if he did well, the other is smiling at him. Jimin
can't help but jut out his chest proudly.
 
"Did I do well, hyung?" he grins, rolling back to the ramp.
 
"You did very well, Jimin-ah," Yoongi drawls calmly, and he looks so soft in
his oversized black sweater Jimin would like to lean against him and drown in
his gentle embrace. He pauses briefly when he realises what he's thinking but
before he can shake his head incredulously, Jeongguk and Taehyung join them,
wanting to skate on the ramp as well. They make everything even more chaotic
but Jimin can't deny that he is having actual fun.
 
Maybe those guys are not really his style, but he feels comfortable, hasn’t
really felt like he could be himself without pretending to be someone else in
so long and it's liberating in a sense he didn't know something could be.
 
“Yoongi, about earlier in the bathroom,” Jimin speaks up as they’re taking a
break, watching Taehyung and Jeongguk who started chasing after one another.
Jimin tries to ignore Yoongi’s alarmed face when he turns his gaze from
Taehyung and Jeongguk to the man next to him. “You know, it was just a blowjob.
Nothing more, so you can just forget about it. It was no big deal, okay?" he
says calmly, hoping that Yoongi will understand that it didn't have to mean
anything. That what happened between them doesn't have to count as Yoongi's
first time if he doesn't want it to be. Jimin didn't want to take this away
from him. He just has to make sure Yoongi doesn't get any wrong ideas.
 
He feels relief flood his chest at having been able to tell him this.
 
However, Yoongi’s eyes change and Jimin doesn’t understand when the older looks
away, feeling suddenly so out of reach again.
 
“I see,” Yoongi mumbles as a clipped reply and Jimin blinks a little irritated
but shrugs it off before Seokjin pipes up next to them suddenly, making both
their heads jerk into his direction.
 
“Hey guys, come here for a sec,” he waves them over and Jimin watches how
Jeongguk and Taehyung go over to him immediately while Yoongi hesitates for a
second before getting up anyway, wordlessly skating after Taehyung and Jeongguk
and Jimin follows on his feet. A weird sense of premonition settles in his
stomach again as he watches Yoongi's retreating back.
 
He comes to stand among the group despite feeling a little out of place, but
Yoongi told him he's part of them. It will be okay for him to stay a little
longer.
 
“We have decided to spice up our cabin a little. What d'you think? Namjoon,
Hoseok and I could take care of the furniture and you guys could paint the
inside?” Seokjin explains and Taehyung and Jeongguk start to cheer.
 
"It's about time we do that, the cabin seriously needs a makeover," Taehyung
claps his hands excitedly, jumping from one foot to the other.
 
“What cabin?” Jimin asks curiously, a little carried away by the good mood.
Normally, he wouldn't ask.
 
“Ah, we found an abandoned cabin in the forest near Tae’s and Jin’s home. It’s
awesome, we often hang out there but it's a little bleak yet,” Hoseok explains
and Jimin thinks that sounds indeed pretty cool. He hasn't been to the forest
very often yet since he’s started living here. It's further away from his home
while the park is just behind it, so he prefers hanging out at the park.
 
“Sounds cool, can I—, can I come with you guys someday?”
 
“What someday? I thought you’d help as well. Are you part of the band or not?”
Seokjin sounds a little admonishing, as if Jimin just said something offensive
but it all seems to be in good humour. Jimin has all eyes on him and he doesn't
know why it feels good to hear those words. A small smile is playing on his
lips before his eyes find their way to Yoongi for a second but the drummer has
his eyes downcast. Still, Jimin nods, convincing himself that between him and
Yoongi everything is fine again. At least Yoongi didn’t tell him to fuck off,
so sure, he’ll stay.
 
“Sure, whatever," he says nonchalantly, feeling as if he's just passed a test
of some sort.
 
"Great, so what colour shall we go for for the interior?” Hoseok asks
excitedly, gaze wandering among the circle.
 
“I want purple!” Taehyung shouts.
 
“Not purple, red!” Jeongguk actually disagrees with Taehyung and Jimin briefly
wonders how that's even possible.
 
“No way, it should look awesome and not like a brothel,” Namjoon shakes his
head and Jimin raises an eyebrow because Taehyung snickers at that, but somehow
he has to smile a little. Honestly, Taehyung is kinda cute sometimes.
 
"What if we paint just one wall and put photographs of us there? We have tons
of pictures thanks to Jin but nowhere to put them."
 
"What about blue?” Yoongi mumbles and Jimin feels his heart start racing, a
sudden light-headed rush coursing through him.
 
“What about baby blue?” he hears himself blurt out and wonders why he gets
carried away by their attempt to find the right colour for a cabin he hasn’t
even seen yet.
 
“Baby blue sounds awesome! Or maybe we could go for a sky look with white
clouds?” Everyone gets loud again and seems to be more than excited, all of
them talking over each other.
 
And so Jimin ends up agreeing on painting an abandoned forest cabin that he has
never been to before. Not only that, but he will do it with the two babies of
the group and Yoongi who glances at him with a look in his eyes so distant he
could as well be on the other side of the world.
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                      –☾–
                                        
Yoongi can’t believe the amount of bad luck he has lately when he leaves the
faculty room where he just had another talk with his father and his history
teacher about his latest homework. Someone up there must really hate him
because why does he have to be the one student with a dad who is a teacher? Why
does his history teacher have to be friends with his dad and why does he have
to have a crush on Park Jimin who told him to just forget about the blowjob?
 
Yoongi can't believe he just told him that it was no big deal– told him to
forget.
 
As if he ever could.
 
He leaves the empty school building. The sun is immediately burning down on him
as he steps outside, the light blinding for a moment before his eyes adjust to
the brightness of this hot summer's day. A barely there breeze blows even more
warmth into his face and he can feel his back immediately start to sweat, the
T-shirt and checkered shirt he's wearing on top of it definitely too much
already in this scorching weather.
 
He is probably one of the last students to leave the vicinity, everyone else
already enjoying their free time either with studying for exams (not so
enjoyable) or hanging out somewhere at the park or at the lake (very
enjoyable). Yoongi huffs at the thought, wishes he could take a plunge in the
clear water of the cool lake north of the town, but that won't happen today.
 
He ambles towards the bicycle stands in order to fetch his bike while he puts
the headphones of his walkman on and starts playing the music. He climbs on top
of his bike, backpack digging awkwardly into his spine. The heat on his back
becomes almost unbearable, but he starts stomping down on the pedals
nonetheless, tries to dispel his fantasies of hanging out with Jimin anywhere
that is not the practice room, tries to shove the thoughts and lingering
memories of Jimin's warm mouth around his cock to the farthest and most
wrinkled corners of his mind.
 
The success is moderate.
 
Instead of ignoring what happened, Yoongi realises with a sting in his heart
that that sloppy blowjob in the toilet stall will be all Yoongi will ever get
from Jimin. It would explain why he was always behaving so sweetly in front of
him, so flirtatious and frivolous, why he pushed him into that toilet stall
and—
 
Would it have been anyone but Jimin he would have sucker-punched them in the
face. But not Jimin. Maybe he should have because Yoongi got a taste of what it
could be like to be with Park Jimin and now the thought won't leave his head
anymore. Like a seed that has been planted in his mind and grows and grows with
every time Jimin looks at him, with every time they accidentally touch, with
every time Yoongi hears Jimin's crystal clear laughter or sees his smile.
 
He steers his bicycle around the corner and shakes his head, gaze fixed on the
road.
 
Nope. Stop. Donot think about it anymore. It meant nothing to him, he said so
himself. Just try to get over it.
 
But the thoughts keep tossing and turning in his mind and soon enough his head
starts to hurt not only from the relentless sun blaring down on him, but also
because he just can't seem to get out of this vortex of daydreams and self-
admonishing.
 
In order to distract himself he goes to the nearest convenience store to buy
some soda, mind not completely cleared of Jimin as he starts wondering which of
the many various flavours on display could be the vocal's favourite. He's
wondering in vain, though, since Jimin won't even be there today. The fact that
he accompanied them the other day to the park might have been a one-time-
occurrence only.
 
He quickly buys a huge bottle of good old coke and when he's back on the road
again, he thinks he's going to die. The street goes slightly uphill and he's
never hated life so goddamn much than in this moment. Not even the music
blaring from his speakers is helping much at all. Why did he agree to meet the
others at the abandoned train station if they could have just gone to the park
or the forest behind Jin's and Taehyung's houses? That would have been much
closer and protected by the shadows of the trees. Reaching the train station
could well be equated with walking through a desert without a drop of water.
 
He turns into the smaller path that leads from the main road through dry grass,
coarse bushes and all along the old rail tracks before the old station finally
comes into view, like a fata morgana of wavering images created by the blazing
sun. It's a run-down place, everything rusty and half broken to a degree it
might as well crumble if you touch it, but it's still in shape well enough to
hang out at without being in any danger. They would know; they have combed and
dissected the entire vicinity, multiple times. They know the area like their
backyards.
 
Yoongi sees the others' bikes littering the spot just in front of the concrete
stairs that lead up to the platform and lets his own bike join them on the
ground. He briefly scans the rail tracks, follows them with his eyes until they
lead over the old train bridge spanning over the river, all sorts of greenery
overgrowing the area, obscuring the bridge that peeks out between the leaves in
an outworn red colour. As soon as he's hopped up the stairs, he can see it more
clearly, but he busies himself with putting his headphones and walkman away.
 
His friends are at the very end of the platform, all of them clearly exhausted
by the relentless heat that's simmering in the air.
 
Namjoon is teaching Taehyung how to spray graffitis on one of the already
plastered walls of the station house while Jeongguk is sitting opposite of them
leaning against a pillar, watching what they're doing intently. In his hand
he's holding his gameboy, music just faintly audible in the air, but he seems
to have forgotten that he's holding it at all, for his eyes are undoubtedly
glued on Taehyung.
 
Hoseok and Jin are lying with their backs on the warm stony ground, their legs
dangling from the platform as their arms are outspread next to them or crossed
behind their heads while the orchestra of crickets is playing their chirping
music seemingly all around them, underlining the lethargic mood they are
surrounded with.
 
"Hey losers," he hollers and everyone snaps their heads towards him. He's glad
they at least still seem to function. He grins.
 
"Hyung!" Jeongguk's face lights up when he sees him and scrambles to his feet,
"you're finally here." The younger one approaches him with a bright smile on
his face, coming to a halt next to him. Yoongi reaches up to tousle Jeongguk's
hair who giggles at that before Yoongi puts a hand on his shoulder, squeezing
it lightly. "We already thought you wouldn't come."
 
"Heeey, loser yourself, you're late," Seokjin yells back and Yoongi takes the
last steps before he's finally reached the others, letting his backpack drop to
the floor before remembering the coke bottle in there. He hopes it won't be
shaken up too badly. The only thing he wants to do right now is to finally take
his checkered shirt off, the first thing he does before he sits down himself.
His T-shirt is still clinging to his body obnoxiously, drenched in his own
sweat. He feels gross.
 
"Yeah, sorry, my dad," Yoongi rolls his eyes, pulling the coke bottle out of
his backpack, condensed water clinging to it because it's actually still quite
cool, "to make up for it I bought coke at the store. It's even still a little
cold. Who are the losers now?" He looks at Jeongguk with a grin on his lips
when he sees the younger's big, shining eyes that are directed at the bottle.
 
"Oh my god, give it to me!" Hoseok exclaims, making grabby hands at him
immediately. Yoongi gives his best friend an unimpressed look, toying with the
idea of making him and the others work for it. But he's also a good hyung and
he doesn't want them to go dehydrated. So he hands Hoseok the bottle. But when
the other opens it, it starts to fizz and run over his hands. Hoseok starts
squealing and Yoongi briefly thinks how he should have warned him about exactly
that.
 
Well, it's a little too late for that now.
 
"Hobi, what the fuck!" Seokjin jumps up and away from the sugary, sticky liquid
sputtering in all directions, Taehyung and Namjoon start laughing as Jeongguk
shakes his head with his eyes closed as if that couldn't have happened to him.
Yoongi just sighs, but he's so glad to be surrounded by his friends again,
grateful for the opportunity to clear his mind a little of a certain Park
Jimin.
 
Shit. He just thought of him – again.
 
He should contemplate keeping a tally.
 
"There I try my best to be a good hyung and how do you thank me for it? By
spilling everything over yourself," he tuts and shakes his head as well,
teasing Hoseok the way he knows will rile him up. As anticipated, Hoseok gives
him the stink eye and Yoongi guffaws, slapping his knee, smiling brightly.
 
"Shut up, hyung. Next time you can open your shit yourself," Hoseok throws the
cap of the bottle into his face and Yoongi stares at him blankly and
dumbstruck, catching the cap barely with flailing hands and a flourish at the
end. He licks his lips and cocks his head to the side, ready to counter, but
before he can retort anything, Jeongguk hands Hoseok a tissue and helps him
clean up while Namjoon and Taehyung also come closer to them, crouching down.
 
After everyone has taken some sips from the bottle that is luckily large enough
for everyone to drink from, Taehyung and Jeongguk go off and climb on a big
tree next to the station building before they jump on its roof.
 
"Be careful where you thread, okay?" Yoongi shouts up at them and gets a
synchronous 'yes, dad' back, making Yoongi roll his eyes. He sighs and hopes
that the little ones won't break a leg as he lights the cigarette that he's
really deserved now.
 
"It’s a pity Jimin didn’t join us today," Seokjin remarks and Yoongi almost
coughs, his stomach twisting with dread at the mention of the singer's name. He
came here to forget about Jimin, not to be reminded of him first thing after
arriving.
 
"Yeah, I guess he still doesn't really want to hang out with us," Hoseok muses
with a sigh and Namjoon hums.
 
"He's been a lot more talkative lately, though, and he went with us to the park
yesterday," his friend with the grape coloured hair says before also taking a
sip from the coke bottle, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down with every gulp.
 
Could they please stop talking about him now?
 
"Yeah, that's true," Seokjin grabs the coke bottle from Namjoon and Yoongi sees
how its contents are drained little by little, a foreboding feeling spreading
in Yoongi's chest that he won't have a single drop of it, "I think he's a good
guy, just a little – you know – misunderstood," Yoongi looks into the distance
where the train bridge crosses the river, silently wishing he could go on a
walk over it right now.
 
It feels wrong talking about Jimin like that. It doesn't sit right with him.
 
"To be honest, I don't care what he does in his free time, but have you seen
all those hickeys he constantly has all over his neck and shoulders? I don't
think he's misunderstood, I think he knows exactly what he's doing," Hoseok
says with apprehension in his voice and Yoongi oddly feels like he should
defend Jimin. Like he wants to defend him. Even if it's his best friend whose
opinion he wouldn't share.
 
But suddenly he sees Jimin before his imaginary vision again, down on his
knees, eyes hooded and lustful, tongue piercing glistening as he licks over his
cum stained lips. Yoongi swallows dryly, craving the cola from the bottle now
more than ever. He takes a long drag from his cigarette as if he could suck his
soul back into his body but his soul has left him ever since he came into
Jimin's mouth.
 
And yet he feels defensive, can't stand that anyone on this planet would lose a
single bad word about the beautiful boy that is Park Jimin.
 
"Guys, we don't really know Jimin all that well. For all we know, he could be
the sweetest and nicest—," he starts but in that moment, the door of the train
station building slams open and Taehyung and Jeongguk come barging out of it,
laughing and bickering. It's in a moment of carelessness that Taehyung almost
stumbles over Yoongi sitting on the floor, the lanky guy only catching himself
barely as he hops on one foot until his hands can grab a pillar of the roof
that covers the platform, shouting desperate 'oh, oh, oh's in the process.
 
He grins sheepishly at Yoongi before he comes to hug him, arms snapping around
Yoongi's shoulders like a bear trap around its victim. Yoongi holds his
cigarette at a safe distance away from their bodies.
 
"What the—. Tae!"
 
"Hyung, Gukkie mentioned that zombie game we were playing the other day and now
I'm scared! There was a train station in it just like this one!" he whines and
Yoongi subtly tries to untangle himself from the younger's long limbs that are
all over him.
 
"Taehyungie, it's way too warm for hugs right now," he croaks but Taehyung just
holds on tighter, nuzzling his cheek against his shoulder. Yoongi surrenders,
tipping his head back onto Taehyung's shoulder, staring up at the ceiling of
the roof, the crickets chirping in his ears, the summer heat coiling around his
body as if he has descended into the cruellest pits of hell.
 
He heaves a heavy sigh, patting Taehyung's upper arm with his free hand.
 
"Don't worry, Tae, zombies don't exist," Yoongi mutters languidly, eyes
fluttering closed.
 
"I know that, silly hyung! But it's still creepy," Taehyung retorts before he
finally, voluntarily, lets go of him. When Yoongi wants to see why, he sees
that Jeongguk is sneakily taking more sips from the coke bottle, Taehyung
sidling up to him with an intense thirst for the sweet liquid burning in his
eyes. As soon as Jeongguk notices him, he hands him the bottle without further
ado and a smile on his lips.
 
"Thank you, Jeonggukkie," Taehyung sing-songs, before he pulls a grimace, "ew,
it's still sticky," Yoongi shakes his head fondly at their youngest's spoiled
behaviour, but at least he's able to smile a little again.
 
"Hey, hyung," he automatically turns his head to see if Hoseok is addressing
him or Seokjin, but then he sees his best friend's eyes directed straight at
him, "everything alright? You're awfully quiet today. I mean, even more so than
usual."
 
"Huh? Oh, yeah. Sure, everything's alright," and all the memories rush back at
him. Jimin's pretty lips, his slick tongue, his soft hair. Oh god, he wishes he
could just blurt it out, just talk to them about it, but his chest tightens
unbearably at the thought of them laughing at him if he told them about how
quickly he came. Also, how could he tell them without Jimin knowing about it?
It wouldn't be fair. The fact that it all happened in the school's restroom
doesn't make things any easier.
 
They would never let him live.
 
"You sure?” Hoseok asks further, one eye squinting sceptically as if he's
trying to read Yoongi's mind.
 
"Yeah, sure. It's just too damn hot to function right now," Yoongi says and
it's actually true. He feels like he's melting. "Have you guys already found
some furniture for the cabin?" he quickly changes the topic and finally manages
to take a sip of the sticky coke bottle.
 
"Actually we did!" Seokjin sounds happy and content, back straightening as he
starts recounting how they found some really cool bean bags, a nice looking
couch and an actual bed frame they could put in their hideout.
 
"It all comes from an acquaintance of mine," Namjoon says, "he's moving so he
doesn't need the stuff anymore. I pulled an extra shift at the gas station to
buy it off of him but it was absolutely worth it, you'll see! We just have to
find a way how to get everything into the forest and to the cabin once you guys
are done painting."
 
"Wow, great. Thanks man," Yoongi does a handshake with him before Hoseok pipes
up.
 
"We also found some really chic decorations at the thrift shop. It's going to
look amazing! Have you already bought the paint?" Jeongguk and Taehyung run
away in that moment, both of them playful as ever before they balance on the
train tracks in the wavering heat. Usually a train will pass there only every
once in a while every other week but Yoongi is still a little worried.
 
"Nope, Guk and I will get it in the morning before we go do the painting,"
Yoongi says absentmindedly, watching how Taehyung kneels down on the side of
the tracks and lets his ear hover above the hot iron, apparently trying to hear
if a train is approaching. Jeongguk jumps onto the track right next to his head
then and startles him before he can put his head down completely. Taehyung
yelps before he starts throwing pebbles at his best friend who runs away
laughing.
 
Yoongi smiles.
 
"You sure you're gonna be okay with the little ones and, you know. Jimin?"
Namjoon asks with a smirk in his teasing voice and Yoongi whips his head around
to look at him.
 
"Excuse me? I'm Min Yoongi, I can handle them," he says offhandedly and waves
Namjoon off.
 
"I think he actually only means Jimin," Seokjin provides helpfully and Yoongi
feels like something is going on he's not really privy to. He blinks a few
times, scrutinising his friends carefully, narrowing his eyes.
 
"Oh god, is he blushing?" Namjoon cackles and something in Yoongi snaps. As if
on instinct he springs on his feet when Namjoon starts running away from
Yoongi's wrath.
 
"Just wait, you little fucker," Yoongi yells, chasing Namjoon around the
pillars and over the platform, heat exhaustion forgotten.
 
"Who's the little one here," Namjoon taunts and Yoongi can almost feel the
veins pop on his temple.
 
"That's it! I'm gonna kill you, asshole," he grabs Namjoon by the arm, aiming
to get the huge baby into a headlock. He might be smaller than him, but he's
quicker and more cunning.
 
"Gosh, you could think Yoongi really has it bad for the marshmallow," he hears
Seokjin snicker. His feet stomp on the ground as he comes to an abrupt halt,
letting go of Namjoon and whirling around.
 
"I don’t!" he shrieks, hating his so-called friends so much right now, "god
dammit. Stop imagining things!" but they all just laugh unanimously – all
except for Hoseok.
 
He looks at his best friend who has a guarded expression on his face, lips
slightly pursed in that motherly scowl Yoongi knows so well, and Yoongi wonders
why he isn't joining in on the teasing. He's glad for it but he can't tell him,
can't tell anyone of them because he doesn't even know what to think anymore
himself.
 
Yes, he totally has caught feelings for the boy with the cotton candy hair and
the necklace of hickeys adorning his neck that he has received from god knows
who.
 
And Hoseok already seems to catch on.
 
Shit.
 
Namjoon is still cackling as if teasing Yoongi was still funny when he plops
down next to Seokjin again, at a safe distance from Yoongi. Hoseok gets up
instead, walking up to him.
 
"Let's go for a walk," his best friend says with a friendly smile and nudges
the small of his back briefly before he hops down from the platform. Yoongi
hesitates for a moment before he follows him. They pass Taehyung and Jeongguk
who haven't stopped balancing along the tracks and Yoongi quickly looks at
them, making sure that they are okay.
 
"Go back in the shadow, kiddos. Don't get a sunstroke," he admonishes them.
Taehyung pouts but Jeongguk nods.
 
"Yes, hyung," Yoongi smiles when Jeongguk drags Taehyung back under the roof of
the platform. As he comes to walk beside Hoseok he lights another cig. He
really needs that one right now.
 
"You're stress smoking, hyung," Hoseok deadpans and Yoongi sighs out the smoke
after taking a deep drag.
 
"I know."
 
"Just don't over do it."
 
"Mhm," Yoongi hums and resists the urge to balance on one of the iron beams
that lead straight to the rusty bridge and over it. It's finally in full view
and Yoongi can't wait to step on it and look down at the broad river that leads
underneath it. Maybe it will calm him down a little.
 
Hoseok is quiet again next to him as they're walking side by side. The other
has his hands in his pockets, the checkered shirt he's usually wearing bound
around his hips loosely. His black hair is shining in the sunlight and his lips
are still pursed as if in deep thought.
 
"Hey, my parents will be going on their anniversary trip soon. You wanna hang
out then?" Hoseok breaks the silence just as they're stepping on the bridge.
Yoongi jumps from in between the track he's walking on to the left side of the
bridge and lets his free hand glide along the rusty surface of one of the
bridge's beams.
 
"Hm, sure," Yoongi smiles at his friend before taking another drag from his
smoke, directing his gaze at the wild water down below. The greenish blue river
strongly flows underneath the bridge, some heavy boulders in its bed creating
whirls and torrents and rapids that cause white splashes and sprays all around
them.
 
Watching it instantly soothes Yoongi's soul.
 
Hoseok sits down then, letting his legs dangle from the bridge. Yoongi copies
him, crouching first before lowering one leg and plopping down on his behind,
cigarette still held securely between his fingers.
 
He sighs and leans his arms over the flaky beam that is running from one side
of the bridge to the other and has just the right height for him to do so. It's
hot and probably reddening his skin, but Yoongi doesn't care.
 
"Don't listen to them," Hoseok suddenly says and Yoongi's head snaps up again.
 
"Huh?"
 
"Their teasing. You know how they are. They're just not used to seeing you like
this."
 
Yoongi clears his throat, finishing his cigarette before throwing it into the
river. "Like what?"
 
Hoseok merely offers him a cryptic smile before he licks his lips, eyes
flickering with amusement but also sympathy.
 
"Oh, you know. With your head in the clouds somewhere," a corner of his mouth
lifts into a grin and Yoongi briefly contemplates jumping off the bridge, "and
Yoongi?" Yoongi looks up from the river where he's intently been studying the
currents, humming in acknowledgement, "you know that whatever it is, you can
always talk to me, right?"
 
Yoongi pulls his lips into a lopsided, grateful smile.
 
Yes. He knows that.
 
And the only other thing he knows is that he's completely and utterly fucked.
Chapter End Notes
     WE LOVE OT6 OKAY BUT WHEN WILL IT FINALLY BECOME OT7 AKLSDJ
     Writing this entire fic somehow turned out to be super hard, but
     we're doing our best :>
     It's also a lot more slow-burny than we intended it to be haha even
     though – let's face it – yoonmin are already totally whipped for each
     other. They just both have their issues and throwbacks and alksjdas
     get a grip guys.
     Next chapter will be one of our favourite ones so far, we hope you'll
     still be here when we upload it hopefully soon-ish <3
     Oh yeah, as always, come scream at us on (ﾉ´ヮ´)ﾉ*: ･ﾟtwitter.
***** Six. *****
Chapter Notes
     The new concept pictures that have just been released… seriously…
     they're perfect for this fic okay and we're crying ㅠㅠ so much
     This is our favourite chapter so far ♡
     It's also by far the longest with 11k oops. We really tried to stay
     around 6-7k but sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
     Just a small warning: there's a brief bullying scene in this chapter,
     in Jimin's first scene. Feel free to skip if that makes you
     uncomfortable.
     Also: a Prince Albert is a genital piercing, don't look it up if you
     don't wanna see dicks haha.
     Enjoy!
     ☼ = Jimin
     ☾ = Yoongi
See the end of the chapter for more notes
                                      –☼–
 
Jimin can't believe that he is actually showing up to class on a Friday after a
night that he's been out. He almost went to hang out with the band again
yesterday, but for some reason, it was too much all too soon and he had to flee
again.
 
The guys he's been with had a shisha and he couldn't have said no. Of course,
he also offered compensation and what he did with them was actually pretty
enjoyable. It always goes a long way if the other party is actually sober.
 
He threads his fingers through his hair, the leather jacket he's worn until a
few days ago now replaced by a lighter denim jacket. It's the end of May but it
has already become as warm in the morning as in the middle of summer. Other
than his jacket he's wearing a black and white striped T-shirt and ripped
jeans, pretty tame for once, but he was way too tired to prepare his outfit
when he got home sometime during the night or to rummage through his closet
when he got out of bed this morning.
 
He lets out a mighty yawn, eyes squeezed shut when suddenly someone bumps into
his shoulder, making him almost stumble into the wall of lockers to his right.
The temperature of his blood shoots up instantly, the instinct to lash out at
the person almost uncontrollable.
 
"Hey you fucking piece of—,"
 
Shit.
 
It's Yoongi.
 
Jimin's eyes grow bigger when he looks directly into the other's round eyes
before he arches his eyebrows in surprise, scowl disappearing from his face
immediately.
 
He briefly wonders if Yoongi suddenly is wherever he is or if he was always
somehow around and he just didn’t notice him before he joined the band. But
then again – he probably just perceives it that way because he usually isn’t at
school around this hour.
 
Jimin, for once, is speechless, and as he stares at the drummer, he can see
recognition dawn on Yoongi's horrified face.
 
"Sorry, Jimin, I didn't pay attention,” Yoongi starts and then inhales before
he goes on, not really looking him in the eyes, “You 'kay?"
 
"Yeah, sure," Jimin takes Yoongi in, his turquoise weather jacket that reaches
way past his hips, his black ripped jeans and… the black and white striped T-
shirt that doesn't look very unlike his own. In fact, they are nearly
identical.
 
Somehow he has to suppress a smile.
 
"Hey, I gotta blast or I end up in detention again. See you at rehearsal,"
Yoongi mutters hurriedly before he offers him a small smile. Jimin nods and
hums, watches how Yoongi takes a few steps backwards before he turns around.
 
"See you, drummer boy," Jimin shouts after him, causing himself to smile
genuinely as he watches Yoongi turn his head to look back over his shoulder –
before he walks straight into the nearest open locker door.
 
Jimin's breath hitches in his throat as he watches how Yoongi bangs the locker
door closed with the force of the impact, how Yoongi flinches and recoils on
instinct and Jimin would like to laugh but somehow the sound is stuck in his
throat.
 
It's like he's hit by a déjà-vu. A déjà-vu of something he has never seen
before, something warm, something familiar that wraps itself around his cold
heart and squeezes gently instead of brutally sharp and suddenly he feels like
he's falling from a high place.
 
The moment Yoongi gets yelled at for not having any eyes in his head by the
owner of that poor locker Jimin snaps out of it again, the world around him
once more zooming into focus, the blur that has surrounded him just moments ago
gone again. He watches as Yoongi hisses at the person and waves them off before
stomping away hastily, shoulders hunched and arms tightly wrapped around the
books he's been carrying just now. There's a faint tinge of red at the tips of
his ears, if Jimin is not mistaken.
 
Jimin sighs.
 
He shakes off the funny feeling and instead just quirks an eyebrow, suppressing
a small grin before he realises that he just – once again –  thought about how
cute Yoongi is. He shakes his head and with the knowledge that he and Yoongi
apparently share the same taste in clothes, however small the overlap of that
taste may be, he goes to his classroom, humming the melody of his band's new
song under his breath.
 
His good mood doesn't waver even when the teacher arrives, her bored voice not
making him fall asleep for once. They're watching a video soon, anyway, all of
the students getting excited when she rolls in the TV from the multimedia room.
It takes a while until she has set it up and put in the VCR while some other
students are lowering the blinds to plunge the room into darkness.
 
During that time, Jimin observes Taehyung and Jeongguk.
 
They're both sitting at the front, as always, while he's sitting at the back –
also as always – but he can see them well from where he is. They're both poking
each other underneath the table, Taehyung's shoulders shaking with small
suppressed giggles from time to time while Jeongguk sometimes just turns his
head slightly, a small smile apparent on his lips.
 
They really seem to be pretty close.
 
Jimin doesn't know for sure, but he assumes those two must have grown up
together, probably went to school together their whole life, the level of
comfortableness they both ooze simply overwhelming and almost not
understandable for someone like Jimin who never had a close friendship like
that, not even when he was little.
 
Of course he wouldn't fit into a friendship like that, even though he sometimes
catches himself daydreaming about it.
 
Sometimes, he would imagine how it would be to lazy around at home and then get
a phone call which his mother picks up because he's too lazy to get up himself,
probably listening to music in his room or watching TV. She would shout from
the hallway that it's for him and when he would put the receiver to his ear it
would actually be Taehyung calling, asking him if he's up to hanging out at the
mall or something. Of course, he would say yes, get ready and leave the house
on his skateboard to go and meet up with them, just having fun doing random
stuff.
 
That's what teenagers are supposed to do, right? But he reckons that he just
doesn't fit into this mould, that he's just different, and therefore not privy
to such joys.
 
He knows he could just tell Taehyung that he would like to come over to look at
his new computer or his Nintendo – the other boy has asked him more than once
already to do so – but whenever Jimin is asked by him something inside of him
just shuts down and wants to run away.
 
He's still staring at them, absentmindedly playing with his tongue piercing,
when the room goes completely dark and they vanish in the shadows before the
documentary starts playing on the TV. It's super boring and lame and the
darkness in the room causes Jimin's latent sleepiness to resurface in full
force. By the end of the film, his head is drooping and his eyes are closed;
he's almost dozing off.
 
In his mind before his eyes he can see Yoongi in the same shirt as him, smiling
at him, a weird feeling tingling in his belly. The other's soft looking hair is
falling into his face, his fringe so long that it half covers his eyes, his
nose soft and his smile so kind and warm it almost lures Jimin into believing
that the other could, in fact, one day smile at him like that in reality.
 
But Jimin quickly tries to shake off the thoughts, memories of what he did last
night with those guys instead flooding his mind. He remembers how they littered
hickeys all over his body, on his stomach, his thighs, his neck and collarbones
as if he belonged to them, and suddenly he feels a faint sting in his chest
again.
 
Right.
 
That's exactly why Yoongi would never like him. Why he would run for the hills
if he really knew.
 
He shudders, trying to open his eyes and actually concentrate on the movie only
to have images of Yoongi's lips flash in his mind again, lips he should have
kissed when he had the chance to do so. It's absolutely impossible to watch the
grainy TV screen and actually focus on it with all those images in his head and
all that regret in his heart.
 
Thankfully, the lights go on soon again and he blinks rapidly, trying to dispel
the weird thoughts and the befuddlement in his mind. His head only clears up a
bit again when the bell finally rings, denoting the end of the lesson.
 
He really needs a smoke now.
 
He quickly gets up from his uncomfy chair and while he walks to the exit he's
patting his denim jacket for his cigarette pack and lighter, wondering where
they are. He finds neither and curses when he remembers that he forgot to empty
the pockets of his leather jacket and to put the things in this one. He tips
his head back briefly but figures he can just mug one of someone else.
 
"Park Jimin," a girl suddenly yells at him, and when he looks over his shoulder
to check who called him, the girl looks as if someone just broke her toy or
dropped chocolate ice cream all over her yellow summer dress. Jimin just gapes
at her perplexed before he gathers his senses and quickly puts his
disinterested mask back on. He doesn't say anything, just lets her stomp
closer. "Park Jimin, give it back!" she hisses and now it's really hard for
Jimin to keep a straight face at seeing her bottom lip snagged between her
front teeth as if she's trying to look intimidating
 
"Give back what?" he says, voice raspy and dangerously low, clears his throat
that's still a little sore, sucks his piercing against the roof of his mouth.
 
"My purse! I can't find it and you just walked past it! You stoleit, you—. You
jerk!"
 
"Yes, I saw how he put something in his pocket," a friend of hers chimes in
accusingly and Jimin instantly gets pissed to the moon and back. He didn't
fucking do anything. He's not interested in her fucking purse.
 
The girl with the summer dress, which is as yellow as the imaginary lemon she
must have taken a bite off, extends her hand and wants to fucking touch him
without his consent. He instinctively knocks her arm away, taking a step back.
 
"Don't you fucking dare. I don't have your stupid purse," he spits but there is
suddenly a group of curious boys and girls gathering around them and he doesn't
think he can run. They're beside him, behind him, and there are desks
everywhere. He can't go anywhere, the room suddenly looking so much smaller
than it actually is, the ceiling seemingly coming closer and closer until he
feels like it's crushing him.
 
"Pinky stole it for sure," he hears them whisper.
 
"Yeah, I heard he was in jail once for shoplifting. Wouldn't surprise me in the
slightest," lies lies lies.
 
"He's such a slut," someone else giggles and Jimin feels like his windpipe is
clogging up, like an animal that's cornered and caged, fair game for everyone
who'd like to throw the first stone.
 
Someone shoves his shoulder then and he doesn't even fight it for a second
before he catches himself, ripping his shoulder away from the hand that is
grabbing him hard. He isn't close to tears, but the anger makes it hard for him
to remain calm.
 
"Are you looking for this?" another voice pipes up among the commotion, a
familiar one, and Jimin's head snaps back up again.
 
Jeongguk stands there, picking up a pink purse from the ground, holding it up
beside his head. Taehyung is standing next to him, a deep, angry frown on his
face.
 
It suddenly becomes quiet in the classroom.
 
The girl who started everything just stares at her purse in Jeongguk's hand
before she leaps and intends to grab it from him. The boy with the brown hair
won't have it though, simply lifts his arm higher, bringing the purse out of
her reach. It looks comical how she tries to snatch the purse from the tall
boy's hand that's high up in the air.
 
"What are you doing, Jeon? Give it back to me, it's mine!" she whines
petulantly, her own arm still extended towards Jeongguk's hand.
 
"Forget it, not before you have apologised to Jimin!" Jeongguk's voice is hard
and unwavering and he suddenly seems to be a lot more confident and
intimidating than he usually is. Usually he's the quiet one when he's not
goofing around with Taehyung, especially during classes. Jimin didn't even
know. He never even made an effort to know that Jeongguk isn't just that quiet
mama's boy he thought he was.
 
Jimin presses his lips together, watches how the girl visibly tries to fight
her pride, her body almost shaking, before she turns to him again abruptly. Her
red face clashes oddly with the colour of her dress, her eyes boring into him
as if she's convinced that Jimin is still the one at fault here.
 
"Sorry," she mumbles quickly but Jimin doesn't say anything, just stares at her
blankly. He doesn't give a rat's ass about her apology. The words are emptier
than his current stash of cigarettes.
 
Taehyung huffs at her mumbling and wants to say something, inhaling sharply and
opening his mouth, but Jeongguk stops him with a gentle hand to his shoulder.
 
"Actually, all of you who accused him unfoundedly and were rude to him should
apologise," Jeongguk adds just as he moves to hand the girl her purse. She sees
her chance and wants to grasp it once more, but Jeongguk quickly pulls it away
again. "I mean it. Everyone," the boys and girls that are gathered gasp out
loud but then they all murmur mumbled apologies as they make a beeline for the
exit of the room. Jeongguk tosses the purse at the girl who barely catches it
before she disappears as well.
 
Jimin almost doesn't register all of that while he's staring at his two
bandmates.
 
"Jimin, are you alright?" Taehyung rushes over to him and realises how his own
fists are clenched hard, his fingernails digging small crescents into the
pillows of his palms. He quickly holds his head high.
 
Of course he's fine. That was nothing.
 
"Yeah, I'm good. They're just shitheads," he scoffs, pushing his hair back
before he puts his hands into his empty pockets. If he acts as if it was no big
deal, they won't feel compelled to help him again in the future. It's better
that way, for he wouldn't ever be able to give them anything in return.
 
The truth is, however, that the turmoil inside of him almost makes him cry. No
one has ever given him anything akin to the help and trust they just offered
him.
 
“Yeah, usually most of them are alright but that was really mean,” Taehyung
pouts and Jeongguk nods while putting an arm around Taehyung’s shoulder.
 
“You wanna spend the break together with us and the band?” Jeongguk smiles at
him and Jimin can’t believe he is still asking him even though he's probably
said ‘no’ around a hundred times before. He looks at Taehyung’s hopeful eyes
and briefly toys with the idea of going with them, spending the break with
them, maybe smoking a cigarette with Yoongi, showing their stupid classmates
that he is not as isolated and unwanted as they think he is. That he's, in
fact, part of a group of friends.
 
But he isn’t.
 
The bruises on his skin are proof enough and the tight feeling in his chest the
reason he can't.
 
He's fighting his own battle, carrying his solitude as his weapon and his
loneliness on his shoulders.
 
He cannot let them get too close, he cannot let that happen. When the school’s
contest is over he will accompany them on their trip and then he will be gone
again, as if he had never been there in the first place.
 
He grabs his bag and throws it back over his shoulder.
 
"Nah, you know what. I wanted to leave anyway, it’s boring here. See ya at
practice,” he grins at them and holds his hand up as a gesture of goodbye
before he turns around and walks out of the classroom. Out of the school
building. Away from the schoolyard and to his favourite place under the
graffiti sprayed bridge at the river where he can be all alone for once just to
have some time with his own thoughts.
 
He never looks back to see if Taehyung and Jeongguk are looking after him or if
they are relieved that they have dodged that bullet.





 
 
 
When Jimin wakes up the next day he actually does so to the peeping sound of
his alarm clock blaring into his ears. He grumpily pats for it, almost smashing
it with the force he hits the button with to finally make it shut up. He lets
out a small whine and rubs his eyes, opening them slowly, blinking. They
immediately land on the glowing star stickers above him that are glued to the
ceiling and he squints them shut again.
 
He remembers that it is actually Saturday.
 
He has, in all seriousness, set an alarm for a Saturday morning.
 
His eyes remain fixed on the bigger and smaller stars, their greenish glow
almost invisible now that it's morning.
 
He worries at his lower lip with his teeth, turns his head to the side and
looks at the time. It's only nine o'clock and he's only arranged to meet with
the others in the afternoon. The alarm was only set so he wouldn't miss getting
up early enough to get prepared.
 
Since he's got plenty of time now, he lazes around in bed for an hour longer,
listening to a CD before he finally gets up before his bladder kills him. After
a trip to the bathroom, he goes on the hunt for something to eat, noticing that
his mum isn't home. He turns up the volume of his music and goes to take a long
shower before he comes back to his room and dances around a little, comb in his
hand acting as his microphone as he's singing along.
 
He bellows out the lyrics to the song by heart, sways his hips from side to
side and twirls on the spot before he jumps in front of his closet, wrenching
the door open. He's wiggling his ass while grabbing the T-shirt he normally
uses for his hair dying escapades and rummages through the drawer for some
shabby old pants that wouldn't be that huge of a loss if paint got on them.
 
He'll probably feel stupid to go outside with that outfit, but what can he do.
 
Besides, he knows that the others won't judge him. They will likely look
similar to him. He's in such a good mood today, yet still, he can't help but
feel a little anxious about meeting them again. Yoongi has been acting weird
around him even though he told him to forget about the blowjob and Taehyung and
Jeongguk saw him like he never wanted them to see him: cornered and close to
snapping.


 
 
Later when the time of appointment draws nearer, he leaves the flat and the
house unhurriedly on his skateboard, rolling through the town. As he skates
through the nice neighbourhoods of town, along the nice houses with the little
patches of garden and greenery all around them, he can smell the delicious
scent of smoke and barbeque in the air, someone apparently preparing a feast
for an early dinner. Jimin's stomach rumbles a little at the enticing smell as
he only had some leftover fried rice from the fridge earlier.
 
He can hear children play outside in the heat of the early afternoon sun,
probably with a garden hose thrown over a washing line so that they can run
underneath the cool wetness of the water splashing out of it. He'd really like
to run underneath a pouring stream of water right now, too. The heat seems to
be at its peak right now and Jimin assumes he would get a heat stroke if he
stops moving on his board, the wind in his face the only source of refreshment
as he rolls along the pavement. He tries to creep along the shadows but
sometimes it's impossible and he has to move in the glaring sun instead. When
the forest finally comes into view, he could throw himself on his knees and
worship the many trees that are finally offering some real shadow.
 
When he arrives at the arranged meeting point at the edge of the forest, he
notices that there’s only Taehyung waiting already. He's sitting on a fallen
tree trunk, smiling brightly and waving at him as soon as he draws closer to
where he's waiting. Jimin wonders if there’s ever a day where the boy with the
washed out purple hair dye isn’t as bright as the sun and as carefree as a
puppy living the life. How can someone be so cheerful and happy all the fucking
time?
 
"Hey, Jiminnie," there's the nickname again no one else uses for him but his
mum, but he ignores the funny feeling that makes itself at home in the hollow
between his ribs at the mention of it.
 
"Hi, Taehyung," he greets in return and kicks his board up into his hand as the
concrete road changes into a gravelly one, the pebbles making crunchy sounds as
he steps on them. "No one else here yet?"
 
Taehyung shakes his head, eyes still trained on him. It's a little unnerving
but Jimin ignores it expertly.
 
Taehyung is wearing similar clothing like him, an old white T-shirt, albeit
clean and free from any stains, and comfy pants that look wide and airy. He
seems a little shy somehow, only glances at him with curious and careful eyes,
observing how Jimin lights up a cigarette that he's put between his lips with
his free hand. Jimin doesn't mind.
 
 
“When did you actually start smoking?” Jimin is thrown off guard by the
unexpected question, looks up from his smoke to the other boy while he puts the
lighter back into his pocket after shaking it once out of habit. Taehyung
doesn't seem to be one for 'how are you's or 'nice weather today's.
 
Somehow, Jimin likes that.
 
“When I was fourteen," he answers honestly. It's only been about two years, so
there's nothing to hide.
 
“Wow, that’s—, that's young, I guess,” Taehyung says in that astonished, deep
voice of his, lips pursed, expression genuine. Jimin comes to sit next to him
on the fallen tree trunk and puffs out the smoke.
 
“You want a drag?” he grins, holding the cig out to Taehyung whose eyes grow
bigger before he scrunches up his nose a little.
 
“I—, I don’t think I should,” the younger boy says with uncertainty in his
voice and Jimin shrugs, putting the cigarette back between his lips.
 
“I don’t even know why I started with it. Just costs a shit ton of money and
apparently fucks up your lungs. But my voice sounds better when singing.
Rougher,” Jimin grins, puffing the air out again.
 
“You sing really nice, Jiminnie,” Taehyung says, smiling, and Jimin doesn't
even start at the affectionate nickname anymore. He will never get used to it
and yet he doesn't feel like asking him to stop calling him that.
 
"Why did you start playing bass?" he asks, not wanting to talk about himself
anymore, instead diverting the subject to something he knows Taehyung might
like to talk about. Jimin has actually never asked anyone of them before about
why they're doing what they're doing. It can't hurt to just be a little curious
about it now.
 
"Jeonggukkie started playing the guitar when we were kids because he wasn’t
allowed to play the drums. You know, because of his parents. They thought that
it would only make meaningless, loud noise. So I wanted to play the guitar,
too. But then I saw that a bass only has four strings and not six, so I chose
bass instead."
 
"Seriously?" Jimin snorts, "that was the reason for you to choose bass?"
 
"Yes!" Taehyung grins widely, "I thought the bass would be easier but sometimes
I feel like it's actually harder. But I love it a lot," Jimin's lips curl up at
the other's honest answers, his fingers mindlessly flicking his cigarette so
that the ash falls to the ground. It's amazing and weird all at once how he
isn't currently judged for anything right now. Not his clothes, not his habit
of smoking, not the fading bruises on his neck.
 
He nervously starts playing with his tongue piercing.
 
"Hey, Taehyung—," he starts cautiously and the other looks up from his
tamagotchi that he's started playing with, the pixel animal making the faintest
digital sounds from time to time.
 
"Hm?"
 
"Yesterday—, when you and Jeongguk defended me," a frown instantly appears on
Taehyung's lips, his eyes showing the same intent displeasure they were
displaying yesterday when the incident happened.
 
"Mhm."
 
"That was—, that was really—," Jimin takes a deep breath, the words of
gratitude lying heavy on his tongue, so heavy that he has to swallow them down
again, "you guys wouldn't have had to do that. Stick up for me, y'know."
 
"I know. But we wanted to. You're our friend and what they did was really,
really mean and unfair. No one has deserved to be treated like that. And
Jeonggukkie was badass again! Pew pew!" Taehyung makes finger guns shooting an
imaginary opponent and grins broadly, eyes disappearing into curved lines. The
smile somehow doesn't fade from Jimin's lips once it appears there, even though
he feels a little odd, a little as if there was some sort of protocol he
doesn't really know how to follow.
 
But he ignores it because—
 
Taehyung just called him their friend.
 
"Well anyway, thank you," he mutters, the words still not coming over his lips
easily, but finally coming over them at all.
 
It feels kind of good and Taehyung is now practically beaming at him
radioactively, a good-humoured chuckle bubbling in his throat as he shakes his
head softly.
 
They fall into a comfortable silence after that, Taehyung busy with his
tamagotchi, Jimin finishing his smoke, and before long there is a car
approaching them before it comes to a halt next to them, facing the bumpy road
that leads into the forest but is still broad enough for a car to roll through
comfortably. It’s not a nice ass car, not like the brand new one Jimin's ex had
been driving. This one's pretty old and it has an odd mint-colour but it seems
to do its job.
 
A window gets rolled down then and Jeongguk's head appears in it, buck teeth on
full display as his lips are stretched into a happy smile. Since the guitarist
is there it must mean that Yoongi is in the driver's seat currently, actually
driving the car. Jimin didn't even know he had a driver's licence.
 
He tilts his head and tries to catch a glimpse of the other man, but Yoongi is
hidden behind Jeongguk's head and his shoulders.
 
"Come on, you two. Hop in!" Jeongguk shouts and waves them over, Taehyung
already on his feet, taking the few short steps until he stands beside the car.
Jimin also gets up and dusts off his behind, following Taehyung before he walks
around the car and gets in on the other side behind Yoongi, putting his
skateboard at his feet. "Have you been waiting for long? We couldn't really
decide on the exact shade of colour so we took a little longer," Jeongguk
admits apologetically and rubs the back of his head.
 
"No, we've just been waiting for a few minutes," Jimin explains while getting
comfortable in the back, not bothering to put on a seatbelt. Taehyung isn't,
either.
 
Jimin looks into the rear-view mirror and sees Yoongi's eyes directed at him
through it, fringe covering his eyes partially. When the other realises that
he's been caught staring, he quickly looks ahead again and starts rolling the
car along the forest road slowly. Jimin's heart skips a beat, lips curving into
a smile when he sees a little scratch on Yoongi's nose that wasn't there
yesterday. Well, at least it wasn't there before he walked head-first into that
locker.
 
"Have you guys got something to eat? I'm starving!" Jimin blurts out, propping
his arms up between the backrests of the front seats, looking between the two
boys with pleading eyes and a pout on his lips.
 
"Me, too, to be honest," Taehyung chimes into the whining and tries to lean his
head over the headrest of Jeongguk's seat, arms lifted so he can rest his hands
on Jeongguk's hair, fluffing it up gently. Jeongguk immediately seems to fall
into some sort of trance, half-lidded eyes staring out of the front window.
 
"Yeah, we have sandwiches," Yoongi says while slowing down the car even more to
not roll over a bump in the road too hard before the tempo picks up a little
again and he steers the car smoothly into a curve that leads even deeper into
the forest.
 
The sunbeams are shining through the branches of the trees way overhead,
creating a play of light on the earthy road and all around them, making Jimin
feel at ease. As if summer has already arrived in full force. As if he will be
able to, for once, create beautiful memories.
 
"Sweet! Can we have them now?" Jimin asks innocently, leaning forward so that
he can lean his chin on Yoongi's shoulder. It feels good. Almost too good when
he feels the warmth of Yoongi's body, as if he had been craving this proximity
and finally gets a soothing fix of it.
 
"Ts, always acting the spoiled brat. One could assume you're the youngest
here," Yoongi mutters but doesn't move to pull his shoulder away. He's just a
little tense, but somehow, he always is. "Guk, can you hand them the
sandwiches? They're in the bag at your feet."
 
Jeongguk rummages through the bag and hands Jimin and Taehyung a sandwich
wrapped in foil each before he takes out one for himself. Jimin quickly digs in
and Yoongi sighs.
 
"They were actually for later, but 'kay. Eat while I'm driving and starving.
That's 'kay," Yoongi says sarcastically, but Jimin can see in the rear-view
mirror that he's smiling. Without missing a beat, he holds his sandwich out to
his mouth for him to take a bite. Yoongi just scrutinises it before he arches
his pierced eyebrow.
 
"Come on, hyung," Jimin mumbles around a mouthful of soft bread, ham and
cheese, "we won't let you starve." At that, Jeongguk puts his sandwich next to
Jimin's in front Yoongi's face, followed by Taehyung who is snickering
cheerfully. They both seem to find joy in teasing their hyung and Jimin must
admit that he also finds it very tempting, the feeling oddly comfortable.
 
Yoongi swats them away with one hand, however, gaze still directed ahead. They
laugh and retreat their food and just when Jimin wants to lower his arm, too,
Yoongi grabs his wrist and quickly takes a bite off the sandwich before he lets
him go again. Jimin blinks, befuddled. Then he grins, very pleased with the
fact that Yoongi chose his sandwich to take a bite from, and not one of the
others.
 
It doesn't take long until Yoongi parks the car somewhere in the middle of the
forest next to a much smaller pathway that leads away from the main road. The
other three don't wait long before they hop out of the car and Jimin copies
them promptly, leaving his skateboard in the car for now.
 
When he's standing, Yoongi is already at the back of the car, opening the
trunk. He hands Jeongguk a paint bucket while Taehyung is hugging something
that looks like a roll of plastic sheets close to his chest. Jimin gets to
carry several brushes and more material in his arms, trying to not drop
anything.
 
The entire thing feels so mundane, so unlike what he would be usually doing on
a Saturday afternoon, but for some reason, he really likes it. It's relaxing,
cleansing his soul of all the dark thoughts he usually has.
 
“Oh, by the way, I’ve seen the bean bags yesterday! Jinnie already has them
lying around at home! They’re so big and so comfy!” Taehyung talks animatedly,
more skipping than walking next to Jeongguk and Yoongi as they walk along the
narrow path.
 
“It’ll still be a pain in the ass to get them to the hut. They can do that
alone, we do our job today,” Yoongi mumbles, not really looking at anyone as he
trudges over a branch on the ground. He is also wearing old clothes but Jimin
still thinks he looks very good. Good and familiar and somehow he'd really,
really like to walk next to him. Just to be a little closer.
 
“I totally agree with that one,” Taehyung randomly smiles at him then and Jimin
feels like he has to say something, too.
 
“So, uh—, how far do we have to go yet?”
 
“Not that far, maybe five minutes, depends on which way you take,” Jeongguk
answers him and Jimin hums, not knowing what to say. He already saw several
even smaller trails leading away from this small path. The forest is seemingly
endless and despite being completely surrounded by the shadows of the trees the
ubiquitous heat doesn't spare them even here.
 
But as promised, it doesn't take them long to reach their destination. After
walking for another while, a clearance comes into view on which stands a wooden
shack, no more than a few metres long and wide, with a simple door and narrow
windows. The roof seems to be intact but there are layers of moss and branches
and leaves accumulated on top of it, some ivy twines hanging down from it.
 
It looks a little as if they've found the abandoned abode of an old forest
witch, long forgotten and buried somewhere in the memories of the forest
itself.
 
The clearance, too, is covered by withering leaves; bushes growing here and
there, some tree trunks littering the edge of it as well as the area next to
the shack. The remnants of a colourless wooden picket fence can be found
surrounding it. It's so rotten that the best they could do with it is probably
use it as fuel for the fireplace that is located in the middle of the
clearance.
 
"This is amazing!" Jimin exclaims, stepping from one foot to the other while
turning around in wonder, taking everything in. "Who owns this place?" he
follows them to the shack and enters after them.
 
"No idea," Yoongi says as he puts his paint bucket down beside him and wipes
his brow, "we just found it one day and it looked abandoned, so we just started
to hang out here sometimes. Nobody ever came to claim it back so far, and as
long as no one does, it'll be ours."
 
Jimin immediately sees why they think this thing could use a makeover. But just
having a place such like this to themselves must be absolutely amazing. Jimin
wishes he would have had something like this during the past few years he's
lived in this town so that he could have come here to hide whenever he felt the
urge to do so.
 
There are already some torch lights, water bottles and other small items here.
Even some furniture like a table that seems to have already been in here when
they found it. That's how Jimin discerns that they must have spent quite some
time here already.
 
"Just don't tell anyone about it, we don't want any idiots from school here,"
Taehyung frowns, almost as if he was upset at the mere thought of someone from
school being able to find this little kingdom. Jimin smiles at him
reassuringly.
 
"Don't worry. My lips are sealed. This is too good of a secret to tell anyone,"
he makes a gesture with his fingers as if he was zipping up his lips before he
bites his lower one, making Taehyung's face light up again. It's weird how he
instantly feels better again when he sees the younger boy smiling as he usually
does.
 
"Okay," Yoongi claps his hands once, "let's get started with the table! It
needs to go out."
 
"I'm helping you, hyung!" Jeongguk volunteers immediately and happily helps to
carry the table outside. While those two take care of the sparse furniture,
Jimin and Taehyung cover everything with the plastic foil so that the paint
won't spill onto anything that is not the wall they want to paint.
 
It doesn't take long until they got everything ready and everyone is holding a
brush in their hand.
 
Baby blue.
 
They're really painting the wall baby blue, just like Jimin suggested. His
favourite colour.
 
It's a little chaotic. Instead of painting the backdrop first, everyone does
how he pleases, Taehyung the first one to open the white paint bucket. They're
mixing the blue with white swirls and spots, dabbing the colour into the
background to create a semblance of clouds in the sky.
 
Despite the mess, Jimin thinks it looks really pretty.
 
When they're almost finished, Jeongguk yelps and jumps away from the wall, and
when Jimin turns his head to look at him, he sees that there's a blue-white
blotch painted on his cheek, Taehyung still holding the brush up close to his
face. Jimin's eyebrows shoot to his hairline as he tries to suppress an amused
grin. He chuckles lowly in his throat but it's already enough to garner
Jeongguk's attention who's pouting at him now instead of Taehyung.
 
"Did you just laugh at me?" Jeongguk asks with a gasp, mock-incredulous, and
Jimin presses his lips into a thin line, shaking his head vigorously. "You did,
Park Jimin!"
 
"Hm-mh," Jimin hums in the negative, but Jeongguk sees right through him. It
only takes another second and the older's brush is in his face, leaving a broad
stripe all over his nose. All Jimin can do is squint his eyes tightly shut as
he stands there, frozen, his face contorted, nose scrunched up in disgust as
the cold and sticky paint runs down his face.
 
He slowly opens his eyes again, glaring at the culprit with lightning bolts and
flames in them, before he cocks his head to the side challengingly, lips
twitching.
 
"Hey! Hey, guys, don't start something stupid now," he hears Yoongi say and
feels a hand on his shoulder. But he doesn't listen, lifts his arm and gets
ready for payback. "We have to finish this now and then clean your faces—," the
moment Jimin raises his hand for the blow, Yoongi appears in front of him and
gets a full load of paint into his face, neck and chest, the colour dripping
down his chin almost comically.
 
The look on his face is priceless.
 
Jimin can't suppress his laughter any longer, bursts out in guffaws along with
Taehyung and Jeongguk who start cackling as well. Before they know it, Yoongi
is screaming bloody murder at them. They run out of the hut with their brushes
still in hand while Yoongi follows them with the blue paint bucket, wasting all
the nice paint by throwing it at them with his brush.
 
"You little shits, come here and hold still! I'm gonna shove my fucking brush
up your sorry asses!"
 
All of them are laughing as they run and cover each other in blue, and when
Taehyung sneakily fetches the white paint bucket while Jimin and Jeongguk are
covering Yoongi's back with the colour that's left on their brushes, the chaos
is perfect.
 
Jimin doesn't even really have time to think about his clothes. Doesn't really
care anyway. He feels so light and carefree and he never knew that having a
paint war with almost strangers could be so much fun, so liberating and
gratifying.
 
He laughs and laughs until his cheeks hurt, until his stomach hurts, and when
he's lying on the damp soil of the forest floor with Taehyung and Jeongguk and
Yoongi above him smearing more paint into his face and onto his arms, he almost
dies from the overwhelming sensation of serene happiness.
 
The feeling dulls down a little when they all calm down and sit on the ground,
chests heaving and bodies full of paint. Jimin tries to catch his breath but
it's difficult with his sides still hurting from trying to escape the other
three. He feels sweaty and gross and wishes it would start to rain right then
and there just so he could get soaked in the warm summer shower.
 
Breathless, Jimin turns his head and that's when he catches Yoongi staring,
eyes boring into his for the briefest of moments before the older man averts
his gaze quickly again as if that has become a little game they're constantly
playing. Jimin studies him for a while longer, notices how there's paint all
over his face and his shirt. Not even his shorts have been spared.
 
He smiles, the longing in his chest not subsiding when Yoongi briefly rubs at
his own nose, smearing the paint all over it, spreading the smudges on his face
even more – and making him look even more adorable. Jimin sighs and
contemplates getting up to just walk over to him, but before he can move,
Jeongguk suddenly makes a panicked sound.
 
"Shit," he gasps and when Jimin snaps his head towards him, he sees that he
looks like he's seen a ghost.
 
"What happened?" Yoongi asks with a tone of worry in his voice that makes Jimin
feel a little odd, a little too fond, "did you hurt yourself?" Jeongguk, I've
told you a thousand times—. Aish."
 
Yoongi gets up onto his feet again and walks over to Jeongguk who looks paler
by the second. The guitarist quickly shakes his head before he frantically
starts rubbing the paint off his face.
 
“No, I'm fine but—. But my clothes—. When my parents see how dirty they are—.
They don’t know we’re here, so they don't know about me getting dirty. You know
how my mum is, hyung, oh god, I’m doomed.”
 
"Oh oh," Taehyung provides helpfully, pressing his lips together as he, like
Jimin, gives Jeongguk a once over.
 
Yup. If getting his clothes dirty with paint and forest mud really is such a
big deal in his parents' books, then he definitely is doomed.
 
And after having seen Jeongguk's mother that one time that night before the
gig, Jimin is pretty sure that his parents probably won't let this slip so
easily.
 
“Well, okay, that—. Don't worry, Gukkie, we're gonna find a way to save you,”
Yoongi tries, studying his younger friends while biting his lips deep in
thought. “When do you have to be at home?”
 
Jeongguk hangs his head in shame and pushes his lower lip out a little, chewing
on the inside of his mouth. "At seven. It's hopeless, hyung. Even if I manage
to sneak in and wash my clothes my mum will ask what happened if she finds them
hanging on the washing line to dry."
 
"Gukkie, I'm so sorry," Taehyung pipes up now and Jimin blinks at them,
wondering why Jeongguk doesn't just ask Taehyung for some clothes to change
into so that they could wash it at his house. He watches how Taehyung attempts
to hug Jeongguk and is shoved away immediately with a whine of 'Tae, you're
making it even worse'.
 
"Why don't we just go and wash it at a laundromat?" Jimin asks matter-of-factly
with a shrug, having them whirl their heads around to look at him, "well, if
you have—, money for that, that is."
 
Yoongi looks at him for a second before he nods. “Jimin’s right, guys. Let’s
finish up and get going. You'll sit on plastic though, in the car, I don't
wanna get it dirty, you hear me?” Yoongi says sternly, but still has a small
smile on his lips, taking Jeongguk’s hand to help him up, “stop looking like a
kicked puppy, Jeonggukkie, we’ve got this, okay?”
 
“Yes! Hyung will save your ass,” Taehyung cheers and Jimin has to smile at
this. Why he doesn’t know, but when Yoongi grabs Taehyung's wrist and pokes
Jeongguk's side and the younger one starts smiling again, Jimin knows that the
warm feeling inside his chest is there because he, too, has become captivated
by Yoongi's gentle kindness.

 
 
 
 
                                      –☾–
 
Before they head to the laundromat they drive straight to the supermarket.
 
The younger ones are waiting in the car while Yoongi quickly goes to grab some
snacks and drinks because all of them are already whining about being hungry
and thirsty again, the sandwiches his mum had made long gone.
 
As Yoongi walks through the aisles, people are looking at him with question
marks above their heads, all of them evidently confused as to why he looks the
way he currently looks. His hair is full of white and blue paint, his clothes
are not any better and there's actually a broad smile plastered on his face.
The reason for that smile might just be because Jimin is there, in his car,
looking all cute and adorable, and Yoongi finally feels like he could be able
to stop behaving like a complete idiot in front of him.
 
During the entire duration of their painting session, he felt comfortable in
the other's presence, albeit still a little apprehensive because of what had
happened in the school's bathroom the other day. He figures that Jimin probably
already knows about his crush anyway, and so far Jimin has not made fun of him
or used that knowledge to his advantage.
 
Yoongi would say things look pretty good at the moment.
 
He quickly buys an assortment of random candies and other snacks as well as
some soda before heading to the register, quickly paying for the things before
rushing back to the car. The laundromat is not far, so he bangs on one window
when he's back, getting the attention of the other three who are still sitting
inside the car, apparently talking animatedly.
 
"Why didn't you get out before? That car must be like an oven right now," it's
so hot that sweat is actually running down Yoongi's back and he feels a little
gross. He really hopes it will be cooler in the laundromat.
 
"Outside it's even hotter," Taehyung whines when he puts both feet on the
ground, over-dramatically bends his body down as if he had been walking through
a desert without water for an eternity as he stumbles forward. Yoongi rolls his
eyes.
 
"Come on, Tae. It will be better at the laundromat," Yoongi musses up
Taehyung's dirty hair and earns a pout in return. Jeongguk then cheekily puts
an arm around Taehyung's shoulder and drags him with him, ignoring the
youngest's protests about being able to walk alone expertly. Yoongi smiles as
he starts walking behind them, throwing a glance at Jimin who comes up beside
him with his hands clasped behind his neck. His lips are pouting a little and
he looks really adorable with paint on his cheek, the blue colour clashing with
the pink of his hair.
 
Yoongi quickly averts his gaze again and sees the bright sign of the laundromat
above them not far ahead. He readjusts the plastic bag with the snacks in his
hand and tries not to waddle too much despite being so hot and immediately
exhausted by the heat. This summer already is one of the hottest he's ever
experienced, and it's only the end of May.
 
When they enter the laundromat, the world becomes silent.
 
It's heavily air-conditioned inside, the cool air hitting Yoongi's heated up
skin almost brutally, the drop in temperature making his heart beat faster for
a few seconds. The smell of laundry detergent is lingering in the air, evoking
a feeling of nostalgia in him from when he was watching his mum hang the
laundry on the lines in their back garden when he was a little kid.
 
He studies the shop's yellow walls, the floor that consists of white tiles and
the bench running along one of the walls in the back, some magazines on a table
next to it. There are entire corridors of washing machines which all look
completely identical.
 
The shop is almost deserted except for the person currently operating it. No
other customer is present but there are some washing machines running
unattended, creating the faint buzz in the air of the washing drums turning
around and the water sloshing inside of them. Otherwise, it's almost awkwardly
quiet, but also really calming and soothing, healing almost. The establishment
appears to Yoongi like some sort of hideout right now where nothing and no one
would ever bother them.
 
They go to the very back of the shop where they can't really be seen,
considering they will have to get rid of their clothes.
 
Yoongi somewhat feels like being under surveillance by the operator man when
they pass him, for when does it ever occur that four teenagers come to a
laundromat, complete with clothes full of paint and without a bag full of dirty
laundry? That's highly suspicious and Yoongi feels a little out of place, a
little like a criminal despite being here with a purpose.
 
They're paying customers who just want to clean their dirty clothes. A really
mature and responsible thing to do.
 
Yoongi almost feels like an adult.
 
"Have any of you ever used one of these?" Jimin asks and all of them shake
their head. Jimin purses his lips and nods. "Me neither. Let's check them out
before we undress," he suggests, voice light and a small skip in his step when
he approaches one of the empty machines.
 
Yoongi follows him and studies it, finding out that apparently, the machine
takes coins. They prepare the right amount which Yoongi provides, of course,
and then look at how the thing works, discussing among themselves while
standing in front of it.
 
"We need to turn the dial to cotton," Jeongguk says and Taehyung looks at him
puzzled.
 
"Don't we need the colour setting? That's what we have to get out after all,"
Taehyung says with a cheeky grin and Jeongguk smacks the back of his head
playfully.
 
"No, dummy. That doesn't have anything to do with it," Taehyung laughs at
Jeongguk's retort and clings to his arm, digging his chin into Jeongguk's
shoulder.
 
"I knooow, Jeonggukkie. I was just joking," the youngest snickers before Yoongi
slips between them, not wanting to waste any more time. There's also some
draught inside the artificially cooled down room and Yoongi feels his cheeks
cooling down drastically, making his head hurt a little.
 
"Kiddos, we need to hurry a little if we want to get done before seven," he
reminds them and decides that they should probably take the colour option on
the machine. He has never been to a laundromat before or done the laundry at
home, but he kind of feels like he has to appear knowledgeable because he's the
oldest of them. Granted, he also doesn't want to appear helpless in front of
Jimin.
 
"Don't we need detergent, though?" Jeongguk asks and Yoongi realises that, yep,
they do need detergent and fuck, they don't have any.
 
"You can buy it here," Jimin pipes up behind them, pointing in the direction of
the entrance of the shop, "there's a vending machine near the entrance." Jimin
smiles at them, a little smugly perhaps, but Yoongi is glad that he saw that.
He follows the direction of where Jimin is pointing and immediately detects the
machine.
 
He's a little bummed out about having to spend even more money but for Jeongguk
he would do anything.
 
Yoongi really doesn't want the younger's parents to notice that he was fooling
around with his friends. It would be disastrous if he got grounded during
summer, something Yoongi definitely wouldn't put past them even for a slight as
small as this. Summer is the best time of the year despite it being constantly
either as hot as today, or raining waterfalls.
 
Summer means that the long holidays are awaiting, the last ones they'll ever
spend together, all six – no – all seven of them.
 
He doesn't want any of them to miss this.
 
So he goes to buy a single-use detergent pack that's really fucking expensive,
thinking about how he should have bought an entire box at the supermarket
earlier with a sigh.
 
When he gets back he realises that all of his friends are already in various
states of undress. He quickly averts his gaze so that he doesn't look at Jimin
because he knows exactly that this would get him flustered beyond control.
Instead, he focuses on the washing machine again.
 
Before he knows it, however, Jimin is right beside him, leaning with his back
against the wall of washing machines. Yoongi just briefly glances at him while
opening the pack of detergent, pouring it into the machine and the few clothes
already in there.
 
"Hm, pity that they didn't have peach or cherry blossom scent," Jimin comments
as he watches Yoongi pouring the plain detergent into the washing drum, "or at
least something that would make the clothes smell nice." The younger sighs
theatrically and Yoongi rolls his eyes, getting a lot of spoiled princess vibes
from Jimin right now. He didn't know Jimin could be like that as well.
 
"Ts," he tuts, putting the empty detergent pack on top of the washing machine,
"tough luck. There are no other fragrances. You can go back to the supermarket
and buy your own detergent if you absolutely want to, though," he grins and
Jimin just scoffs at that, lips pursed and expression miffed. But Yoongi won't
have any of that.
 
"'scuse me, 'scuse me," Taehyung elbows his way to the washing drum and shoves
his pants inside as well, leaving him in only his boxer shorts. Jeongguk
follows suit and when all of his friends' clothes are inside, he finally starts
taking his own off as well. He takes off his shirt and shoves it into the
machine before he also shimmies out of his pants and does the same with them.
 
Strangely enough, Yoongi doesn't feel shy, not at all.
 
Taehyung and Jeongguk sidle up to him again to once more discuss the settings
and press up against him really close to Yoongi's half-bared body, but he
almost doesn't register that. Their skin feels cool, too, but they're so
familiar, his little brothers; he just feels comfortable with them next to him.
 
Taehyung receives the coins from Yoongi and puts one after the other into the
slot before Jeongguk has the honour to push the start button.
 
Yoongi sighs in relief, glad that they've finally managed to start the damn
thing.
 
And then he turns around, and while he didn't have any qualms about being half-
naked before, he suddenly feels very, very exposed because Jimin is looking
straight at him despite Jeongguk and Taehyung still standing in the way, half
obscuring his body.
 
All of a sudden, Yoongi remembers how he walked into that locker in front of
Jimin on top of everything else, on top of Jimin sucking him off, on top of
coming into his mouth without a warning, on top of Jimin telling him to just
forget about it.
 
His stomach drops and suddenly he feels very hot again in the cold store.
 
He wanted to hang himself then, and he kind of is revisited by that feeling
now.
 
While Yoongi is busy dying inside, Taehyung and Jeongguk don't waste another
second and grab the snacks that have been placed on the bench before they start
to distribute them among themselves, their bickering about who will get what
resounding in the background. But Yoongi is still busy trying to not awkwardly
avert his gaze from Jimin, both still looking at each other.
 
"What?" Yoongi finally asks flatly, and Jimin replies with a smirk, but not a
mocking one, not in a way that makes Yoongi feel even more self-conscious than
he already does.
 
He can't help but cautiously try to check out Jimin's body because – wow, that
boy is standing in front of him, half-naked, only in underwear that is as pink
as his hair.
 
And wow, everything, every little atom that he can see from Jimin's body is
ethereal.
 
It's lean and somewhat toned, his tummy flat and soft looking at the same time,
happy-trail peeking out at the top of the waistband of his underwear and
somehow it's almost jarring that it's not the same pink colour as the hair on
his head. Yoongi also briefly notices the belly button piercing that glistens
in the hollow of Jimin's navel as well as his soft brown and perfectly round
nipples.
 
That boy should be forbidden.
 
But he also notices the round yet jagged bruises all over Jimin's body, the
ones that look like teeth marks, the ones lining the other's chest, neck and
even the insides of his thighs and Yoongi's guts clench violently because fuck
– who did that to him?
 
Yoongi doesn't want to see it. If he can't see it, it won't hurt so much.
 
He would really like to shut everything out and ignore the fading hickeys –
would like to understand what happens next.
 
"You've got paint on your nose," Jimin says, lips a sweet smile now, almost as
sweet as all the lollipops Jimin is always eating. But also soft, one that
spreads a fond warmth inside Yoongi's chest. Yoongi's breath catches in his
throat when Jimin extends a hand. He feels the urge to flinch away and pull his
head back, but he remains frozen, his skin tingling and his heart fluttering
when Jimin touches him.
 
There's suddenly pink hair in Yoongi's field of vision, Jimin's narrowed eyes
that shine with amusement, a faint smirk on his lips. Yoongi desperately tries
to keep his calm, to not move too much, to just let the mesmerising boy do what
he wants, which is rubbing over Yoongi's nose with his thumb that he has wetted
a little with his tongue beforehand.
 
But at the same time he also really enjoys this so freaking much. He thinks
about how nice this is, how he would like for Jimin to always touch him in some
way and if it's just for something as trivial as wiping paint off his nose. It
feels absolutely thrilling to be touched by him like that, a much more
comfortable, almost warm and familiar feeling compared to what they did in the
bathroom of their school.
 
A small voice inside his head is whispering that he wishes they could have
started out with this instead of the blowjob.
 
But they didn't and now Jimin wants him to forget about it and Yoongi has no
other choice but to accept that.
 
"That paint must be pretty hard to rub off," Yoongi mutters after Jimin has
been wiping at the tip of his nose for what seems like hours already, his skin
probably looking red. He feels so hot, the draught inside the shop long
forgotten, the only sound in the room Taehyung and Jeongguk talking and
laughing and the washing machine sloshing the water and their laundry around.
 
"It is. It's really persistent," Jimin murmurs before he pokes his nose and
giggles and Yoongi wants to die because despite all the bruises littering
Jimin's skin he is still the sweetest boy on the entire planet.
 
All that tough guy demeanour – definitely just a joke.
 
Jimin is only sixteen, he should have fun at the park doing stupid things, he
should hang out with friends and stay out of trouble, go to the cinema, rant
about exams and teachers. He should be carefree, singing, dancing, spinning in
the rain with arms outstretched and head tipped back.
 
Jimin should be happy and Jimin should be his.
 
Yoongi realises that he has forgotten to breathe for the last few heartbeats
and now inhales sharply through his nose, staring at Jimin with round eyes.
 
It's the moment Yoongi just knows that Jimin is aware of his hopeless crush.
 
And maybe Jimin is playing with him. No, he's certain that he is from the way
Jimin's eyes narrow a little as they're standing there, smug smirk appearing on
his lips because for a moment time seems to come to a standstill and, shit,
Yoongi's heart almost explodes.
 
Yoongi quickly clears his throat and plays it cool but Jimin already knows
anyway.
 
He knows, he knows, he knows and Yoongi has no idea what to do.
 
He walks to the bench and sits down next to Taehyung and Jeongguk who are
cleaning each other's skin with some wet paper towels. Yoongi tries to distract
himself with a pack of chips (the ones with a small toy inside – what can he
say, it was the smallest bag that was available) but he already has Jimin
sidling up to him again.
 
Their naked shoulders touch when Jimin leans over him to fetch one of the ring
pops he bought and Yoongi's blood pressure almost drops to the ground or
directly between his legs because – damn. Jimin has been on his feet all day
but he still smells so good, warm and sweet and so enticing. His skin is warm
and smooth, beautifully sunkissed and dotted with occasional tiny moles and
freckles.
 
And all those cursed hickeys.
 
Yoongi feels frozen the few seconds Jimin is so close to him, only relaxes when
the other leans back again.
 
He watches how Jimin puts the ring pop on his finger before he puts it in his
mouth and rounds his full, plump lips around the candy and – shit.
 
"You're full of surprises, Yoongi," Jimin says after he has sucked on the candy
and released it with a loud pop.
 
"Huh?"
 
Jimin lifts his chin, nodding towards Yoongi's chest.
 
"Your piercing," he simply says and Yoongi almost chokes on a chip he's
nibbling on, hand flying to his nipple on autopilot. Jimin just bites his lips
before he takes another lick of his lollipop. "That's a very interesting spot,
hyung. I don't know anyone else who's got one there," Jimin's intense gaze
roams over Yoongi's chest before it comes to rest on his nipple again and it
does all sorts of things to Yoongi's previously bruised ego.
 
Yoongi can feel the tips of his ears flush a little, a lump forming in his
throat. He doesn't know what to say, his mind numb and completely blank.
 
"You wanna touch it?" he blurts out and well – yeah. He shouldn't have spoken
the first thing that came to his very unhelpful and traitorous brain out loud
because what the fuck, what the fuck, what the fuck—
 
He doesn't know if that was a bold move or just plain stupid.
 
Jimin laughs breathily, however, before he licks his sticky lips. "Sure,
wouldn't pass on that opportunity, hyung," and then Jimin really lifts his hand
and runs his fingertips over the black barbell that runs horizontally through
the nub on the right side of Yoongi's chest.
 
A jolt of electricity courses through Yoongi's body at the touch, making his
insides melt and his brain stutter.
 
Jimin's fingers twist the barbell a little and Yoongi really has to focus on
not getting hard now.
 
Why the hell did he suggest that Jimin could touch it? Why the hell did he even
get that thing in the first place?
 
He got it when he was completely and utterly wasted on his eighteenth birthday
and either Namjoon or Hoseok (he doesn't remember which of the two) thought it
would be a great idea to get one. And he got one. He never really feels it
anymore ever since it had healed off completely, never really plays with it,
has thought of getting rid of it countless times, but now that Jimin is playing
with it he thinks that—, okay, maybe it was the best fucking idea of his entire
life.
 
"Feels interesting. You think I could wear one, too? Would that suit me?" Jimin
grins and, fuck, this boy could wear a paper bag and he would make it look
fantastic. Jimin's fingers suddenly travel over his own chest to his own bare
nipple. Yoongi's throat dries up but he forces himself to focus his eyes on
Jimin's instead. Yoongi can see in them that Jimin knows the answer to his own
question, but somehow Yoongi doesn't want to play along.
 
"I don't know," he says while his gaze briefly shifts back to Jimin's nipple,
"maybe? What other piercings would you want to get?"
 
"A lip piercing because those look nice. But then I'd probably rip my tongue
out when it tangles with my tongue piercing. Not to mention that it would only
get in the way for certain activities," he adds ominously and Yoongi feels that
sinking feeling in his stomach again when he realises what sort of activity
Jimin is alluding to.
 
"What about a nose stud?" he quickly evades going into the subject further,
shifting a little on the bench, pressing his bare legs together.
 
"Nah, not my style. What else would you get?" Jimin is still licking at that
damn ring pop, his small fingers balled into a fist when he lifts his hand to
his mouth.
 
"Prince Albert," Yoongi blurts out, honestly, just to see Jimin's reaction. He
even manages to grin a little. Jimin gapes at him blankly before he explodes
with cheerful and light laughter again, the crystal clear sound echoing in the
otherwise dull room, his body almost curling into himself from the force of his
laughter.
 
"If you got that I'd really have to take out my tongue piercing though if we—,"
and then he stops himself abruptly from talking any further, eyes snapping up
at Yoongi, knocking all the remaining air out of his lungs.
 
Holy shit.
 
Did Jimin really just imply that he would blow him again?
 
Yoongi suddenly feels lightheaded and dizzy, heat trickling down his spine, and
his mind is screaming at him to make a move, to just do something – anything –
because he wants so bad to be closer to Jimin while at the same time being
scared shitless of messing up again.
 
But there's the faintest blush on Jimin's rosy cheeks and an actual hint of
timidness in his eyes and it's the rawest, most vulnerable Yoongi has ever seen
him at.
 
"Jiminnie, do you want a bubble gum?" Taehyung suddenly pipes up and holds one
of his Pokemon bubble gums in front of Jimin’s nose, smiling brightly, “but you
have to give me the sticker!” and Yoongi is fucking glad that Taehyung reminded
him of where they are and that he’s not alone with Jimin because this wouldn't
have ended well otherwise. This would have ended 'school's bathroom'-like and
Yoongi doesn't know if he would have ever been ready for that even after he has
made the semi-public sex experience once already.
 
Jimin seems to be sort of relieved, too, takes the bubble gum from Taehyung and
closes it into his fist.
 
"I'll give you the sticker later, okay? I'm gonna finish my lollipop first,"
Jimin talks to Taehyung with a softness in his voice that makes Yoongi's heart
do somersaults in his chest.
 
And fuck, Jimin is so pretty but all the hickeys rush back into Yoongi's focus,
all the imprints of Jimin's life on the canvas of his body – and Yoongi is not
a part of that and Jimin probably doesn't even want him to be.
 
Jimin wouldn't want him to be the only one.
 
"Hyung, you okay?" it's Jeongguk's who's propped his elbows on his knees and
has been sharing a pack of m&ms with Taehyung until the other apparently
decided to go for the bubble gum. Yoongi turns his head to look at the younger
boy.
 
"Hm? Yeah, sure Gukkie. Ah, look at you, still having paint in your hair. Lemme
get that out or your parents are going to chop us up.” He gets up, still
painfully aware of his bared body, and pulls Jeongguk along to a small sink at
the wall, away from Taehyung and Jimin. “I’ll drive you home later, okay? Just
to be sure, we’ll blame it on me should they notice anything, okay?"
 
"Hyung?" Jeongguk asks quietly when they're out of the other two's hearing, "do
you like him?"
 
"Huh?"
 
"Jimin. Do you like Jimin? I heard you two talking and," Yoongi snaps his head
towards Jimin and Taehyung as if they could have heard that just now, but he
sees that Taehyung has scooted closer to Jimin and is showing him how to play
on his tamagotchi, the pink haired man for once actually looking with him at
the tiny screen. Yoongi averts his gaze back to Jeongguk's hair.
 
"He's a nice guy and a good singer, so yeah. I like him," and it's not a lie,
Yoongi just can't tell Jeongguk the whole truth. He's not ready for that. He
first needs to figure out his own feelings.
 
But Jeongguk doesn't seem to have any of his shit.
 
"I don't know what a Prince Albert piercing is, hyung, and I don't really want
to know," Jeongguk deadpans and Yoongi has to suppress a grin, picking bits of
paint out of Jeongguk's hair, "but please be careful, okay? I know you don't
like it but there are lots of rumours going around. About Jimin, I mean.
Taehyung likes him a lot, too, so I want to be on good terms as well. But,
uhm—," Jeongguk lets his gaze flit over to Taehyung and Jimin again and Yoongi
blinks, somewhat confused, before Jeongguk shakes his head and sighs. "I just
don't want Jimin to hurt him or you," Jeongguk murmurs and an onslaught of
fondness befalls Yoongi's heart.
 
"Guk, you're a really good kid," he ruffles Jeongguk's hair and smiles,
"Taehyung will be fine as long as he has you. You know how he is, he loves
everything and everyone—,"
 
"Except PE," Jeongguk mutters and Yoongi laughs.
 
"Except PE, yes. And I'll be fine, too. Don't worry about your hyung. Worrying
is my job," he puts his hands on Jeongguk's shoulders and squeezes them a
little, "Jimin is a good soul, too. You will see. I trust him. He'll stay with
the band at least until the end of summer."
 
Taehyung's laughter can be heard then and when Yoongi looks back he sees
Jimin's smug smile directed at their youngest.
 
It's contagious.
 
Yoongi just really hopes Jimin will still be there by the end of summer.
Chapter End Notes
     We still can't believe Bighit decided to release those pictures TODAY
     OF ALL DAYS WITH THE LAUNDROMAT AND THE PIZZA BOXES AND TEKKEN AND
     THE COKE CANS JIMIN'S SKATEBOARD AND THE OLD TVS AND GAMING CONSOLES
     AND THE BATTERED COUCH /SOB
     THE FLIER IN YOONGI'S HAND?!?!?!? (like... that entire picture could
     have been taken during the audition in the prologue alskjdalsd)
     Please excuse us, we're just really emotional right now.
     Well, the new concept photos have certainly given us some more
     inspiration for a few things, HOWEVER, most of Cotton Candy has
     already been written in a first draft so WE SWEAR the things that are
     yet to come have already been planned long ago alkdjas
     Okay so… this chapter.
     A Lot of this has been directly inspired by the YNWA concept photos
     (Yoongi with the blue paint) and the Spring Day MV (the laundromat).
     Oh, and the abandoned shack will also play an important role in
     Yoonmin's relationship in the future! But we'll get to that in about
     a thousand years!!
     Aaah, they're still so awkward with each other but we swear their
     blossoming friendship is like the most precious thing on earth that
     has to be protected at all cost!
      
     As always, come scream at us on twitter or on our curious_cat
     (ﾉ´ヮ´)ﾉ*: ･ﾟ
***** Seven. *****
Chapter Notes
     Finally an update ♡
     Enjoy!
     ☾ = Yoongi
     ☼ = Jimin
See the end of the chapter for more notes
                                      –☾–
 
"Hyung, hand me a beer," Hoseok sing-songs with puppy eyes and grabby hands.
Yoongi lazily turns his head and sighs, scratching his shoulder languidly.
 
"Why don't you get it yourself, Hobi?" Yoongi mutters, sinking deeper into the
comfy couch of Hoseok's living room. It's dark already, the only light coming
from the big and bulky TV that they're currently watching a movie on. He shifts
on the couch and readjusts the cushion in his back before he gets his shin
kicked mercilessly, Hoseok scowling at him.
 
"You literally just have to extend your arm and give it to me," Hoseok pouts,
heaving a loud sigh before getting on his feet with a huff, reaching for the
beer can himself. Yoongi decides that that's a good moment to actually hand him
a can, a cheeky smirk playing on his lips. Hoseok's mouth drops open. "I can't
believe you, you asshole."
 
"I just tried to be nice," Yoongi clicks his tongue, "aish, you're just being
impatient." He snickers when Hoseok tries to pinch him in the side and chuckles
when his best friend plops back down next to him.
 
He's so glad to be here.
 
Hoseok's house is just right next to his, but the change of scenery magically
makes all his worries evaporate.
 
That is, until the couple in the movie they're watching decides to have sex.
 
Yoongi warily watches the scene unfold; her standing in front of him, kissing
him slowly and passionately before buttons are being unfastened, skin is being
touched and intense gazes and saliva are exchanged.
 
Yoongi starts shifting on the couch restlessly.
 
It's not that he's embarrassed about watching a sex scene together with Hoseok
or that he feels uncomfortable with watching actors having sex in general.
That's not the problem at all. He's looked at much wilder pictures together
with his best friend already. No, that's definitely not the problem here.
 
The problem is that he starts feeling hot and cold when the actress looks like
she's dropping to her knees in front of the dude, nervous sweat forming at the
back of his neck and down his spine before he feels his cheeks heat up with the
memory of what happened between him and Jimin. A few beats later he notices
that the actress doesn't drop to her knees, however. The camera angle just made
it look like she did and Yoongi is almost glad when he realises that she just
sat down on the bed, moving closer to the centre on her behind.
 
"Why are we watching this again?" he asks, voice a little strained, lips
pursed. He quickly takes another sip of his beer before shoving a handful of
chips into his mouth, crunching loudly as he chews them.
 
"Because there's nothing else on TV right now. My parents still refuse to pay
for the good channels. Say we don't need them but—, you know," Hoseok sighs,
also taking a swig from his can. Yoongi hums, gnawing on his lower lip until it
almost bleeds. He quickly glances at Hoseok, an idea starting to form in his
mind.
 
Hoseok wouldn't laugh at him for asking what he's about to ask, would he?
 
He clears his throat, before he licks his lips, inconspicuously taking a deep
breath. "Hey, Hobi," comes the low mumble, a little too low and he isn't sure
if Hoseok really heard him.
 
"Hm?" the other hums and shoots him a short glance before concentrating on the
assets of the actress again who's now lying below the guy on the bed. The
actors have already got it going, their bodies moving against each other in a
manner that leaves almost nothing to the imagination.
 
"Do you think sex really lasts that long?" Yoongi finally asks after having
watched the bodies rocking against each other for a few more moments. He tries
to sound as nonchalant as possible but he has a hunch that he's failing
miserably. At least he gets Hoseok's full attention now.
 
"Don't know? Why are you asking?" Yoongi just shrugs but it's enough to make
Hoseok continue, even though he’s looking back at the TV screen. "I mean,
probably depends on how often you do it, and with who? Like, I'm not sure if I
could last that long having such a woman underneath me. Just look at her!"
Hoseok exclaims and Yoongi scrunches up his nose in mild aversion, rolling his
eyes.
 
"Hobi, please."
 
"Sorry, dude," Hoseok just shoots him a grin at that, "not my fault that you
can't appreciate the fabulous qualities of some nice boobs." Yoongi snorts at
that, knows for a fact that Hoseok hasn't even touched any yet. He's not
entirely sure if Hoseok really knows about those qualities well enough to talk
about them or if it's all just his fantasies. Yoongi will never get what Hoseok
finds that interesting about them but then again Yoongi isn't interested in
boobs at all even though they're probably pretty squishy and comfortable to
lean your head on.
 
"Anyway," he mumbles after emptying his can of beer, "so you mean—. It's
possible that you come quickly when the other person is your type? Just
hypothetically speaking, of course." Hoseok eyes him suspiciously at that and
Yoongi makes a mental note to be very, very careful about what he says next.
Hoseok's mind is too sharp for his own good sometimes.
 
“When that type is as hot as her, totally. But seriously why you’re asking,
hyung?” Hoseok wants to know before he also munches on some chips, putting his
feet on the low coffee table without a care.
 
For just a second, Yoongi is toying with the idea of telling his best friend
about Jimin. For a fleeting moment, he thinks that no harm would come from
that, that maybe he'll finally be able to free his mind and find closure.
 
But then he thinks about how things went just fine with Jimin the other day at
the shack and the laundromat – okay, he totally embarrassed himself but what’s
new; he definitely learned to never talk about piercings with Jimin ever again
but in the end, they got along well and that's all that counts.
 
They didget along well, right? So maybe he’ll be fine. Maybe he doesn’t have to
tell Hoseok about what happened between their vocal and him in that bathroom.
 
He ruffles his hair and chickens out, shrugs helplessly again.
 
"Dunno, was just wondering."
 
“Your dick is fine, right?” Yoongi’s eyes grow wide as he notices Hoseok’s
worried look towards his crotch.
 
“What the fuck, Seokkie! Of course it’s fine!” he throws a pillow at his idiot
friend, making him cackle, and Yoongi kind of regrets asking anything at all.
 
“Good, because even if I’m your best friend, I’d rather not go to the doc with
you because of something like that. I mean I would, but still, please don’t
break your dick or something, okay?”
 
“You’re such an idiot. I was just wondering. God.” He feels his cheeks turning
even hotter.
 
Hoseok grins at that. “Okay, okay, chill. I’m sure it’ll be awesome. I mean—,
having sex. With whoever," Hoseok has a smug look on his face at that and
Yoongi can almost read his thoughts. Can read them on his face.
 
They're screaming strawberry and cream lollipop, marshmallow, sweet pink cotton
candy.
 
"Of course," Yoongi scoffs, looking at the screen again, trying to hide his
reddened cheeks behind his hair and to keep down his insecurity. His teeth go
back to his lips and this time he can really taste the stinging, irony taste of
blood on his tongue. Suddenly he's afraid that he’s not doing well at all.
 
Until just a few days ago he would have heartily agreed with Hoseok. Isn't
having sex with someone just about everyone's fantasy? Okay, maybe not
Jeongguk's or Taehyung's – they're his little baby brothers, he just can't
imagine them… okay, no he won't go there – but surely Namjoon and Hoseok would
agree with him, and what Seokjin does with his girlfriend, Yoongi doesn't even
want to know.
 
That's right. Maybe he should ask Seokjin? He and Jihae have been together for
so long, they certainly did the one or the other thing together already. But
then he almost shakes his head vigorously, quickly banishing the idea from his
desperate mind.
 
His eyes are still directed on the TV, but completely out of focus now.
 
What if something really is wrong with him? What if he comes as quickly as he
already did for the rest of his life as soon as he touches someone intimately
or gets touched by them?
 
What if Jimin tells anyone? What if Yoongi is the only one of the two who
thinks they are getting along well? What if Jimin is secretly making fun of
him?
 
Yoongi swallows the bile in his throat and grabs another can of beer, opening
it with a crack. This is not the time to think of Park Jimin's cum stained
lips. Not the time to hear his little hums and soft slurping sounds in his head
as he has his mouth wrapped around his cock. It's not even time to think about
his precious smile or his adorable paint-stained face.
 
It's simply not the time to think about Park Jimin.
 
It's suddenly very hot in the living room and Yoongi is barely able to focus on
the couple on the TV who falls asleep, cuddling, after they had what looked
like the best sex of their lives.
 
If life could only be a little bit more like a movie.
 
 
 
 
 
                                      –☼–
 
Saturdays have always been Jimin's favourite days. After wild Friday nights and
early Saturday mornings, he usually slept until late in the afternoon before
going out again and he loved it. But now he has one entirely different reason
to like Saturdays even more.
 
And that reason is Yoongi.
 
For the past three weekends already, there has not been even one Saturday that
he hasn't in some way met up with the drummer. And he enjoys it a little too
much for his own liking.
 
He's realised that he's hanging out less and less with the people he's usually
hanging out with, but somehow he doesn't care. He'd been asked where he's been
already by the guys and girls, but he just called them losers and said that
he's found way better entertainment lately. At least for the days he's with the
band. Not that he'd ever openly admit that in front of the others, though.
 
He's humming while he's packing his bag and when he's on his way to the door,
he almost runs into his mother.
 
"Uhm," he starts awkwardly, looking at her cautiously smiling face, "I'll be
out for a while." He doesn't miss the surprise on her face when he says it and
he knows why she would be astonished because usually he nevertells her when
he's leaving or where he's going. He doesn't really know why he told her now.
 
Or why, for once, he feels the urge to tell her that he's going to visit Yoongi
and that she doesn't need to worry about him.
 
But lately, it's easier to see her and talk to her without feeling anger and
defensiveness bubbling beneath his skin.
 
His mother takes a look at his bag before she looks up at him again and steps
to the side a little so that he can put his shoes on. "Okay, sweetheart. Take
care and have fun," she says, her voice soft and benevolent, as always. Jimin
bites his lip.
 
"Hm, I don't know if it'll be fun, uhm. I'll be over at Yoongi's to study," he
looks up and is hit by how she's worrying at her lips, her lower lip almost
trembling and her eyes glistening as if she's close to tears. He swallows down
a lump in his throat, half regretting now that he's told her because he doesn't
know how to react. On the other hand, it's the first time in years that she's
looking at him with something akin to pride showing in her eyes.
 
“Oh, okay. Do your best then. And say hello to Yoongi from me, it’s really nice
that he helps you again. He must’ve lots to do himself when he has his finals
soon, right?” Jimin blinks at her. He's never even thought of that. But he’s
never seen Yoongi actually studying or something, so he just shrugs.
 
“I don’t know. Anyway, I’ll be leaving now. See you later, mum.”
 
“Bye. Jiminnie, I love you.”
 
“Love you, too,” he yells back before shutting the door closed behind him and
stops in his tracks for a second, because – he just said that. His eyes widen
in shock and his heart briefly drops to the floor before he picks it up again,
shaking his head and heading down the stairs.
 
It’s been years since he last said that to his mother. And it feels like it was
the most honest thing he has said to her since like forever. It makes him pause
more than once while going down the stairs, but he tries his best to shove the
peculiar feeling to the most remote corner of his brain as he walks out of the
building.
 
He tosses his skateboard to the ground and jumps on it, swiftly rolling through
the neighbourhood to the street he knows Yoongi lives in. It's actually not all
that far from his place.
 
The summer breeze ruffles Jimin's hair while he's gliding along the sidewalk,
his T-shirt flapping in the wind that he welcomes with open arms. He feels so
light and content, almost giddy at the prospect of meeting up with Yoongi
today.
 
He's not entirely sure why, though.
 
He knows how the drummer looks at him and how his cheeks turn pink when Jimin
catches him doing so. He's not stupid. Jimin doesn't know anything about love,
not anymore, but he recognises a crush when he sees it.
 
And that's the thing. Usually, Jimin would be cruel towards someone who implies
that he wants more than just a casual hook up. Usually Jimin would steer clear
of such people, try to push them away by being cold and heartless towards them,
by avoiding them like the plague. But with Yoongi it's different. He doesn't
try to push him away as fiercely as he should, doesn't mock him about it in
order to make him stop.
 
What is it about Yoongi that kind of makes him tolerate everything he does?
 
Jimin could just leave the band and not talk to them anymore. School's over
soon anyway and he's hardly ever attending so why should he care?
 
With a furrow of his brows, he realises that he's actually been attending a lot
more recently. That even after nights of being out he shows up in the morning
and sits through the boring lessons (especially music) even if he can barely
keep his eyes open.
 
Whenever he's at school his eyes automatically search for the drummer with the
black-blue hair and feline eyes, with those broad shoulders that are sometimes
slumped a little because Yoongi apparently doesn't give a fuck about his
posture yet still looks so good when Jimin finds him standing in the smoking
area having a cigarette between his lips.
 
He doesn't know why usually in those moments he doesn't approach him and just
keeps observing him from afar. Probably because he's with Hoseok or Seokjin or
the other guys.
 
But today Jimin will have Yoongi all to himself.
 
He has no clue why Yoongi wanted them to study at his place this time, but
maybe Jimin will find out. He only knows one thing: he's dyingto see Yoongi's
room.
 
It'll also be the first time they'll be all alone together after the first
tutoring session at Jimin's and Jimin actually feels a little nervous about
that. His experience tells him to continue and seduce Yoongi, but his instincts
are screaming that this isn't what he wants, not really. He likes the way
Yoongi looks at him and talks to him, he likes to observe Yoongi taking care of
the others and how Yoongi buys them little things like food and drinks from
time to time. It's so mature and manly somehow and that's exactly what Jimin
finds attractive in a guy.
 
He's standing in front of Yoongi's house then. It's a really nice house, one of
those Jimin will probably never live in. Its size is perfect for one family,
has a white picket fence around a nice garden, an enclosed porch, an outdoor
fireplace that is visible in the back of the garden. It's picture perfect and
Jimin frowns, not liking how there's a nagging voice at the back of his mind
that whispers to him that he wishes he could have this, too, instead of that
very small flat he's living in with his mum.
 
He wonders how Yoongi's parents will be. They probably wouldn't like him, so he
hopes that they simply won't be home. He hopes that Yoongi will open the door
and that he won't have to see them at all.
 
Jimin rings the bell and waits, looking around the property a little more. He's
definitely a little envious but his mind wanders to how this must have also
been the place where Yoongi grew up in, where he spent his childhood, where he
made most of his memories. He wonders what that must have been like. Probably
wonderful.
 
The door swings open and Jimin turns his head back to look ahead, is prepared
for a lot of things, but he's definitely not prepared to see his music teacher
standing in front of him. Both of their eyes must go comically wide at the
sight of the other, but teacher Min's jaw remains tightly shut, almost
motionless.
 
And Jimin would like to evaporate with a small poof because – Jimin's boring
and austere music teacher is Yoongi's goddamndad?
 
Jimin's jaw goes slack and the teacher clears his throat.
 
"Jimin?" his voice is deep and stoic, riddled with surprise and unspoken
questions of what the hellJimin is doing in front of his door.
 
"Hey, Teacher Min," Jimin says as cheerfully as he can muster – which is not
that much – and for the split of a second, he wonders if he's gotten the wrong
house as he inconspicuously adjusts the strap of his backpack on his shoulder.
 
"It's for me, pa," another voice yells and this one was definitely Yoongi's. He
hears muffled footsteps coming down the carpeted stairs that are actually
straight ahead from where Jimin is standing and soon enough Yoongi's feet
appear, followed by the rest of him. Yoongi freezes on the spot when he
realises that his dad has already opened the door. His eyes carefully scan his
father's posture before they wander to Jimin.
 
This feels a little like a bad movie.
 
Howhasn’t he noticed before? Everything makes so much sense now. Yoongi’s
knowledge about music, how Taehyung and Jeongguk get along with teacher Min so
well, or why Cotton Candy is allowed to practice in the music room even after
school.
 
"Hey, Jimin," Yoongi mutters, gaze flicking from him back to his father and
then back again, obviously fighting with the awkwardness hanging thick in the
entrance of the house.
 
"Where do you know Jimin from, Yoongi?" Yoongi's father asks and Jimin suddenly
feels very small under his scrutinising gaze. The dislike between him and the
teacher is definitely mutual but right now the man must probably hate him. In
fact, he's certain that not only his bad grades and even worse attendance are
at the heart of the problem. It's probably because the teachers of the school
know all the rumours just as well as the students do.
 
Well, Teacher Min, all the rumours are probably true and yes, Jimin is here to
see his son, so he can just suck it up.
 
“Jimin is our new vocal, dad. I told you we got a new singer, didn’t I? We want
to study for a while,” Jimin doesn't protest when Yoongi grabs his wrist,
something he usually hates. But right now, the gesture makes him relax in this
very bizarre and unexpected situation.
 
Jimin steps inside the house, toeing his sneakers off his feet and leaving them
where he detects Yoongi's, the ones that have been written on with a sharpie.
 
"Well, in that case, I’ll let you two do whatever you were about to do then, I
have to leave now anyway. We’ll talk later," the teacher grumbles as he closes
the door, more or less reluctantly. "Yoongi, don't forget to bring the cake
form back to the Jungs later, okay? Your mother promised it back today.”
 
"’kay, pa. See you later," Yoongi mumbles before he pulls Jimin along, but
Jimin only hears half of his exchange with his father. Is much too concentrated
on Yoongi's large hand wrapping easily around his bare wrist. The touch is
almost searing, light goosebumps erupting on Jimin's skin as he stumbles after
Yoongi.
 
He has no idea why his heart is pounding so hard.
 
Must be the unfamiliar situation. Visiting a house he's never been to before.
Encountering his music teacher unexpectedly. That must be it.
 
"Are we not going to—. You know," Jimin asks confusedly when they don't go back
up the stairs where Yoongi came from, where he thinks would be the drummer's
room. Yoongi twists his head and purses his lips.
 
"Huh? No, I don't know," he retorts and Jimin huffs, rolling his eyes.
 
"Are we not going to your room?" he's straightforward, doesn't see the need to
make a secret out of wanting to see Yoongi's room. But Yoongi just shakes his
head, eyes closed. He looks a little too sage and smug for Jimin's liking.
 
"Nope. My room is a mess. Won't let you in there," Jimin grins at that.
 
"Aw, cute. So considerate," Jimin coos exaggeratedly with sarcasm dripping from
his voice, making Yoongi pinch his upper arm. He squeaks and tries to dodge the
attack in vain, giggles when Yoongi's fingers pinch him through the sleeve of
his T-shirt. He pauses, puzzled, when he realises his own weird behaviour,
blinking a few times before he follows Yoongi through the living room to the
kitchen.
 
That was more familiar and intimate than Jimin would like to let on. But most
of all, it was comfortable, didn't cause irritation to flare inside his chest
at all like it usually would if someone treated him like that. He didn't really
want to admit it so far, but he already thought that when he rolled around on
the dirty forest floor together with Yoongi and the other two. He didn't feel
the need to be defensive even once.
 
“Sorry, uh—, should’ve told you about my dad, huh," Yoongi mumbles after a
moment, abashed. When they reach the kitchen, Yoongi turns to him and Jimin
sees that he's biting his lips. "You want anything to drink?” yeah, tequila or
something, Jimin would like to reply, but simply nods, still a little
dumbfounded.
 
"Sure. You have coke?"
 
"Um, cherry coke?"
 
"Perfect!"
 
Jimin plops down on a stool at the narrow breakfast bar and drops his backpack
unceremoniously down to the floor. His legs are dangling and his face is
propped up on his palms, cheeks squishing together as he watches Yoongi's back
when the other fetches the coke from the fridge and two glasses from the
cupboard. It's cute how Yoongi has to tiptoe a little to reach the shelf where
the glasses are on.
 
When Yoongi turns around and sees him with his squished cheeks and puffed out
lips, Jimin thinks he sees him blush a little. He has to bite his lips to hide
his amusement.
 
"You really could have told me about your dad," Jimin mumbles, arms crossing
over the surface of the counter, head sinking into them. "I mean, if I had
known, I could have been a little smoother and, you know, not tell you about
how boring I think he is," Yoongi scoffs at that but pours them a glass each
with the black, sparkling soda, the artificial flavour filling Jimin's nostrils
immediately.
 
"It's 'kay. I hear that a lot, don't worry. If you'd rather leave now, that's
cool with me, though," Jimin's eyes go round at that, not having expected such
a reply. Of course he wouldn't want to leave just because his teacher is
Yoongi's dad.
 
"And fail the class of the very teacher we're talking about? Forget it," he
huffs, motivation to rock those exams suddenly surging through his body. He
doesn't know this unfamiliar feeling, but for some unknown reason, he really
wants to wing those exams now. He straightens his back, claps in his hands and
puffs out his chest. "Let's go! We got a lot to do!"
 
He fishes for his backpack from the floor and pulls out his music stuff. He
didn't forget to bring anything with him, even has the booklet with him the
teacher handed out with all the learning material they'll need. He spreads all
the sheets of papers in front of him, puts his (still technically Yoongi's)
mint coloured pencil on top of them, moves the glasses away a little and when
he looks back at Yoongi he sees that he has a lopsided smile directed at him.
 
"Wow, who are you and what have you done to Jimin?" Yoongi asks and Jimin's
brows draw together before his lips morph into an offended pout.
 
"Nice to meet you, I'm Enthusiastic Jimin, a very rare form of Not Giving A
Fuck Jimin. Now come on, hyung," he pats on the stool beside him with a smile
and waits until Yoongi has walked around the breakfast bar and sits down next
to him. His motivation doesn't falter in the slightest when they sit there
hunched over music notes and scales, sharps, flats and all that stuff. He poses
a million questions and Yoongi answers them all, every single one, and Jimin is
genuinely impressed.
 
"Wah, Yoongi hyung, you're really so good. You should become a teacher instead.
It all makes so much sense now!"
 
"Jimin, you already said that last time," Yoongi scoffs, a small proud smile
throning on his alluring lips despite his words, "you should think of something
new to flatter me."
 
He sounds so cocky. Jimin loves it when Yoongi sounds cocky. And bold. Like he
finally means it.
 
He bites his lower lip and twists his body a little to look at him, eyes
darting from Yoongi's eyebrow piercing to his chest where he now knows another
gem to be hidden behind the layer of fabric. He'd really like to touch it
again. Like. Now.
 
They're all alone in this house, what could possibly go wrong—
 
"I'm back," a woman's voice reverberates through the house out of the blue and
a door falls shut shortly after. Jimin almost jumps out of his skin and quickly
retreats his hand that he just wanted to lift to Yoongi's chest, his heart
jack-hammering away between his ribs. "Yoongi, darling, are you home?"
 
Jimin looks at the elder and, yep, Yoongi is home, and he looks just as pale as
he looks irritated, his hand rubbing his forearm awkwardly.
 
"Yes, mum. I'm here with Jimin," his name is said pointedly, probably intended
to alert her of another person's presence which she seems to be delighted about
when she enters the kitchen and sees them sitting there. Instantly, Jimin can’t
help but think that Yoongi’s mother is as gorgeous as her son. She's wearing
light blue denim dungarees and a pink T-shirt underneath and her long and
voluminous dark hair is made up in a messy bun and there's a twinkle in her
eyes that Jimin hasn't seen in his own mum's eyes in a very long time.
 
"Hey there, sweetheart. God, your hair is so cute," she coos and Jimin feels
his cheeks heat up. No adult has ever told him that. Teachers and other parents
are usually not very fond of his pink hair. On the contrary, they all find it
an abomination. "You're not one of Yoongi's classmates, right? I don't think I
remember you," she continues and Jimin finally finds his smile again.
 
"No, I'm the new vocal of the band," he explains, a giddy feeling spreading in
his chest at saying that out loud himself. "Nice to meet you, Mrs Min."
 
"Oh, please. Call me Jangmi, I'd feel so old otherwise," she laughs airily, a
grace and warmth to her features only mums can have. The same that was on
Jimin's mum's face a long, long time ago.
 
"Mum, you are old," Yoongi quips with a grin on his face and his mother
instantly comes to ruffle his hair with both her hands, laments of how Yoongi
is a cheeky little rascal leaving her lips while Yoongi tries to fend her off,
embarrassed shouts of how she should stop yelled in vain while she's squeezing
his cheeks together.
 
Jimin can't help but chuckle about the scene in front of him before a strange
pain stings his heart, images of his own mother crying because of him flashing
in his mind again. His smile dulls for a moment but he quickly forces it back
to his lips when he remembers the small exchange they had just today. A good
exchange, no matter how short and fleeting it was.
 
"Well then, boys. I'll leave you alone. Yoongi, I'll bring the cake form back
myself, you guys keep studying, okay?"
 
"'kay, mum," Yoongi slurs and she smacks his head lightly, making him glare at
her again.
 
"Min Yoongi, how many times have I told you not to slur your words?" she scolds
and Yoongi bristles, swatting her hand away.
 
"Go now, old woman," Yoongi sneers but she laughs and Jimin is riddled with
surprise about the fact that she just lets that slide, that everything is meant
in such good humour. It makes Jimin feel out of place, almost. He shouldn't be
in this nice house with this nice family, he doesn't belong somewhere where
everything is good and easy and so not meant for him.
 
Yoongi is good. Way out of Jimin's league.
 
Jimin wonders why he's never realised that before.
 
"Hey, Jimin-ah, do you want to practise singing a little?" Yoongi asks suddenly
when they’re alone again and Jimin snaps out of his thoughts. He looks at the
handsome man next to him and yearns. Yearns to be like him, even if just a
little.
 
"Uh, sure," he says, assuming that they are going to use Yoongi's guitar again.
But to his surprise, Yoongi has other plans.
 
"Okay, come on," he grabs Jimin's wrist again and Jimin lets him, even though
he's contemplating pulling his arm out of Yoongi's searing grip. But he can't,
he enjoys those touches way too much.
 
Jimin sees the piano long before they stand in front of it.
 
It's a simple one, nondescript and brown, but there are sheets of music placed
on the narrow ledge above the keyboard and the cover is up, which means that it
is probably well used, especially in a musical household like this. A picture
of a little boy playing the piano is hanging above it, as well as some other
pictures that look quite old already. They're all of the same boy that looks a
lot like Yoongi, the same dark eyes staring back at Jimin on every single one
of them.
 
"You can play the piano, too?" he blurts out, stunned, eyes gaping at the
complicated looking sheet music in front of him before Yoongi grabs it and
hastily puts it away.
 
"Um, y-yeah. A little. Well, my father taught me ever since I was five," if
that's true, then 'a little' probably translates to 'damn well', "he's always
wanted me to learn an instrument, so I did. I don't know if I had been allowed
to go with drums if I didn't learn to play at least one other instrument as
well."
 
"Your dad must be pretty strict," Jimin muses, sitting down next to Yoongi on
the short piano bench. It's cosy. It's cosy sitting next to Yoongi with their
thighs and shoulders pressing against each other.
 
Jimin loves it.
 
"Yeah, he can be. But sometimes he's also pretty lenient, as long as my grades
are alright and I don't cause trouble at school or elsewhere. Anyway, here,"
Yoongi puts his fingers on the keyboard and plays one scale, up and down, long,
dexterous fingers running smoothly over the white and black keys, not one
dissonant tone audible in the process. "Which one was that?" Yoongi smirks and
Jimin gulps.
 
"Hyung, that was way too hard! Start with something simple!" and Yoongi laughs
before he trails off into a chuckle, playing a scale that only uses one of the
black keys. Jimin recognises that one.
 
"G major!" he yells excitedly, looking at Yoongi who, grinning, licks his lips
before he bites his lower one, playing the next scale. Jimin shouts all the
names at him, gets some wrong but also some right, and when Yoongi lets him
sing them, he doesn't feel shy or reluctant at all, lets his voice carry
through the room freely.
 
Jimin is laughing when Yoongi teaches him how to play himself. He forgets
everything; time, space, that this isn't his house, that he came to seduce
Yoongi and is now singing and fooling around with him. That he wants to run
away. That he doesn't belong here.
 
"Hey, Jimin," Yoongi says when they have caught their breaths again after an
especially convulsing fit of laughter, one that made Jimin wipe a tear from his
eye. Damn, he feels way too comfortable for his own good.
 
"What?" he asks, more giggles bubbling up from his belly when he looks at
Yoongi. But when he sees the more subdued look on Yoongi's features, the eyes
flickering over Jimin's face a little uncertainly and with caution, they die
down along with the smile that suddenly seems too hard to keep up. His heart is
beating in his throat now and whatever Yoongi is thinking, whatever he wants to
say, Jimin would rather not hear it.
 
"I—, uhm," Yoongi takes a deep breath, averts his gaze to the keyboard again
before he ruffles his own hair, messy strands falling into his face. "Thanks
for helping us paint the cabin," he mumbles eyes squinting briefly as if in
pain. Jimin observes how he wipes his palms on his jeans and his stomach does a
strange flip at the sight of Yoongi being so nervous next to him.
 
"No problem, hyung. Maybe I'll need a place to crash one day, then I know where
I could go," he jokes but Yoongi frowns.
 
"You shouldn't walk around in the forest all alone. Especially not at night."
 
"Tsk, you sound like my mother," Jimin teases and then nudges him with his
elbow, "hey, you gonna play something for me?" he asks cheekily, nodding
towards the sheet music Yoongi put away earlier. To his surprise though, Yoongi
just shrugs and puts his hands back on the keyboard without putting any notes
in front of him.
 
"Sure, if you want me to," Jimin is astonished about the fact that Yoongi would
really do something like that for him, just because he's asked him to. That he
really wants to play a song just for him. He's asked a lot of people to do all
sorts of things for him and gets what he wants most of the time but this feels
so much more intimate than anything anyone has ever done to him. Feels more
valuable than getting free drinks for one night. More soothing than any sweet-
talking that he has ever been engaged in.
 
Yoongi starts playing, a rather mellow tune, so unlike anything their band
would ever play. And instead of hitting the snares and cymbals with the power
Yoongi usually plays the drums, his movements look almost serene now, smooth
and delicate. His eyes are closed, eyelashes fanning out over his full cheeks,
slope of his nose soft and gentle while his full lips are opened the tiniest
bit; absolutely mesmerising to look at.
 
He knocks the breath out of Jimin's lungs just by existing and Jimin feels so
lost he would like to jump up and flee.
 
On the other hand—
 
He could really get used to this.
 
He could get used to sitting next to Yoongi like this. To have him around. To
have the band around. To smile and feel happy. To see Yoongi sitting in front
of an instrument and having him play just for him.
 
The music floats brilliantly between them, the misty harmonies swirling around
the room in a crescendo and decrescendo of warmth and velvety sounds, the tempo
getting more and more intense just like Jimin's heartbeat as he cannot avert
his eyes from of the man next to him.
 
"If this was my happy ending," Jimin thinks, resisting the urge to lean his
head on Yoongi's shoulder, "if I wasn't who I am, I'd just let you have me
whenever you want. You could have me anytime."
 
But when he leaves later that afternoon, all he does is putting his hand on
Yoongi's strong upper arm, squeezing a little, before his hand drops back down
to his side. His lips curl up into a smile when Yoongi's do the same, eyes
screaming please stay, but then Jimin turns around and starts skating straight
home in the orange evening glow of the late afternoon sun.





 
It's only two days later when he gets further sucked into a world he thought he
would never be a part of. Not even after a weekend where he sought fun and
pleasure at night and only found more misery.
 
Jimin scrambles to get his cigarette lit and almost drops his lighter in the
process. He hasn't had a smoke in what feels like forever. It's his own fault,
really, and he doesn't know why it happened either. But for some reason, he
just really wanted to finish his damn homework before it was too late again.
 
He actually did it all by himself before the lesson started and since it was
math he was done pretty quickly, too. He likes math. It's purely logical and
comes to him so much more easily than, say, history or language classes. It's
also the subject where his grades are best, and somehow he doesn't want to fuck
this up.
 
He sighs contentedly when he finally takes a deep drag and leans against the
wall of the school building, the nicotine buzz tingling through his limbs. He
takes his time, knows that he should hurry to make it in time for band
practice, but he just can't be bothered right now that he can finally recharge
his batteries. When he's done eventually, he leisurely walks the familiar
corridors to the music room while wondering if the rain that has been pouring
down all day long already will stop soon.
 
"Jimin!" he gets greeted by Hoseok's stern voice as soon as he enters the
practice room. Jimin startles a little when his bandmate comes standing in
front of him with his hands stemmed into his sides, foot tapping on the floor,
corners of his mouth pointing southwards. Jimin gulps, smiling sheepishly.
"You're late, Jimin! Again!"
 
"Sorry, Hobi," Jimin drags out the 'o' in sorry, trying to charm his way out of
his predicament, "I will never do it again!" He looks around the room and
notices that neither Jeongguk nor Taehyung are here. Instead, Namjoon and
Seokjin are hanging out here today, next to Yoongi on the already cramped
couch.
 
Hoseok rolls his eyes and purses his lips, rolling up his sleeves before he
loses some of his body tension and ushers Jimin towards where Yoongi is sitting
on the couch. Jimin smiles at the other three when he gets closer.
 
"Hey, guys, what are you doing here today?" he says, trying to not swat
Hoseok's hand away that is resting on his back despite not really being fond of
someone touching him right now.
 
"Namjoon found us another gig, but it's already this weekend. We wanted to
check if everyone's free and if we could accept the offer and start planning,"
Seokjin explains excitedly, holding up a flier to Jimin.
 
"Oh. Yeah, sure. Sign us up," Jimin gives a half-smile, already feels the
nervousness well up in his body but also the memory of the euphoria he felt
after the last gig they had. He's definitely up for that again.
 
"Cool, that makes three of you!" Namjoon holds out his hand for a fist-bump and
Jimin indulges him, briefly pressing his fist against the other's. Damn, that's
something he'll probably never get used to.
 
"Hey Jimin, can you look at this quickly? We need your T-shirt size," Hoseok
pipes up again next to him, handing him a sheet of paper where several
depictions of T-shirt variants are printed on.
 
"Huh? What for?"
 
"T-shirts obviously, just tell me real quick. I gotta hand this in soon."
 
"It's M, usually," Jimin likes smugly fitting clothes, of course, but for
normal T-shirts he actually prefers them to be a little looser, so he goes with
medium, mostly. He's still wondering why Hoseok needs to know his size and what
T-shirts he’s talking about, but the other doesn't look like he's giving him an
explanation anytime soon. He watches how the guitarist writes an M next to
Jimin's name before scurrying off towards his bag.
 
Jimin plops down on the little space that's left on the couch next to Yoongi
who's poring over some homework, seemingly deep in thought. "Hey, drummer boy,
what are you doing?"
 
"Nurturing my death wish," Yoongi groans, dramatically leaning against the
backrest of the battered couch, arms and legs sprawled out as if he was a
string puppet that has been tossed aside.
"By doing math homework?" Jimin grins, looking at the math problems on the
sheet on Yoongi's lap. Well, those third-year questions are definitely too
difficult, even for him, so he won't be able to help Yoongi even though there's
an odd feeling tingling inside of him, whispering to him that he really wishes
he could. Yoongi helped him with music theory, it would only be fair if he gave
something back.
 
"I hate math," Yoongi mumbles, resignedly. He has closed his eyes and his head
tipped back, Adam's apple on full display. Jimin gulps and tries to suppress
the urge to lean in and bite into it. Instead he nudges Yoongi's side and
jostles him a little.
 
"Come on, I'll help you!" Yoongi squints one eye open and arches an eyebrow at
him.
 
"You wanna help me?"
 
"Hey, I'm not a Taehyung but I'm not completely brainless either. Now let's see
what we have here," Jimin scoots even closer to Yoongi and looks at the math
problems that Yoongi has circled half-assedly and Jimin quickly starts putting
things together in his mind. "Oh, I think we did something similar already in
our—," before he can continue, the door flies open and Jeongguk comes in,
looking completely out of it. Jimin looks at him questioningly.
 
"Jimin, have you seen Taehyung?" Jeongguk asks, a little short of breath, and
Jimin blinks at him a few times before shaking his head.
 
"Nope. Isn't he with you?"
 
"And you, Yoongi?" Jeongguk ignores Jimin's question and is directing a
pleading gaze at Yoongi now. Jimin frowns and wonders why Jeongguk is so upset
about not having Taehyung around him for five minutes.
 
Yoongi shakes his head, too, causing Jeongguk to turn to Hoseok. "Hobi? Do you
know where he could be?"
 
"No, I haven't seen him, but it's very unlike him to be late for practice. Same
goes for you, by the way. What’s going on?"
 
"He just quickly wanted to talk to our math teacher after the lesson and told
me I don't have to wait for him. So I was here early and waited for him but he
didn't come and I quickly went looking for him but I can't find him anywhere."
 
"Jeongguk, calm down," Yoongi says calmingly while getting up, taking the few
steps towards the guitarist before putting his hands on his shoulders,
squeezing them firmly. "You said he wanted to talk to his teacher, and you know
how a quick chit-chat with a teacher can turn into a full-length conversation,
especially if it's Taehyung we're talking about," Yoongi smiles reassuringly,
patting Jeongguk's shoulder who is letting his head hang low.
 
"Y-yeah, but he wasn't there anymore when I went to check and I don't know
where he went and—,"
 
In that moment, the already adjacent door opens, very slowly and with a creak,
and Taehyung comes into view.
 
Jimin's heart stops for a second.
 
Taehyung's head is drooping, his freshly dyed light brown locks are all messed
up and his shoulders are sagging like Jimin's never seen them do before.
Taehyung is visibly making himself smaller and when he finally glances up
briefly like an intimidated doe, Jimin sees that there's blood on his lips and
his nose and a bruise on his cheekbone.
 
"Tae!" Jeongguk gasps and is already in front of him, carefully cupping
Taehyung's bloodstained face, examining the bloody nose and the cut on his lip
with eyes that scream out all the worry and pain in this world. "T-taetae, what
happened to you?"
 
Taehyung's bottom lip starts wobbling precariously when he leans against his
best friend, eyes welling up with tears before he throws his arms around
Jeongguk and starts sobbing woefully. Jimin never thought his cold and hardened
heart could ever be torn apart like a thousand furies were clawing at it just
from seeing someone cry.
 
But it is and it—. Hurts.
 
Jimin watches how Seokjin gingerly wipes the blood off Taehyung's face with a
foreign anger bubbling beneath his skin, rising in his chest. It makes him
narrow his eyes and clench his fists by his side.
 
"The-they pulled—, pulled me into the ba-bathroom," Taehyung hiccups, trying to
suppress his sobs, "I-I didn't do anything to—, to—,"
 
"Ssh, it's okay. It's okay, Taetae. Just let me—. Tell me who did this to you,
okay?" Jeongguk says softly, wrapping him up in his arms, rubbing his back so
gently Jimin could never miss the love in each and every single one of
Jeongguk's comforting gestures. But the look in his eyes shifts and Jimin
wonders if whoever did this to Taehyung will still be alive come sunset.
 
Instead of outright telling everyone who has gathered around the two, however,
Taehyung sets his mouth in a hard line and shakes his head against Jeongguk's
shoulder.
 
"Taehyungie," Hoseok says to get Taehyung's attention, stroking over his arm
but retreats it quickly when the boy winces. "Tell us, please? Who did that to
you?" Taehyung's big, wet eyes peer at him insecurely before he draws his lower
lip between his teeth and sniffles.
 
“Donghyun and his f-friends,” Jimin almost misses Taehyung’s answer, for it is
only an insecure whisper, but he knows the guys. Of course he knows them;
they’re two idiots from the same year as them and two more from the second
grade who are always trying to look for trouble, preferable by bullying the
weaker students.
 
Jeongguk knows too, for his gaze is now screaming bloody murder, a vein popping
out on his neck.
 
Jimin turns his head to look at Yoongi. Their drummer slowly lets his gaze
wander to Taehyung who looks even more mortified than before. He takes a deep
breath before he draws closer to Jeongguk who looks as if he's about to burst.
 
"That's it, I'm gonna fucking murder those asses," Yoongi grips Jeongguk's
upper arm and holds him back, gaze austere.
 
"Jeongguk, wait! What will you do if you find them, huh? Punch them?"
 
"Yes!" Jeongguk shouts back without hesitation, "they did this to him, again.
They're never gonna stop if we just let them, hyung. This time, it's enough,"
there is danger in Jeongguk's tight voice, a lot of pent-up frustration tinged
with a hint of despair.
 
"They did this to you before?" Jimin asks, baffled by how he never noticed
anything. The guys are not in their class, so he didn't think Taehyung would
stumble across them all that often.
 
'Jeonggukkie was badass again.'
 
He remembers Taehyung saying that the day of the cabin painting and how odd it
felt to hear that back then. Now he knows that Jeongguk standing up for Jimin
must not have been the first time he stood up for one of his friends.
 
He just doesn't understand how someone was able to do something like that to
Taehyung of all people. A boy who is always so cheerful, always so gentle and
friendly with everyone. Someone who certainly hasn't deserved any of what they
did to him.
 
"They've never laid a hand on him before, but those dickholes were bullying him
whenever they got the chance," Jeongguk finally admits when Taehyung still
doesn't want to. Jimin's gaze flickers to Yoongi again. He can read on Yoongi's
face that he didn't know anything about it either and sees the exact moment
something in him snaps.
 
"Why—, why didn't you tell us?" Yoongi asks, Adam's apple bobbing up and down
when he gulps dryly.
 
"I-I'm sorry, hyung. I just didn't want you to worry so much. I'm okay. It's
nothing," Taehyung mumbles quietly, and Jimin pushes his hair back to distract
himself so that he doesn't lose his shit.
 
Yoongi's lips twitch as he keeps staring at their youngest. Then he cocks his
head to the side slowly, his spine bones cracking with the movement.
 
"That's it. I'm gonna fucking make them a new face with my fists," Yoongi
growls and walks out of the door, immediately followed by Jeongguk who leaves
Taehyung in Seokjin's care.
 
"Hyung, we don't even know where they—. Hyung!" Hoseok tries and trails after
them, maltreating his bottom lip with his teeth.
 
They're all leaving now.
 
Jimin, too.
 
He doesn't know why he's going along, not really.
 
Wasn't he fine on his own? Didn't he remind himself time and time again that
he's better off on his own, that he doesn't need 'friends' who will betray him
and leave him alone in the end anyway?
 
But there he is, ready to polish someone's ugly mug with his fist for one of
the band.
 
Because he actually likes Taehyung. That's probably why.
 
"They're sometimes hanging out behind the gym," Jimin provides, knows those
guys from smoking behind the school building where he actually shouldn't
because it's strictly prohibited. He never thought that this knowledge could
one day come in handy. Yoongi looks at him with an unreadable expression on his
face before he lifts a corner of his mouth.
 
"You're in, too, Jimin?" he asks and Jimin returns the smirk.
 
"I might not look like it, drummer boy, but I can serve a really good punch if
I want to."

Chapter End Notes
     Our hearts ache for Jimin so much :'( just finally give in bb Yoongi
     will be good for you ♡
     (well, knowing us it probably won't be that easy haha) also when will
     he finally get to see Yoongi's (messy) room? Poor guy just wanted to
     get a glimpse :')
     Next chapter will be so fluffy aksjdlasd please wait for it ♡
     Come scream at us on twitter or on curiouscat!
***** Eight. *****
Chapter Notes
     This chapter got really long but we hope you’ll like it! ♡
     WE LOVE YOU, DRUMMER BOY, OUR PRECIOUS CHILD
     ☾ = Yoongi
     ☼ = Jimin
See the end of the chapter for more notes
                                      –☼–
 
"You've gone too far this time. Don't you ever lay your hands on him again
or—,"
 
"Did the little baby run to his mommies? Aww," Donghyun sneers, an ugly and
complacent smirk on his face, "or what? Who's gonna stop us? You?"
 
Jeongguk bristles, his shoulders going tense and his fists clenched dangerously
by his side. He takes a step closer to Donghyun, stares him down with ice in
his eyes. Donghyun doesn't flinch, just simply returns the glare with feigned
boredom.
 
Jimin isn't fooled by this. He can see by the way Donghyun picks at his thumb
with his index finger that he's nervous. His mates, too, seem to teeter on the
brink of lashing out at them without giving it a second thought, their teeth
gnashing, body language closed and hostile.
 
He senses how the uncomfortableness rolls off of Taehyung in waves and waves
next to him, the other's lips still trembling, his entire frame shaking a
little. Yet Jimin resists the urge to put his arm around him for protection,
lest he would spur the bullies on even more.
 
"You don't wanna find out how I'd make you stop, shitface," Jeongguk spits,
voice laced with anger. Jimin never expected Jeongguk to actually lose his
temper like this. His behaviour is at complete contrast with the playful,
sometimes goofy, sometimes shy classmate that Jimin knows, and it makes a chill
run down his spine.
 
“What do you wanna do, huh? Write a song about how we were oh-so-mean to you?
Or are you going to cry and tell mommy and daddy about it? You’re such a mommy
boy aren’t you, Jeon?”
 
At that, Jeongguk cocks his head to the side briefly so that his spine cracks,
completely steps into Donghyun's personal space and just like that, the bully
snaps.
 
He lifts his hands and shoves Jeongguk by the shoulders before taking one, two
steps back. His three friends also get into motion, lining up with him in front
of Jeongguk. Jimin's gaze darts to Yoongi who takes Jeongguk's side now
together with Hoseok, Namjoon and – a little reluctantly – also Seokjin. It's
all Jimin needs to take a step forward too.
 
One of the guys looks at him dumbly in recognition, but Jimin just slightly
tilts his head back with hooded eyes, cold gaze filled with contempt. He hopes
the disgust that he has for that sorry excuse of a human being is visible in
the unimpressed look he sends him.
 
“Go back into your garage and play your songs about candy. Losers,” Donghyun
says again, more despair than he probably wanted lacing his voice, and as soon
as he's finished speaking, he tries to punch Jeongguk square in the face.
 
Jeongguk dodges the clumsy attack, dances around him and throws his fist into
the other's gut, earning a wheezing groan from the other.
 
From that moment, everything is a blur.
 
Jimin recalls not hesitating to lash out at the guy who looked at him with his
ugly visage, but then he only remembers trying to dodge punches and kicks while
trying to hit the other with his fists, too.
 
He plants a punch on his chin before ending up on the ground that is still wet
from the rain, wrestling with the other guy for the upper hand, losing it
before his attacker is shoved off of him and thrown to the ground instead by no
one else but Yoongi who is quick to go after the guy when he tries to stumble
away from him.
 
“You’ll never ever touch him or Taehyung again, you hear me? You won’t ever
touch anyoneagain or next time it won’t end that well,” Yoongi growls next to
Jimin and a shiver runs down his spine. Yoongi always shows how much he cares
about his friends, always shows them that he is the oldest and keeps an eye on
them. But it’s something else entirely to see him fight so fiercely for their
youngest – and for Jimin, too.
 
But he cannot think about it for long because suddenly there is a teacher duo
behind them, pulling them and those idiots apart, demanding an explanation.
Jimin stands again, posture defensive and still shaking a little from the
adrenaline coursing through his body, breathing heavy.
 
He's never done anything close to what he just did before, but damn, somehow it
felt good to fight for something just this once. His entire body hurts, his
clothes are dirty, but he doesn't care in the slightest.
 
“They hurt Taehyung first! Just look at him!” Jeongguk says as he glares at the
other guys, ripping himself free from the teacher's hold.
 
“Jeon Jeongguk, stop it right there! I cannot believe you boys, you never
attracted attention like that before, what’s wrong with you today?” Jeongguk
just huffs and cracks his neck again before he wipes his mouth with the back of
his hand and stares into a random direction.
 
“We’ll go to the principal, now, all of you. And then I want to hear the whole
story,” the other teacher says and all of them groan but start walking without
any further resistance. The other boys that started everything just glare at
them the entire time, but neither Jimin nor the others are particularly
impressed. They are led into the principal's office while the other four boys
are taken into another room so that they can tell their side of the story
separately.
 
Jimin was at the principal’s before, of course he was, skipping school and
having bad grades, but he never liked being under so much unnecessary scrutiny.
 
Yoongi is speaking for all of them, tells the principal the whole story and
that they wanted to protect Taehyung, making all of them nod in unison before
one of the teachers comes back into the principal’s room with no one else but
their homeroom teacher – Yoongi’s father – in tow. Jimin can see Yoongi gulping
dryly.
 
"Teacher Ahn told me what you did. I’m very disappointed in you, boys," Mr Min
sighs before he turns to face just Jeongguk, Taehyung and Jimin who all look a
little guilty now, "I will have to call your parents and tell them what
happened. And Yoongi, we will talk at home, young man."
 
"Yes, dad," Yoongi mumbles and Jimin wouldn't want to be in his shoes right
now. He just shifts on his feet a little uncomfortable when he thinks about his
mother getting that call but It wouldn't be the first time his mother got a
call from school. He'll just shrug it off.
 
And yet his stomach twists with the tiniest bit of insecurity at the thought of
his mum's disappointed face.
 
"N-no, Teacher Min, please don't call my parents—," Jeongguk tries, face pale
and posture stiff as a board. Jimin only has to look at him to see how scared
the boy is, the uneasiness practically oozing out of him.
 
"I'm sorry, Jeongguk, I cannot make an exception for you. I know you're a good
boy and you just wanted to protect your friend, but I have to do it."
 
"Taehyung didn't do anything, though! They hurt him and—,"
 
"Jeongguk," the teacher interrupts him, more sternly now, "I'm sorry, I really
am. But I cannot make an exception for either of you. I will inform your
parents and that's it. Off you go now, and guys," he's addressing the elders of
their group now, "please show a little more responsibility and take care of the
younger ones."
 
They're all quiet when they leave the room, shuffling down the corridor while
throwing muted glances at each other. Jimin has to bite his lip when he peers
at Namjoon and Hoseok who glance back at him, and suddenly he almost can't
contain his giggles.
 
They really just did that.
 
Jimin pushes his hair back and smirks, before Taehyung next to him snickers
behind his hand, making Jeongguk grin a little despite everything.
 
“Did you see their faces? You totally got them bad,” Taehyung giggles and then
all of them laugh as they walk back to their practice room, talking all over
each other, patting each other's shoulders, pulling each other into headlocks.
Jimin gets poked by Taehyung and nudged into his side by Seokjin who offers him
a warm and thankful smile, and Jimin's heart almost bursts.
 
Hoseok directly goes to fetch a first aid kit and when he returns they all sit
down on the floor and clean each other's wounds and clothes, still laughing
over the losers who dared to touch Taehyung, pampering their youngest during
all of it.
 
Jimin assumes it works as some sort of catharsis for them, lets them drag those
guys through the mud verbally while Jimin just sits there, legs crossed, toes
wriggling a little out of boredom. He doesn't have a mirror but he doesn't
think he's got any wounds, so he just watches how the others patch each other
up and cuddle Taehyung.
 
“Forget about practice today, let’s go and grab some food when we're done, I’m
starving. It’s on me,” Yoongi announces in his boisterous hyung voice before he
sits down in front of Jimin, making Jimin look up at him with wonder in his
eyes.
 
"F-forget about practice?" Hoseok asks, appalled, but everyone rolls their eyes
and Hoseok's protests quickly get drowned out by the cheers at the prospect of
(free) food.
 
“Let me have a look at your cheek, you’ve got a scratch there," Yoongi says
softly, addressing Jimin again. There's a bruise blooming on Yoongi's chin, his
hair is messy and the yellow-black checkered shirt he is wearing over his white
T-shirt is still sitting on his shoulders a little askew. There are even some
tears in its fabric but Yoongi doesn't seem to mind right now.
 
Jimin feels his cheeks heat up when Yoongi gets closer to get a better look at
the scratch on his face and he holds back a hiss when the other carefully
touches his face with a disinfection tissue. After that, he studies the
drummer's concentrated face, eyes radiating the comfort and security Jimin
craves so much.
 
"That was a really good punch, by the way," Yoongi says with a grin before he
briefly sticks out his tongue between his lips to wet them. Jimin feels himself
blush even more when he remembers the words he said and how in the end he was
mainly rolling around in the dirt because that other guy threw him down.
 
"Shut up," he grumbles, pressing his piercing against the roof of his mouth.
But Yoongi just grins even more broadly, gums and all. Jimin pouts even harder
and looks at the ground, picks at some loose thread on his denim shorts.
“Thanks," he says when Yoongi is done with disinfecting. The wound stings a
little now even though he didn't feel it at all before.
 
"Mh-hm," Yoongi hums, shaking his head softly, "thank you for helping us. You
were pretty fierce," Jimin huffs at that and rolls his eyes before he grins,
his chest swelling a little.
 
"Sure. I hope those fuckers leave Taehyung alone from now on," and if not, he
won't hesitate to fight them again.
 
"They've had it coming. Just sad my shirt got ripped," Yoongi mutters, lips
pouted out a little, "hey, talking of shirts, do you know why Hobi wanted to
know your shirt size earlier?" Yoongi's question comes a little out of the blue
after what just happened, but Jimin suddenly remembers how Hoseok asked him
about it earlier.
 
"Nope," he says, popping the p, "I have no idea."
 
“Hobi wanted to know your shirt size because of our band shirts. For the
contest performance. We're all gonna wear the same one. Jeongguk drew the
motive that will go on it. It's black with our pink Cotton Candy logo on it.
You're a part of us now, so of course you need one, too."
 
"I—, I'm—," a smile tugs on Jimin's lips when he takes in that new information.
He's already imagining the T-shirt inside his head and can’t deny that the
thought of owning his own band T-shirt makes his head feel light and almost
floating. "That sounds really cute," he clears his throat, swallowing down the
lump that clogs up his windpipe. "I'm sure I’m going to like it," he says,
trying to sound nonchalant, but probably failing miserably.
 
Yoongi smirks at him before he reaches for the first-aid kit again, picking
something out of it. "Of course you are," the other says, eyes finding Jimin's
again and they exchange a brief stare, just for a second, but Jimin's heart
does a strange jump in his chest.
 
“I want a burger,” he hears Taehyung whine next to his ear somewhere, but he
cannot look away from Yoongi’s downturned eyes. Not until Yoongi suddenly puts
a plaster on his cheek, lips pouting in concentration, warm fingertips touching
Jimin's even warmer cheeks.
 
“Ts, I bet you can’t even open your mouth that wide with that cut. Let’s go for
pizza," Seokjin says somewhere in the background but Jimin couldn't care less.
 
“You’re mean, Jinnie,” there's more of Taehyung's petulant whining and when
Jimin is finally able to move again and turn his head, he finds the younger boy
sitting on Jeongguk’s lap. He looks a little like an oversized baby since those
two are almost the same height, but it’s still somehow cute. Taehyung shifts a
little and Jeongguk puts his arms even more securely around him. “But fine,
pizza sounds great, too.”
 
“You coming with us?” Jimin looks back from Seokjin, Jeongguk and Taehyung to
Yoongi who’s still sitting cross-legged in front of him. His hand
absentmindedly wanders to his cheek where he rubs over the plaster Yoongi stuck
on his skin.
 
He wants to say yes, wants to be one of them, doesn't want to be an outsider
anymore.
 
He doesn’t know when and how it happened but he likes spending time with the
band. He likes those childish fools.
 
But he finally registers that they want to go for pizza, and that means going
with them to the pizzeria. And that again means going to the restaurant his
mother works at, right at this moment. And that he has to enter there with the
band.
 
He presses his lips together and thinks of the worst case, remembers how
embarrassing his mother was when Yoongi was over and she disturbed them every
five minutes. He wants to open his mouth but before anything comes out—
 
His stomach rumbles as if there was thunder outside and all his excuses die on
his mouth.
 
There's suddenly a sparkle in Yoongi's eyes, their corners crinkling while his
mouth twitches a little as he visibly tries to suppress a grin.
 
“I take that as a yes,” the older man says before licking his lips and standing
up, holding out his hand to Jimin to help him up onto his feet, too, “come on,
Jimin-ah.”
 
“Ts,” Jimin clicks his tongue with a pout but takes the hand that is offered to
him, feels Yoongi's warm skin press against his, and stumbles onto his feet.
 
“You ready?” Hoseok asks when Jimin realises that everyone else got ready while
he was busy staring at Yoongi who took off his checkered shirt and exchanged it
for a black sweater he pulled out of his bag. Their leader hands Yoongi his
drumsticks then and they leave, Jimin for once not in front of them, or
somewhere behind them, but stuck in between Taehyung and Namjoon, Yoongi and
Hoseok trailing behind.
 
Jimin soon figures out that they are all going to fetch their bicycles but once
again, Jimin doesn't have his with him. He pouts, regretting not having taken
the bike to school today. He sighs quietly, gaze flitting between the others,
wondering if any of them will notice that he needs a little help here.
 
Of course, Taehyung does.
 
"Jiminnie, you can sit on my rear rack!" he waves enthusiastically, beckoning
him closer.
 
“As if he’d fit on there, Tae. You’ve got your bass case on your back,”
Jeongguk laughs and Taehyung looks at him as if he had totally forgotten about
that fact. He must be so used to carrying his bass around like that that it’s
actually become a part of his body.
 
“He can ride with me,” Yoongi says calmly while unlocking the lock on his bike,
not looking at anyone. Jimin's heart starts pumping violently in his chest and
he doesn’t know why the prospect of sitting behind Yoongi on his bike makes him
feel a little dizzy.
 
Shouldn't this be… nothing?
 
Namjoon pats Yoongi's shoulder with a broad grin on his face when he passes
him, and Hoseok briefly lifts his eyebrows before looking from Yoongi to Jimin
with a guarded expression on his face. Jimin clears his throat and ignores the
slight uneasiness at Hoseok's scrutinising. When Yoongi is ready and waiting
for him, however, he steps behind him with confidence and a coy smile on his
lips, straddles the rear rack and sits down behind the drummer.
 
“You better won’t topple down,” he teases, gets himself cosy and puts his hands
to Yoongi's sides, fingers twisting into the super fluffy and soft fabric of
Yoongi's oversized black sweater.
 
“What do you think of me, Jimin-ah? I would never!” the bicycle wobbles when
Yoongi starts to pedal, starting slowly because he has to adjust to the added
weight behind him. Jimin giggles at that and holds onto Yoongi’s sides tighter.
 
At first, Yoongi struggles to keep up with the others, but soon he's going at
their speed and Jimin is compelled to lean in, chest flat against Yoongi's
strong back and his cheek snuggling into the smooth fabric of his sweater.
 
Jimin's eyes are half-closed as he presses up against Yoongi's warm body, legs
dangling on the sides of the hind wheel, the sun shining on his face through
the clouds. His eyes soon fall fully closed and he buries his nose into
Yoongi's shoulder, inhaling the wonderful scent that smells like his deodorant
and the sun on his skin.
 
His breath hitches in his throat when he leans his head against Yoongi’s back
and suddenly becomes aware of Yoongi's heartbeat hammering against his ear. His
eyes fly open again.
 
A violent tingle of electricity shoots through Jimin's body, from his chest
into his toes, leaving him breathless. He closes his eyes again and sighs
shakily, listening to Yoongi's racing heart, basking in the other's proximity
while he feels the breeze of this overcast and rainy day ruffle through his
hair. Yoongi's body is, at first, tense against his chest but soon it relaxes
and to Jimin this right here feels like the most familiar, the most 'home'
place he has been in in a long, long time.
 
The pizza place soon comes into view, however, and Jimin wishes it wouldn't. He
wishes he could just sit here for a little while longer and pretend that it's
actually okay for him to be so close to the drummer, as if he was actually
deserving of that.
 
When Yoongi has stopped the bicycle after all the others have already done so,
Jimin puts his feet on the ground again and gets down from the rear rack
unwillingly. He cannot see it right now but his hair definitely feels windblown
and tousled, so he quickly fixes it with his fingers, mussing it up so that it
goes back to being deliberately fluffed up.
 
Yoongi looks up from locking his bike, briefly tonguing at the inside of his
cheek, before he turns around and almost walks into Hoseok who's standing next
to him. Jimin grins briefly at the small yelp leaving the other’s lips before
he tries to suppress it again, following the others to the entrance of the
pizzeria.
 
He spots his mother right away. She's currently waiting a table, a bright smile
on her face as she's chatting with the patrons. She finishes putting down the
plates, turns around and when her gaze falls on Jimin of all people, she
visibly freezes for a second.
 
Jimin can see the confusion written all over her face when she takes in him and
the band, her eyes flitting from one boy to the next. With a little uncertainty
in her step, she draws closer to them, her lips morphing into a smile again.
 
"Jimin, is that really you?" she asks as if it wasn't obvious, her voice soft
and careful. Jimin shoves his hands into the pockets of his shorts and gnaws at
the inside of his mouth, lips pursed.
 
"Hi, mum," he just mumbles, kicking an imaginary stone. He feels heat creeping
up his neck, doesn't know if the others will laugh at him, if he should feel
embarrassed or not.
 
"What? Your mother is working here?" Taehyung asks enthusiastically, his hands
balled into fists in front of his chest, "How cool's that! Does that mean you
get lots of free pizza all the time?" Seokjin softly hits the back of
Taehyung's head, makes his cousin stop talking but pout instead. Jimin can hear
Jeongguk telling Seokjin not to hit Taehyung, since he has been hurt today
already, but then his mother starts talking again, getting his attention.
 
“Oh god, what happened to your face, Jiminnie?” she observes the plaster,
worried, and Jimin fights the urge to step away from her. He just swats at her
hands that come to cup his face and sniffs, lowering his head.
 
“It’s nothing.”
 
“Nothing? You guys look like you had a fight or something," she says
apprehensively, her notepad clutched in a tight fist.
 
“It’s really not that bad, we just had a little argument with some boys who
hurt our Taehyung.”
 
“Oh Yoongi, you’re here as well," her face lights up instantly at noticing
Yoongi despite his blue hair and the piercings, and it makes Jimin's heart
flutter before she goes and ruins it. "Aigoo, look at your handsome face,” she
coos and cups Yoongi's chin with her fingers, observing the bruise carefully.
Oh god, Jimin just knew she’d embarrass him to the bones as soon as they
stepped into the restaurant. He needs to stop that before it’ll get even worse.
 
“We’re just here to eat, mum. If that’s okay?"
 
“Huh? Sure, come with me, I’ll give you boys a table.”
 
She ushers them to the back of the restaurant and immediately makes
conversation with Seokjin who makes her laugh with something he says, and Jimin
purses his lips.
 
He hasn't made his mother laugh in what must be years.
 
“She looks a lot like you, Jimin," Jimin whips his head around to look at
Namjoon who's walking beside him with a good-natured smile on his face. Jimin
wants to retort something, but before he can, Taehyung pipes up as well.
 
“Right? You have the same smile!” Jimin's mouth pops open. He really wants to
say something, but suddenly he doesn't know what exactly.
 
"Yes. She's really pretty," even Hoseok agrees and Jimin blushes on his
mother's behalf. But in fact, he is simply so glad that they don’t laugh at her
for working at such a place or something. From what he's gathered, all of their
parents work as something way more prestigious than his mother. It would have
mortified him if they made fun of her.
 
He would have left the band without a second thought.
 
They all sit down at the big round table his mother guides them to and Jimin
gets sandwiched between Seokjin and Yoongi.
 
"I didn't know my Jiminnie has so many friends," his mother says offhandedly
while fetching several menu cards from a counter nearby. Jimin makes himself a
little smaller, still feels weird about the word 'friends'. It's a big word,
too big yet for his comfort. "You guys must be the band then?"
 
"Yes, we are! And Jiminnie is the best vocal we could ever have. We want to win
the school's contest but I'm sure we're gonna do it with his help," Taehyung
answers for everyone and Jimin shrinks even more into the comfy seat. For once,
he doesn't want all that attention directed at him. It makes him feel so warm
and flustered, a feeling so completely unfamiliar to him that he'd like to
evaporate.
 
Especially when he sees that look on his mother's face.
 
“That sounds like a lot of fun,” she smiles and sounds so proud that it makes
Jimin heart beat faster. "What's the name of your band?" she asks next and all
of them gasp.
 
"Jimin, you didn’t tell her?" Seokjin asks and Jimin bites his lip, sniffling
briefly.
 
"Well, uh—,"
 
"It's called Cotton Candy!" Jeongguk says, all proud. Jimin's mum chuckles at
that, her fist raised to her mouth.
 
"Well, that's an interesting name. How did you guys come up with that?"
 
"Uhm—," all heads turn to Hoseok, looking at him expectantly, "why are you all
looking at me like that?"
 
"Because it was you who named the band!"
 
Jimin has never seen Hoseok's face turn so red, has never expected him to
become the shy and stuttering mess he is right now.
 
"That’s—,"
 
"He had a girlfriend in midddle school—," Yoongi starts with an evil smirk on
his face before Hoseok slaps his upper arm and scowls at him fiercely, shutting
Yoongi right up. Jimin can feel Yoongi's shoulders trembling from trying to
suppress his chuckles.
 
"Yeah, so. I was at the fun fair with my then girlfriend and I bought her
cotton candy and as a thanks, she kissed me on the cheek," everyone at the
table coos at him, a little mockingly but also sincerely delighted. Jeongguk
brazenly ruffles Hoseok's hair and makes kissing noises before he's swatted
away again quickly.
 
"Hobi, we didn't know you were a womaniser from such a young age," Seokjin
hollers so that almost the entire restaurant can hear it and Jimin has to
stifle his giggles now, too.
 
"I wasn't!" Hoseok quickly defends himself, "she broke up with me a week later
for another guy!" his mouth morphs into a reverted triangle then, a little
pouty and sad. He immediately has Jeongguk hugging him and Yoongi patting his
shoulder.
 
"And you still named the band Cotton Candy, even after she broke your heart?"
Namjoon wants to know and Hoseok gives a hard sniff.
 
"Yeah, the band had already been named at that point and it somehow just
stuck," he shrugs, picking up the menu card as if it was suddenly the most
interesting thing in the world. He gets more backrubs by Yoongi and even
Taehyung leans over Jeongguk in order to pet his head.
 
After Hoseok's recount of how the band name came to be, it gets a little
chaotic at the table, the other boys telling his mother how much fun being in a
band really is. Even Seokjin and Namjoon talk about it enthusiastically, even
if they're basically just their roadies and don't really play an instrument
(which is heavily protested by Jeongguk and Hoseok, as Seokjin apparently plays
at a decent level on the guitar).
 
Jimin can read all the pride and joy on their faces, the enthusiasm about their
band almost palpable when they're talking about it. But he’s just sitting there
quietly, a dull ache throbbing in the hollow of his chest when he realises once
more that he doesn't quite dare to chime in and talk about the band as if he
really is a part of it.
 
Suddenly, the band T-shirts pop up in his mind again. How he was specifically
asked for his size, how they want him to wear it too, how they constantly tell
him that he's part of them. He feels his breath shortening and his lips getting
dry.
 
He looks up and sees how his mother is laughing, how she tries to respond to
all the guys as best as possible with a warm and kind smile on her face.
 
He knows that his mum was in a band, too, when she was younger. He knows it was
her dream to become a singer before she got pregnant with him and married his
father. They always sang a lot together when he was young and he loved spending
time with his mother like that. He has actually very fond memories of her when
he thinks about it; knows his passion for singing developed from that.
 
"We're gonna have real band shirts, mum," he hears himself say and smiles a
little before he realises that the others have become quiet. When he looks at
them he sees how they’re all smiling at him or at each other.
 
He feels himself blush.
 
His gaze lands on Yoongi next to him but the drummer is as calm as always, only
scrutinising him briefly before letting his hair fall into his face again.
 
Jimin can see a small smile on Yoongi’s lips and it goes directly to his heart,
making it skip.
 
“I’m so happy you’re all taking good care of my Jiminnie,” his mother says and
he feels a little embarrassed, doesn't want to be babied like this in front of
the others. Doesn't say anything either. "So, but now. What would you like to
eat, boys? You must be starving!"
 
Everyone starts talking all over each other again then, shouting various pizza
toppings before Yoongi shuts them all up by lifting his hand and simply getting
their attention by doing this. Jimin instantly feels compelled to not utter a
single word.
 
"We're having three large pizzas, one salami, one tuna and a plain one—,"
 
"Why the plain one?" Namjoon complains with a frown on his face, "we could have
the one with the hamburger topping!"
 
"No no no," Yoongi shakes his head, "Gukkie only likes the plain one." At that,
Namjoon huffs and gets a pat on the back by Taehyung while Jeongguk smiles at
him apologetically. Jimin just blinks at them. "Oh, do you have big bottles? If
so we'd take one bottle of coke and one of Dr Pepper."
 
"Sure, we do. Is that all then?" his mum is beaming while she’s scribbling
everything down and Jimin wonders since when she's so happy again. He still
feels a little tense because this situation is so unusual and weird to him, but
when Yoongi has confirmed that this is all and she walks away to get their
order, he can feel himself relax again.
 
"I swear to god, if I ever encounter Donghyun at school again he'll catch these
hands all over again," Jeongguk grumbles after a while of them bantering about
what happened. But Yoongi extends his arm across the table and takes Jeongguk's
hand. Jimin can see how he squeezes it as if it was the most normal thing for
him to do in the world. The level of familiarity among them still astonishes
him to no end.
 
"I know it's tempting, Jeonggukkie, but just brush him off. He's not worth it.
I'd like to shove his head into his own ass, too, but—,"
 
Taehyung chooses that moment to wrap his arms around Jeongguk's shoulders and
smush their cheeks together, a bright smile on his bruised lips. Yoongi lets go
of Jeongguk's hand again.
 
"Don't worry, Gukkie. I'm sure they'll leave me alone from now on because they
know that you'd punch them again otherwise," Jeongguk pouts but visibly relaxes
into his best friend's touch, his gaze softening as he glances down at the
other who now lays his head on his shoulder.
 
Not for the first time, Jimin starts wondering if they're not secretly a
couple.
 
"Taetae, you should have really told us about them bullying you," Hoseok speaks
up, a motherly expression on his face that Jimin has never seen like that
before. He still looks very worried, a little scolding to, but maybe that's
just the scowling triangle shape of his downturned lips.
 
"I'm sorry, Hob-ah," Taehyung mutters, cheek still pressed against Jeongguk's
shoulder, "I just didn't want to worry you. I thought they'd stop when they get
bored but I must have pissed them off today so—,"
 
In that moment, the shrill 8-bit ringtone of a Nokia phone starts reverberating
through the air, the melody some Mozart tune if Jimin remembers correctly. He
has the same phone, but he uses another tune, one that is even more annoying
than this one, just to piss everyone in his vicinity off whenever he gets a
call. Which isn't all that often now that he thinks about it.
 
It's Jeongguk who scrambles to pick up the call after he fumbled for his phone
in his pocket.
 
He blanches when he looks at the tiny green screen.
 
Before he even looks at anyone else, he presses his lips together and presses
the accept button, eyes trained on the table before him.
 
"H-hey, mum," he mumbles, his voice low and careful. Jimin can't hear then what
she says, but he can hear her shout at Jeongguk over the receiver. All of the
boys suddenly look very uncomfortable, worrying their lips, gaze directed at
their friend. Jimin observes them a little during the entire scene, sees how
they throw each other vary glances. Jeongguk hums from time to time while his
mother is shouting at him, and he looks almost close to tears.
 
"Yes. Yes, I'm coming home, mum. Uhm, I'm having pizza with the guys, can I—,"
immediately, there's more reprimanding coming from the speaker and Jimin
scrunches up his face. How much nagging can one actually endure? Jeongguk
should just hang up and ignore her. "Okay, yeah, I'll be there in a while. Bye,
mum."
 
Jeongguk looks crestfallen and absolutely battered, a heap of misery as he puts
his phone in front of him on the table. All of them remain quiet, the
uneasiness spreading over them like a thick blanket.
 
"My parents got the call from school. I'm grounded," Jeongguk mutters
eventually and all of them gasp before they start complaining about how unfair
this is, how Jeongguk didn't even do anything wrong, and Jimin, too, thinks
that this punishment is totally out of proportion.
 
"How long are you grounded for this time?" Seokjin asks with a compassionate
sigh.
 
"Three weeks, probably."
 
"What?" everyone starts talking across each other again, voices rising in
volume and pitch as all of them express their displeasure.
 
"I'll try to talk to them," Yoongi says, expression serious, arms crossed over
his chest, "it's summer, they can't just do that to you because you wanted to
protect Tae."
 
"What about the gig?" Jimin finally speaks up, too, having just remembered that
they wanted to take part in a gig this weekend. "I don't think we can do it
without Jeongguk. It's either all of us, or no gig at all."
 
Suddenly he has all eyes on him and he's momentarily afraid that he said
something wrong. But then they all nod and agree with him. Yoongi's leg presses
against his on the cramped round bench as if to tell him 'you did well'. Jimin
can't help but return the pressure, just the faintest bit, just so much that it
could as well be coincidence.
 
"Yeah, we'll find another gig. Don't be sad, Jeonggukkie," Hoseok puts an arm
around Jeongguk's shoulders and all of them try to cheer him up when he looks
upset about cancelling the performance and about the prospect of being
imprisoned at home for the next three weeks.
 
"We've got your back!"
 
"We'll all visit you at home!"
 
"You're not alone."
 
And somehow Jimin knows that they'd do this for each and every one of them.
 
Even for him.
 
 
 
 
                                      –☾–
 
Donghyun and his lapdogs don't leave them alone after all.
 
Well, in some way they do, but Yoongi wishes they would have faced them
directly instead of sneaking into the music room, destroying the drums by
cutting the batter heads of the snare and the bass drum with a knife.
 
They tried to argue it, but someone saw them enter the music room after school
and it was pretty obvious from what has happened before. They wanted to take
revenge but were too stupid to actually take it properly.
 
Instead, Donghyun and the other three are now suspended and only if they're
lucky they'll be allowed to take the final exams of the year that are starting
very soon.
 
Yoongi is still fuming about the damage they have done. Even though the drum
set in the music room is not his own, it physically hurt him to see the
laminate of the batter heads torn to shreds.
 
Of course, rehearsal was out of question when they detected the vandalisation
and thus they have decided unanimously to bring their practice session to
Yoongi's basement instead on a Saturday afternoon. It works for once, but the
room is cramped and everyone has to bring their amps and instruments and set
them up before they can start. Yoongi has already tried to make as much space
in the narrow basement room where his own drum kit thrones, but—
 
Oh, well. It will do.
 
The only downside of having rehearsal on a Saturday and in Yoongi's home is
that Jeongguk won't be there with them because he's still grounded. Yoongi
tried everything to convince his parents to let him go out at least for this,
but they proved to be relentless and unbudging. It almost brought Yoongi down
to his knees, his heart aching for his little brother when he imagines him
sitting all alone at home while they're all here. He really hopes that Namjoon
will visit him as he's promised before they'll all go over tomorrow in order to
surprise him.
 
Well, all except for Jimin, probably.
 
Yoongi sighs.
 
He's been tuning his kit for about an hour now, knows it in and out, strokes it
lovingly when he's done. He's put an innumerable amount of money into it as
well as a lot of effort to keep the dark burgundy steel of his snare and the
toms clean and shiny. The golden cymbals and his hi-hat are just as polished,
glistening in the garish yellow light of the long ceiling lamp.
 
Yoongi learned drums by listening to his favourite bands and records and trying
to copy what he heard, he never had any lessons. Later, he learned more when he
started playing with the band because he was kind of forced to get better and
that really motivated him. They made him improve so much until he realised that
yes, he wants to become a real musician — not just a drummer.
 
He gets up from the crouching position he's in on the floor and sits on his
stool, puts his ear protectors in before he rolls up the sleeves of his long-
sleeved T-shirt and picks up the battered drumsticks that are resting on the
snare in front of him. He's still got some time before the others arrive, the
clock on the wall of the room telling him that it's ten to two.
 
He spins the drumstick in his right hand once or twice before he starts warming
up for a few minutes, just playing some simple repetitive beats.
 
He starts playing at a steady 120 bpm then, measured and leisurely. He's not
one to play for speed, loves to give the snare and the toms a good punch, his
pulse clean and precise. In fact, timing is the most important to him when
playing the drums and he prides himself on being able to play to the click to
perfection even in his sleep.
 
He doesn't want his drumming to be overbearing, takes good care that his fills
are not over the top and that accentuates their music just right.
 
His drum style is just like what he wants to be for his friends: a solid,
consistent foundation, their support, the constant they can always trust and
rely on.
 
He changes to a harder, faster groove then, the double bass he installed just a
few weeks ago vibrating in his bones, the snare serving sharp, snappy sounds
while the cymbals crash at short intervals, over and over again before he
abruptly changes to a more dull sound by making use of his three toms, his feet
in perfect alternation with hitting the bass drum and making the hi-hat
underline everything with a tight, crisp sound as he opens and closes it with
the taps of his left foot.
 
He loses himself in such moments, can play with eyes closed, only listening to
his internal clock and the vibrations in his body. It's then that he can play a
little more aggressively, letting off all the steam, all the tension that has
built up inside of him over the course of the past few weeks.
 
It's then that he can forget about Jimin for a little while, even if he doesn't
want to.
 
Not for long, however.
 
Suddenly the door flies open, and in march Jung Hoseok with his guitar case on
his back, followed by a grumpy looking Kim Taehyung and – Park Jimin. Who looks
even more beautiful today than he did yesterday.
 
The pink haired boy’s eyes are round, taking everything in with a curious
expression on his face as he enters the room, blinks a little at the glaring
light before averting his eyes to the opposite wall where various shelves that
serve as storage room for random things are located. And then his eyes fall on
Yoongi and Yoongi has a hard time to keep the beat steady for a second.
 
He continues playing, however, lets them put their instruments down before
Hoseok comes to him at the back of the drum set and he abruptly stops when the
other intentionally disturbs him by flailing his arms in front of his face.
 
"Hobi, you ass," Yoongi hisses, swatting the other's hands away and earning
himself a hug by the other boy. He grumbles but lets him, even though he leans
to the side a little. He takes both of the drumsticks in one hand while ripping
his ear protection out with the other, a big pout on his lips.
 
"Hyungie, save your energy for rehearsal, you will need it!" Hoseok says
sweetly, and Yoongi raises an eyebrow, perplexed.
 
"Why?" why would he need more energy than usual? He's used to playing for a
long time, sometimes over an hour; his drum-play-stamina is perfectly okay.
 
"Hello band!" a familiar voice suddenly calls from the door frame, one that
wasn't there before. Yoongi's head whips into the direction of the door and his
eyes go wide.
 
"Jin? What the hell are you doing here—,"
 
"He's our very special guest today!" Hoseok answers, voice dripping with honey
now, hands massaging Yoongi's shoulders. Yoongi looks at Hoseok with No Way
written all over his face. "Listen, most revered Yoongi hyung. He really got
better at playing the guitar! I mean, he's not as good as I or Jeongguk, but he
can do the basics and—,"
 
Yoongi gets up from his stool and dramatically throws his drumsticks over his
shoulders so that they first clatter against the wall behind him and then to
the floor.
 
"I quit. Bye," he says dryly, shuffling to the door. Seokjin just gapes at him
with an open mouth and a scandalised expression on his face.
 
"What? Why? Stay here, you jackass," Seokjin kicks him in the shin when he
passes him and Yoongi kicks back on instinct before Jimin – Jimin! – collects
him and steers him back to the drums.
 
Jimin's hands on his upper arms make his blood rush through his body, his pulse
almost doubling, and his heart beat in his throat just like it did a few days
ago when he had Jimin behind him on the bicycle, snuggled up to him so close
and tightly.
 
"You can't go now," his sweet, yet rough from smoking, voice resound behind him
as the younger boy shoves him back to where he came from, "we can do without
Seokjin, but we can't do without you."
 
A whimper almost escapes Yoongi's throat at Jimin's words, and his knees
suddenly feel like jelly, his feet stumbling a little before he finally reaches
his stool and plops back down onto it.
 
"Why do I have to endure this disrespect today?" Seokjin exclaims, exasperated,
before Taehyung – bless his soul – finally has mercy on his cousin and tells
him that they need him, too, and that he doesn't play the guitar as terribly as
they all make it sound. Yoongi would definitely disagree but for once he keeps
his mouth shut, is still reeling a little from Jimin's voice so close to his
ears and from the touch of his pretty fingers.
 
He stares at Jimin’s back when he walks away again to pull something out of his
backpack, a water bottle as it seems. Yoongi observes how he tilts his head
back when he takes a few gulps, and it makes Yoongi's mouth run dry. He licks
his lips with a parched tongue before he remembers the drumsticks he threw away
earlier and gets on his feet again to pick them up.
 
The entire easy concentration he had before is gone now, and that's only
because Park Jimin has entered the same room as him.
 
He's one hundred percent sure that Jimin knows about his crush. He just has to
tell him in order to come clean, but something constantly keeps him from doing
so. Maybe it's the comfort of the status quo he's afraid to lose. The certainty
that as long as he doesn't speak his feelings out loud in front of Jimin, the
vocal won't push him away. At least he didn’t do it so far.
 
He almost told Jimin how he feels when they were playing the piano together.
 
It had seemed like the perfect moment to him, the one and only opportunity, but
he chickened out in the last moment, opted to play the song instead that he
wrote thinking about Jimin. Of course he couldn't tell him that either.
Instead, he had hastily put away the sheet music he wrote, even though Jimin
couldn't have known that the piece was dedicated to him.
 
Maybe he'll tell him. Someday.
 
"Earth to jackass," a pair of fingers are snapping in front of his squinting
eyes when he awakes from his reverie, Seokjin's handsome face appearing in
front of him. Yoongi frowns.
 
"What is it, ugly? Don't you have an amp to set up?" he mutters, licking his
lips again and pretending to get prepared to play again.
 
"Already did. I'm your roadie, coincidentally the best one in the world and
you'd be lost without me."
 
"Tsk, so petty."
 
"Shut up. Have you done your English homework? I wanted to ask you about
something I wasn't sure about."
 
Yoongi clears his throat, shifting on his stool a little restlessly. "Nope,
didn't have time yet."
 
"Oh, friend," Seokjin sighs, "you're slacking off a lot lately. What happened,
huh? You're not actively trying to fail your classes or—,"
 
"Of course not!" Yoongi retorts a beat too quickly, and Seokjin raises a
suspicious eyebrow, "is that anything new though? As you may know, I'm not the
biggest fan of school."
 
"Oh, yeah. Sure. Totally know what you mean," Yoongi doesn't like Seokjin's
dirty smirk on his lips, the way his eyes briefly flicker to Jimin before he
straightens his back again. "Well, just don't fail your final exams. I'm not
keen on going to uni alone." His friend pats his shoulder before he goes back
to pick up his guitar and Yoongi is left alone with his thoughts once more.
 
He lets his hair fall into his face and steals a glance at Jimin who is talking
to a still sad looking Taehyung, apparently trying to cheer him up by offering
him one of his precious strawberry and cream lollipops.
 
Yoongi smiles.
 
Sometimes Yoongi wasn't entirely sure, but now he knows that Jimin has a heart
made of gold. He knows his kindness, but also his insecurities. He feels his
gentleness in his touches but is also painfully aware of how Jimin must usually
like to be touched: in a way that is far from innocent.
 
He looks at Jimin's neck and blinks.
 
Now that he thinks about it—, there are no visible hickeys littering his skin
anymore.
 
Yoongi's breath almost hitches in his throat and a giddiness raises in his
chest that he can hardly contain. He feels a smile tugging on his lips and when
the others turn to him to tell him that they're ready, the corners of his mouth
lift up happily.
 
He'll tell him.
 
He will tell Park Jimin how he feels and he already knows how.
 
 
 
                                      –☼–
 
Jimin finds out that old habits are extremely hard to break.
 
He hasn't been at the mall to hang out with the usual people for a while now,
but he's been asked where he was and if he’ll come and it was easier to just go
along than to explain to them why he wouldn't come anymore.
 
Boys and girls are making out with each other while sitting together in smaller
groups around a small seating area inside the mall. Some guys are riling each
other up in some weird mating dance in order to impress the girls but Jimin
just finds it ridiculous.
 
Most of the people present have a can of beer or some alcopop in their hands
just like Jimin currently does, too – some pink, sweet liquid that is way too
weak for his liking, but what can he do? He would drink anything right now just
to make the fact that there are currently two guys at once attempting to woo
him a little more bearable, both sitting on either side of him, trying to make
him laugh with their lame jokes.
 
He indulges them, of course, knows how to wrap them around his little finger
easily. He laughs when they want him to and he gives them small touches to the
knee or the shoulder with half-lidded eyes when they talk about their
greatachievements in life, acts impressed and interested when in truth he would
like to jump off the roof of the mall out of boredom.
 
Somehow all of this doesn't really feel right anymore.
 
"I'd buy you all the shots you want," one of the guys mumbles close to his ear
after Jimin's offhand remark about the intensity of the alcohol. Jimin turns
his head towards him and tilts it to the side a little. He briefly eyes him
from head to toe.
 
He's taller than Jimin and much broader, and even if Jimin always looked for
those types of guys in the past, he can't help but feeling a little averse to
the idea of letting this guy manhandle him today.
 
He much rather wishes for a messy black and blue mop of hair, the gentle slope
of a soft nose he could nuzzle his own against, and a body that is the same
height as him, as strong as it is delicate.
 
Fuck.
 
He wishes for Yoongi so bad.
 
"Would you now," Jimin switches to his hard-to-get mode and leans back a
little, only to bump against the shoulder of the other guy. He had almost
forgotten about his existence already. This one has long hair and is just as
tall as the other, but he’s thin like a mere blade of grass in the wind. "Hmm,
that sounds indeed alluring."
 
At this point, he would usually want to know what they'd expect in return, but
his stomach tightens with nausea at the mere thought of it and he's now very
close to just leaving and going home.
 
He takes a sip from his pink drink, the other guy leaning to his neck and
spreading kisses over his skin. He lets him, his eyes remaining open and calm.
The blood underneath his skin is boiling, however, the hollow between his ribs
becoming bigger and bigger with every passing minute.
 
Until he spots him.
 
Yoongi.
 
He’s passing by the scattered group of people, face turned in his direction,
and Jimin thinks he can spot a faint frown on his lips and a pair of very sad
eyes, his steps faltering for a moment.
 
It's like a switch has been flipped and everything instantly doesn’t matter
anymore when their gazes meet. Time stands still for a second, all the buzz of
the various people around Jimin fading into the background while his gaze is
zeroing in on Yoongi's face.
 
Jimin licks his sweet lips and just when the guy to Jimin’s right wants to lean
in even more to lick over his ear, Jimin jumps up and lets the almost empty
glass bottle in his hand clatter to the floor without a care.
 
"Hey, where are you going, pinky?" one of the guys asks, disgruntled, but Jimin
ignores it.
 
"Somewhere better," he shouts over his shoulder with a bored expression on his
face that instantly changes into a relieved one when he turns back to face
Yoongi who slows down when he sees Jimin approaching him, the faint curses of
the other guys behind Jimin’s back not affecting him in the slightest.
 
“Hey, drummer boy, what's up?” Jimin smiles coquettishly, licking his lips
briefly to wet them. Yoongi gives him a wary once-over, lets his eyes briefly
flicker to the loud group of people occupying the benches behind him before he
looks back at him.
 
"Uh—, hey, Jimin," Yoongi's hand shoots to the back of his neck where he
ruffles his hair, fringe instantly falling into his face, "not much, actually.
Just going to the record store," the reply comes out mumbled and hesitantly and
Yoongi only briefly looks up to meet Jimin's eyes before he averts his gaze
again, expression unreadable.
 
Gone is the Yoongi who smiled at Jimin so sweetly when they sang scales
together, or when he stuck a plaster on Jimin's cheek. Or when Yoongi looked at
him all proud and content after their first gig.
 
And Jimin realises exactly why that Yoongi has been replaced with one who looks
as heartbroken as he does.
 
Hastily, Jimin rubs over the skin of his neck with the back of his hand, trying
to dispel the unpleasant lingering feeling of the other guy's lips on there.
 
"Mind if I tag along?" he asks, lips curved into a careful smile, and Yoongi
noticeably hesitates to give an answer. Jimin's heart sinks. He watches how
Yoongi is worrying his lips, how he visibly struggles before he shakes his
head.
 
"No. No, not at all. I'm just—, going to buy something real quick at the—, at
the record store," Yoongi repeats but Jimin doesn't care about where Yoongi is
going, just wants to spend time with him. He'd go to the school's library with
him right now and study if that meant spending time together, alone, without
the band or anyone else besides them.
 
"Great! Haven't been there in a while," Jimin says and hopes he’s able to
convey how happy he is that Yoongi didn’t send him away. He starts walking next
to the drummer and readjusts his thin black jumper that has ridden down the
slope of his shoulder and pulls at the hem of it to straighten it out. The
sleeves are way too long, covering his hands almost completely but he likes it
that way and hopes he looks cute.
 
It's only when he rakes his fingers through his hair to fluff it up that he
realises what he's doing here.
 
He didn't particularly care about how he looked just mere moments ago but now
that Yoongi is next to him, he wants to look meticulous.
 
He wants to look pretty for him.
 
Nervously, he sucks his tongue piercing between his teeth before he shakes off
the peculiar feeling and follows Yoongi to the shop, stumbling after him.
 
He is immediately greeted by the familiar scent of the store's interior. It
smells a little like heavily trodden carpet, plastic wrap and hairspray mixed
with the greasy smell of fast food. There are racks upon racks of black CD
shelves creating one aisle after the other, some smaller shelves with cassette
tapes and video games and vinyl on one side of the store. The shop attendant
just throws them a brief look and a faint smile before she goes back to reading
her magazine.
 
Yoongi seems to know exactly what he needs and where to search for it, because
he makes a beeline to the back of the store, straight to where the tape
cassettes are displayed. Jimin arches an eyebrow but follows him curiously,
letting his gaze wander over the shelves they're passing as he does so. Yoongi
comes to a halt in front of a particular rack with blank tapes, studying them
intently.
 
"Why would you look at tapes? CDs are the future, Yoongi, I tell you!" Jimin
comments, leaning with his back against a concrete pillar that is next to the
shelf, crossing his arms. He briefly rubs his nose with his jumper-paw when
Yoongi looks up from the cassette tapes he's reached for a few moments ago. The
other's eyes are round and his lips are frowning before he pouts them out and
shakes his head.
 
"No way. I'll stick to these until you can record what's on the radio to CDs,"
for emphasis, he holds the bundle of tapes next to his head and nods
determinedly, with eyes closed and a sage expression on his face. Jimin snorts.
 
"What a grandpa," he clicks his tongue, cocky smile on his lips before he
pushes himself away from the pillar again. He holds Yoongi's miffed expression
briefly as he turns around to also look at the cassette tapes, wondering who
still buys albums like this. "Are you making your own mixtapes with these?"
 
"Uh—, yeah. Sure. It's much cheaper that way."
 
"But the sound quality on CDs is like—, a hundred times better!"
 
"No, it's not," Yoongi scoffs.
 
"Yoongi, you shouldn't fight against the tides of time. One day, all everyone
will have are CDs and you will be the only one still listening to these old
things. Come on, I'll show you," Jimin grabs Yoongi's wrist and pulls him back
to the CD section with a little force when Yoongi seems to stem his heels into
the carpet.
 
"Wait, Jimin-ah—,"
 
"Here, listen to this!" Jimin chooses the first set of headphones that let you
listen to the album on display as a preview. He doesn't check what the album
is, just puts the heavy headphones on top of Yoongi's head before adjusting
them, holding onto them while smiling at Yoongi wickedly.
 
Yoongi just has to admit that the sound quality will be much better, there's no
other way.
 
Yoongi frowns a little but surrenders to his fate, stands there with his gaze
averted to the floor in concentration. Jimin's gaze is glued on Yoongi's soft
eyelashes fanning out over his smooth cheeks from having his eyes turned
downwards.
 
"And?" Jimin asks enthusiastically when Yoongi looks back up. Yoongi removes
the headphones from his head, holding them over Jimin's instead.
 
"Why are you making me listen to this?" Yoongi deadpans.
 
"Huh?" Jimin's head snaps toward the CD that is on display in the player.
 
The song is called Lovefool.
 
Jimin suspects the worst.
 
The headphones are shoved over his ears by the other man and Jimin's eyes grow
bigger when he hears the music.
 
He actually knows this song.
 
He feels his face flush and his cheeks turn pink as he listens to the woman's
voice singing 'Love me, love me, say that you love me', the next lines of the
lyrics much sadder than the upbeat rhythm of the song would suggest.
 
His eyes snap up at Yoongi's again, the drummer having a wary grin on his lips
and Jimin's breath hitches in his throat.
 
Jimin quickly scrambles to get the headphones back off his head and puts them
back on their holder.
 
"Coincidence," he retorts matter-of-factly with a shrug, "hey, that band I like
put out a new album a while ago. Just gonna see if they have it here." He
hastily scurries off towards the indie rock section, tries to cool his cheeks
down while scanning the racks for the first letter of the band's name.
 
He jumps a little when he suddenly notices Yoongi standing right next to him as
if he's popped up out of nowhere. He didn't even realise the other was
following him and now looks at him somewhat dumbly.
 
"What?" Yoongi asks flatly at seeing Jimin's perplexed gaze, pursing his lips,
a hint of amusement mixed with something else still on his face.
 
"Nothing, just didn't expect you to follow me. Thought you'd go back to your
fancy tapes," he shrugs, flipping through the band's CDs. Yoongi snorts.
 
"No, I already got what I need," Yoongi waves the bundle of empty tapes in his
right hand as a reminder. "Show me that band you were talking about," Jimin's
heart starts jumping in a circle.
 
"Uh—, yeah. Sure. It's this one," he pulls out the CD he's been looking for
from among all the others and shows the cover to Yoongi, smiling like he just
got the biggest gift under the Christmas tree when the other speaks again.
 
"Oh, Bubblegum Princess. I know that one," Yoongi says and Jimin almost starts
believing in fate.
 
"Huh? Really? You like them?" Yoongi hums and nods while studying the
tracklist, Jimin getting excited because no one ever knows that band. "They're
kind of the reason why I dyed my hair pink because I liked the singer's hair.
He looked great and I thought I can do, too."
 
"Of course, you did," Yoongi has a small half-grin on his lips when he looks at
him, "but it, uh—, it really suits you well."
 
Jimin feels his face burn up and he quickly pushes his hair back, almost as if
it was a compulsory motion.
 
"I think I look even better," he grins, and he hopes the bold statement comes
out all natural, not like faked confidence. Yoongi just snorts at it before he
smiles.
 
"Have you seen that band live, too, Jimin-ah?" Yoongi grins fully now, teasing
him, and Jimin almost blushes again. He huffs and shoves Yoongi's shoulder
before laughing cheerfully.
 
"Oh god, stop that. I'm sorry I lied that time, okay," they're standing so
close and Jimin can even smell Yoongi's shower gel or deodorant, manly and
refreshing, making everything in him tingle so much. He licks his lips before
biting his lower one, pretending to study the tracklist at the back of the CD
before opening his mouth again.
 
"Yoongi, you—,"
 
"Hm?"
 
"Never mind," Jimin says after a moment, smiling, and puts the CD back down to
the others.
 
"Not gonna buy it?" Jimin can hear the surprise in Yoongi’s voice.
 
"Nah, too expensive. Maybe I'll get someone else to buy it for me," he smirks
and doesn't miss the wary look Yoongi is throwing him. It reminds him of the
fact that he's doing it again, alluding to the possibility of manipulating
someone into doing things for him, and right in front of Yoongi, too.
 
He feels something akin to shame and remorse burning in his chest.
 
"Or maybe I'll just save up a little," he shrugs, trying not to think about the
temptation of sneaking some bills out of his mother's savings jar again. The
shame rages even harder at that thought and he hopes Yoongi doesn't magically
feel it somehow.
 
"Uhm, ’kay. Hey, I'm just going to pay for these real quick, okay?" Yoongi
murmurs before he walks over to the register, leaving Jimin alone with his
thoughts. Jimin takes a deep breath and uses that opportunity to look at some
cool vinyl covers in order to distract himself, wonders if maybe one day he'll
be in a band who will put their own records out, too.
 
A black cover with 'Cotton Candy' in pink letters written on it pops up in his
head, a small comic version of actual cotton candy on a stick printed next to
it. It's a silly thought, a childish one, one he'd rather not have right now,
but somehow it's also one that makes a subconscious smile spread on his lips
when he realises that they could potentially make it. That he's, in fact, a
part of that. He doesn't really deserve it, but it's true.
 
His vision swims for a second when he remembers that he probably won't be with
them by the end of the summer. That he will run away as soon as they get him
out of this town he doesn’t belong in. His heart clenches at the thought and
the warm feelings he had just mere moments ago dissipate in an instant.
 
“Jimin," he startles, ripped out of his thoughts, and whirls around to meet
Yoongi's gentle gaze, "everything alright? You looked a little—, spaced out
just now." Somehow Jimin has a feeling that Yoongi wanted to say something
else, but he waves it off with a head shake.
 
"'s all good. Hey, now that you got your hip tapes—," Jimin presses his lips
together, looking at Yoongi with his best puppy eye look, balancing on the
balls of his feet, "have you maybe got cigs with you? Could I borrow one?" he
bats his eyelashes, enjoying the view of Yoongi's reddening cheeks.
 
"Uh, sure. Even though we both know I'll never get it back from you," Yoongi
smiles, black hair shifting so that it falls back into his face. Jimin wishes
that Yoongi would never cut his hair shorter than that. He just loves when it
does that.
 
"I promise I'll give it back!" Jimin smiles sheepishly at him, makes a mental
note that he should really buy Yoongi a pack of cigarettes soon to compensate
him for all the smokes he's already nicked from him.
 
He walks a little behind Yoongi when they leave the store again, takes in
Yoongi's broad T-shirt-clad shoulders, his lean but defined arms and his slim
waist, the washed out denim jeans that are ripped beyond repair at the front.
Dreamily, he recalls the way how his chest and his cheek moulded perfectly
against Yoongi's strong back when he rode that bicycle with him and how warm
and safe he felt. How he would like to grab onto his sweater again and inhale
his enticing scent.
 
He only realises he's staring at him in a daze when Yoongi turns around to
check if he's still there.
 
He quickens his steps and walks up beside him and together they exit the mall
at the main entrance before sitting down outside on a bench. Yoongi carefully
puts his small plastic bag next to him and lifts his ass off the bench in order
to fumble for his pack of cigarettes in his back pocket. Yoongi plucks one
cigarette out of the carton before also getting out the lighter from there.
 
Jimin takes the cigarette when Yoongi offers it to him and leans forward to
also be given a light. He inhales the smoke deeply and leans back, enveloped by
a soothing feeling of comfort.
 
This is nice.
 
This is really nice and he almost tricks himself into believing that from now
on he can have this whenever he wants.
 
But he doesn't because he's still Park Jimin and he's still the one who's known
as a slut at school, the one who lives at night even if he shouldn't, the
broken boy with the pink hair that is just enough for a good-time call, but
never enough for anything more.
 
Certainly not enough for someone like Min Yoongi.
 
Yoongi who doesn't pressure him into anything, Yoongi who just sits with him
and listens to him rambling about exams and stupid teachers (leaving out his
dad, of course). Yoongi who doesn't look at him with a predatory stare and
doesn't undress him with his eyes. Who almost treats him as if he was something
precious.
 
"Hah, as if," Jimin thinks, "as long as I am like this, there's no way Yoongi
would really think like that."
 
He takes a long drag from his smoke and savours every puff of it, breathes it
out again when Yoongi says something funny.
 
"My speciality is rolling around in bed on the weekends and when I have a day
off," Yoongi says with so much confidence Jimin has to let out a breathy laugh,
imagining Yoongi in pyjamas and wrapped in his comfy blanket, "I kid you not.
One time I slept for twenty hours straight and after that, I was still hella
tired."
 
"Yeah, ’cause you slept for too long," Jimin shakes his head, grinning, "I, on
the other hand, went without sleep for two days straight one time."
 
"No way."
 
"Yes, I did," Jimin snickers, "it was—, well, I was—. I was out. With some guys
and they had some really good stuff and—," with every word Jimin speaks, he
feels more and more miserable again. He wets his lips and forces them into a
smile again. "Well, you know, things happened and—, yeah," he stutters,
mentally slapping himself for starting with this stupid story. He got carried
away and suddenly he regrets it so much.
 
"You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to, Jimin. That's okay,"
Jimin snorts at that. Why the fuck is Yoongi so understanding all the time? Why
in the world does he make his heart cry out so much with longing all the time?
"We all did things we might regret. It's okay."
 
Jimin bites his lip, averting his gaze from Yoongi before inhaling shakily, the
laughter gone again from within him.
 
"I'm scared of myself sometimes. Because of the things I do," Jimin whispers
and feels like he's slowly choking, the darkness in his mind starting to cloud
everything over again. He doesn't know why he's opening up in front of Yoongi
so much, why he's letting his walls down that have protected him all these
years. It must be that comfortableness he's being engulfed with that he always
feels when he's with the older man.
 
"You're not scared of yourself, you're scared of what other people might think
of you if you're being yourself," Yoongi says between puffs of smoke, leaning
his head on his own shoulder before he flicks the butt of his cigarette to
scatter the ash. Jimin just stares at him for a moment, then he scoffs, turning
his head to the other side before his lips quirk up into a grin again.
 
"What are you, a psycho doc?" Yoongi guffaws at that, the smoke coming out in
plumes from his lips.
 
"Maybe. Watch out, Park Jimin, or I'll uncover all your darkest secrets," it's
said with a cocky smirk that stays on Yoongi's face even when he moves the
cancer stick back to his pouty lips and takes another drag but Jimin shivers
with the intensity of Yoongi's words.
 
A shaky gasp escapes his lips before he shakes his head a little and smiles.
 
"You're too much, Min Yoongi. Too much."
 
And the darkness within him is gone again.
 
A glimmer of hopeful light is shining in its stead.
Chapter End Notes
     There are people who already want yoonmin to do the do hahaha but
     we’re afraid you’ll have to wait for that quite a while yet. This has
     turned out to be so slow-buildy oh god.
     Next chapter and the one after that are already written so we hope we
     can update soon!
     Comments are love and keep us fed ♡ You can also find us on twitter
     or on curiouscat!
***** Nine. *****
Chapter Notes
     This is a bromance chapter brought to you by vmin and sope ♡ The
     maknae line fluff is also strong in this one, we hope you enjoy!
     ☾ = Yoongi
     ☼ = Jimin
See the end of the chapter for more notes
                                      –☼–
 
April.
 
It was April when Jimin joined the band. The month in spring that saw him
actively seek out those strangers that were in dire need for a new singer even
if he still doesn't really know why he did it. Why he said yes on a whim
because he saw how desperate they were for his help.
 
And now it's June.
 
Almost exactly two months have passed since he became the vocal of Cotton
Candy; two months have passed since his life made a u-turn.
 
Of course, he's still smoking cigarettes before school starts, just like now,
but when was the last time he went to a disco and charmed his way inside for
free and with a fake ID? When was the last time he went to one of his fuck
buddies because he was bored? How long ago did he smoke his last joint?
 
Somehow he doesn't know the answer to any of these questions and many more. And
somehow he doesn't care.
 
Does he miss that life? Does he miss hooking up with near-strangers or people
whose face he had never seen before?
 
Yes, somehow he does. He does miss the validation he received, the attention,
the assurance that he had those men wrapped around his little finger and made
them do whatever he wanted while they thought they had the upper hand.
 
In a weird way, he does miss going out at night, drinking and partying until he
didn't remember who he was. That was all he knew for the past two years. It
felt safe, it gave him a purpose, and letting go of that now is — scary.
 
But it's already happening.
 
He sighs, takes the last drag on his cigarette before he stubs it out in the
ashtray and leaves it there. He's so tired and it's way too early but he still
drags his ass through the corridors and to class, ignoring the usual stares he
gets. He's tired of them. Tired of getting all defensive and hostile towards
everyone who does as much as look at him.
 
And it's all because of Yoongi.
 
Yoongi and his friends who started showing him that there is more to life than
what he knew so far.
 
Two of those culprits are already sitting in the classroom, together, as
always.
 
Jimin plops down at a desk in the back like he always does, glances at Jeongguk
and Taehyung a little timidly before averting his gaze quickly because even
though he's already got into a fist fight for Taehyung, he still doesn't know
if it's really okay for him to hang out at school with them where everyone can
see them. After all, they've got a reputation to lose, contrary to him.
 
Moreover, they're both sticking their heads together again, apparently
excitedly exchanging Pokemon cards under the table, so they haven't even
noticed him. His lips form into a half-smile despite how he can't help but
think that they still are as childish as ever. But maybe it's not really a bad
thing. After all, they look really happy despite Jeongguk still being grounded.
 
He observes them some more from the back until the teacher arrives and both of
them diligently put their playthings away before listening attentively. Jimin
huffs quietly again, still wondering how the bassist and guitarist who make the
hard and punkish kind of music that their band makes still are such well-
behaved students.
 
Truth be told, he had always been annoyed by how easy everything seems to be
for Taehyung, how the younger boy always participates in class as if it was
nothing, how he always knows the correct answers to just everything.
 
But now he knows that even someone like Taehyung who always seems to be all
happy and sunshine sometimes has to fight his own darkness.
 
Or mean bullies.
 
The teacher starts talking then and that's Jimin's cue to start drifting off.
 
He looks out of the windows, at the steel blue sky, while the sunblinds are
rattling softly in the wind and the treetops are being ruffled by the breeze
from time to time, and he wishes he could be out there and just lie around in
the sun on the lush, fragrant grass somewhere far, far away from school.
 
He starts daydreaming about lying around at the park near the skate ramps on
the concrete blocks that serve as makeshift benches, can almost hear the
laughter of the kids on the nearby playground and the wheels of the skateboards
rolling around on the stoney ground. Maybe someone would have a ghetto blaster
with them again, like Seokjin did when he was there with the band a while ago.
 
Maybe Taehyung and Jeongguk would play their Pokemon game again or cuddle in
the shade of a tree while reading a magazine together. Namjoon and Hoseok would
definitely be smoking something much to the displeasure of Seokjin, who would
probably take pictures of them with his polaroid camera.
 
And Yoongi—
 
Yoongi would smile at him with that warm look in his eyes, would share
cigarettes with him, would tap absentmindedly on his knees with his fingers to
the rhythm of an imaginary beat.
 
Jimin inhales softly through his nose before letting out a stuttered sigh. He
can't believe how much he knows about them already without having ever made a
great effort to get to know them properly. It just sort of happened and he
can't even explain it.
 
Suddenly there's a lot of commotion in the classroom, and when he looks around
he realises that everyone is getting into groups of three, everyone calling
their friends’ names, smiling and cheering when they find each other.
 
He furrows his brows and licks his lips briefly to wet them. Hesitantly, he
lets his gaze wander about the room, remaining in his sitting position at his
desk, feeling pity for whoever is going to end up with him. He already knows
that no one ever chooses him voluntarily for these kinds of things. He also
knows why; he's not stupid. He hasn't got the best reputation and he's also
lazy and his grades are mostly bad, and after the purse incident a while ago
he's sure no one wants to even get close to him.
 
Of course, no one would want to work with him.
 
In contrast to Taehyung and Jeongguk, it seems, who have several people
swarming them as applicants for their group of three. Many of their classmates
are making begging faces at them, a lot of them mouthing 'please's at them as
if they're asking them for a big sum of money or some other huge favour.
 
Jimin averts his gaze to his desk, a dull pain throbbing in his chest when he
realises that he'd also like to ask them if he could be in their group. But
they have so many people to choose from and he doesn't even know what the
assignment is and why would they ever pick him—
 
"Jimin-ah," his head snaps up at hearing his name, his eyes blinking before he
assumes a blank expression. But then he sees that both Jeongguk and Taehyung
are looking at him, waving their hands at him in a beckoning motion.
 
Jimin's eyes go wide.
 
Dumbfounded, he points at himself and mouths a silent ‘me?’ before the other
two boys nod vigorously, Taehyung even more so than Jeongguk. They look, in
fact, hopeful and encouraging, but Jimin is momentarily frozen.
 
They don't have to do this.
 
They don't have to feel obligated to take pity on him just because they're not
complete strangers anymore.
 
He can see the other boys and girls who wanted to be chosen by the two glare at
him, foul stares directed at him from everywhere, and he feels a little
intimidated but he would never give them the satisfaction of showing them. He
sucks at his tongue piercing before he pushes back from his desk and stands.
 
He grabs his pencil and the backrest of his chair that he drags to the front
row, places it next to Taehyung when the other students have cleared the area
around the desk, and plops down on it, gnawing on his lips.
 
“Jiminnie, we’re in a group!” Taehyung says with his hands formed to fists and
a blinding smile on his face. Jimin doesn't really understand why the other is
so happy about that but he almost feels compelled to indulge him with a grin of
his own, fails miserably at suppressing it.
 
"Yeah. Yeah, we are," he says while picking at his cuticles, the situation
still a little weird to him. He really can't remember the last time someone
chose him voluntarily for such a thing.
 
“Oh, Yoongi has the same pencils,” Jeongguk says offhandedly when Jimin starts
fiddling with the mint green pencil between his fingers, "have never seen them
anywhere else. What a coincidence," the older boy smirks a little and Taehyung
snickers.
 
“Uh, yeah, I actually got it from him," Jimin replies, grasping the pencil
harder. He suddenly feels very protective of it.
 
"And hyung let you keep it?" Taehyung asks, biting his lower lip with amusement
written on his face. Jimin looks between the two and purses his lips, not
really liking the little innuendos.
 
"Yeah, he said I can keep it."
 
"Ah, hyung must really like you, Jiminnie," Jeongguk grins and Jimin's mouth
falls open slightly; a weird foreign tingling making itself a home in his
stomach. His eyes dart between the two of them and suddenly he wonders if
Yoongi is actually talking to them about him. Because that sounds a lot like
they know more than they should.
 
"Shut up, both of you," Jimin grumbles and they both giggle again, causing
Jimin to roll his eyes. "What are you? Fourteen-year-old schoolgirls?" he
reaches out his hand to Taehyung's head and ruffles his hair, much to the
displeasure of the younger boy who tries to fend him off. It's Jimin's turn to
grin broadly now.
 
"Jiminnie, hyung said you've become really good at reading sheet music. Have
you two studied a lot?" Jeongguk props his chin on his palm and looks at him
bluntly. Just a few weeks ago, the other boy has hardly ever talked to him
directly, and now he looks at him like the cockiest little brat to ever exist.
Jimin huffs.
 
Just when Jimin wants to open his mouth to defend himself, the teacher starts
speaking again, explaining the task at hand and handing out papers. Jimin keeps
quiet during that, but shoots the others some pouty glances.
 
Jimin accepts the sheets of paper he is handed and puts them in front of him on
the desk. He even looks at the assignment briefly. He's not completely sure why
he has to make a presentation about an Egyptian pharaoh this close to the end
of the school year when this probably isn't even part of the final exams but –
he's in a group!
 
It's the first time in years that Jimin seriously takes part in a classroom
activity, even raises his hand once after Taehyung encourages him. He hears
some of their classmates whisper after that, but he's not particularly bothered
by it.
 
Because for the first time in years when the lesson is over he leaves the
classroom happy and with friends by his side that he spends the rest of the day
with.

It's Tuesday, so normally they would have band practice after the final period,
but since the drumset is still in a state that makes it unusable, it has been
called off again.
 
And damn, Jimin kind of misses it. Misses meeting up with the others, making
music, singing his heart out. He really hopes the school will replace the
broken drum parts soon.
 
Thus, instead of going to the music room, they leave the school building to
simply go home. Jimin is listening to Taehyung’s and Jeongguk’s banter while
trailing behind them, a small smile on his lips. When they arrive at the
bicycle station, he watches them say goodbye.
 
“Fare thee well, Gukkie,” Taehyung says with a fake crying face and Jeongguk
laughs.
 
“Goodbye, dear friend. It was nice knowing you,” Jeongguk replies with a really
grave expression on his face now, as if he was going to war to never come back.
 
“God, you guys make it look as if you won’t see each other in a year,” Jimin
clicks his tongue, arms crossed over his chest. But there’s a grin playing on
his lips when he earns a mighty pout by Taehyung for his remark.
 
“It really feels like it! It's so weird to not be with him. Usually, we’d go to
the arcade now or go to the mall or something,” Taehyung says, “and now we see
each other so rarely!”
 
“Yeah, you only see each other every day at school,” Jimin grins to himself as
he watches both of them doing an elaborate handshake before they hug each other
briefly and Jeongguk climbs on his bike before he rolls off.
 
“Him being grounded sucks so much every time,” Taehyung mutters, kicking a
random pebble on the ground.
 
“It’s not the first time it happened, huh?” Jimin asks, feeling genuine pity
for Taehyung when he sees his crestfallen face. Taehyung shakes his head.
 
“He alwaysgets grounded for the stupidest reasons. Once it was because he let a
curse word slip at home. He got grounded for two weeks.”
 
“Oh.”
 
“Yeah.”
 
“Well, cheer up, buddy. He’ll be free again soon,” Jimin pats Taehyung’s back a
little clumsily before he gets ready to go home as well.
 
Taehyung looks up from the ground at him with the biggest pout and hugest
fucking doe eyes in the world and a cold shiver runs down Jimin’s spine.
 
“Jiminnie,” Taehyung begins, voice melodious and pleading.
 
Oh no.
 
“Uhm—,”
 
“Jiminnie,” Taehyung drags out the ‘i’ in his name and comes impossibly closer.
Jimin takes a step back. He knows exactly where this is going. “Jiminnie, would
you come to the arcade with me? Please? Please, please, please!”
 
Taehyung is begging him now and Jimin just stares at him before opening his
mouth to say no. But then he closes it again.
 
He doesn't really have anything to do right now and he doesn't want to go back
to the mall.
 
Taehyung is also nice to him and he's asked him to do something together so
many times before. Moreover, the younger boy is looking at him like a
schoolgirl would look at her favourite boy band member.
 
His shoulders sag a little before he sighs and says 'yes'.
 
Taehyung throws his arm in the air in victory before he drags Jimin with him.


"Oh, my tamagotchi pooped!" Taehyung says before he presses some buttons on the
egg-shaped thing. Jimin just looks at him dumbly as various monotonous sounds
resound from it. Not even the engine sounds of the bus they're sitting in
are drowning them out in the slightest.
 
"Taehyung?"
 
"Hm?" Taehyung doesn't look up from his tamagotchi when he hums.
 
"You're weird," Jimin deadpans and now Taehyung pouts at him, "but a good kind
of weird." The other's lips immediately stretch into a bright smile.
 
"You should buy one, too, Jiminnie. It's fun to take care of it, and you can
give it a name. I named mine Edwar."
 
"Ed… war."
 
"Yeah, I wanted to call it Edward but you can only use five letters," Taehyung
shrugs before he puts the toy away again. "Oh, it's our stop! Let's go!" Jimin
only manages to stare at the younger boy, blinking a few times, before he also
jumps up from his seat and follows Taehyung out of the bus, staring at the back
of the other's head before catching up to his side.
 
"Taehyung."
 
"Hm?" Taehyung looks up at him, his light brown coloured long hair falling into
his face before he brushes the strands away.
 
"I can't keep up with you," Jimin says and Taehyung's mouth forms into an 'o'-
shape.
 
"I can walk more slowly!" he says, instantly slowing down to a robotic walk,
putting one foot after the other with straight legs and arms swinging in rhythm
by his side. It causes Jimin to laugh briefly and tilt his head back before he
shakes his head.
 
"Not like that, silly," Jimin smiles and ruffles the other's hair. "You're a
whirlwind, Taehyung. Your mind must look like a storm," and it blows me off my
feet and it makes the ice inside of me crack, is what he doesn't say. He just
smiles at Taehyung's confused expression and ruffles the other's hair briefly.
"Come on now, we're here!"
 
Upon entering the arcade, super loud noise blares against their ears, all the
machines in there playing their music all over each other. Taehyung grabs his
wrist then and he lets him, doesn't protest at all, doesn't feel uneasy at
being touched by the other. He's used to it by now, and it doesn't even scare
him.
 
"We have to try this one! It's so cool!" Taehyung drags him in front of an
arcade machine that, in this form, Jimin has never seen before. There are two
bulky displays next to each other and it's obviously meant for two players. In
front of the displays there are no buttons, no joy-sticks or even light guns,
no. There are two abominations of fucking plastic horses in front of the
machine and Jimin almost stumbles over his own two feet when he sees them. His
eyes go huge as he stares at Taehyung who's already climbing on one of the
horses with a bounce in his step, backpack sliding down his shoulder before he
lets it drop to the floor.
 
"A-are you serious?"
 
"Dead serious. Come on now, you're in for a ride!" Taehyung smirks and pats on
the horse next to him. "You can ride, can't you?" Taehyung asks with a pout and
Jimin almost melts at the innocence of it.
 
Oh, if only he knew.
 
"Sure do," Jimin replies with a grin before he takes a tentative step towards
his vehicle and gets on. He stares at the screen in front of him that depicts a
horse racing setting and furrows his brows.
 
He feels very weird and exposed somehow, especially because there are other
students around that might see him. But Taehyung already starts the game after
putting in some coins and Jimin has no other choice but to join him.
 
Jimin grips the handle in front of him that apparently serves as a reign. He's
still wondering about what the heck he's supposed to do now when Taehyung
starts rattling on his horse like a madman beside him. Jimin dumbly gapes at
the other boy as he's bouncing on top of his horse before something in him
snaps.
 
He snorts a laugh before he breaks out in full laughter, head thrown back and
shoulders shaking hard, and he's barely able to copy Taehyung's movements on
the horse that make the digital one on the screen race along the green pixel
grass.
 
Oh god, he feels so dumb and childish while bouncing on his horse, but Taehyung
next to him is cheering and shouting and soon enough he lets himself be
infected by it, starts cursing when his horse gets too near to the railing or
when someone else overtakes him.
 
But damn, it is fun. It's so much fun and when the game is over, he wishes they
could play again. They get off their horses and Taehyung drags him to the next
machine.
 
"I'll show you another one! It has light guns and it's co-op mode and the
levels are really cool and fun and you will like it!" Taehyung is rambling
excitedly while gesturing wildly with his hands, disappointment imminent on his
face when he discovers that that particular machine is already occupied. "It's
really popular, too," he mutters like an afterthought, making Jimin smile.
 
"Don't worry, we'll just wait, Taehyungie," he says and gestures to some chairs
that are free, "we could just sit there and wait."
 
Taehyung's face lights up at that again and they sit down next to each other.
It doesn't take long until Taehyung has to do something with his tamagotchi
again, and this time he lets Jimin do it. Or gently persuades him, rather.
 
"Why do you like games so much?" Jimin asks and Taehyung just shrugs.
 
"They're fun and don't harm anyone," he says, "I want to become a game
developer so that I can make my own. Oh, and moreover, Jeonggukkie likes games,
too, so we're always playing them together."
 
"You and Jeongguk are really close, hm," Jimin remarks offhandedly, gauging
Taehyung's reaction. The other bites his lips, smiling.
 
"We grew up together since first grade. He's my best friend and I couldn't
imagine a life without him," Taehyung sounds almost proud, and a little
longing, as he says it. "Do you have a best friend?" the younger suddenly asks
and Jimin sniffs briefly.
 
"Uhm, no. Never really had one, to be honest," he says and he wonders if that's
weird.
 
"O-oh," Taehyung's smile falters for a moment and yep, it probably is weird to
have never had a best friend before. But then the other smiles again. "Don't
worry, now you got me, and Jeonggukkie, and oh! Of course, also Yoongi hyung
and the others!"
 
"Hm," Jimin stares at the tiny green screen in his hands and zones out a little
as he watches the pixel pet bounce up and down, his heart heavy and feather-
light at the same time. The tension that usually rules his body bleeds out of
him almost instantly when he looks up at Taehyung and the other offers him a
smile just for the sake of it.
 
It's June and almost exactly two months have passed since he became the vocal
of Cotton Candy. Two months since everything has changed.
 
It's June and he doesn't miss his old life at all.
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                      –☾–
 
Yoongi doesn’t think of much when the door slides open and the bell sounds
through the convenience store. He shouts a rather unenthusiastic ‘welcome’
before he briefly looks up from the magazine that he's reading.
 
All he sees is pink hair and a dazzling smile.
 
His heart drops to the floor.
 
He immediately slaps his magazine closed and straightens his back, licks his
suddenly dry lips quickly before he tries to smile, hoping his lips are not
twitching too much from the sudden onslaught of nervousness. He wipes his palms
on his jeans and looks down at the counter, wiping away some imaginary dust
before he looks up again.
 
"Hey, drummer boy," Jimin greets and Yoongi’s heart now feels like a rocket
shortly before its launch. It nearly explodes when he takes the other in
properly despite trying not to ogle him too much.
 
Jimin is wearing a thin, grey jumper and black shorts that are held up by black
suspenders. Only one strap is worn over Jimin's shoulder, the other hangs
loosely by his side. Actually, he looks pretty cute instead of overly sexy like
he did in the past.
 
Yoongi starts smiling properly now, too.
 
"Hey, Jimin-ah," he knows Jimin lives nearby and it’s by far not the first time
that he's here, not at all. As far as Yoongi can tell, Jimin must be addicted
to not only cigarettes but candies too. Abashedly and with red cheeks, he
busies himself with some raffle tickets while Jimin walks closer.
 
"Hyung, I'll take the usual, okay? I’m back in a second," Jimin says casually
and puts some strawberry-and-cream lollipops on the counter alongside a pink
roll of Bubble Tape bubblegum before he walks past it to disappear behind a
shelf.
 
Princess.
 
The word pops up in Yoongi's mind involuntarily and all at once, the bubble gum
triggering it like a favourite song coming up on the radio, making you tap
along to the beat. At first, he doesn't even realise why he makes the
connection, only remembers at second thought that it's because of the band he
and Jimin like.
 
Bubblegum Princess.
 
"Uh—, sure," Yoongi says lamely but smiles to himself when he briefly looks
after Jimin, worries his lips a little when he notices that the jumper reveals
a lot of skin on his back.
 
Princess.
 
The word burns into his mind and settles there until it becomes everything he
can think of.
 
He shakes his head and finally goes to fetch a pack of Jimin's favourite
cigarette brand, almost stumbling over a stepladder he had put there earlier
after filling up some shelves.
 
“I pity you for having to listen to this music all day long,” Jimin says from
behind the shelf with a hint of amusement in his voice and Yoongi grins. He’s
only now realising that Coco Jambo is playing in the store for what must be the
hundredth time that day.
 
“Oh, it’s okay. After working here for a while you’re not really noticing the
music anymore,” with somewhat less flaming cheeks Yoongi turns around again
after getting the cigarettes before he freezes and presses his lips into a thin
line.
 
Jimin is standing in front of the hygiene products for women, coincidentally
also the corner where the condoms are located. Condoms and lube, to be precise.
Yoongi knows; he's often filling up that shelf himself.
 
“Still, poor you. I wouldn’t survive in here for too long. Ah, by the way! I
had my music exam today!" Jimin says with glee and Yoongi feels a knot forming
in his stomach because he is pretty sure Jimin is currently not checking out
the array of sanitary pads or tampons. Definitely not. No matter how often the
word princess pops up in his mind, Jimin is, of course, still a guy.
 
So that leaves only two other options and Yoongi intently hopes it will be the
lube.
 
Please let it be the lube.
 
Please not the condoms that he might potentially be going to use with the guy
from the mall that was hanging on Jimin's neck with his lips just two days ago.
Or any other guy for that matter.
 
Please not the condoms that Jimin is never ever going to use with Yoongi.
 
"Oh, did it go well?" he says after a moment of steadying his breath.
 
"I think it did? I mean, I wrote something for every question, so I think
that's something," Jimin sounds so happy but Yoongi just hums, takes a deep
breath to get rid of the nauseous, twisting feeling inside of his stomach that
has become so familiar by now. He turns his gaze away and starts playing with
Jimin’s pack of cigarettes while waiting for him to get whatever it is he wants
to buy.
 
Until a box of condoms joins the cigarettes he's absently staring at.
 
Of course it had to be the fucking condoms.
 
Of course Jimin wouldn't stop sleeping with other men just because he knows
that Yoongi has a crush on him. How naïve of him to hope for that.
 
Jimin’s slender fingers leave his range of vision when he’s pulling his hand
back to grab for his money in his pocket, making Yoongi stare at the only
variation of flavoured condoms they carry.
 
Bubblegum flavour.
 
The most ironic flavour of them all because why the hell would you want to make
someone chew on your fucking dick?
 
Yoongi suddenly feels faint and horribly sick.
 
"I'm—, I couldn't have done so well at the exam without your help, hyung,"
Jimin says softly and it's suddenly hard to breathe. How can Jimin talk about
that now when he's handing him a freaking condom box? "so I—, yeah. Thank you,
Yoongi."
 
Yoongi bites his tongue and forces himself to look up at Jimin, seeing the
sweetest smile on the other’s lips. His body trembles for the briefest of
moments before he nods.
 
"Uh, yeah sure. I'm—, I'm glad it went well. I'm sure you're gonna pass
easily," he tries to force a smile, but it doesn't work. It died somewhere
along with the audacity to think of Jimin as princess. And yet, among Yoongi's
dark inner turmoil, Jimin's smile grows all the wider.
 
"Saturday still okay for you?" Jimin asks casually, picking up the lollipop and
the bubble gum roll Yoongi has already scanned.
 
"Mhm," Yoongi hums, trying to keep his hopes small. He doesn't know why Jimin
still asked him to hang out again on Saturday to study together, but it
definitely can't be to use condoms with him.
 
"Cool!"
 
“Is that all?” he sounds harsh, way harsher than he intended to, loses the
control of his voice effectively while the anger starts building up in his
stomach. He doesn’t even know why he’s so angry; Jimin has done nothing wrong.
They’re not a couple, nor can he tell Jimin what to do and what not to do.
 
But seeing these condoms, knowing Jimin will use them with someone that’s not
him, makes him feel – makes him feel utterly helpless and faint with despair.
 
“Yeah, that’s all, Yoongi hyung,” Jimin smiles, a bit more subdued now, and
there is this tone in his voice again, that flirty one he used on him before.
It makes him even more mad.
 
What does Jimin even want from him?
 
One day, he pushes him into a toilet cubicle to put his lips around his dick
and the next day they’re just friends. Maybe not even that. Maybe just two
students at the same school who happen to be in a band together.
 
But maybe that's just how Jimin works.
 
Maybe that's all he'll ever get.
 
He uses more force than needed to pull the rest of the items over the barcode
scanner.
 
“Fine,” he says before he tells Jimin the price.
 
“You okay? Bad mood?”
 
What do you care, is what Yoongi almost snaps, but instead he looks back at
Jimin, suppresses the urge to take the condom package out of Jimin’s hand who
grabs it after placing the money down. Suppresses the need to tell the
beautiful boy in front of him that he doesn’t want him to use these condoms,
because he doesn’t want Jimin to have sex with anyone else.
 
But it’s stupid. It’s not his place to do that.
 
“No, I’m great. Be careful with those,” Yoongi mumbles, handing him a plastic
bag.
 
“With what?” Jimin asks with raised eyebrows. But then he smirks a little,
leaning closer to Yoongi, the grey jumper riding down the shoulder where the
suspender has already slipped off, the tongue piercing clacking briefly against
his teeth behind his lips. Yoongi’s mouth becomes dry and he grips the edge of
the counter, hard. “I amcareful, Yoongi, that’s why I’m buying them. Don’t
worry,” Jimin tells him playfully, making him huff. "And actually I—, I thought
I—,"
 
"What?" Yoongi's chest hurts so much he wants to curl up into a ball right here
on the floor, right after he's ripped his own heart out.
 
"Never mind," Jimin sighs, some frustration lacing his voice, “anyway, I’ll see
you tomorrow,” he smiles again and Yoongi shrugs.
 
“Yeah. Bye.”
 
He looks after Jimin, hair covering his eyes, lips downturned.
 
And as Jimin leaves he takes his already bad mood with him and turns it to
utter shit.



It's been weeks since Yoongi saw Jimin for the first time and yet he feels like
he's gotten not even one step closer to the other boy. In fact, for every step
he takes forward, he always seems to take two backwards again. Every time
Yoongi thinks that he's finally managed to read the other one a little bit,
Jimin proves him wrong.
 
It's disheartening, discouraging, exhausting and Yoongi just wishes he could
push a button and make his stupid feelings evaporate as if they had never even
been there in the first place.
 
Yoongi already knew that having a crush could be distressing but being in love
turns out to be even worse.
 
His gaze is currently fixed on the little TV in his room while he's trying to
kill each and every fucking character in that bloody game that he put on to get
rid of some of the tension inside his body. But it doesn't really help much at
all. Nothing in the world could probably distract him from thinking about Park
Jimin right now.
 
It's Saturday and they were meant to meet up today to spend the afternoon
studying together, and dear lord does Yoongi have to study. He let that slide.
For way too many weeks already he let his studies slide so damn much and now
he's even gotten to the point that he's scared of failing his final exams that
are taking place next week.
 
He was looking forward to studying with Jimin so much today, even after he had
bought those stupid condoms (Yoongi must be a masochist, there's no other
explanation), but Jimin called yesterday evening to blow it off. Said something
came up.
 
On a scale from one to ten, how pathetic would it have been had Yoongi cried
himself to sleep like a baby over that?
 
Probably an eleven.
 
Too bad that has already happened.
 
And ever since then Yoongi couldn't stop wondering if Jimin has already used
the condoms with someone else instead of spending time with him today, who he
used them with and why it hurts so fucking much to imagine him with some other
guy.
 
The mixtape he has started to make for Jimin lies abandoned and unfinished on
his cluttered desk among the other cassette tapes he's used to making it. He's
not even sure anymore if he should actually still finish it.
 
Why does he even bother?
 
Because he's a fool in love, that's why, and he already knows he's stupid
enough to complete it and actually hand it to Jimin because he apparently loves
to suffer.
 
Because Jimin really seemed to have wanted that album and Yoongi wants more
than anything to give it to him and see the other boy smile at him again.
 
Yoongi hears the doorbell ring downstairs, but he pays it no mind. Doesn't want
to because he stupidly thinks it might be Jimin after all before he remembers
that his room looks like a mess.
 
But then his mother calls out for him that Hoseok is here.
 
A sigh leaves his lips.
 
“He can come upstairs,” he shouts back, still too busy to smash the buttons on
the controller. He doesn’t look at the door as he sees it open a little more
from the corner of his eyes, knowing his best friend just entered his room.
 
“Hey hyung,” comes the soft voice and Yoongi doesn't have to be a genius to
know that what is riddling Hoseok's voice is genuine and heartfelt worry.
 
Yoongi presses the pause button to look up, still sitting on the floor because
the wire of the controller doesn’t reach up to his bed.
 
“Didn’t we say we’d crash at yours tonight?” he asks with a frown on his lips,
his shoulders tense and his lips hurting because he's been gnawing them open.
 
“I know, but I thought you might want some company,” he lets Hoseok sit down
next to him, throwing him a wary glance. Yoongi did tell him that Jimin has
cancelled the tutoring session, but he didn't think their telepathic connection
was really that strong that Hoseok would know that he really needs him right
now. “What’cha playin’? Still Tekken?”
 
“Yeah, cannot finish the last stage,” he offers his controller to Hoseok, who
takes it without asking any further, continuing to play. Yoongi is glad that
Hoseok is here earlier than planned, feels his headache slowly clearing up
because he’s not alone anymore and leans his head on his best friend's
shoulder.
 
“What’s wrong with you lately, hyung?” his friend asks gently after a while of
just sitting there mutely while he lets Hoseok play as he keeps listening to
the game sounds with closed eyes. He opens them to peek up without moving his
head. He knows Hoseok came here for exactly this, knows he cannot fake anything
to the other.
 
They grew up together, having been neighbours since they were born, and know
each other inside out. So it doesn’t surprise him when Hoseok’s voice resounds
through the room once more, speaking out loud what he must have observed for a
while now.
 
“It’s because of Jimin, right?”
 
Yoongi sighs and closes his eyes again, shrugging a little before nodding
softly.
 
But he doesn’t know where to start.
 
He’s not ready to talk about the incident between Jimin and him on the school’s
toilet. Isn’t ready yet to admit that he did something like that in a public
place and even less is he ready to tell Hoseok that he came inside of Jimin’s
mouth after like three seconds. On the other hand, he doesn’t know what to say
to make Hoseok believe him that Jimin sometimes flirts with him.
 
“I kinda—,” he has to stop himself to clear his throat, licking his dry lips
before getting the courage to continue. His voice comes out in barely a mumble.
“I think I fell in love with him.”
 
The game music pauses at that, Hoseok’s fingers stop playing and his gaze is
probably directed at his messy mop of hair right now.
 
“You mean you have a crush on him?” Hoseok asks, doesn’t sound judging or
surprised at all. Yoongi could have probably just told him that the sky is blue
and would have gotten the same reaction. Yoongi still pulls a face, lifts his
head up from his friend’s shoulder to look at him frustratedly.
 
“No, Hobi, I mean I write fucking love songs about him,” he huffs and grabs the
controller, takes it out of Hoseok’s hands and presses the start button just to
distract himself from the unnerving stare of his best friend.
 
“Well,” his character almost instantly dies on the TV and Yoongi stares at the
GAME OVER screen for a second, before pressing continue, “but you two get along
well, or not? Not only at band practice or when he hangs out with us
afterwards. I thought you had fun during your tutoring as well?”
 
Yoongi knows his best friend is trying his best, but he just doesn’t get it at
all.
 
"Yeah, thought so, too. But then he bought those stupid bubblegum flavoured
condoms during my shift the other day and—," Yoongi throws the controller on
the carpet as the screen shows the game over screen again. "Well, he's
currently not using them with me, so—. Whatever."
 
He lets his shoulders sag, because yeah, if Jimin really uses those condoms
with someone else that means the game is over for him before it has even really
started, right?
 
“O-oh, I see," Hoseok says hesitantly and Yoongi just hums, tilts his head back
to stare at the ceiling. “That’s—, I must admit that sounds kinda, uh,
discouraging, yeah. But maybe he isn't using them with anyone at all, how would
we know? You know, I’ve got condoms at home, too! Just to be sure I’ve got some
if I ever need them."
 
Yoongi wrinkles his nose. “Seokkie, you doknow that they have an expiration
date, do you?” His friend just whacks him on the shoulder and manages to make
him smirk a little. He has no clue how Hoseok does that, but he’s pretty sure
his friend could bring world peace with his ray of sunshine aura if he wanted
to.
 
“Don’t be an ass, hyung, or I’ll go back home without you and have that fine
barbeque with my parents all to myself.”
 
Yoongi just grins and Hoseok smiles back at him.
 
He lets Hoseok turn off the TV and the gaming console, watches his best friend
quietly for a moment.
 
“So—, do you think there's even a teeny-tiny chance he might like me, too?”
Yoongi starts carefully, not sure if he really wants to hear the answer.
 
“Well, I think he’s sometimes flirting with you, so, yeah, maybe. And I mean,
why shouldn’t he? You're handsome, hot, got that grunge look going for you, a
total catch—,"
 
"Jung Hoseok!" Yoongi interrupts him, exasperated, and Hoseok smirks.
 
"Look, I don't want you to get hurt but honestly, hyung, you should maybe just
go for it just this once and – simply tell him.”
 
“Weren’t you the one who told me that you should never be the first one to tell
someone you like them? Because that will only get your heart broken?”
 
“And weren’t youthe one who promised me to never bring up my ex again? I’m
trying to help here, idiot."
 
“But what if he doesn’t like me? What do I do then – what if it changes
everything? What if he’ll leave the band or the resulting weird mood between me
and him ruins the band? The competition is in—,”
 
“God, Yoongi, are you really trying to use Cotton Candy as an excuse right now?
So whatif? Then we’ll do something about it when it happens. Have a new
audition or let Jeongguk and Taehyung do the vocals for that performance. Don’t
worry about us all the goddamn time, just think of yourself for once. I got
your back, I’m the band leader after all, or am I not?”
 
“You are. I just—,” Yoongi sighs and ruffles his own hair. “Guess I don’t just
want to lose him. Not only as a singer, I mean, as a friend.”
 
“Then tell him exactly that.”
 
Yoongi observes Hoseok who gets back on his feet and holds out a hand to him.
He takes it and gets pulled up before he leaves the room with him.
 
“I will, thanks, Hobi," he's quiet for a second or two before he feels like
there's an explosion taking place in his chest. He realises that he can finally
talk about it to someone. Talk about him. There's finally someone who knows and
that feeling is liberating in a sense he never knew was possible. He starts
grinning dopily before his lips crack into a smile.
 
"You know, he's got that really cute mole on his neck," Yoongi mumbles, cheeks
flushing. "He—, Park Jimin is like a firework, and when he laughs the mountains
turn to dust and every heart of stone turns soft, and when he smiles at me my
heart starts beating hard in my throat and I just—, I feel like I'm nearly
perishing. I swear to god, if Park Jimin walked through a field of flowers,
they'd all turn his head towards him instead of the sun."
 
Hoseok is quiet for a moment before he chuckles and smiles at him and then
starts looking like a little devil.
 
“So, the great Min Yoongi is writing songs about love now, huh? Can’t believe
I’m alive to witness something as big as this,” his friend says while they go
down the stairs and Yoongi feels his neck heat up.
 
“Yah! Shut up or you won’t be alive for much longer.” Hoseok starts laughing
again.
 
“What do they sound like? You've already got some lyrics to show me? If they
are even just a somewhat close to what you just said, I really can’t wait to
read them.”
 
“I swear if you don’t stop right now—,”
 
"Try and make me, lovebird,” he grins before jumping down the last steps and
running into the direction of the living room, having Yoongi on his heels with
death threats falling from his lips.
 
This continues until Yoongi's mother comes out of the kitchen to yell at them
for walking over the couch and coffee table and shoos them out of the house.
 
Hoseok puts an arm around his shoulders when they head over to his house after
they’ve put on their sneakers and Yoongi knows that as long as he has his
friends, everything is going to be alright.
Chapter End Notes
     There are three things to take away from this chapter:
     1) Bubblegum condoms (yey finally!)
     2) Princess (also finally god we've been waiting for this since the
     prologue)
     3) Yoongi is a sap
     Jimin has messed up big times, he's not the most eloquent when it
     comes to wooing the guy he likes, but leave it to Yoongi to save the
     day (or, well yeah... we'll see about this in the next chapter :D)
     We hope you liked this one ♡
     Comments are love and keep us fed ♡ You can also find us on twitter!
***** Ten. *****
Chapter Notes
     We're finally gonna meet a person from Jimin's past who we hope
     everyone will despise just as much as we do :D
     Also, we usually don't say stuff like that but: prepare your tissues
     for Jimin's POV. And maybe some cuddly plushie to hug because you
     might need it ;;
      
     ☾ = Yoongi
     ☼ = Jimin
See the end of the chapter for more notes
                                      –☾–

Yoongi did finish the mixtape he made for Jimin after his talk with Hoseok.

Sure, he's still spending his nights with eyes wide open, thoughts racing
through his mind as he stares at the ceiling and wishes he was braver,
dauntless even, when it comes to confessing his feelings to Park Jimin.

But Hoseok is right. No risk, no fun. He should just finally grow some balls
and ask Jimin out. No big deal.

If Jimin says no, he can still dig out that hole he's wanted to dig out so many
times before and bury himself in it.

He finished the mixtape the previous night – or morning, rather, as the sun had
already risen when he finally got it done – and now he’s dead tired after a
long school day with final exams and band practice, but he still has to go to
work, taking over the shift for his sick co-worker. After all, they need every
penny they can get for their summer trip.

At the moment, he can’t concentrate on anything though, because as they all
leave the schoolyard after practice, Jimin tags along with him and Hoseok as if
it was the most natural thing in the world, walking close to him, so close that
Yoongi is sure Jimin can feel the heat that his burning body radiates.

He reaches into the pocket of his turquoise windbreaker, the mixtape that is
securely stored in there weighing heavily against his sweaty palm.

"If we perform the other song at the contest we might have a better chance!"
Jimin says enthusiastically, skipping a few steps to walk in front of him and
Hoseok, backwards, "I'm sure the jury will love the friendship aspect of it.
You know, because it goes straight to the heart." Jimin theatrically clutches
at his chest to underline his statement, pink hair bouncing lightly as he takes
a few steps backwards in front of them.

Yoongi almost forgets to breathe, cannot stop himself from staring at the boy
in front of him. Jimin is wearing a sheer white T-shirt, black shorts and black
and white striped knee-highs paired with neon pink docs and he looks simply
ethereal with that dazzling smile on his face, the pink in his hair faded to a
more peach hue.

The condoms briefly pop up in his mind again but he shoves them far, far away
from anywhere near his heart where they could crush it.

"I also think we should go for that song," Hoseok agrees and Yoongi quickly
glances at him instead, nodding along even though he was too distracted right
now to really register what they're talking about. "We'll vote about it at the
next rehearsal, okay? I gotta blast now, gonna meet up with Namjoon for a bit.
Have fun at work, hyung," Hoseok smirks and Yoongi shoves his shoulder, lips
pulled into a scowl.

"Fuck you, too. If I'm not gonna get the best spot inside the van during our
trip I'll never spend another penny on you," Yoongi warns, lamenting the fact
that he has to work so much while the others are enjoying their summer. Except
for Namjoon who sometimes helps out at the gas station and Seokjin who also has
a small job at an office. But in light of Yoongi going to university soon, he's
saving up all he can for that, too.

"Bye, Hobi," Jimin says when Hoseok just flips Yoongi off and waves at Jimin
briefly with a big smile before walking away.

That's the moment Yoongi realises he's all alone with the singer.

His heart drops to his feet, his clammy fingers wrap around the mixtape a
little more tightly.

"Why do you have to go to work today?" Jimin asks curiously, walking beside him
now.

Yoongi’s heart pounds furiously in his chest, so loud he’s almost afraid the
other might hear it. His gaze falls upon Jimin's neck and collarbones, but
there's nothing but smooth, spotless skin. There are no hickeys at all and if
Yoongi is completely honest with himself he knows that he had expected some to
be there, just because he's so used to it.

“Uh, I took the shift from my co-worker today because he’s sick. Not really
looking forward to it though.”

“Oh, I see. Well, I gotta buy new cigs anyway, mind if I’m coming with you?”

“Jimin, how much do you actually smoke a day that you have to buy new ones
again?”

"Too much," Jimin sighs dramatically, lacing his fingers together behind his
back before he grins playfully. If Yoongi thought Jimin was adorable before, he
would like to eat him up right now that he's in such a good mood. He's hardly
ever seen Jimin so bouncy before.

They leave the school grounds and walk down the busy street before they have to
turn left into the quiet side road that leads to where Jimin lives. The
convenience store coincidentally also is in that direction.

Yoongi will be a dead man before they reach it.

"You know it's really bad for your health. Like, it can actually kill you,"
Yoongi says and Jimin snorts at that.

"Look at who's talking, drummer boy," Jimin says, amused, biting his lips,
"moreover, I don't care. If I can't enjoy my life the way I want to, what's the
point?"

Yoongi doesn't want to, but he's staring at him again. His eyes are drawn to
him like a moth to the flame and he knows that if he doesn't confess now, he's
never going to do it. He just has to do it now.

"Hey Jimin, c-can we talk for a bit?" he asks, not wanting to reply to what
Jimin just said. He loves bickering with Jimin just as much as he loves
everything else about the boy, but he just can't do it right now. His mind is
too much all over the place for that.

Bubblegum flavoured condoms, princess, mixtape, confessing, cotton candy pink
hair.

"Hm? Yeah, sure," Jimin says and Yoongi clears his throat before he slowly
comes to a halt at another corner of the street, turning the mixtape around in
his pocket, hoping that he didn't sweat on it too much.

Jimin slows down, too, before he steps in front of Yoongi, glancing at him
curiously. Jimin's neon pink shoes are the only thing in Yoongi's vision as he
keeps staring at the ground, his heart thundering in his chest as if it was
jumping out of his throat soon.

He remembers Hoseok's words and knows that his chances are slim, very slim, but
at least no one can tell him he didn't try.

He pulls the mixtape out of his pocket, looking at it one last time before he
speaks.

"I—, I made this for you," Yoongi stutters, one hand reaching for the back of
his neck in that nervous habit of his before he ruffles his own hair there a
little. His arm quickly drops back to his side as he holds the cassette tape
out to Jimin with the other hand.

The cover is self-made. The background is the baby blue of the paper he used
and the tiny black polka dots he drew on himself with a sharpie. The title
simply reads 'For Jimin' in his hideous handwriting (he really tried to make it
pretty, though) and below that he's drawn a lollipop with a little crown on it,
a microphone, a pack of cigarettes (Luckies, to be precise, Jimin's brand of
choice) as well as a few stars and music notes.

"The Bubblegum Princess album you wanted at the mall the other day is on the A
side and I put some songs you might like on the B side," Yoongi feels so
awkward explaining this and inwardly his guts shrink and twist from the cringe
he feels, as if he was imploding any moment now.

He bites his lip, hard, glancing through his fringe at Jimin whose eyes are
wide and fixed on the tape he's holding out to him. A tremor rushes through
Yoongi's hand and with every passing second Jimin does not react, Yoongi wishes
more and more that there'd be a black hole opening up underneath him to swallow
him whole.

"Uh—, sorry, Jimin," he coughs a laugh and pulls his hand back again,
embarrassment burning through his veins, "I—. Sorry, I knew that you prefer to
listen to CDs and I still made this—. Oh god, sorry, I—. Just forget about it,
I—,"

"No!" Jimin suddenly says, voice urgent and a little rough around the edges
before it gets more quiet again, "no, please. I'm—. I just didn't expect it, is
all. I—, I don't think anyone ever made something like that for me and—," he
trails off before he presses his lips into a thin line, longing eyes directed
at the tape in Yoongi's hand. "Can I—, can I have it?"

Jimin slowly looks up at Yoongi, causing his raging heart to come to an abrupt
standstill. His breath hitches in his throat when he lifts his hand again,
slowly extending it towards Jimin. Jimin takes the tape into both of his hands,
cover facing him, before he studies it intently, lips pursed a little and
twitching into a smile from time to time.

He watches how Jimin turns the tape from side to side, studying it with a smile
on his lips and Yoongi has never seen anything more beautiful than the boy with
the dusty pink cheeks standing in front of him right now. He takes another deep
breath.

"Well, actually," he rubs back of his nape again, "I-I wanted to ask you if
you'd like—, if we could maybe—,"

“Jimin,” an unfamiliar voice suddenly calls out and Jimin’s head snaps up
towards the direction it was coming from.

A guy is approaching them, and Yoongi’s mind shuts down. He squints his eyes a
little, trying to adjust to the fact that someone just interrupted his fucking
confession.

“Who’s that?” it just comes out of his mouth before he can think about if it’s
his business or not who that guy is. But he feels jealousy bubble up in his
chest already, an uneasiness spreading inside of him that makes him want to put
an arm around Jimin to protect him.

“Just someone that I used to know,” Jimin answers quietly without looking at
him, slipping the mixtape into the pocket of his shorts and Yoongi senses
something coming off of the other that he’s never felt this strongly before.

Insecurity and fear.

Jimin actually makes himself smaller and stiffens before he pointedly looks in
a random direction in an attempt to ignore the guy who’s walking closer and
closer.

“Hey, shorty,” the tall man greets Jimin and Yoongi wants to puke. Not only
does he hate how the man is looking at Jimin like a predator that has spotted
his prey, Yoongi also immediately senses that he's going to be treated as if he
was air.

He gives the guy a once-over. His face is long and his eyes sly and dirty
somehow with a glint of malice shining in them. His nose is sharp and the grin
on his face slimy and sickening. He might actually be handsome if not for that
ugly aura surrounding him and if not for the fact that Yoongi instantly
harbours a deep dislike for him.

And usually, Yoongi's gut instincts about someone are just right.

If this guy really is someone from Jimin's past, Yoongi is glad that he doesn't
seem to be in Jimin's current life anymore.

“Hey, Joonho,” Jimin mumbles, and Yoongi really doesn’t like the tone in
Jimin’s voice, anxious and so not Jimin that it breaks his heart. Yoongi feels
helpless as he watches how the other tries to impose himself on Jimin, stepping
into his space, ogling him from head to toe.

Yoongi's toes curl from disgust and discomfort. He wants to open his mouth,
wants to step in front of Jimin, but he's so baffled by the other's blatant
display of disrespect that all he can do is just gawp at him.

"Still as beautiful as always," Joonho says, reaching a hand out to Jimin's
hair, twisting a peachy pink lock around his finger. Jimin remains frozen, even
shaking a little, and Yoongi wishes he could teleport them somewhere else.
Subtly, he lets his arm brush against Jimin’s.

"Joonho—," Jimin starts with a trembling voice, "if you're here to try
something—,"

"I know we didn't really end on good terms," Joonho just interrupts the younger
boy and lets go of Jimin's hair again, thank god, "but I'd be willing to hang
out with you again, Min. Just think of all the nice things we did together. We
had so much fun together, didn't we?"

The urge to let his fist meet that guy’s face grows in Yoongi with each passing
moment, and he swears if Joonho touches Jimin again, he will not hesitate.

"No. I don't want to—, hang out again," Jimin mumbles, expression closing up,
body shrinking into Yoongi's side as if he was seeking protection. Yoongi's
heart is beating in his throat from all the tension and ugly jealousy clawing
at his heart and he clenches his fists by his side when the guy snorts at
Jimin, a vein popping out on his neck.

"You've become really cocky, huh? Have you forgotten what I told you, shorty?"
Joonho grins, disgustingly self-satisfied. "That I'm the only one who would
ever want you? That no one else could ever make you feel the way I did?"

Something in Yoongi explodes at these words.

"You wish, asshole," he says, voice dark and confident, putting an arm around
Jimin’s shoulders, pulling him closer. Joonho's gaze slowly shifts to Yoongi
then as if he's only just realising that he's there, eyes narrowed and face
twisted into an ugly sneer. "Fuck off, twat. Maybe you didn't get the memo but
you're probably the last person on earth Jimin would ever want to be with."

Yoongi can feel Jimin's head sharply turn to look at him, and suddenly he feels
a little self-conscious again but he holds his ground. He slowly turns to look
at Jimin, too, looks into big, scared eyes, and squeezes his shoulder a little
firmer, a little more reassuring.

"It's okay, don't worry," Yoongi thinks, the corners of his mouth lifting for
the slightest bit while his eyes are fixed on Jimin's, "I'm going to protect
you."

“And who are you anyway, shrimp?” Joonho asks, voice bored and unimpressed.
Yoongi vows to stay calm, but it’s hard, what with having a sleazy, arrogant
douchebag in front of him. He licks his lips and cocks his head to the side,
straightening his back in an attempt to make himself appear taller than he is.
Joonho might be a head taller than him, but Yoongi is not scared of him.

He can feel Jimin's body curling into his side even more, feels Jimin's hand
twist into his T-shirt at the front.

It's all he needs and more.

He smirks before he opens his mouth.

“I'm his boyfriend,” Yoongi says with a slight hiss, speaking out loud what he
wishes to be the truth so much. He can feel Jimin’s body go tense for a moment
in his hold before he relaxes again, leaning his head against Yoongi's
shoulder.

Oh god.

Yoongi's mind is swimming.

Jimin is pressing up against him so hard now and Yoongi's heart almost shatters
from beating so fast. His hands become clammy, feeling icy cold, while a hot
shiver runs down his spine. He turns his head to look at Jimin again and tries
to keep his confidence while being so close to the other boy and having said
that out loud just now.

All he can think about is how nice Jimin feels, how good and sweet he smells
and how lovely his cheeks are, even though he should be way more worried about
what Jimin thinks of his bold statement.

Joonho just chuckles before the sound trails off into a huff.

"You? Yeah, sure," judgemental sarcasm is dripping from Joonho's voice, his
expression now as dark as night, "you're not his type. Jimin doesn't like
shrimps."

Yoongi is biting his lip hard, trying to ignore the pain that burns through his
chest at these words, tries to ignore how painfully aware he is of the fact
that they are true. He's not Jimin's type, yes. Jimin has made that clear so
many times before, and yet Yoongi is still completely unable to give up.

Jimin opens his mouth to say something, expression helpless and scandalised,
before he looks back at Yoongi, seemingly at a loss for words.

"I know," Yoongi mouths as if replying to Joonho's remark, barely audible, but
Jimin seems to hear it loud and clear, eyes going wide, almost as if in shock.
His lips tremble briefly before Yoongi's quirk into a small smile.

All he sees are Jimin's beautiful eyelashes, his small nose and pretty cheeks,
his pouty little mouth, the pink hair he has come to like so much. He might be
blind to everything and everyone else in the world but Park Jimin right now
who, only in this very fleeting moment in front of the other guy, is, indeed,
his boyfriend.

Yoongi knows Jimin doesn't feel what he feels for him but he doesn't really
care about anything anymore when he leans in and the world falls away, and all
the worries and everything Yoongi was ever afraid of falls away when he leans
in and their lips meet in a barely there kiss.

Jimin's lips are soft, a soft cushion of beautiful, smooth skin and the feeling
of them brushing against his own somewhat chapped ones makes him wish more than
anything that Jimin could feel this too. This amazing dazzling feeling in his
chest and on his skin that immerses his body and makes his breathing stutter
and his throat shut off at this simple touch.

Jimin doesn't respond for a few moments, hesitates noticeably, and if Yoongi
thought waiting for his reaction to the mixtape was nerve-wracking already,
then that was nothing compared to this.

It's Yoongi's real first kiss and he doesn't know what to do and he doesn't
know how to sort out his thoughts among the myriads running through his head
right now when all his mind is screaming at him is that this needs to look
convincing in front of Joonho, not like a first kiss at all.

He feels his stomach swoop when Jimin's nose presses against his a little,
their breaths mingling, and Yoongi clumsily opens his lips the slightest bit,
acting on pure instinct. Jimin doesn't push him away and instead closes his
eyes, returns the pressure gently and immediately takes the lead, turning
Yoongi's knees to jelly.

When Jimin grips his shirt tighter and tilts his head a little, Yoongi is gone.

His mind goes blank when Jimin hesitantly opens his mouth a little further,
almost cautiously, to suck Yoongi's lower lip between his teeth.

Yoongi breaks the kiss with a shaky exhale, even though he doesn't want to. His
eyes fly open again and despite not being able to see his own face, he just
knows he must be beet red right now. His cheeks are aflame and his heart is
jack-hammering against his ribcage, making it hard to breathe.

He lifts his gaze from Jimin's lips and stares directly into the other's eyes
that are swimming with raw emotion and uncertainty, flickering over Yoongi's
face as if he was searching for an answer as to why they. Just. Did. That.

But Yoongi has absolutely no answer at all.

There is no other reason than Yoongi having wanted to kiss Jimin so badly, and
if only just this once.

A disbelieving scoff next to them rips both of them out of their daze, out of
their own little world, and that's when Yoongi remembers that they're still
standing on that street with Sir Douchebag right next to them. Yet he’s still
unable to stop staring at Jimin’s face, not even when the guy starts talking
again.

“Wow, you're full of surprises, Min. I wouldn't have expected your tastes to
degrade so drastically," Joonho taunts and Yoongi tries really hard not to take
it personally and snap. Before he even gets the chance to do so, however, it's
Jimin who bursts.

"Shut the fuck up, Joonho," Jimin says with a hiss and suddenly he sounds like
he usually does; confident and with a firm, almost murderous look in his eyes.
"You never had an inkling of an idea what I like; youonly ever think about
yourself. So don't you dare assuming things about me, asshole," Jimin lets go
of Yoongi for a moment and takes a step closer to the other guy, fists clenched
and body tense as he glares up at him. "But there's one thing you were right
about."

"Tsk," Joonho clicks his tongue, feigned disinterest on his face as he looks
down at Jimin, "what, huh?"

"No one ever managed to make me feel like you did. Like utter shit," Jimin
spits, shoving the other at his chest, head tilted a little as he takes another
step forward. Jimin's new-found confidence is as intimidating as it is
fascinating to Yoongi, the dangerous look on Jimin's face mesmerising. "And,"
Jimin continues, "I also had the pleasure of meeting the biggest asshole on the
planet, not everyone can claim that for themselves.”

Joonho has taken a few steps backwards already before Jimin stops getting
closer. Instead, Jimin walks backwards and steps next to Yoongi again, leaning
against his side while putting an arm around him.

"And he is right, too," Jimin's gaze is hooded, intense, absolutely captivating
when he looks into Yoongi's eyes as he speaks before looking back at Joonho, "I
never want to hang out with you again,” he pauses for a few moments, letting
the words hang heavy in the air. “Come on, Yoonie, let's go," Jimin says the
words to him quietly, his heart skipping a beat at hearing the nickname.

He feels Jimin's hand on the small of his back, the fabric of his T-shirt
getting taut when Jimin grips it firmly and then there is a small tug and both
of them start walking, leaving the guy behind. Yoongi does his best to resist
the urge to turn his head and look at him once more.

"Have fun with your new toy," Yoongi hears Joonho shout after them, voice laced
with anger, frustration and a pinch of desperation, "In the end, you’ll just
throw him away like all the others. One day you will beg me to take you back."

Ignore it, ignore it, ignore it, Yoongi screams inside his head, trying to tune
out the small voice at the back of his mind whispering to him that for Jimin to
be able to throw him away, he would actually have to be with him first.

Yoongi is still on unsteady legs as they're walking to the convenience store,
his lips still pulsating with the soft pressure of Jimin's lips on them as if
they were still there. He glances at the other boy and swallows the lump in his
throat, aching for his proximity despite still being so close to him.

Fuck.

Did he kiss well?

Did Jimin actually like it, too? Just as much as he did?

He did practice with Hoseok, just that one time some years ago when the
curiosity got the best of them, but Yoongi fears that that clumsy press of lips
and awkward moving them around that day back then was not enough to give him a
certain expertise in the matter.

He wishes he could kiss Jimin again, just to make it right this time. Just to
feel him once again.

"Wow, I'm so sorry that happened just now," Jimin begins, pinching the bridge
of his nose with his fingers and Yoongi glances at him, slowly detaching his
arm from Jimin again because he just can't take it anymore, "I really wish you
wouldn't have had the displeasure of meeting that asshole."

"It's—, it's 'kay," Yoongi is still angry at the guy, but what is actually on
his mind is the kiss, and the kiss only. He tries his hardest not to run his
tongue over his lips, lest he might dispel the sensation.

"No, really. He—," Jimin looks mortified beyond belief, his cheeks flushed and
embarrassment transforming his face. He sighs heavily and Yoongi briefly
wonders if he's thinking about the kiss at all, or if he's already forgotten
all about it again. He swallows dryly before averting his gaze to the ground,
studying his own walking feet. He resists the urge to press a hand against his
aching chest.

"It wasn't your fault, Jimin-ah. That guy is a major asshole and I'm glad you
told him exactly that," Yoongi offers Jimin what he hopes is a reassuring smile
and toys with the idea of taking his hand.

In the end, however, he's saved from further embarrassment when Jimin lifts
said hand and runs his fingers through his hair in frustration, gaze directed
away from him. Yoongi wonders if it's a good idea to say anything further, so
he remains quiet.

When they're in front of the store, Yoongi gathers all his courage to finally
say something after all. Jimin hasn't said anything about the kiss, or Yoongi
childishly claiming that he's his boyfriend, but that doesn't mean it never
happened. Maybe Jimin is just too shy to bring it up? Yoongi almost snorts at
that thought. As if he were. Yet he takes a deep breath and tries to pick up
again from when they were so rudely interrupted by Jimin's— ex, Yoongi assumes.

"Hey, Jimin. Actually, before all of that happened I actually wanted to ask
you—,"

"Oh," Jimin interrupts him, his hands flying to the pockets of his shorts where
he pats against them, the outline of the mixtape still visible, "I totally
forgot that I left my money at home today. Well then, no cigarettes for me,"
Jimin laughs awkwardly and pulls his lips into a half-smile. "I better go now,
see you tomorrow, Yoongi."

Panic rises in Yoongi's chest.

"N-no, wait, Jimin, I—. What about—," but Jimin is already hurrying away,
taking big steps before turning around again with a blinding smile on his face,
walking backwards. Utterly helpless, Yoongi looks after him, his jaw slack and
his eyes huge and round.

"Oh, and thanks again for the mixtape!" Jimin adds like an afterthought before
he waves briefly with wiggling fingers and turns around again.

And as Yoongi watches how Jimin's back becomes smaller and small, he can feel
his heart shrivel up and die.






                                      –☼–

Tick-tock, tick-tock, tick-tock.

Jimin never realised before how very obnoxiously the clock on his bedside table
is ticking away in the room, how loud it can sound and how it makes Jimin want
to grab the thing and throw it out of the window.

Tick-tock, tick-tock, tick-tock.

He's staring at the ceiling where his luminous star stickers glow offensively
in the otherwise dark room, their edges blurring a little when Jimin's eyes go
out of focus again. Vaguely, he wonders for the n-th time why they're still
there, why he doesn't finally get rid of them.

He's put them up when he was about thirteen, or fourteen, just after he had
moved here from the big city and let out his whole frustration by aggressively
decorating his room. A lot of those childish decorations have long since
wandered to the trash, but the stars remain, even though he's not a child
anymore. He's sixteen, he's grown up, and his childhood ended a long time ago.

Grown-ups don't have glow-in-the-dark stickers on the ceilings of their rooms,
for fuck's sake.

But grown-ups also don’t just run away after they got kissed by the best person
they've ever met.

His breath hitches in his throat for what must be the ten-thousandth time today
after he finally got home. Every time he thinks of Yoongi's lips on his, his
stomach just flips, his heart drops and his windpipe constricts so that he can
barely breathe.

He was scared.

He was so, so scared when Yoongi kissed him but what terrified Jimin the most
was – that he liked it so much.

He liked it so fucking much and he wishes he could have kissed Yoongi for hours
and hours without stopping, without even thinking about what happens next,
without anyone else being there. He could have drowned in that feeling of
Yoongi's lips on his; how they were a little chapped but still so soft, how
they fit against his so perfectly as if they were made for each other. Ever
since the moment Yoongi claimed his lips all that's been on Jimin's mind is
only Yoongi, Yoongi, Yoongi.

He turns around on his mattress, away from the ceiling and onto his side,
facing the wall, and curls up into a tight ball. Tears are burning obnoxiously
behind his eyelids but he can hold them back; he's not one to cry at all.

But then he remembers how his knees went weak when Yoongi kissed him. They
never do when someone kisses him. He never even feels anything when someone
kisses him, but Yoongi's clumsy, innocent kiss blew him away, made him have an
inner breakdown, turned his world upside down.

He moves his fingers to his lips, the ghost of Yoongi’s lips still lingering,
still tingling on the sensitive skin. He closes his eyes and imagines doing it
again and again, tries to feel the other’s lips on his as if Yoongi was really
here, and the thought alone makes sparks erupt in his tummy, spreading to his
chest, making his heart thump wildly against his ribcage.

And that's when the floodgates burst.

It starts with a small hiccup, with his face contorting into a pained grimace,
before the tears spill from his waterline and overflow as he starts sobbing and
crying into his pillow.

The word 'boyfriend' echoes in his mind and almost chokes him, makes his body
jolt with the force of his sobs. His chest hurts viciously from the tension in
his body as he cries and his eyes burn so much he'd like to gouge them out of
their sockets.

Yes, he always knew about Yoongi's crush on him, the other has made it
painfully obvious to him, but hearing it coming from the other's own lips made
it so undeniably real and now Jimin cannot hide from it anymore.

He presses his face into his pillow and when he hears the door opening followed
by the sorrowful voice of his mother he belatedly realises that she's home
already and that his crying must have been so loud that it was audible even
outside his room.

He quickly swallows down his sobs and closes up, suppressing the hiccups as
good as he possibly can, with little success. His body is shaking and his
insides hurt so much from all the strain of attempting to stop crying.

"Jiminnie," his mother tries again, but Jimin doesn't move, doesn't want to
hear her or talk to her. "Baby, what's wrong?" her voice is careful, very
careful, and usually he would shout at her to go away but somehow he just
can't. He feels the mattress yield when she sits down next to him and he curls
up even more, wishes he could hide under his blanket.

He flinches when her hand touches his shoulder, and she quickly pulls it away
again only to put it back down lightly moments later. He's still hiccuping but
doesn't dare to move, wants to wipe the tears away but can't. He sniffles,
hard, before her hand wanders to his head, her gentle fingers brushing through
his hair, cautiously at first before she caresses his scalp a little more
firmly.

"It's okay, Jiminnie. It's okay," she whispers in the darkness, rubbing his
back now, "let it out, love. It's okay," her words tip him right over the edge
again and he starts crying uncontrollably, thoughts muddled in his head,
feelings crashing down on him from all sides on top of feeling so vulnerable in
front of his own mother. But she doesn't try to stop him, doesn't say anything
further except the occasional ssh and some sniffles coming from herself.

When Jimin's cries die down to mere shuddering breaths, he gathers all his
courage and finally turns around, slowly and exhausted, reaching for the paper
tissues on his bedside table. Embarrassed, he blows his nose, doesn't dare to
look at her despite being painfully aware of the fact that she is looking at
him. When he's done, he slowly lowers his hands again to his lap and sniffles
again, more stuttering exhales leaving his lips.

"Do you want to talk about it, Jiminnie?" she asks, voice soft and caring, hand
back on his arm where her thumb rubs gentle circles into his skin. He slowly
shakes his drooping head. She scoots closer then, and Jimin lets her, not
trying to back away from the arms she carefully circles around him.

Tears well up in his eyes again when he feels her warmth and her love, but he
quickly wipes them away with the tissue when they spill and run down his
cheeks.

"I'm here for you, you know that. I'll always be listening to you, alright?
Whenever you feel ready for it," he hesitates briefly before he slowly nods his
head this time, leaning against her slightly before resting his head on her
shoulder. She kisses his mop of hair and he closes his eyes.

"Mu-mum, I thu-think I've—," he starts but stops again, swallowing heavily, his
throat tight and dry. He doesn't know if he wants to say the words out loud.
He's scared shitless of his own feelings and sharing them with his mother
sounds like the worst idea he's ever had.

"Hm?" she pulls back a little, looking at him worried and hopeful at the same
time.

"I might have—. I think I l-like someone," he whispers, more admitting it to
himself than to her. He can see her lips twitch into a smile briefly before she
presses them into a line, clearing her throat.

"You have a crush on someone? Or—," she smirks a little and Jimin can feel the
waves of giddiness radiating from her that she is unable to hide. He rolls his
eyes and shoves her a little with his shoulder, another shuddering breath
wracking his body.

"Y-yeah. I thu-think I do," he inhales shakily, still worn out from crying, and
he has to resist the urge to squeeze his eyes shut and push his mother away.

"And?"

"What, and?"

"Does he like you, too?" she squeezes his knee and looks at him with a
frivolous smile. Jimin bites his lip, tilting his head back as he tries to not
get emotional again.

"I—," he sighs. He knows for a fact that Yoongi likes him, but admitting that
in front of his mother doesn't feel right somehow. "He might but. I-I don't
know. I shu-should just forget about it."

"Jimin," his mother now pinches his side and Jimin fends her off quickly,
scooting away from her with a scowl on his face. He can sense that she wanted
to say something to that but then she seems to change her mind. "Baby, has he
treated you well so far?" Jimin is stumped by the soft question, but only
briefly, for he knows how mad his mother was at Joonho back then when she
learned what he did to him. He understands her apprehension, but at the same
time, he starts feeling defensive again, miffed because he can take care of
himself now.

Oh, it felt so wonderful to show Joonho just how blissfully insignificant he
has become to him when Yoongi stood up for him and kissed him. How he couldn't
care less if he was there or not. How the other now hopefully thinks he's got a
boyfriend who is so much better than him.

"Yes, he—," he stops when he remembers the day Yoongi was actually right here,
sitting on this very bed with his mother fawning over the other man, still
talking about him long after he had left. About his good manners, about how
kind of him it was to help Jimin with studying and that he should bring him
over more often.

If his mum knew who he's currently talking about, she definitely wouldn't ask
such a question.

"He's the best, he—. He shows and teaches m-me all sorts of things and buys me
and his friends snacks, just because, and—, and—," he doesn't want to tell her
that he's treating him like a normal human being and not like a piece of meat,
so he leaves that out, "and I feel so comfortable around him. He wears those
really fluffy oversized sweaters even in summer and I'd just—, I'd really like
to—," he's speaking way too quickly but then his voice trails off into a sigh
before he bites his lip.

"So—, why don't you ask him out then?" his mum asks, smiling gently, and Jimin
quickly shakes his head, letting it hang again.

He can't. He simply can't.

What if he opens up to Yoongi, lets himself be vulnerable in front of him and
get hurt in the process? What if he messes up even more and loses Yoongi and,
perhaps, also the band? It makes panic rise in his body once more, makes him
feel dizzy and his guts twist harshly.

"I think I've done him tuh-terribly wrong," he breathes, a tight feeling
unfurling in his chest and settling deep in the pit of his stomach when he
realises all the pain he must have caused Yoongi. He knew about his crush all
along and still went with it, never reacted to it, never told him no. And then
Yoongi still went and stuck to his side in front of his ex, still protected him
even though he could have just said that it's none of his business.

He suddenly remembers those stupid condoms he bought during Yoongi's shift and
he instantly cringes, rubs his eyes at the painfully embarrassing memory.

Granted, he didn't really plan that through. He was merely hoping that Yoongi
would ask who he intends to use the condoms with and he would have answered ‘I
was hoping I could use them with you’ as a terribly awkward pick-up line, but
the question never came. It was just the product of his silly daydreaming and
all he achieved with that action was making Yoongi even more upset.

It's a miracle Yoongi hasn't told him long ago to finally fuck off.

"This sounds like a really difficult situation," his mum mumbles and he can
sense that she doesn't really know what to respond to him, but it's okay,
"whatever it is—, if there's a chance, maybe you should just talk it out and,
you know. See where it goes from there?"

Jimin sighs.

"Yeah, maybe," he mutters, suddenly very tired. He's already bared way too much
of his soul to her and it starts taking its toll on him.

"Just give him some time if he needs it, okay?" he nods at that before he has
to yawn and rubs his eyes again.

"I'll try. Anyway, he made a mixtape for me and I'm gonna listen to that now
before I go to sleep, so, could you please—," he shoves her off the bed with
his palms on her side and stumbles with her to the door.

"Wait! What? He made you a mixtape? Jimin, you know what that means right?" she
rushes out, and Jimin just hums as a response, waiting until she's out of the
door before trying to close it. She puts her slipper-clad foot in the gap and
beams at him. "Jimin, let me guess who it is! Is it—,"

"Mum," he whines, rattling the door impatiently, "just go now. I won't tell
you."

"Oh. My. God," she exclaims cheerfully, her hands flying to her cheeks. She
finally removes her foot and Jimin shuts the door with a slight unintentional
bang, eyes squeezing shut before opening them again. He can hear his mother
squeal through the door and he squints them tightly shut again in actual cringe
pain.

And then he's all alone again with all his chaotic thoughts and feelings.

He heaves a sigh and puts Yoongi's mixtape into his CD player that also has a
tape slot. He's never been more glad for such devices tending to have both by
default.

He throws himself onto the bed again when the music starts playing. He's not
listening to the A-side, to the album that he wanted to buy; he's listening to
the B-side, wants to know which songs Yoongi has chosen for him.

He imagines Yoongi wondering about which songs Jimin might like, mulling over
it for hours sitting at his desk, or on his bed, replaying everything over and
over again until it's perfect, a concentrated look on his face.

With his eyes going bigger, Jimin realises that he still doesn't know what
Yoongi's room actually looks like, so maybe the drummer doesn't even have a
desk?

He shakes his head and hugs his favourite stuffed animal – a fat light-blue
penguin with black button eyes and a soft yellow beak – close to his chest,
lowers his head onto it and closes his eyes, listening to the gentle tune
Yoongi has chosen as the first track.

He doesn't know what to do.

He's scared of letting someone into his life, of letting someone affect him
like Yoongi does. He was fine so far, had always been well off on his own. And
who can guarantee him that Yoongi is really there to stay? After all, Yoongi
will leave for college after the summer holidays end.

But he knows that his walls are crumbling, more and more, while he needs them
so much to remain strong.

He listens through the cassette once without being able to fall asleep, his
heart swelling and warming up with each new song that Yoongi has put on the
tape.

His lips smile and his inner turmoil is soothed, but he still feels so sad and
crushed.

When the music stops, he gets up and rewinds the tape before pressing the play
button again. After a gentle stroke to the tape's case, he turns around to go
back to bed when he catches a glimpse of himself in the mirror.

With big, shiny eyes he lifts a hand to his hair and takes a strand between his
fingers, realising that the pink in his hair is slowly fading.

He's slowly fading.

With a sharp inhale he whirls around and walks to the door, going straight to
the bathroom where he frantically looks through the cabinets for his bottles of
hair dye. When he finds a half-empty one, he sighs in relief.

One last look in the mirror and he starts a late night hair dying session
because the pink in his hair is slowly fading and he cannot ever let that
happen.
Chapter End Notes
     :D
     WELL WHAT HAVE WE—, I MEAN, WHAT HAVE THEY DONE
     Okay. Everything looks a little shitty right now, but not for long,
     we promise! Next two-ish chapters will probably the last really
     angsty ones and after that their suffering will have an end soon ♡
      
     We hope you liked the chapter ♡ If you want to scream at us you can
     also find us on twitter!
***** Eleven. *****
Chapter Notes
     We guess this is the angstiest chapter of them all but it has a
     really cute ending ;~;
     We're really excited about this one and we hope you'll enjoy ♥
     Warning, and we'll only say this once: since some people have already
     expressed their ~annoyance~ to us about the nickname Yoongi will give
     Jimin, a flamboyant gay young man in the 90s, just be aware that
     Yoongi will call him "princess" in this chapter and in some of the
     following chapters. If this bothers you, please skip it or stop
     reading. thx
     ☾ = Yoongi
     ☼ = Jimin
See the end of the chapter for more notes
                                      –☾–
                                        
The pancakes on Yoongi's plate should look vibrant and appetising, the smell
should be mouth-watering and make him shovel piece after piece of them into his
mouth. After all, his mother made them and his mother's pancakes are always
superb. Instead, they look dull and grey, the smell making him feel sick and a
little faint.
 
He's poking at some berries with his fork, spears a tiny raspberry with it
before he lets it drop back down into his plate.
 
In his mind, he feels numb, and in his heart, he feels hollow.
 
"Ready for your math exam today, Yoongi?" his dad's voice suddenly rips through
his concentrated staring contest with the food on his plate and he looks up, a
little disoriented and as if he's been caught at doing something naughty.
 
He fights the urge to just shrug his shoulders because he knows his father
hates it when he does that. Instead, he glances at him briefly and busies
himself by dunking a piece of pancake into the vanilla sauce on his plate.
 
"I hope so. I looked through my notes one last time yesterday before bed,"
Yoongi lies because he didn’t study at all after his shift – after Jimin left
him standing there in the figurative rain with no answer to any of his
questions. He couldn’t concentrate at all, neither could he sleep last night
and if he's being really honest, he doesn't know how he manages to sit here and
pretend to eat breakfast with his parents, either.
 
His mind trails off to the kiss again, a dull ache throbbing between his ribs
that threatens to tear him apart, the phantom of soft lips still lingering on
his own.
 
He quickly grabs his half-empty glass and takes a gulp of fruit juice in order
to dispel the sensation.
 
He's so tired.
 
"Yoongi-yah, I know you’re always nervous before your exams, but please, at
least take a few bites. Or don’t you like your mum's pancakes anymore?" his
mother asks with a smile on her lips that tells him that she’s catching on to
something being wrong.
 
Her understanding smile makes him feel worse than he had anticipated, so he
tries hard to smile back while he’s shaking his head.
 
"No, it’s delicious as always, ma. I’m just—, not really hungry right now. Hey,
uhm, would it be okay if I get up and leave already? Jin, Jihae and I wanted to
have another look at our math papers before the exam," what a lame excuse. What
a beautiful white lie.
 
"Of course, that’s okay. Right, honey?"
 
"Sure, champ. But don’t overdo it. Looking into your papers again will only
cause you guys to be even more nervous. You’ll do great, you’re my son after
all," Yoongi feels paralysed for a second and the sick feeling in his stomach
grows.
 
He’s no champ. And he won't do great – not now, nor will he later at his math
exam.
 
His parents would be so disappointed if they knew.
 
"‘kay, dad. I'll do my best. See you later," he mumbles and pushes himself away
from the table as he stands and slowly shuffles towards the front door,
listening to his parents talking quietly without understanding a word they say.
 
After he put his water bottle into his backpack, he takes another look at it to
check if he has everything. Sure, he doesn’t need much except for his pencil
case, for he will probably just write his exam today and then watch another one
of those boring movies the teachers love to put on to waste their time until
the summer holidays finally begin.
 
He slips into his old converse and grabs one of his thin shirts to tie around
his waist since he's sure it's already warm enough outside to not wear it. He
flinches when the doorbell suddenly rings, is surprised to see Hoseok standing
there when he opens the door, greeting him with his always-in-a-good-mood-
smile.
 
"Morning hyung! Are you prepared for doomsday?" his best friend teases
playfully but he can't bring himself to retort anything, only shrugs and wants
to pass by him just when his mother calls out for him again.
 
"Yoongi, wait. Oh, morning, Hoseok-ah," she says and Yoongi turns around to
look at her only to see that she has one of her typical sandwich bags in her
hands. "I know you’re not feeling like it but eat something before the exam,
okay? I’ve packed enough for all of you, in case you want to share. Studying
makes hungry after all, right?" she smiles and looks at Hoseok who obviously
doesn’t really understand what’s going on but agrees with her nonetheless.
 
Meanwhile, the guilt takes hold of Yoongi’s heart again. Because he hasn't been
studying at all. Because he was too busy thinking about Jimin, about spending
time with him and their friends. He was too busy being stupidly in love with
another boy.
 
Yet his mother doesn't even know.
 
He wants to tell her so bad. He wants to be held by her even if that made him
feel like a little child but also secure and understood. He wants to listen to
her old heartbreak stories and what to do to fix his own broken heart – but he
can't. He doesn't know how to tell her what he's kept from her for so many
years now. That he likes boys and not girls and that there is one particular
boy he likes so very, very much.
 
Instead, he tries to keep his faked smile alive and nods slowly.
 
"‘kay, ma. Thank you. I really gotta go now," Yoongi mumbles with a knot in his
throat when she leans in to kiss his cheek.
 
"You’re gonna rock this, baby. And no matter what, you know, we are proud of
you, right? Take care of you, boys. Just don’t get into too much trouble for
once, okay?" those words hit him like a freight train and all he can do is look
at her until she closes the door, waving one last time.
 
"O-kay?" Hoseok blinks next to him but shrugs it off, rolling his bike
backwards so he can turn it around and sit on it again, "I kind of thought we
hang around at yours before we leave because it’s so early but whatever. Let’s
go? What did she mean by studying makes hungry, though?"
 
Yoongi studies Hoseok’s face and he knows his best friend is curious about
something completely different. They both know that Hoseok left Jimin and him
yesterday to give Yoongi the chance to talk to the other boy on purpose but
Yoongi doesn’t want to tell him about it right now.
 
"Nothing, let’s just go," he mumbles and ignores the once-over Hoseok is giving
him while he puts the sandwich bag into his backpack before climbing on his own
bicycle, not looking back when he starts pedalling.
 
Hoseok doesn't ask any further, starts talking about the dream he had last
night instead and Yoongi is glad for it. His friend always seems to know
exactly what he needs and he couldn't be any more grateful.
 
When they arrive at school and got rid of their bikes, they sit down at their
usual spot in front of the school building's wall. Yoongi lets Hoseok eat one
of the sandwiches his mother made, still not feeling hungry at all. It doesn't
take long until their friends arrive as well.
 
All of them come – all of them except for Jimin.
 
Yoongi catches himself waiting for him even though his hands turn clammy and
his stomach feels even more queasy at the mere thought of seeing the other boy
again.
 
The school bell rings then, and it's the toll that heralds Yoongi's imminent
death.
 
The mood in the classroom is varied, his classmates either nervously chatting
away or looking as if they were close to having a breakdown. Seokjin and Jihae
wish him good luck before they sit down next and diagonally across from him.
Not much later, the teacher arrives, tells the rest to sit down and to be
quiet.
 
The ache in Yoongi's stomach grows stronger and makes him want to jump out of
the window (it's only the first floor, he coulddo it) and run away. Yet he
remains seated, even though he feels like he's standing next to himself and is
only watching a really bad teenage movie.
 
He can't concentrate on what the teacher says, isn't really aware of how the
exam papers soon appear in front of him on his desk.
 
"You may begin," the teacher's voice cuts through the classroom before the
sound of countless papers being turned rustles through the air and Yoongi takes
a deep breath.
 
He grabs his pen, turns the crisp exam papers around and puts them on the
surface of his desk, flattening them out, neatly writing his name into the
textbox that is asking for it, buying himself some time.
 
And then his mind goes blank.
 
Head throbbing with anguish, he stares at all the questions with unseeing eyes,
the numbers and letters swimming in his vision in front of him. As soon as they
enter his mind they also leave again, nothing remaining in his memory.
 
His gaze shifts to his pencil case at the head of the desk. The mint coloured
pencil that peeks out of it is the same kind he gave to Jimin when they were in
detention. He wonders if Jimin still has it, if he's still using it or if he
simply threw it away already.
 
He shakes his head and looks up, the classroom eerily quiet except for the
sound of scribbling pens and occasional coughs, sniffs and whines.
 
His gaze falls on Jihae who is writing calmly and not at all rushed, looking
collected and like she has her entire future planned out in the most minute
detail. Yoongi has known her for three years now and she always knew what she
wanted to be. Nothing had changed when she and Seokjin became a couple, they
both just made it work somehow.
 
Now, three years later, both she and Seokjin are about to finish high school,
will go to university together and probably still be the perfect couple they
are even ten years from now.
 
Yoongi thought he would be able to do that as well.
 
Sure, he was never the most motivated student and never really knew what he
wanted to become later, still doesn't really know, but he was always looking
ahead. He has come so far and managed to get accepted to the same university as
his friends, never felt the need to rush or change anything, had his own pace
and thought someday, maybe at university, he’ll find what Jihae and Seokjin
already have.
 
But then Jimin came into his life and ran all over him and now he’s sitting
here and can only watch his future going down the drain because he was an
idiot.
 
"Eyes on your own paper, Min Yoongi," his math teacher rips him out of his
trance with his perpetual reprimanding voice. Yoongi can only gape at him with
dumbfounded eyes before he blinks away the tears of frustration and takes
another shaky breath.
 
He really needs to get back on track.
 
Finally, he starts filling out the few questions he feels he can manage to
answer. He tries to concentrate and to listen to his brain that tells him he
would regret this forever if he messes up now that he's so close to graduating.
 
Somehow, he manages to channel all his pent-up frustration into his lacklustre
math skills and wings it somehow, writes something for every question even if
he feels like merely bullshitting half of his way through it.
 
After what feels like only a few seconds, the school bell goes off again and
then it's over.
 
Yet, when he leaves the classroom he feels more on edge than he did earlier
this morning.
 
"Man, I’m so glad this exam is finally over," Seokjin says while stretching his
arms over his head before rolling his shoulders, dispelling the tension in his
limbs and back from sitting in an uncomfortable classroom chair for so long.
 
"Yeah, it was pretty difficult and I'm so glad we went over everything again
yesterday. I hope I didn’t mess up too bad," Jihae agrees with her boyfriend
with a relieved smile on her face. "What about you, Yoongi-yah?"
 
Yoongi sighs. "This day was already one of the shittiest days of my life as
soon as I woke up this morning, so is anyonesurprised that I messed up big
time? No," he deadpans and rubs his arm in irritation, ignoring the worried
glances his two friends exchange with each other.
 
All he wants to do is to go home and hide under his blanket, scream into the
pillow and come up with a plan of how to get rid of his feelings. He could also
go and hole up in the basement with his beloved drumset that has probably more
feelings for him than Jimin will ever have and just drum the stress and his
crush out of himself.
 
But he would have to go to the teacher's office and excuse himself with another
lie if he wanted to do that. Moreover, his father would be in there too and ask
him questions. So he doesn’t follow the idea any further. He keeps on shuffling
forward instead to follow the other two to the schoolyard where their friends
are already waiting for them.
 
"Don’t lose hope just yet, Yoongi-yah. The results will be out next week and
even if you've messed up this particular exam, you'll still be able to
graduate, I’m sure," Jihae tries and pats Yoongi’s back before she kisses
Seokjin’s cheek, "I’ll go and check up on Soomi, see you later, guys."
 
Yoongi doesn’t react to that, doesn’t react when Seokjin’s hand squeezes his
shoulder either because he realises with another sting in his heart that all of
them are here: Hoseok, Namjoon, Taehyung and Jeongguk – only Jimin is missing
again. He's always been with them lately, but today he's not here and Yoongi
doesn't have to be a genius to guess why that might be.
 
"Damn, hyung, you look really pale. Was it that bad?" Jeongguk asks, a deep
furrow on his brow.
 
"Yeah, you look like shit, hyung," Taehyung agrees, pursing his lips but Yoongi
just shrugs and looks down at his feet. Not a second later he has Taehyung's
lanky arms around his shoulders, the younger but taller boy patting his back
gently. "After rain comes sunshine, hyung! Forget about the exam, it's gonna be
fine!"
 
Yoongi soaks up Taehyung's comfort, releases a shaky breath and nods slowly,
unable to agree or disagree.
 
"Taetae is right! Let’s forget about these stupid exams for now and concentrate
on really important things," Hoseok tries to distract them and Yoongi knows
he's doing it to divert the attention away from him. He's really thankful.
"Actually, I wanted to wait until we're complete but we need a serioustopic
change, so – our band shirts just came, my mom texted me. She’ll bring them
over later before band practice so we can have a look at them to check if
everything fits," Hoseok says proudly, giddiness oozing out of him.
 
The others cheer and everyone gets really excited, and even Yoongi manages to
smile a little because he has really looked forward to owning their first,
legit band T-shirt.
 
"I can’t wait to see them. The cotton candy Jeonggukkie drew will look awesome
on our shirts," Namjoon says and Seokjin agrees.
 
"It's really super-duper cute."
 
"I’m never gonna take it off again once I have it!" Taehyung adds and all of
them laugh, Jeongguk ruffles Taehyung’s hair and Yoongi is so glad to have
them, glad that they're here to ground him.
 
But his heart feels like there is a piece missing.
 
Why is nobody saying a word about Jimin?
 
His eyes scan the school grounds until he finds him. The happy conversation of
his friends dissolves into the background when Yoongi sees Jimin standing on
the opposite side of the schoolyard with some other boys and girls. Boys and
girls he has seen hanging out with Jimin before.
 
One of the guys is standing close to Jimin, telling him something that makes
Jimin laugh, seemingly carefree and full of joy before he playfully hits the
other on his arm.
 
Before he can think properly, Yoongi wishes he could be the other guy right
now.
 
Wishes he would be the one who makes Jimin smile, the one who touches Jimin’s
hip with his hand.
 
But he isn’t.
 
He lets his head droop so his fringe falls into his eyes and bites the inside
of his lip in order to control the pain inside of him.
 
"—listening, hyung? Hyung?" Hoseok’s soft voice resounds next to him and Yoongi
quickly averts his gaze from Jimin to look at his best friend. He briefly
checks on their other friends but none of them seems to have noticed Jimin
standing on the other side of the schoolyard except for Hoseok, all of them
busy with fooling around and teasing each other about something Yoongi didn’t
catch on.
 
"Sorry, Seokkie, what did you say?"
 
Hoseok just looks into his eyes before he sighs and grabs his wrist, gently
pulling him away from the rest. "Hyung, you know, usually I’d wait until you
wanna talk about it on our own and I know it’s not my place to ask but—,
Taehyungie and Jeonggukkie were not lying when they said you look awful and
I’ve been really worried all morning. This is not just because you had your
math exam today, right? You haven't talked about yesterday at all. About what
happened after I left you guys alone."
 
Yoongi bites his lip and stares at Hoseok’s shoes, sniffing as quietly as he
can muster while he tries to find the right words to begin.
 
“‘Cause there’s nothing to say. You were right. You should never be the one to
tell someone you like them first. Especially not if you really like them a lot
and you already know you're going to be rejected," he mumbles with a shrug, not
looking up, feeling like a total loser.
 
And a loser he is.
 
"What? H-hey, hyung, are you—, are you crying?"
 
Yoongi snorts and then sniffs again, shaking his head a little to knock his
fringe out of his eyes that sting obnoxiously. "No, I’m not," but Hoseok’s
sympathetic gaze on him makes it really difficult not to when he goes on.
 
"Okay. So… what happened? You told him?" Hoseok asks carefully and Yoongi’s
head starts to throb with every beat of his heart.
 
"No. I mean, yeah. I mean—. I don’t know, okay?" he splutters and rubs his arm
again while Hoseok watches him, surprised, "everything was kind of alright, I
gave him the mixtape I made but then this stupid guy appeared out of thin air
and—. I’m such an idiot."
 
"Guy? What guy?" Hoseok asks and looks in the direction of Jimin and the other
guy but Yoongi shakes his head.
 
"Not him, I-I don’t know, Hobi, I guess it was his ex. He was all tall and
good-looking and laid-back, but most of all he was a huge asshole, a total
jerk, so much I can tell you. A-and Jimin seemed so—, so scared of him. He was
so insecure, I’ve never seen him like that before. And this guy, Joonho, kept
on telling Jimin that no one would ever love him but him, so—. I just felt like
I wanted to protect him, I didn't want that guy to treat Jimin like that, so I
put my arm around him and said I’m his boyfriend."
 
Yoongi cringes at the recollection of what he did and he has to lower his head
again, wishing there was a hole appearing in the ground to just swallow him up.
 
Hoseok next to him has obviously lost his ability to speak at the revelation of
Yoongi's stupidity and Yoongi can understand him; he wouldn’t know how to tell
his best friend that he’s a complete idiot either.
 
Who in the world goes around and claims to be someone’s boyfriend in front of
their ex?
 
"Okay. Alright, let’s just not think about why the heck you thought that would
be a good idea. What happened then?" Yoongi glances up at Hoseok before looking
back at the ground, a shiver running down his spine that settles in the pit of
his stomach when the phantom of Jimin's lips appears on his own again.
 
He closes his eyes and takes a shaky breath.
 
"I kissed him."
 
"You kissed him," Hoseok repeats flatly before he seems to realise what those
words mean, his eyes going big when Yoongi looks up at him to throw him a
rather sad excuse of a glare. "You kissed Jimin?" Hoseok blurts out and
Yoongi's heart drops to the ground, his eyes snapping in the direction of their
friends to check if they have heard Hoseok's exclaim.
 
Hoseok follows Yoongi's glance with his own eyes but as it turns out, the
others are totally lost in their own world. At least he’s been spared from the
embarrassing exposure – for now.
 
He rubs his palms over his jeans and shrugs a little, nodding at Hoseok’s
question. "Yeah, I… I kissed Jimin."
 
"Did he slap you or something?" Hoseok's worried voice asks next and Yoongi
huffs before he shakes his head.
 
"No, he—. He actually played along. I mean, he didn't say anything to make it
clear to his ex that we areindeed boyfriends but—, he kissed me back and told
Joonho to fuck off afterwards. But when we were finally alone again, he just—,
he walked away. He said bye and left."
 
Hoseok falls silent next to him, is just watching him with worried eyes. Yoongi
can feel them without seeing them but he can’t look back at him because he’s
fighting with his emotions.
 
"I was just standing there like an idiot and he didn't even say anything. If
that wasn't rejection in all its glory then I don't know what is," his voice is
wavering now, cracking around almost every syllable and he feels so lost even
though he now finally knows where he stands. He will never be Jimin’s
boyfriend. "How am I ever going to face him again, Seokkie? I don’t know what
to do."
 
Hoseok sighs and rubs his temple before he places his hand on Yoongi’s
shoulder, squeezing it gently. "Not gonna lie, this sounds like it could have
gone a whole lot better. But fuck that, at least you finally tried to tell him
somehow. He really could have given you a proper answer though."
 
Yoongi’s eyes automatically search for Jimin again, observing him from afar. He
slowly leans his head against his friend’s shoulder when the other puts an arm
around him. "On top of everything, I majorly fucked up this goddamn math exam.
I mean really fucked up. I’ll probably spend another year here with you,
Seokkie."
 
"That’s bullshit, hyung. We all know math isn’t your favourite subject, but you
always somehow managed to make it in the past."
 
"Yeah, but in the past, I had always been prepared, unlike this time," he
mumbles and Hoseok kicks him in the shin with the gentleness of a rugby player,
pouting at him.
 
"Hyung! Okay, no. Listen to me," his friend says and turns to stand in front of
him, blocks his view so he is forced to finally look away from Jimin. He feels
Hoseok’s hands on his shoulders and looks at his face. "I know you can’t
control your feelings, and having a broken heart is the worst. But please don’t
fuck up your future because of this, okay? I know it’s difficult but you need
to focus on your finals for now. You've been dreaming of going to that
university since we were kids, Yoongi."
 
"I know," Yoongi whispers and he knows he shouldcare, but somehow he can’t.
 
"Come on, let’s go back to the rest before they ask stupid questions. Break’s
over soon anyway. And any distraction is the best when you’re lovesick, I
totally know how much it sucks. Lovesickness is like—, like poison! Once it's
in your system it's hard to get it out again,"Hoseok says and nods gravely.
Yoongi snorts even though his heart hurts like hell.
 
"I really hope you'll get into a relationship soon, Hob-ah. You can't go on
your whole life and always talk about your experience with that one girlfriend
you had in middle school."
 
"Hey, I'm sure I'm gonna leave my single life behind me real soon. I'm a total
catch! And there's that girl in my class who sometimes steals glances at me, so
maybe—," Hoseok grins before biting his lip and Yoongi chuckles, putting his
arm around his waist while they walk back.
 
"Yeah, you are a total catch."
 
"My future wife agrees with you," Hoseok brags with a clumsy wink, causing
Yoongi to roll his eyes fondly. He leans his head against his best friend’s
arm.
 
"I love you, Hobi," Yoongi mutters quietly and Hoseok rubs his arm
affectionately.
 
"I love you, too, hyung. Please don't get hurt, okay? Don't let him do to you
whatever he wants."
 
Yoongi glances up at Hoseok but before he is forced to give an answer he can’t
give right now they are back with the others.
 
"Hyungs! Have you got some coins? I wanted to pull a coke out of the vending
machine but I haven't got enough spare coins and the others only have bills,"
Jeongguk pleads as soon as they reach them and Yoongi feels somewhat comforted
by the mere fact that he is with his friends who treat him no different than
usual.
 
"Ay, look at this spoiled brat. You’re really spending too much time with
Taehyungie, Guk. That stuff is totally overpriced, buy something at the
convenience store before heading to school next time," Hoseok rants but still
pats his pants pockets, checking them for coins.
 
Yoongi pulls out his wallet from his back pocket, handing it to Jeongguk,
"here, take Taehyung with you. But don’t overdo it, alright?"
 
"Thanks, hyung! I’ll definitelypay you back next time, I promise," Jeongguk and
Taehyung both run away towards the vending machines and Yoongi looks after them
until Seokjin starts complaining about having to go to work today instead of
enjoying the beautiful summer weather with them after practice and everything
seems to be as close to normal as it could get.
 
The school bell ends the break soon after Taehyung and Jeongguk are back. When
the two walk off into the direction of their classroom, Yoongi observes how
Jimin joins them, chats with them as he usually would. Yoongi can do nothing
but stare after them before he turns around to go to his own classroom.
 
The rest of the school day passes without him really hearing or seeing anything
as he keeps staring off into space. He feels sick and miserable, and the closer
the time draws to band practice the worse it gets.
 
He can’t stop thinking about what will happen when Jimin approaches him,
ifJimin will approach him at all and what it would mean if Jimin decided to
continue to avoid him. His stomach starts to hurt really bad when the sound of
the school bell resounds through the classroom and suddenly he’s very sure that
he can’t do this.
 
He's going to die.
 
Yet, he tells Seokjin and Jihae goodbye and drags his feet that feel like lead
in front of the music room before he takes a deep breath and enters.
 
Hoseok is there, thank god, and Namjoon is just about to leave, giving him a
fist bump and a pat on the shoulder.
 
"Damn, hyung, you still look like you’re on the brink of death. Better take it
slow today, eh," Namjoon says, the grin on his lips only softened by his gaze
that tells him he's genuinely worried. Yoongi forces his lips to curve upwards
before he sniffs briefly.
 
"Worry about yourself, Namu, I'm good," he says and looks after him before
turning to Hoseok who seems to freeze for a moment before he inhales sharply.
 
"Shit, Yoongi, I forgot the shirts. My mom is probably already waiting
downstairs."
 
"Huh?"
 
"Our band shirts, hyung! I gotta fetch them real quick before the others
arrive, okay?"
 
"W-wait, Hobi, don't go, please—," Yoongi pleads, almost grabbing Hoseok's arm
to keep him from leaving. His mind starts racing and his eyes go all wide,
begging Hoseok to stay.
 
"I'll be right back, okay? Don't worry, hyung," and then he leaves with Namjoon
and Yoongi is left alone in the music room.
 
He takes a stuttering breath and puts his bag down on the battered brown
leather couch, shakes his hands out a few times and closes his eyes for two,
three seconds before he opens them again and walks over to the drumset, his
battered sticks twirling in his hands.
 
Before he reaches the drums, the door swings open again, making him flinch a
little. The voices of their youngest can be heard instantly. Jeongguk and
Taehyung are laughing and snickering while Jimin is following them with a soft
smile on his lips and reluctance in his eyes.
 
Said eyes quickly dart around the room until they find Yoongi, and when they
do, a faint blush appears on Jimin's cheeks before he quickly averts his gaze
back to their friends. Yoongi's heartbeat quickens just because of the mere
fact that they are in the same room and he feels a lot like throwing up even
though he hadn’t had all that much to eat today.
 
“Hi hyung! Where did Hobi go? He looked stressed,” Taehyung asks him while
throwing himself on the old couch with his bass case, Jimin sitting down next
to him while rummaging through his bag.
 
“No, he’ll be back soon, he just went to get the shirts,” Yoongi mumbles,
sitting down at the drumset, wishing he could hide behind it for real.
 
Especially when he realises that Jimin has gotten up again and is slowly making
his way over to him. The pink haired boy is not looking at him but at a
crumpled paper in his hands.
 
Everything about him is so freaking perfect: his hair colour that is soft pink
and vibrant again, even the crooked tooth that peeks out from behind his lips,
the sweet scent of his perfume that clouds Yoongi's senses.
 
And it hurts.
 
"Hyung, hey, I—. I just wanted to show you—. I got 75 points in the music
theory test," Jimin says with an uncertain smile on his lips, holding the paper
up in front of his face and Yoongi can’t help but feel another sting in his
heart. He doesn’t know what he had expected Jimin to tell him when they see
each other again but it sure wasn’t something as mundane as this.
 
Maybe it's because Yoongi has been thinking about the kiss non-stop and Jimin
has not.
 
He forces a smile.
 
"Congrats, Jimin. You've worked really hard for this. I'm—, very proud of you."
 
"Thank you, hyung," Jimin says softly before he licks his lips, "but I couldn't
have done it without you. I'd probably have zero points if you didn't help me
study."
 
"I—," Yoongi rubs his nose before his hand wanders to his nape. His heart is
beating hard in his throat and he swallows dryly. "You did more on your own
than you might think now. You did really well."
 
Yoongi's gaze is fixed on Jimin's delicate hands that are holding onto the
paper in front of his face before Jimin suddenly lowers it and his and Yoongi's
gaze meet directly. Yoongi feels like someone just punched him in his stomach.
 
It's quiet except for the instruments their friends are tuning, and Yoongi
hates how he and Jimin are back to being awkward with each other. He hates how
Jimin looks at him with those wavering eyes, how he nervously bites his lips
and obviously doesn't know what to do or say.
 
Yoongi prepares for the worst.
 
"Hyung, listen, about yesterday—, I, uhm—,"
 
Yesterday.
 
Yesterday when they met Jimin's ex. Yesterday when they kissed. Yesterday when
Jimin left him standing there alone with his broken heart.
 
"I-I don't know how to say it, I—,"
 
"Then don’t," Yoongi blurts out before he can think it through but it shuts
Jimin right up and that’s all he really needs at the moment. "You don’t have to
say it, Jimin," please don’t say it at all, "I—, I don’t really want to hear
it, either. Not right now."
 
He can't handle even more rejection right now.
 
He glances back at his drumsticks, slowly spinning them between his fingers. He
doesn’t want to cry in front of his friends – in front of Jimin – so he
swallows down the heavy lump in his throat and keeps his calm. It makes him
feel even more sick.
 
"What?" Jimin asks, dumbstruck, voice a little higher than usual. Jimin just
stares at him and Yoongi can’t look into his eyes, scratches his neck and
directs his gaze to the door instead, hoping Hoseok will come back really soon.
 
"Today was pretty shitty and… just please, don’t say it. Not now."
 
There's a pause where neither Yoongi nor Jimin say anything, and the silence
between them lowers onto Yoongi's shoulders like a heavyweight, almost crushing
him.
 
"Okay," he hears Jimin say after a few moments but it sounds so distant to
Yoongi, and when he looks up he can see how Jimin’s eyes are glossy and his
mouth is set into a hard line. "Okay, all the time you need. It wasn’t that
important anyway," Jimin shrugs before he runs a hand through his hair and
averts his gaze to the ground.
 
When Jimin looks back up he smiles but it doesn't reach his eyes at all; they
remain empty and unreadable.
 
Jimin nods a few times, simply turns around then and walks back to Jeongguk and
Taehyung, asking them about their guitars as if nothing has happened.
 
There's a sharp sting between Yoongi's ribs that he tries to rub away with his
palm – with minor success. He averts his gaze to the ground before he sniffs
and takes a deep breath.
 
‘You know, it was just a blowjob. Nothing more, so you can just forget about
it. It was no big deal, okay?’
 
The memory of the words Jimin threw at him after they had their little
encounter in the bathroom is being catapulted to the forefront of Yoongi's
mind; this situation is all too similar.
 
If Jimin wanted to tell him that their kiss was not that important either just
now, then he really doesn't want to hear it. He's really not strong enough to
hear that right now.
 
Still, a part of him feels like Jimin didn’t mean what he said, like there was
more. But in the end, it is probably just his stupid heart not wanting to
understand that there isn’t more between them.
 
He can hear the younger ones talk and how Jimin laughs at something that
Taehyung says and he thinks about leaving, about maybe going outside and having
a smoke until Hoseok is back. He just really wants to get away from here for a
moment.
 
But he remains where he is, not quite daring to move, just staring at a random
spot on his tom, thinking about what just happened and almost regretting
everything of it already.
 
When Hoseok comes back, Yoongi is barely hanging in there. He's still holding
his drumstick in his fingers but he's stopped spinning it, lest he would drop
it. He watches how Hoseok distributes the T-shirts according to their sizes and
accepts his own as well when Hoseok offers it to him.
 
His gaze wanders to the younger ones where Taehyung is already proudly jutting
out his chest wearing the band T-shirt, Jeongguk is still topless and Jimin is
in the middle of pulling the shirt over his torso, pulling at the hem until it
falls loosely over his hips.
 
He looks adorable in the black T-shirt with the pink letters and the small
cartoonish cotton candy in the front, grinning at their friends as Taehyung
whistles and Jeongguk gives him a thumbs up. He looks so carefree and not at
all like they have had that mind-blowing kiss just yesterday.
 
Yoongi really wishes he could go to Jimin as well and tell him how beautiful he
looks. Maybe give him a high five just to be able to touch his hand one more
time and see Jimin smile at him.
 
Instead, Yoongi feels Hoseok’s hand on his shoulder as he blinks his tears
away, tries to smile at him but fails.
 
He feels like he’s missing something important, like there has been something
he should have said or done but he doesn’t know what to do anymore. The only
thing he really wants to do is to go home and hide in his room until his life
is back to normal again – but their leader officially starts their session and
all the thoughts in his mind start to jumble.
 
Band practice turns out to be a mess.
 
Not only does Yoongi miss the beat a few times but he also notices how Jimin is
unfocused and clumsy during rehearsal; forgetting lyrics, not hitting the
correct notes, almost tripping over a wire. To top it off, Yoongi notices how
Hoseok scolds him more than usual, something that also doesn't go unnoticed by
Taehyung and Jeongguk who watch the whole spectacle unfold while exchanging
awkward glances with each other.
 
The atmosphere is tense, like a rubber band before snapping, and Yoongi feels
guilty for ultimately causing this entire mess.
 
He only feels like he can breathe again when Hoseok stops this fiasco from
escalating any further and calls an end to the session.
 
"Okay, today was a bad day, but I’m sure we’ll get there. We still got three
weeks until the contest, right? And we're all going to look rad on stage,"
Hoseok says with the biggest proud smile on his face, "the shirts are so
perfect and, ah, I could actually shed a tear."
 
"Don't cry, Hobi hyung," Jeongguk comes to pat Hoseok on the shoulder and
Hoseok laughs.
 
"Don't worry, Guk-ah, it would be a very happy tear! Oh, before I forget – you
can all wear the shirts as much as you want but make sure to keep them spotless
for the contest!"
 
"Yes, leader," the younger ones say in unison and Hoseok looks content at that.
 
"Okay, now, since we're done earlier we have half an hour to spare before
Jeongguk has to go home, so who's in for a short trip to the mall?"
 
Jeongguk's eyes start to sparkle along with Taehyung's and they both cheer at
Hoseok's suggestion.
 
But Jimin—
 
Jimin, after several times of saying yes to hanging out with them after
practice in the past, says no.
 
"Sorry guys, gotta blast. Already have some other plans," he smiles coyly and
tries to wink which only ends up in his kind of squinting with both eyes and
it's so fucking adorable Yoongi wants to die.
 
Yoongi stares after him but Jimin doesn’t turn around to look back.
 
 
 
 
                                      –☼–
 
"Hey, Jimin, you’re really quiet today. You should smile more, no one likes
moping company," the guy next to him, Chanwoo or something, says and Jimin
clicks his tongue, annoyed. His eyes narrow and he knows exactly that Chanwoo
doesn't give a damn about whether he's 'moping' or not, as he so eloquently put
it.
 
All the guy wants is having someone pretty next to him and Jimin is so sick of
being a pretty accessory for other guys.
 
Yoongi wouldn’t treat him like this.
 
Yoongi would make him laugh with a silly joke that is so lame that it's
hilarious. He would do something stupid like pulling a grimace or pretend to be
a zombie or he would look at him as if he was the one that made the sun rise
every morning and all of Jimin's dark thoughts would be blown away again.
 
He thinks of how he and Yoongi stood in front of his ex, Yoongi's arm securely
wrapped around his shoulders, his skin heating up from the touch and his
stomach feeling like it was doing somersaults.
 
He doesn't understand why he's not with Yoongi right now, why he made the other
so upset when he tried to talk to him that suddenly everything fell apart
again. Instead, he's here with a guy he barely knows and treats him like a
doormat.
 
But it's a hundred times better than sitting at home alone, mulling non-stop
over the kiss, about how he couldn't tell Yoongi what he wanted to tell him
because he was so nervous, wallowing in self-pity about these feelings he
cannot quite put his finger on yet.
 
Why not going out with someone else to take advantage of them again? Since
that's apparently the only thing he knows how to do right.
 
"Does it really matter to you all that much what face I make?" Jimin sighs,
raking his fingers through his hair a little too forcefully. Of course, the guy
wouldn't care what face he makes if all he hopes for is fucking him from behind
later. Jimin's not stupid.
 
"Don't be like that," Chanwoo rolls his eyes in annoyance and Jimin mentally
takes a note to erase that dude from his life after this is over. "So, what if
I buy you some ice cream and then we gonna have some fun? I’m gonna cheer you
up real quick, sugar."
 
Jimin huffs a laugh and almost gags at the ridiculous nickname. Since he's only
wearing a very loose and revealing tank top, he shivers a little in the air-
conditioned interior of the ice cream parlour and absentmindedly rubs over his
arms.
 
"Sure, tiger," he says with a bored voice, rolling his eyes. He brushes some
pink strands of hair out of his face with his fingertips and tries to ignore
how hesitation claws angrily at his heart.
 
He has been doing this for the past two years, why is it suddenly so hard now?
 
He lets the guy buy ice cream for him and accepts the cup from the girl behind
the counter, immediately spooning some of the cream into his mouth. He leans
against the counter while the other is paying and lets his gaze wander over the
interior of the parlour.
 
And then he freezes, plastic spoon hanging forlornly between his lips.
 
At a table not far from him he detects Taehyung, Hoseok and Namjoon, sitting
there with their own empty ice cream cups, hanging over some magazine they're
reading and talking about together. Jimin's breath hitches in his throat and
his stomach makes a little flip-flop before Chanwoo next to him pinches his
side and he startles.
 
"Come on, let's go, shorty."
 
Jimin keeps his eyes trained on his friends while he is guided towards the exit
by Chanwoo. He swallows dryly and intends to avert his gaze to the tiled floor
when suddenly Taehyung looks up and their gazes meet, his throat and his chest
tight. All of a sudden, what he's doing here feels even more wrong than it did
before.
 
Until something happens that he's never expected.
 
"Jiminnie!"
 
It's weird how a wave of relief washes over Jimin at hearing Taehyung's voice.
 
"Jiminnie! Jimmy, hey, hello!"
 
It's like the weight that has been pressing down on his chest has been lifted
off of him and leaves his mind clear and his heart free. He bites down on his
lower lip and suppresses a smile that tugs at the corners of his lips.
 
He slows down his steps and turns his head towards the table where they're
sitting at. He finds them all looking at him now, Taehyung beaming and Namjoon
smiling while Hoseok looks a little reserved but still neutral. Taehyung is
waving him over as if he hasn't seen him in days when in fact it was only just
yesterday they saw each other at school.
 
"Hey, where are you going, Min?" Chanwoo asks when Jimin takes a step in their
direction. He feels too good about having been called by them to care about the
other‘s scandalised expression. It's too sweet of a feeling, feels too much
like coming home to a place where he feels welcome and not just tolerated; it's
too addictive to resist.
 
Jimin only faces Chanwoo again when the other grabs his naked upper arm. He
narrows his eyes at him and hardens his gaze.
 
"I'm gonna sit with my friends," Jimin says matter-of-factly, unimpressed by
the other's furrowed brow and menacing glare, "thanks for the ice cream."
 
Chanwoo's face falls and he is pissed, Jimin can read it written all over his
face, but he doesn't care. Jimin yanks his arm out of his grip and turns around
again, walking to the other three.
 
"Fuck you, Min. I'll never fucking call you again!" he can hear Chanwoo say
behind gritted teeth, but Jimin doesn't even feel the need to flip him off.
It's definitely not hisloss.
 
"Hey, guys," Jimin smiles, feeling like he just got spared from committing the
biggest mistake in his entire life, glancing at the exit where Chanwoo is
stomping away. He slips into the padded bench next to Taehyung after the other
has scooted over a little.
 
In the very first moment, it's a little weird for him to sit down beside them
when Yoongi is not there; but Taehyung is, and Taehyung is more than enough to
ease the apprehension.
 
"Hey, Jimin. Did we interrupt something?" Namjoon asks, an easy smile on his
face, dimples showing.
 
"Hm? Oh, no no. It's fine."
 
"Your boyfriend?" Hoseok adds, somewhat brittle, and Jimin can sense the slight
hostility coming off of the older man that throws him off-guard.
 
"That dude?" Jimin snorts, "no way."
 
"Oh, sorry. Just assumed so because of the way he looked at you like he was
going to eat you up and—,"
 
"Hobi," Namjoon interrupts him sternly and Hoseok just huffs and crosses his
arms over his chest. There's a sinking feeling in Jimin's chest, a nagging at
the back of his mind that whispers to him he might not be welcome here after
all. He bites his lip and tries to ignore how his chest tightens when he lowers
his gaze to the table as he starts to feel like an intruder.
 
"Sorry, I should better go," he says with a forced smile and makes to get up
again when Taehyung grabs his wrist with both of his hands to hold him back.
 
"Nooo, please stay here, Jiminnie! Hobi is just in a stinky mood today because
the girl from his class he thought was eyeing him actually has a boyfriend,"
Taehyung says and Hoseok scowls all the more.
 
"O-oh," Jimin says dumbly but sits down again on the leather padding of the
bench, "sorry to hear that."
 
"Damn, aren't we all losers, never getting the girlfriends we want?" Namjoon
laments dramatically with a heavy sigh, "except for you Jimin, of course. I
mean, girlfriends probably aren't really your thing but, you know—," Jimin just
smiles at that and shakes his head.
 
"Neither are boyfriends," he says and Hoseok snorts, his eyes oozing judgmental
scrutiny. Jimin glances at the guitarist briefly before he mutters, "they're
just all out there breaking your heart after promising you the moon and the
stars from the sky. It's just not worth it."
 
"Ugh, bad experience?" Namjoon offers him a smile as he leans back in his chair
and sinks a little into it. Jimin tries to ignore how Hoseok looks like he's
gonna jump him and claw his eyes out any moment now.
 
"It's a long story, but not worth telling," Jimin says curtly and an awkward
silence stretches over the table that he needs to break again before it becomes
too much. "Uh, what about you guys? Really no girlfriends at all?" he puts the
plastic spoon full of ice cream into his mouth and licks it clean before he
smirks, "or boyfriends?"
 
All of them shake their head in unison. Taehyung seems to heat up several
degrees next to him while his cheeks turn redder than scarlet; Hoseok scowls
and Namjoon buries his face in his hands exasperatedly before he drags his
palms over it and smiles sheepishly.
 
"Nope, we're currently all single except for Jin. He's been with Jihae for—,
how long again?"
 
"Three years, I think," Taehyung answers and Jimin nods contemplatively,
impressed at hearing that their relationship has been lasting for so long
already.
 
"And you guys've never had one before? I mean, except for Hoseok," Jimin asks
curiously. It seems weird to him that none of them would have ever wanted to be
in a relationship or just hook up with someone. When he was fourteen, allof his
classmates were dabbling in kissing or more than that, and so he felt like it
was normal, like he had to go further, too, when he got his first boyfriend.
 
Now it’s all he knows.
 
"Not that we'd know. Well, Yoongi is definitely single. Right, guys?" Namjoon
smirks and Hoseok rolls his eyes while Taehyung snickers into his hands before
his face becomes more serious again, leaving Jimin no time to think about
Namjoon's comment about Yoongi being single. It merely leaves a weird feeling
in the pit of his stomach.
 
"Jeonggukkie also never had anyone," Taehyung mutters, "not even a crush! At
least, that's what he's told me." The younger boy has a slight pout on his lips
and absently rubs the pad of his index finger on a random spot on the table.
Jimin blinks at him, wondering if he'd only imagined that something is going on
between Taehyung and his best friend.
 
"Wait, is Jeongguk stillgrounded?" he asks when he realises that his classmate
should actually be here too.
 
"Yeah, especially today, it seems. His parents probably want him to have as
little fun as possible," Namjoon confirms with a sigh and Jimin raises his
eyebrows.
 
"That seems like an awfully long and severe punishment for something like
defending your friend," he says, thinking that Jeongguk's parents must be
literal monsters.
 
Taehyung heaves a heavy sigh, looking even more uncharacteristically unhappy
than before. Something within Jimin's heart stirs.
 
He buries his spoon in his ice cream again and pushes the cup closer to
Taehyung, smiling. "Here, you can have it if you want." Taehyung looks up at
him, then at the cup, then at Jimin again and his eyes begin to sparkle as he
takes the cup into his hands.
 
"Really? Thank you, Jiminnie!"
 
Jimin just smiles as a reply and puts his elbows on the table, propping his
head up on his hands.
 
"Where are the others? Jin and Yoongi?" he asks the group, trying to seem
nonchalant about it. "I guess Yoongi's at work, huh?"
 
"You guessed right," Hoseok mutters with a hiss in his voice and Namjoon nudges
him in the side with his elbow.
 
"Jin is with Jihae, probably doing couple stuff," Namjoon makes kissy noises
and Jimin arches an eyebrow, unimpressed. Gosh, these guys are so innocent he
wonders what to do with them. Then he pauses and licks his lips where Yoongi's
have been just two days ago. His heart rate picks up despite himself.
 
He clears his throat and leans back on the bench, trying to not think for the
five hundredth time that he might have been Yoongi's first kiss. He drifts off
a little with his thoughts, wonders if he could go visit Yoongi at the store
later under the pretence of wanting to buy some lollipops or something.
 
Maybe he shouldn't though. Maybe it'd only be awkward and Yoongi would hate it.
 
"Hey, vanilla or chocolate?" Taehyung suddenly asks around a spoonful of ice
cream and Jimin feels like he's missed a part of their conversation.
 
"Vanilla," Hoseok and Namjoon answer in unison before all three of them look at
Jimin expectantly. He thinks about it for the beat of a moment before he
answers.
 
"Stracciatella," Jimin says with a grin, "so you have both."
 
"You can't always have both, Jimin," Hoseok mumbles, glaring at him again.
Namjoon raises an eyebrow. "Sometimes you gotta settle for one thing and stick
to it, you know."
 
Jimin holds the elder's gaze, the corners of his mouth pointing down as he
tries to calm down the storm that is brewing up inside of him.
 
It's not fair.
 
It's not fair that despite him trying to apologise to Yoongi Hoseok has tried
to make him feel like shit ever since yesterday, or probably ever since Yoongi
told him what happened between them. Jimin is pretty sure that Yoongi talked
about it with his best friend. There's no other explanation.
 
"God, what’s wrong with you guys today? Your best friends are not around for
one day and you’re all emo. Drop that mood, the world isn’t going to end,"
Namjoon shoves Hoseok playfully at the shoulder and earns a middle finger in
return, but also a small apologetic grin.
 
"Let’s better talk about the realjoy in life instead. Jimin-ah, we're planning
a little party at the cabin next week on Saturday. You up for that? We're
celebrating Cotton Candy's fourth anniversary," Namjoon tells him, and Jimin's
head snaps up at him.
 
"It's more like a sleepover with alcohol, though," Taehyung adds, obviously
very giddy at the prospect of doing something as forbidden as drinking alcohol
at his age.
 
"Uh, I don't know?" Jimin replies, not sure if that's really his thing.
 
"You gotta! Please, join us, Jimin," Taehyung says, big puppy eyes directed at
him.
 
"I—, I really don't know if that's a good idea, guys."
 
"Oh, please, Jimin. You're our vocal, after all, you can’t be missing,"
Taehyung leans even closer, a little too close for comfort.
 
"Will Yoongi be there?" Jimin asks without thinking and the others fall silent.
He lets his eyes flicker between them from behind his fringe and purses his
lips. "What?"
 
"Wow," Namjoon says, voice and face as baffled as if he just saw a UFO land on
earth. Jimin frowns, wondering if his question was that weird.
 
"Of course, Yoongi will be there," Hoseok finally replies, a little reserved.
Jimin's lips twitch into a suppressed half-smile, his resolve of making things
between him and Yoongi right hardening again.
 
"’kay," he says, heart beating hard in his throat, "then I'm coming."







Seokjin's car smells completely different than Yoongi's.
 
Yoongi's was a little stuffy, the stale air that was heated up by the summer
sun mingled with the faint scent of Yoongi's perfume or maybe after-shave and
cigarette smoke.
 
Here it smells like fabric coming directly out of the factory, new plastic and
like the sickeningly artificial lemony scent of an air-refresher tree.
 
Jimin sighs through his nose, sinking deeper into the back seat of the car as
Seokjin trails behind Yoongi's mint coloured vehicle in front of them. He can
hear Seokjin and Namjoon talk together in the front, the radio playing some
Madonna song that would usually have Jimin dancing and singing along, but right
now he feels like a deflated balloon.
 
Damn, he misses Yoongi – talking to him, joking with him, touching him in just
some kind of way – much more than he would like to admit.
 
And they haven't talked at all since a total of three freaking days.
 
"Are you okay, Jimin?" Seokjin's voice suddenly cuts through the heavy haze in
his head and he snaps up his eyes to look at him in the rear-view mirror.
 
"I'm fine, just a little hot," he says honestly, "this summer is insane." He
sees how the elder offers him a sympathetic smile over the mirror before he
turns on a button below the radio. Instantly, cool wind starts blowing in
Jimin's direction.
 
"Sorry, this car doesn't have a proper air-con," Seokjin says apologetically,
looking back at the street again.
 
"Oh no, it's fine. Don't worry 'bout me."
 
Namjoon has been shifting on his seat for a while now, and suddenly, he turns
around with a frown on his face and pats with his hand near where the backrest
of his seat meets the cushion on which he's sitting.
 
"What are you doing?" Seokjin asks, curiously glancing from the street to
Namjoon and back to the street.
 
"Aha!" Namjoon exclaims, holding something up Jimin can't see from where he's
sitting, "this has been poking my ass for the past five minutes! Wait, is this
lipstick?"
 
"Ah, there it is! Jihae was already looking for it," Seokjin says sheepishly
but also completely at ease, a small content smile on his lips.
 
A barely there flurry of envy ripples through Jimin's chest. Stunned, he
analyses how comfortable Seokjin seems to be with his girlfriend without having
any fears of having made such a huge commitment while Jimin can't even imagine
what it's like to be with someone for longer than a night.
 
"Will Jihae also come to the party?" he asks, leaning forward now so that he
can talk to them better, his tongue piercing briefly clacking against his teeth
as he pulls it between them.
 
"No. Jihae loves the boys, don't get me wrong, but that love is not enough to
willingly come and watch them getting shitfaced and crawl through the forest
like animals," Namjoon coughs at Seokjin and whacks his shoulder.
 
"Hey! We're not that terrible! Did she really say it like that?"
 
"Don't worry," Seokjin laughs, "that's just her way of telling us that she's
okay with us wanting to spend some quality guys time alone," Jimin scrunches up
his nose at that with a pout but then smiles slyly again.
 
"And what super manly things are we gonna do?" Jimin asks, mischievous, leaning
his elbows on the backrests of Seokjin's and Namjoon's seat, "hunt and skin the
meat we're gonna grill? Talk about cars and sports and play poker with cigars
hanging from our lips to prove our manliness?" Seokjin snorts at that and
Namjoon laughs, shaking his head.
 
"Yeah, and usually we also compare our dick sizes with each other whenever we
party," Namjoon adds crudely, voice laced with dry sarcasm. Jimin raises his
eyebrows, unfazed, causing both of them to laugh again.
 
"Don't worry, Jimin-ah. We're just gonna chill a little, sit around the fire
and get drunk. The only sausages we're gonna compare are the ones we're gonna
buynow."
 
"Huh," Jimin snorts a laugh, leaning back again, "sounds chill indeed."
 
He's not really used to parties like that, would probably not even call it a
party. The parties he knows were always overflowing with people, drugs and
alcohol, with bodies pressed against each other on the dance floor or somewhere
else. It's refreshing to see that things can also be different.
 
That he won't be forced to do anything he doesn't even really like to do.
 
"We don't judge each other or anything, you can always be honest."
 
He remembers Yoongi's words, the ones that helped him open up, that made him a
little less afraid of being himself. That initially made him feel more
comfortable around the band.
 
"Hey, Jin. Can I ask you something?"
 
"Sure, Jimin," Jin says while turning into the street that leads up to the
supermarket. The street is shimmering with hot air in front of them and Jimin
finds himself staring at the waves of heat hovering above the surface as he
tries to sort his words.
 
"What's it like? Being in a relationship for so long?" Jimin whispers, a little
insecure but also curious. "Don't you feel—, trapped? Scared?"
 
"Oh, Jimin, not at all," Seokjin says without a hint of hesitation, his brows
furrowed a little in worry as he watches Jimin through the rear-view mirror.
Namjoon remains quiet. Jimin can't see his face, just sees that he has his head
turned and is looking out of the window by his side. "Sure, it might make you
feel vulnerable sometimes, but for me, it would be way more terrible to not be
with her. She's the love of my life."
 
"How did you know that she's the one?" Jimin is only mumbling the words, and
he's almost afraid Seokjin didn't hear him, but then he hears him chuckle
softly just as he drives the car into the parking lot of the supermarket.
 
"If two are meant to be together, they will always find a way to be with each
other. It's inevitable."
 
"Hm," Jimin just hums, averting his gaze to his knees, trying not to think
about whether Seokjin and Namjoon can actually guess why he's asking.
 
"Sometimes, it's just worth taking the risk, Jimjim," Seokjin adds with a
warmth in his voice that compels Jimin to look up again. He licks his lips and
smiles a little, realising that he doesn't feel uncomfortable in the slightest
at showing them such a hidden part of his heart. "Okay, get out you two,"
Seokjin says after he's parked the car in an empty spot, pulling the key out of
the ignition.
 
Jimin quickly gets out of the hot car and stretches his arms over his head once
he's standing on his feet but falters when he notices a pair of eyes staring at
him, his arms lowering a little again. His breath hitches in his throat when
Yoongi looks away again, his heartbeat picking up at an alarming rate.
 
He doesn't know this feeling.
 
Clammy hands, heart racing in his chest, windpipe closing up.
 
He feels faint and only when he starts walking behind the others while
clenching his cold hands into fists by his side does he regain a little piece
of self-control.
 
He watches Yoongi's back, his slim waist and broad shoulders hidden by the
oversized flannel he's wearing today. He almost has to suppress a little whine
from bubbling up in his throat because he would like to just walk up to Yoongi
and hug him close and be the reason he can cheer up again.
 
He swallows hard and walks a little faster until he's caught up with Taehyung
and Jeongguk but takes care to keep a little distance to Yoongi. After last
Friday, he wants to be really careful of not crossing any boundaries, of
staying out of Yoongi's comfort zone, and it hurts but his mum was right;
Yoongi really deserves all the time he needs before facing him again.
 
It's just not as easy as he thought it would be to give him space when he's so
close to him and yet so far away.
 
"Yah, stop pushing me, Tae!" Seokjin complains as Taehyung walks up to the
other from behind and Jimin's thoughts get diverted to them again. Taehyung
grins broadly and loops his arms around Seokjin from behind before he puts his
chin on his shoulder, him being only a little shorter than his older cousin.
 
"Will we also buy some fireworks?" their youngest asks with puppy eyes and
Seokjin sets his face into a deep frown.
 
"The woods are way too dry for that right now, Taehyungie. Us making a fire is
already risky enough, we'll have to take good care, okay? We can buy some when
we go on our trip to fire it up at the beach, alright?"
 
"Boh," Taehyung whines, letting go of his cousin to cross his arms over his
chest petulantly. Jimin watches how Jeongguk doesn't hesitate for a moment to
put his arm around his best friend's shoulder, pulling him closer. Taehyung
simply lifts one of his arms a little so that he can grab Jeongguk's hand that
hangs over his collarbone, linking their fingers lightly. Jimin blinks, but as
always doesn't question it. It's not the first time he observes them behaving
like that.
 
"We’ll be much faster if we split up," Hoseok then catches their attention,
"Tae, Gukkie, why don’t you two go and get the barbeque meat? Oh and look for
paper plates, cups and stuff like this. We see each other in a quarter hour at
the checkout."
 
"Aye, aye, captain!" Taehyung and Jeongguk shout, already on the go with their
shopping cart.
 
"I’ll take these two with me and look for every unhealthy snack we can grab,"
Namjoon says with a wink in Seokjin's direction and puts an arm around Jimin’s
and Yoongi’s shoulders.
 
Jimin tenses.
 
Yes, he likes Namjoon but still isn’t really keen on being touched by him or
anyone else. The only times he doesn't instantly freeze up at being touched is
when it's Yoongi. And Taehyung, of course, whose touches have become almost
natural to him already.
 
Inconspicuously, he wiggles free of Namjoon's hold and fetches them a shopping
cart of their own.
 
"Alright," Seokjin agrees with a slight grin, "come on, Hobi. Let's see what
we'll find to get wasted on." Jimin can see the mother lion gaze Hoseok shoots
Yoongi, but their drummer is apparently too busy smoking up his quicky
cigarette that triggers Jimin to crave one, too. It's definitely too late now
to light one, however, as they're already making their way into the supermarket
with their cart.
 
Hoseok and Seokjin make a beeline to the back of the store where the alcohol is
located while Namjoon takes over the shopping cart from Jimin and steers it
towards the crisps and candy shelves. It gives Jimin the opportunity to walk
behind them again and observe Yoongi a little better.
 
His posture looks even worse than usual, shoulders slouching, head drooping a
little as he shuffles along the shelves next to the shopping cart with heavy
feet, the sleeves of his flannel hanging limply over his hands that are
completely covered by the cuffs. Not even his hair looks as fluffy as it
usually does.
 
Jimin takes a deep breath before he runs his hand through his own hair and
sucks on his piercing, his eyes darting in a random direction. He hates knowing
that Yoongi looks so worn out and out of it because of him.
 
"Let’s start with the crisps and then go over to the sweets shelf, okay?"
Namjoon suggests before he groans, "damn I’m so hungry right now I could buy
like all of these." Jimin snorts at that before he looks at Yoongi who just
arches an eyebrow at their friend. "Guess that’s not in our budget, eh?"
Namjoon adds sheepishly and punches Yoongi’s upper arm playfully.
 
"Nope, if we spend everything we've saved up so far, nothing will be left for
our trip and we'll have to pay enough for petrol, the camping fees and other
stuff."
 
"I know, hyung. Ah, but I'm really hungry right now."
 
Jimin is really, really glad that Namjoon is there with them. If he was
currently alone with Yoongi, this entire adventure would definitely be an
awkward mess.
 
Yoongi and Namjoon start looking through the variety of crisps while Jimin
catches sight of Taehyung and Jeongguk passing by their aisle, Taehyung sitting
in the shopping cart, Jeongguk pushing him through the aisles.
 
Jimin fondly rolls his eyes and can't help but think how they’re really still
just like two kids but he doesn't even mind. They look so carefree and happy
and he must admit being pushed around in a shopping cart looks kind of fun,
even to him.
 
"Jimin-ah, what's your opinion: Cheese or bacon flavoured?" Namjoon points at
the crisp bags in Yoongi’s hands and Jimin directs his attention back to them.
 
"Uhm, both?" he asks back, not really sure about what he wants. He's actually
craving onion rings so badly right now. Namjoon frowns at his reply.
 
"No buddy, remember. Sometimes you can't have both," Namjoon admonishes him and
Jimin pouts with a huff, tries to get not so nervous when he feels Yoongi’s
eyes on him again. "Come on, at the moment it stands one for bacon and one for
cheese."
 
"Then take bacon," he mutters and Namjoon pulls a face.
 
"Sometimes I hate democracy but you two are too damn adorable," he mutters
under his breath, shaking his head with a grin. But in that moment Seokjin
yells for Namjoon to come and help them, the drinks and everything apparently
too heavy for only two people to carry. "Sorry guys, gotta go to the rescue."
 
Jimin can't help but look after him dumbly as he walks away before he looks at
Yoongi. "What does he mean with adorable?" he can't help but feel a little
miffed about having been called that despite not having a clue why he and
Yoongi would be.
 
"Just ignore him," Yoongi says, looking after the tall grape haired man,
"they're all being annoying lately." It just comes out as a grumble, but Jimin
hears him clearly. He tries to not pride himself too much on the fact that he
can understand Yoongi perfectly in spite of the mumbling he sometimes does.
 
"Okay, hyung," Jimin shrugs and glances at the other man.
 
Is he still angry with him? Jimin might be tough, he might be indifferent
usually,but he really wishes he knew what is running through Yoongi's head
right now. Wishes he could make everything alright again.
 
All he wants to do is lean his head on Yoongi's shoulder and close his eyes and
tell him all the things he's never dared to say.
 
That he loves the mixtape so much. That he is grateful for Yoongi having
protected him from his ex. That Joonho's words were bullshit; that it's not
true that Yoongi isn't his type. Yoongi ishis type, and that’s his entire
problem.
 
"Hey, Yoongi hyung," Jimin speaks up before biting his bottom lip, trying to
ignore that they ever had that cursed conversation some days ago. That they
ever kissed and didn't talk about it. He gave up so quickly then, but he won't
give up now.
 
"Hm?" Yoongi hums absentmindedly while examining a bag of chocolate popcorn.
Jimin scrunches up his nose.
 
"Hyung, those are nasty, put them away!" he grabs the bag and puts them back on
the shelf, causing Yoongi to look at him with huge, startled eyes. Jimin picks
up the onion rings instead. "Can't we have these? I'd really like to have
these, hyung," he bats his eyelashes, pouting out his lips a little, teetering
on his tiptoes.
 
Yoongi scowls, grabs the green and yellow bag and blurts out something that
makes Jimin's heart drop to the ground.
 
"Ah, sometimes you really are such a spoiled princess, Jimin-ah."
 
Yoongi visibly freezes up when he stops talking, still holding the crisps bag
in midair, and Jimin sees Yoongi's cheeks turn seventy-eight shades darker.
Jimin can't help the grin that's tugging at his lips.
 
"What?"
 
"N-nothing," Yoongi shoots back, throwing the onion rings into the shopping
cart.
 
"You just called me princess," Jimin says matter-of-factly, walking after
Yoongi who almost starts sprinting towards the candy section. Jimin starts
grinning broadly, following close behind. "Yoongi hyung, you called me
princess!"
 
"Yeah, sorry. I—. Ju-just forget about it," Yoongi scoffs and Jimin can read
his face like an open book: remorse, embarrassment, the desire to jump off a
cliff – it's all written there while all Jimin feels is relief washing over
him. He smiles, feeling a fluttering warmth spread in his chest.
 
He's so fond. So damn fond of the other man.
 
"Hm, I don't think I want to forget about it," he says, even though he knows he
shouldn't tease Yoongi even more. He only feels a little bit bad about it
because Yoongi's reddened cheeks and ears are too precious to ignore.
 
Yoongi just scoffs and averts his eyes, a small pout on his lips, and the gaze
in Jimin's eyes softens with unchecked adoration. He instantly feels like he
can breathe better again, like a weight has been lifted off his chest at the
fact that he and Yoongi are talking normally again, even somewhat jokingly.
 
They turn into the aisle with the candy and Jimin observes how Jeongguk rushes
through the adjoining aisle with Taehyung still perched in the shopping cart,
hands thrown in the air and face as happy as can be. Jimin's lips lift into a
lopsided smile.
 
"You wanna sit in this one?" Yoongi suddenly asks and Jimin snaps his head
towards him.
 
"Huh?"
 
Yoongi shoves the contents of their shopping cart towards the front and
gestures for Jimin to give him his hand. Jimin blinks at him, dumbstruck.
 
"Come on. A princess needs a carriage," Yoongi mutters while holding out his
hand to him, the tips of his ears still a few shades darker than they usually
are. Jimin has to suppress an infatuated sigh.
 
"O-okay," he doesn’t know why his heart is beating so hard in his chest from
just taking Yoongi’s hand and being called princess by him. In fact, Jimin’s
heart has been galloping in his chest the second he laid eyes on Yoongi today,
its speed never faltering. Yoongi’s grip is strong and his hand almost covers
his smaller one completely and the other’s skin is so soft and warm against his
own while he climbs into the shopping cart to sit down in it.
 
He'd like to never let go of Yoongi's hand again.
 
But then he does and Yoongi curtsies, causing Jimin to laugh out loud, his
entire body curling into himself, shoulders shaking from the force of his
giggles. He wipes a tear from his eye, trying to not smudge his makeup too
much, and leans back, his butt wriggling a little until it's closer to the
centre of the shopping cart. He lifts his legs and crosses them over the cart's
front and gets comfortable.
 
"Ah, this is nice," Jimin says with a sigh, then he pauses. "I'm totally not
spoiled, though!" he adds defensively with a pout while eyeing the assortment
of candy on the shelves from his reclining position in the cart.
 
"Mhm, sure," Yoongi replies, voice flat and unimpressed. Jimin smiles.
 
"Hyung?"
 
"Hm?"
 
"I'm glad we're talking again," Jimin says softly, but Yoongi must have heard
him clearly, for the cart stops for the fraction of a second before he
continues pushing it more slowly.
 
"I didn't—, I just wanted to—,"
 
"No, it's fine. I get it. And I'm sorry," Jimin mutters ogling the lollipops
that they're passing by. He presses his lips into a thin line before he grabs
one. "Hey, will you buy me one?" he sits up properly again, twists his body
towards Yoongi, stick of the lollipop trapped between his palms while he's
holding up his hands in front of his face in a begging motion, almost like a
prayer.
 
Yoongi looks at him with wide and somewhat confused eyes before he snorts. He
briefly glances up at the ceiling before licking his lips, rubbing his nose and
looking down at him.
 
"Will you buy me one –what?"
 
Jimin curses inwardly, his face heating up when Yoongi looks at him like that.
Like he won't allow any arguments.
 
"Please? Please, hyung?" Jimin tries, biting his pouty lips.
 
"Totally not spoiled, huh?" Jimin’s grin grows broader, especially when Yoongi
leans in the slightest bit and Jimin's heart skips a beat. "You're the most
spoiled princess I've ever met, Park Jimin," Jimin stares into Yoongi's dark
eyes, amused grin morphing into a coy smile, eyelids drooping a little.
 
Jimin's heart is racing and he hopes Yoongi's is too.
 
"I can make up for it?" Jimin says, voice low and promising, but Yoongi clicks
his tongue and goes back into an upright position, crushing Jimin's faint hopes
of feeling the other's lips on his again. His playful smile is exchanged by a
petulant frown.
 
"No need. I'll buy it for you so that I won't have to listen to your whining
for the rest of the day."
 
"You—, what? Hey!" Jimin gasps, scandalised, but only earns a cheeky grin from
Yoongi and—
 
Yoongi's hand in his hair when the other musses it up beyond repair, making
Jimin yelp helplessly.
 
"N-no, stop it, hyung," he whines, trying to knock his hand away. He grabs for
it but Yoongi is quicker and skillfully retreats it before Jimin can do
anything. He can hear Yoongi's amused chuckle and feels his strong fingers on
his scalp even after they're gone.
 
"Hey, Jimin. The red or the green stripes?" Yoongi asks a moment later, holding
up a box of the sugary yet sour red candy stripes in his hands that he grabbed
from the shelf they were passing by just now without Jimin noticing. Jimin is
still grumpily fixing his hair as he looks at the box in Yoongi's hand and then
at the other boxes on the shelf.
 
"Green!" he says and Yoongi exchanges the red stripes for the green ones, a
content smile on his face.
 
"Good choice," Yoongi comments before they start putting more and more random
things into the cart. They shouldn't buy too much but after all, it's the
band's anniversary so they don't really hold back even when the space at
Jimin's feet becomes less and less.
 
"Hey, losers," Jeongguk suddenly shouts at them from behind, pushing the cart
in which Taehyung is still sitting in closer to them. "Are you up for a race?"
the tall brown haired boy asks with a mischievous smirk on his lips while
Taehyung, with his red bandana wrapped around his forehead, has an innocent,
almost serene expression on his face. Jimin lifts an eyebrow and looks at
Yoongi to gauge his opinion. He sees his hyung frown in contemplation.
 
"Nah, Jeongguk-ah, we really shouldn't cause any trouble, 'kay?" Yoongi waves
Jeongguk off, sternly, but also gently, before he leans towards Jimin's ear.
"Get ready, Jimin-ah," he whispers and Jimin bites his lip hard to suppress a
giddy giggle.
 
He observes how Jeongguk draws closer and closer, gaze just as disappointed as
Taehyung's, before Yoongi suddenly grips the handlebar of the cart hard and
starts running. "Bye! Losers yourself," Yoongi shouts and Jimin only sees a
glimpse of Jeongguk's and Taehyung's startled faces before he turns around
again and cheers loudly, holding onto the metallic frame of the cart.
 
The other two recover soon from their initial surprise and chase them through
the aisles, garnering the one or the other nasty look from other customers; but
they couldn't care less.
 
Only a few weeks ago, Jimin would have said no.
 
Only a few weeks ago, this would have been way too childish for him.
 
Only a few weeks ago, he never thought he could ever be this happy.
 
Excitement fires up every single nerve in his body as they're flying past the
shelves with the other two hot on their heels. He can hardly contain his
breathless screams and shouts of 'watch out!' and 'faster, Yoongi, faster!',
his head thrown back in carefree laughter as Yoongi also makes noises of glee
and excitement.
 
They run through various aisles, the other two always close behind, and when
they finally meet up with the beverage team and come to an abrupt halt, both of
them are panting heavily despite only Yoongi having done the actual racing
while Jimin was just sitting in the cart. Jeongguk turns up next to them, also
huffing and puffing a little, but not nearly as much as Yoongi does. Taehyung,
out of them all, has the biggest smile on his face.
 
"That was so much fun! We should do that more often!" their youngest cheers,
and earns a smack on the back of his head by his cousin.
 
"No, Kim Taehyung, you shouldn't! Yoongi, how on earth did you think this was a
good idea?" Seokjin asks exasperatedly, but Yoongi is beaming, his smile
showing teeth and gums and everything. His cheeks are red again and the damp
ends of his dark hair stick to his forehead messily in some places.
 
Jimin has never seen anything more beautiful.
 
"Shut up, Jin. I'm keeping myself young and fresh while you're getting older
and wrinkly. Soon you'll end up needing a walking frame," Yoongi teases his
friend and Jimin snickers as he shares a high-five with Yoongi who is casually
resting against the handlebar of the cart with his elbows, head almost leaning
against his own.
 
"Hyung, can you help me getting out?" he asks after Seokjin has tried to argue
with Yoongi about being a good example in front of the younger ones. He really
wants to get out of the shopping cart now since his ass starts hurting.
 
"Sure," Yoongi offers him his hand without hesitation and Jimin tries to ignore
how everyone else becomes quiet and exchanges meaningful glances with each
other.
 
He holds onto Yoongi's hand again and feels like a fucking blossom bursting
open to be in full bloom when their fingers intertwine briefly. He smiles and
lets go of the hand when he stands, missing its touch instantly.
 
"Thanks, hyung. Ah, my butt hurts," he doesn't even care about the others being
there, about them being all cryptic and shit, about how he wouldn't have done
all this not even that long ago. Is just glad when he's finally on his two feet
again, albeit a little wobbly. He rubs his ass cheeks and his thighs through
his jeans and smiles brightly at Yoongi whose hair is falling into his face
again, the softest expression on his features.
 
"So, now that we apparently got everything, let's go and pay," Hoseok ushers
them towards the registers where they put everything they got onto the checkout
belt. Jimin can feel the disgruntled glare of the cashier burning into them and
it makes him exchange amused glances with Taehyung and Jeongguk before Hoseok
smacks their heads and tells them they're lucky that they didn't get kicked out
of the store for their reckless behaviour.
 
He sends them packing all the stuff into paper bags, which they begrudgingly do
together with Yoongi who comes to help them while Namjoon and Seokjin pay for
the things with the money they've put together.
 
"Hey, Yoongi," Jimin's voice is quiet when they stand there, shoulder to
shoulder, diligently stashing the bags of crisps and gummy bears into the paper
bags. Yoongi looks up from his task and studies him briefly before looking back
down again.
 
"Hm? What is it, Jimin-ah?"
 
"I'm really, really looking forward to Friday," Jimin whispers, eyes fixed on
the bag of onion rings in his hand.
 
He doesn't know why he says it or why he wants Yoongi to know. But it comes
from deep within him, an urge to let the drummer know that he's happy he had
been invited. That he's excited to meet up and have fun with them.
 
With him.
 
Yoongi seems to be momentarily stunned into silence, for he doesn't say
anything for a few moments before he lets out a hum, deep voice reverberating
in Jimin's ears and deep within his core.
 
"To party with us will be life-changing, I hope you're aware of that," Yoongi's
mouth curves into a lopsided smile and Jimin returns it, delighted.
 
"I bet it will be."
Chapter End Notes
     THEY'RE SO—, HNNNNG we wanna pinch their cheeks and finally shove
     them into each other's arms lksajda
     but okay, good things take time and remember that we always do happy
     endings and that we also still have a considerable bit of this story
     in front of us ok~
     also Hoseok is so protective of Yoongi we wanna kms and we're
     seriously wondering what people think of taekook xD oh boy those two
     are killing us
     NEXT TWO CHAPTERS ARE GOING TO BE PARTEH TIIIME (hopefully)
     As always, you can also come chat with us about yoonmin on twitter or
     hit us up on curiouscat! ♡
***** Twelve *****
Chapter Notes
     We feel like we don't say this enough, but thanks to everyone for
     their continuous support for this fic. Again and again, we're
     overwhelmed by the response it gets and we couldn't be any happier <3
     We hope you're also gonna enjoy this chapter! Let's go~
     ☾ = Yoongi
     ☼ = Jimin
See the end of the chapter for more notes
                                      –☾–

The low-hanging sun is shining through the dark green and brown trees of the
forest in a glow of orange and purple hues, plunging the small clearing next to
the cabin into the otherworldly sheen of a brilliant, misty twilight.

The sunset takes Yoongi's heart with it before the spell gets lifted again by
the laughter of his friends, the smell of the woods and the song of the cicadas
all around them.

His arms hurt a little from being the one carrying the jute bag of logs to the
cabin, as well as having one bag with blankets and sleeping bags slung over his
shoulder. They just didn't want to walk back and forth from the car to the
cabin too much, and since it's only Seokjin, Taehyung, Hoseok and Yoongi who
are here so far, they had to carry as much all at once as humanly possible.

Yoongi lets the things drop to the earthen floor when he has finally reached
the clearing and stretches his arms over his head, his tired muscles flexing
before they relax again. He lets out a sigh and looks around, smiling when his
gaze falls on the cabin in front of him that looks so welcoming now, homely
even.

They really did their best at making it pretty. The inside, as well as the
outside, are clean now, all holes closed and all the furnishings they need
inside.

Seeing it instantly makes Yoongi relax a little more.

The week was long and stressful, the final exams were no joke, but he managed
better at his remaining ones than he did on the math one. At least that’s what
he hopes for, but getting a worse result on them than for the math exam is
almost impossible anyway.

He picks up the large tote bag with their sleeping things again and follows his
friends to the cabin in order to put everything inside of there so that no
insects might crawl into their blankets during the span of the night.

When he enters the cabin, the faint smell of paint is still lingering in the
air, but it has long dried and on the wall that they have dyed blue hangs now a
collection of Polaroid photographs, all of them showing at least one member of
their group.

Yoongi pauses for a moment when he spots a candid shot of Jimin with a
cigarette between his lips, as well as one where Jimin is standing on Yoongi's
skateboard while clutching at Yoongi's hands. Jimin is laughing on it and
suddenly a flashback of that evening pops up in  Yoongi's head. That evening
after the blowjob when Yoongi was still so mortified that he didn't even know
how to function in front of Jimin properly. When Jimin was too beautiful and
unreachable to even look at.

Jimin who he still hasn’t talked to about their kiss.

His heart skips a beat with a spark racing through his entire body when he
thinks of the kiss again and he tries to dispel the feeling by rummaging
through the tote bag that holds his sleeping bag and his blanket. Tries to not
think too much about how he sent Jimin off last week when the other wanted to
talk and he didn't.

Even though Yoongi regrets it, even though he’s afraid he won’t ever learn what
Jimin wanted to tell him that day, maybe it's better this way.

Ever since they all went grocery shopping for the party together, he and Jimin
have started talking again without it being overly awkward and that's really
all he could ever wish for. He can get used to being nothing more than Jimin's
friend. It will take time, but someday he can definitely get over his crush or
whatever this has developed into. As long as Jimin is still there with them.
With him.

"Who will get to sleep on the bed?" Taehyung suddenly asks, full of glee,
already sitting down on the mattress with a shit-eating grin on his face.
Yoongi shoves his dark thoughts to the most remote corner of his mind and rolls
his eyes fondly, but Seokjin is quicker than him with shooting a reply.

"It's either the youngest… or the eldest!" he says and looks at Yoongi who
snorts, shaking his head.

"You can have the bed, Taehyungie. I can sleep anywhere anyway."

Taehyung's face lights up even more at that before he jumps up again and comes
to hug Yoongi who lets him do it, putting an arm around him and returning the
gesture of affection.

"Thank you, hyung! I'm gonna share the bed with Jeonggukkie anyway so that the
space won't be wasted," Taehyung winks and clicks his tongue impishly before he
scurries off towards the pile of bags again.

"I know something that will definitelyget wasted tonight," Hoseok chimes in and
points to himself, causing Seokjin and Yoongi to chuckle.

"Yeah, thank god we're all gonna sleep here. Our parents would kill us if they
knew we let the little ones drink, too."

"Let's just hope they'll be able to hide their hangover well tomorrow."

"Hey!" Taehyung pipes up, throwing a sock at Hoseok, "I can totally hold my
liquor!"

All of them pause for a second before they heave a collective sigh, having
Taehyung jut out his lower lip petulantly and a little miffed about their lack
of faith. Seokjin then claps his hands once and ushers everyone out again,
assigning the necessary tasks to everyone with a smile.

Before Yoongi leaves too, he quickly secures his sleeping spot next to the wall
near the window by placing his sleeping bag down, licking his lips when he lets
his gaze wander over the rest of the floor, wondering where Jimin will sleep.
The thought alone of sleeping in the same room as the other boy makes his
insides all mushy and his head almost explode.

He takes a deep breath in order to calm himself down and brushes his fringe out
of his face before he goes outside again, distracts himself by setting up the
bonfire.

While he's placing some old newspapers inside the neatly piled pyramid of logs
and kindling, he hears Hoseok and Seokjin singing to one of their own songs
behind them, laughter and joy carrying in their voices as they try to stifle
their laughter.

"Oh, onion rings! Whoever chose them is a genius," Yoongi can hear Hoseok say
behind him where he's setting up the food table together with Seokjin. And then
he hears the crunching sound of someone munching on crisps.

Yoongi whirls around.

"Yah! Jung Hoseok! If they're gone before Jimin is here I'm gonna kick your ass
so bad that you can’t walk straight tomorrow!" he shouts, pointing an accusing
finger at Hoseok who freezes mid-bite. Yoongi can see his Adam's apple bob up
and down when he swallows before he pouts.

"Easy there, drummer boy. There will be plenty left for our precious Jiminnie,"
Hoseok says teasingly, licking his fingers clean before he grins and saunters
off to his ghetto blaster, probably setting up some outdated top of the pops CD
without pushing the play button yet. Yoongi just grumbles and fights the blush
that starts creeping up his cheeks, ignoring Seokjin's knowing smile before he
turns back to his task again.

"Hyungs, can you help me?" Taehyung wheezes after a while from where he's
putting up the battery-powered fairy lights all around the clearing. Everyone
immediately drops everything they're doing and help Taehyung finishing setting
them up all around the cabin. They fix one end of the cable to a tree so that
they're hanging over the snacks table before they turn them on.

It's not dark yet, but among the setting sun, the small dotted lights of the
warm yellow light bulbs make the atmosphere around the clearing even more
festive.

"Wah, so beautiful, Tae!" Hoseok says, amazed, and ruffles their youngest's
hair affectionately. Taehyung giggles, a faint abashed blush dusting the tip of
his nose. "You did so well! The cabin looks amazing, too!" Hoseok cuddles
Taehyung who starts protesting when he gets his cheeks pinched, Hoseok cooing
at him with his happy voice, Yoongi and Seokjin just chuckling at them before
Taehyung has enough, escapes from the elder's hold and flees into the cabin.

The cabin looks completely different than it usually looks in daylight, the
inside illuminated by even more fairy lights, although the door and the windows
are closed tightly shut so that no mosquitoes or other insects can go inside.

Pop music suddenly blares from the ghetto blaster next to the food table, and
Yoongi jumps a little at the unexpected sound. Immediately afterwards, Hoseok's
scolding voice can be heard, admonishing Seokjin for turning it on when the
party hasn't even started yet and the battery of the player could die before
that.

"I have some batteries in the car, don't worry, Seokkie. I can get them should
these ones not last long enough."

"Alright, but you will be the one to walk back to the car and—, wow, Tae!"
Hoseok suddenly exclaims when Taehyung comes back out of the shack, one of his
headbands wrapped around his forehead so that the hair of his fringe almost
sticks out in random directions. He's also not wearing the large shirt anymore
that he's worn just a few minutes ago. It is now replaced by a tight, red T-
shirt that barely reaches to the waistband of his light blue denim baggy pants,
a thin stripe of tanned skin visible below the hem of the shirt. There are some
deliberate holes of various sizes on the shoulders, making more skin flashing
beneath the fabric.

Yoongi would spit out his drink if he were drinking one now.

"Kim Taehyung," Seokjin steps in front of his younger cousin, eyeing him from
head to toe with wide eyes and an open mouth, "does your mother know you're
owning clothes like this?"

Taehyung, who has been stretching his arms to the side in a tada-gesture as if
he was presenting himself, purses his lips at Seokjin, eyes showing his
displeasure about his cousin’s reaction.

"This is Jiminnie's shirt. He gave it to me when I visited him at home the day
before yesterday! He said that, for a party, you should make the best out of
you and dress up a little. Just like we do for our concerts! Oh! Jimmy will
look absolutely amazing, by the way! I've already seen his outfit." Taehyung
sounds very smug when he says it, almost proud, and Yoongi wishes he was as
good at this friendship thing with Jimin as his younger friend seems to be.

"You look pretty, Tae," he says with a smile, indulging his little brother a
little because he knows it makes him happy. They haven't had a party like this
in forever, probably last summer when they were still with Chigyu. So, of
course, Taehyung would be excited about dressing up.

"Thank you, hyung! At least someone who can appreciate beauty when he sees it,"
Taehyung says, throwing Seokjin a dirty glare who replies with a scandalised
gasp.

With a mirthful smile, Yoongi watches them bicker about the dress-code, about
how much alcohol is okay to drink, about smoking and all those enticing
forbidden things, and lets out a sigh when he remembers that it will probably
be one of the last times they'll all be together like this before their trip.
After that, he and Seokjin will leave for university and meeting up with each
other will become increasingly difficult.

Yoongi tries to not feel so sad when he thinks about that, with minimal
success.

Suddenly there are footsteps to be heard coming from the path that leads to the
clearing and shortly after that Jeongguk's voice that shouts a loud 'hey,
everyone'. Yoongi twists his neck to look at the newcomer and realises with a
sharp inhale that he is not alone.

Jimin is there, too.

Yoongi instantly feels a little shabby in his Nirvana T-shirt, ripped blue
jeans and black Converse because Taehyung didn’t lie when he claimed that Jimin
will look amazing.

He really freaking does.

Jimin's hair is the softest pink, as always, and the eyeshadow he's put on his
eyelids is matching it perfectly. He's wearing a white, loose top that stops
just above his navel, his belly button piercing glistening from the light of
the lanterns when he steps onto the clearing. He's wearing black jeans, but
they're so ripped he could as well be wearing just shorts. One of the rips is
so close to his crotch that Yoongi suddenly has a hard time breathing. He licks
his dry lips and realises that he's staring, not exactly subtle, and his heart
almost leaps out of his parched throat.

Why does no one else but him seem to feel so small in the presence of Park
Jimin?

He takes a deep breath and remembers that he should still greet the newcomers,
prepares himself to open his mouth and actually speak again.

Friendship.

Yes, he can do that. He can totally see Jimin as a friend and nothing more.
Piece of cake!

He ignores the piercing pain in his chest at those thoughts and forces his lips
to curl up a little as his heart hammers against his ribcage, returning the
smile that Jimin is directing at him.

"Hey," Jimin says sweetly, and Yoongi would like to throw himself at his feet.

"Hey," he replies with faked nonchalance, straightening his back a little. The
'you look so pretty' he would like to say dies on his tongue as soon as Jimin's
smile grows.

"Everything looks completely different now," Jimin lets his gaze wander over
the clearing and to the cabin, taking in the lights and the table with the food
and the drinks, "really worthy of a party. You did an amazing job!"

"Tae was the one hanging the fairy lights. You should thank him."

"Will do. Hey, I got you something," Jimin suddenly says, reaching into the
back pocket of his almost non-existent jeans. Involuntarily, Yoongi follows his
hand with his eyes. There are so many rips and tears in those pants that not
much is left to the imagination, the lean muscles of his thighs rippling
underneath the scant fabric. He gulps, wrenching his eyes away from the other's
forbidden legs to look at his face again.

"You—," Yoongi clears his throat, "you got something? For me?"

"Tada!" Jimin sing-songs, and holds a pack of cigarettes out to him. It's not
Luckies, it's a pack of Camels, and even though Yoongi doesn't have a
particular brand he always smokes, it's definitely one he smokes often. His
eyes snap up at Jimin and he stares at him in surprise. "I thought—, well,
since I'm always bumming your smokes, I should finally pay you back. Hope
they're okay."

Yoongi extends his hands and accepts the small box from Jimin, heart beating
furiously in his chest. "Yes, they're perfect, Jiminnie. Thank you."

Jimin's lips twitch before they stretch into a bright smile, his eyes
disappearing into little crescents. He runs his fingers through his hair and
licks his lips but before he can open his mouth and say anything, Taehyung
appears seemingly out of nowhere next to him and grabs his upper arm.

"Jimmy, look! What do you think?" Taehyung poses next to them with a peace sign
he strikes over his eye, winking with a playful half-grin. Jimin laughs briefly
before he gives him a thumbs up.

"You look amazing, Taetae," Jimin smiles, utterly calm and genuine, and Yoongi
cannot take his eyes off him.

"Hey, hyung," Jeongguk comes to stand next to Yoongi, and before he's
completely swept away by Jimin's presence, his little brother – who's actually
already almost a head taller than him – wraps an arm around him in greeting.
"Didn't know how to light the fire without my help?" Jeongguk asks, cocky and
with a grin, and Yoongi feels heat creep up his neck because he said that in
front of Jimin.

"Shut up, you brat," he shoves him a little and grumbles, "I know perfectly
well how to do it, I was just waiting for everyone to arrive before lighting
it. We gotta look for some sticks and more kindling first anyway."

"Okay, what are we waiting for then? Let's go!"

"Uh—, Guk, don't you want to put up your sleeping bag first. Pretty sure we're
going to be too wasted for that later."

"Nah, I can do it afterwards, come on," Yoongi shoots Jimin an apologetic gaze
as he gets dragged away by Jeongguk, fumbling for the back pocket of his jeans
to put his new cigarettes in there just to get them out of the way. When
they're a little further off, Jeongguk turns to him and smiles carefully. "Are
you alright, hyung? Were your parents mad at you for only getting 63 points on
the math exam?"

"Huh? Oh—, that," Yoongi pulls a face, pursing his lips, "yeah well, they
weren't exactly elated, but in the end, I made it and I'll go to uni, so yeah.
Not much they can say about it anyway."

It's true. He managed to finish high school and somehow he will be able to
straighten out everything else in his life, too.

"Hm, that's true, I guess. Well, my parents would have killed me, but that's
nothing new," Jeongguk says with a lopsided smile and Yoongi looks at him
sympathetically. Oh yes, he knows. Jeongguk's parents wouldn't have let that
slide as easily as his own parents did.

He gives him a pat and a knead to his neck before they go on.

They look for some straight, long sticks and some tinder before they go back
through the bushes and low hanging tree branches, hearing the laughter of the
others long before they see the clearing. When they reach the cabin again,
Namjoon is there, too, already fighting with Hoseok and Taehyung over which
music to play.

"Taehyung looks really pretty today," Jeongguk suddenly mutters, throwing
Yoongi off-guard a little. "I mean, he always does, it's just—. He's never
dressing up like this? Unless we have a gig or something."

"Jimin helped him pick the outfit, he said," Yoongi smiles, gauging Jeongguk's
reaction.

"O-oh. Yeah. Must have been when he went over to him on Thursday," Jeongguk
frowns a little, but before Yoongi can reply anything, Taehyung already comes
to help them with the sticks and he decides to remain silent.

Yoongi goes back to starting the fire, using the matches they bought for this
particular task. The newspaper he had prepared catches on fire quickly, the
grey paper being eaten up by the flame immediately, spreading it to the tinder
that heats up the branches and the logs. Yoongi watches it for a few moments
before he is sure that it won't die out again.

He dusts off his hands by brushing them against each other and stands again,
leaving the fire to burn on its own for a while because he noticed that the
others are getting the drinks ready and he definitely won't miss out on that.

With his mind set on a can of beer, he makes his way over to the cooling box,
being distracted for a second by Jimin who he could swear was glancing at him
right now. Out of the blue, he gets stopped by a hand in front of his face that
makes him tumble a step backwards. He blinks and looks up at the offender.

"Uhm, Jin? Everything alright?"

"You and me, bro, we're the oldest ones here and all the responsibility for the
little ones is ours," Yoongi is dreading where this is going, looks at Seokjin
with huge rounded eyes, "so one of us has to stay sober."

"What?" Yoongi's face falls and his shoulders slump, "what the fuck, dad, we're
gonna stay here anyway? What could possibly happen here?"

"Nuh-uh," Seokjin shakes his head, "there's a stream not far from here and
someone could drown. No way."

"If you're so hellbent on staying sober, then please, by all means—,"

"I'm not, so. Rock-paper-scissors, chop chop," Seokjin holds his hand up in a
fist and looks at him expectantly.

"Dear fuck, okay. Alright," Yoongi can win this, he totally can if fate is on
his side.

Of course, it is not.

He loses after two tries and would like to kick his accursed fate in the balls.

"Enjoy your one can of beer, buddy, and drink it slowly," he just flips Seokjin
off who's doing a little dance of joy. Yoongi goes to get his can of beer, now
more than ever, while he's muttering profanities under his breath. He opens the
can with a crack and turns around again, and this time he's sure that Jimin was
looking at him before quickly averting his gaze again.

He pauses, heart hammering in his chest, as he watches Jimin sit by the fire, a
cup with some drink in a plastic cup next to him, the sticks Yoongi and
Jeongguk gathered earlier propped up on the large tree trunk he's sitting on.
He's sitting there alone, seemingly concentrated on sharpening the ends of the
sticks with a pocket knife so that they can spear the sausages with them, later
on, to hold them over the fire.

He looks beautiful and calm, but also a little lonely sitting there by himself.

Yoongi grabs the bowl of onion rings, worries his lower lip for a few moments
while glancing down at the can of beer in his other hand before he inhales
deeply and takes a step forward.


 
 
 
 
                                      –☼–

One glance is not enough.

Jimin has to take another, and then another one. He's good at hiding his stolen
glances but actually, he wants to be caught, and more than once Yoongi actually
catches him staring, and more than once Jimin looks away even though he doesn't
want to.

He has no idea why he can't just go over there and kiss him, ignoring all the
others. It's what he wants so bad and what he hopes Yoongi wants too.

But he can't.

Instead, he blushes when Yoongi catches him for the n-th time and cringes
inwardly about his own timidness.

Fiercely, he lets the knife he's received from Namjoon glide over the tip of
the stick he's holding over his knees, letting the shaved wood drop to the
ground without a care. He sniffs briefly, still thinking about how to approach
Yoongi again, when he feels someone sit down next to him.

To say that he's surprised that it is Yoongi would be the understatement of the
century.

But it's really him, holding a can of beer between his fingers while putting
down a bowl of onion rings in front of him. The onion rings make that distinct
rattling sound of crisps moving in a bowl and wake Jimin's senses up fully,
alerting him to the actual presence of the other right next to him. There's not
much space between them now, and when Yoongi lights up the cigarette that is
dangling from his lips Jimin halts his ministrations on the stick completely.

He watches how Yoongi takes a drag before he takes the cig between his fingers
and offers it to him.

Jimin's heart is soaring.

He takes the smoke and puts it between his lips, savouring the fact that he's
sharing an indirect kiss with the other man.

"Coke or Pepsi?" Yoongi asks and Jimin snorts the smoke out of his nose, biting
his lips while smiling broadly before giving the cigarette back to Yoongi and
snatching an onion ring.

"Coke, of course!" he replies instantly, not having to think about that one,
"you?"

"Same, Pepsi is undrinkable," Yoongi replies, taking another drag from the
cigarette, a thrill running through Jimin's body when Yoongi's plush lips close
around it again, "Cherry Coke or Dr Pepper?"

"Oh, come on," Jimin whacks his shoulder, making him grin, "it's impossible to
make a choice!" he laughs, leaning in so that Yoongi doesn't have to hand him
the cigarette back; instead Yoongi holds it for him as he takes another drag.

Jimin is probably enjoying this a little too much.

"You have to answer, though!"

"Alright. Okay, I'd say—, hmm—," he contemplates his options, the choice being
a really tough one, "it depends on the mood but right now I'd say Cherry Coke."

"Nah, Dr Pepper all the way," Yoongi grins. Jimin watches how the light of the
fire is dancing on Yoongi's face, illuminating it prettily, casting dark
shadows on his cheeks when it flickers dangerously before it sways another way
again. He empties the rest of his drink in one go, resisting the urge to grab
Yoongi's beer as well.

"Okay, then tell me this," Jimin turns his body so that he's mostly facing
Yoongi, holding a finger into the air, building up suspense. He loves how
Yoongi is looking at him, how he's got his undivided attention.

Finally, after all this time, Yoongi is looking at him with those warm and fond
eyes again.

But then Jimin almost can't keep himself from grinning and bursting, the
question he wants to ask Yoongi almost tickling his insides so that he is
compelled to laugh.

"This is really important, okay?" Jimin giggles uncontrollably, making Yoongi
break into a bright smile too when he sees how his efforts to remain serious
fail, and somehow it is the most beautiful thing Jimin has ever seen. "Okay,
so, listen real carefully," another meaningful pause, "Spice Girls or
Backstreet Boys?" he finally asks before he presses his lips together as Yoongi
guffaws, erupting with laughter that makes him double over and grab Jimin's
shoulder, his head almost leaning against it, too.

Jimin's heart is beating faster than a hurricane as he laughs along, the
alcohol of his drink definitely helping his bad humour, it seems.

"That's like you'd make me choose between math and—, more math," Yoongi
complains, tossing the smoked up cigarette into the fire, and Jimin bites his
lips again in amusement.

"Come on, tell me! What's the lesser evil?"

"Backstreet Boys," Yoongi says taking a sip from his beer. Jimin arches a
judgemental eyebrow at him. "What? Of course, I'd take them, come on!" Yoongi
laughs and Jimin's heart swells. He just can't stop smiling stupidly and it's
all Yoongi's fault.

"Okay, Yoongi. Tongue piercing or Prince Albert?" he asks playfully, eyelids
drooping suggestively, courage fueled by the humorous atmosphere and the
alcohol.

Yoongi's face doesn't fall, but it instantly becomes more serious, smile
replaced by a hard line. Yoongi's gaze is intense and there is something
burning on his tongue and behind his eyelids that Jimin cannot decipher.

They're brutally ripped out of their staring contest, however, just when Jimin
decides to go a step further. They both startle a little, both instantly
leaning away from each other again.

"Okay kids," Hoseok pipes up, rubbing his hands together, "it's time for a few
words!" Namjoon and Seokjin groan but eventually, they're all seated in the
circle around the fire, the pull Jimin can feel between him and Yoongi still
there. He doesn't try to overcome it, for now, but he remains seated next to
him, doesn't shift a single bit away from him.

"Hobi, don't make it too cheesy."

"Are you sure you want to do this and not Namjoon?"

"Shut up brats and listen!" Hoseok makes a meaningful pause and clears his
throat. "A lot has happened and is yet going to happen this year. We lost our
vocalist who we thought was our brother but found a little star and a cherished
friend instead," Jimin's breath catches in his throat at Hoseok's words, his
cheeks burning with bashfulness at the unexpected praise. He averts his gaze to
the empty cup in his hand.

"We had more gigs than ever before but the most important one for us still lies
ahead and I know we're gonna rock it."

"Yes!" Jeongguk shouts, accompanied by claps and whoops from the others.

"We had ups and downs but one thing will never change for Cotton Candy – we
will always walk together and be there for each other. Doesn’t matter where we
will be after this summer. University or still at high school, we'll still be
friends. When I started this band, all I wanted to do was standing on a big
stage with my guitar, having people cheer for me and girls screaming my name
but now my dream has changed."

The others are silent now, and Jimin can't help but look at Hoseok with a
certain awestruck reverence, admiring the honest, raw passion in the other's
eyes.

"I don’t want to stand on this stage on my own anymore, I want to stand there
together with you and I hope you want the same, too. Thank you guys for sharing
a dream with me. I know it’s still a few hours until the second of July and
with that to our anniversary but what do we care, right?"

"Right!" the others all nod, lifting their cans or bottles of beer into the
air.

"Cheers to four years of Cotton Candy!" Hoseok beams, his smile shining like
he's a beacon in the dark, a lighthouse and a safe haven all at once. A true
leader and a better person than Jimin will ever be.

Jimin sucks in a stuttering breath, overcome with emotion and the disbelief
that he is really allowed to be a part of this.

He steadies his heartbeat and swallows down the lump that has formed in his
throat, lets his body feel free and lighthearted with little bursts of
happiness exploding in his chest.

Jimin accepts a new cup of some drink from Seokjin, nods his head in thanks
before he cheers with the others and takes a big gulp. He sighs afterwards and
gets nudged in the side by Seokjin who asks him for help with preparing the
stick bread and the sausages for the barbecue. He blinks a few times but
quickly agrees, chatting with the older man, carefree and lighthearted.

"It's only two weeks until the contest. Nervous?"

"Me?" Jimin laughs awkwardly as he wraps some bread dough around a stick. "To
be honest? Yes. I'm really nervous," he says calmly, a faint smile on his lips.
"I mean, I only got in the band so that you guys can win. Wouldn't want to fuck
that up."

Seokjin is quiet for a moment and Jimin wonders if he said anything wrong. When
he looks up again, however, the other is looking at him with a knowing smile.

"I don't think you're only here for that, Jimin. Not anymore, at least. Pretty
sure you also have other reasons now."

"Uhm—, I—,"

"Well, I know that we like having you in the band and as our friend, and it
would be a pity if you left after the contest. Which we will undoubtedly win,
of course. After all, Cotton Candy will be the most entertaining act the jury
is going to see that evening, that much is certain."

Jimin doesn't really know what to say to that. His heart is beating a little
faster than usual, and warmth spreads in his chest at hearing that they like
having him here. His lips twitch into a smile as he tries not to suck his
piercing off his tongue.

"We’ll be the most entertaining act the jury is ever going to see, Jin."

"That’s the spirit, Jimjim," Jin laughs at him, nods in agreement and fetches
the plate full of sausages to go back to their friends while Jimin grins
proudly and picks up the bowl with the rest of the dough to distribute among
the others.

After a plentiful meal of onion rings for Jimin, sausages and stick bread,
everyone gets more boisterous – and definitely more drunk. Jimin isn't holding
back either, mixes himself some Malibu with orange juice after he took a few
vodka shots together with Namjoon and Hoseok while Yoongi was pouting at them
the entire time because he has to stay sober.

Jimin pities him, pats his head while he's still nursing his first beer can,
gets his hands swatted away, however. He laughs gleefully when he flees from
Yoongi who tries to fake-spear him with the wooden stick he had used earlier to
hold the bread over the fire.

He shares his drinks with Taehyung and Jeongguk who soon seem to ditch the beer
for the sweeter stuff. Jimin doesn't feel the slightest bit guilty when he
shows Jeongguk and Taehyung how to mix some really good drinks.

"If you mix the Malibu with orange juice, you will hardly notice the taste of
alcohol. It's also great with Dr Pepper, but try this first," Jimin hands
Jeongguk a cup full of the white coconut flavoured rum and waits for his
reaction with bated breath. Jeongguk takes a sip without hesitation and his
eyebrows immediately shoot to his hairline.

"Damn, this shit is great!" Jeongguk says, handing the cup to Taehyung who also
tries a little bit. In the meantime, Jimin already prepares the next cup of
sweet-smelling liquor. He's so happy that they have some energy drinks here
that he can mix with some cherry flavoured vodka.

He quickly takes a gulp himself before handing it to Jeongguk, definitely not
intending on making him and Taehyung drunk. He would never do such a thing.

Before he knows it, he suddenly has Taehyung hanging heavily from his shoulders
about half an hour later.

"Jiminniiie," the other whines and Jimin arches an eyebrow, "I think
Jeonggukkie's drunk."

Jimin snorts, tilting his head back briefly. "Taehyung, I think you are drunk."
He shakes his head, amused, and wishes he could be as gone as Taehyung
currently is, "come on, sit down. Here, take some orange juice."

He fills his own cup with orange juice and hands it to Taehyung who gulps it
down eagerly. Taehyung frowns.

"This is just orange juice!" the younger complains and Jimin rolls his eyes. He
ignores Taehyung's complaint and instead searches for Jeongguk with his eyes
and finds him doing handstands – without a shirt on – while Namjoon tries to
make him drink directly from the vodka bottle upside-down. Jimin chuckles
before he smiles at Taehyung again who in the meantime has emptied the entire
cup.

"Good boy. Now go play with Jeongguk, okay?"

"'kay," Taehyung hiccups, grins dopily and staggers away again to where
Jeongguk and Namjoon are now lying on the ground in a fit of almost hysterical
laughter.

He looks to where Yoongi and Hoseok are sitting, Hoseok with his guitar playing
along to the song that's coming from the ghetto blaster while Yoongi sits next
to him, absentmindedly staring into the fire while tapping along to the beat
with his fingers, something he probably isn't even aware of doing.

Jimin's gaze softens as he watches him, heart longing for his proximity.

Oh, how wonderful would it be if he could share a blanket with him later! Or
maybe even wear his fluffy sweater Jimin is sure he must have with him
somewhere. He licks his lips and turns the empty plastic cup in his hands
around a little, wondering what he could do to get closer to Yoongi again.

Just then, the song on the CD changes again and Jimin perks up when he
recognises it.

"I know that song! Now, this is finally turning more into a party," Jimin
grins. He can see Yoongi’s puzzled gaze that is directed at him, but he decides
to ignore it, too excited to finally have found a way to get closer to the
other man.

"Come on, Yoongi," Jimin says, grabbing Yoongi's wrists, "let's dance!"

Yoongi tilts his head back with a groan, furrowing his eyebrows.

"Jimin, please," he drags out the words, "I can't dance for shit."

Jimin just snickers at that and pulls him along until they're standing on the
clearing at a safe distance from the fire. Yoongi looks shy, but he's smiling,
and when Jimin starts to shimmy his shoulders to the rhythm in front of him
while still holding onto his wrists, Yoongi breaks into a full smile, showing
his teeth and gums, and it's blinding.

"It doesn't matter, just have fun! Relax a little!"

Jimin loosens his grip around Yoongi's wrists and lets his hands slide over
Yoongi's skin to his hands, intertwining their fingers. Yoongi's posture is
already a little stiff, but when their fingers lace together, he stands almost
completely still, only his arms moving as Jimin doesn't leave them any other
choice.

"Aw, hyung, don't be a killjoy, shake your hips a little," Jimin grins,
stepping the tiniest bit closer to him. He moves their arms again, and this
time Yoongi humours him, moves a little from foot to foot and grips his hands
tighter. His eyes are downturned and half-covered by his fringe, his cheeks a
dark pink, and Jimin is so endeared and enamoured he would like to kiss him
right then and there.

Or just loop his arms around his neck and dance with him real slow, nuzzling
his nose into the crook of his neck and inhale his enticing scent before
pressing soft kisses into his warm skin.

"See, you're doing amazing, hyung," he grins and his breath hitches in his
throat briefly when Yoongi glances up at him through his eyelashes. He almost
lets go of his hands to put them on his shoulders instead, just when the chill
sounding song changes to a more upbeat party song. He snaps out of it and stops
moving on only one spot, starts whirling around with Yoongi, laughing and with
a heart so free he almost forgets that they're not alone.

"Not so fast, Jiminnie, I can't keep up," Yoongi chuckles and is looking at him
now, eyes soft and smile fond. Jimin's heart starts pumping harder, makes his
chest feel tight and his head go dizzy. He laughs and lets go of one of
Yoongi's hands before he spins around, moving underneath Yoongi's arm which the
other lifts for him. They're both laughing when Yoongi almost steps on Jimin's
feet, and before he knows it, Jimin has his forearms resting on Yoongi's
shoulder, eyes fixed on Yoongi's dark ones.

An electric spark tingles through Jimin's chest at suddenly being so close to
him, and he wishes nothing more than to get even closer.

"Hyung—,"

"Hm?"

"Hey guys, Hobi and I wanna play games, anyone else in?" their bubble bursts
again when Namjoon shouts and they both take a step away from each other at the
same time, Yoongi rubbing the nape of his neck, Jimin staring at their feet
before clearing his throat.

"What kind of games?" Seokjin asks and gets a shrug in return.

"Haven’t decided on that yet."

"Let’s play truth or dare again, that was so much fun last time. Remember when
we dared Chigyu to eat a raw egg… and he did it before he threw up?"

"Ew," everyone shouts in unison and Jimin scrunches up his nose in disgust.

"I'm not gonna take part if we do nasty stuff like that," he says, already
thinking of how to weasel his way out of this. He looks at Yoongi, trying to
read on his face if he wants to play or not. He definitely doesn't look averse
to the suggestion.

"Nah, just harmless stuff. Let's do it!"

A few minutes later when everyone has a drink in their hands they're sitting
around the bonfire again, chattering with each other and all across each other,
until Yoongi hushes them all with a wave of his hands.

The game starts tamely with Seokjin daring Namjoon to down an entire cup of
beer in one go, everyone cheering and clapping as he goes. Namjoon chooses
Jeongguk who takes dare and has to do five push-ups with Taehyung sitting on
his back, which he does with some difficulty as both of them are giggling and
snickering the whole time.

And then it's Yoongi's turn.

"Which person here knows something about you that you wouldn't want to be
revealed?" Jeongguk asks after Yoongi has decided to go for truth. He doesn't
think about it long.

"Hobi. And Jimin," he says calmly and a cold shiver runs down Jimin's spine.

Is it the kiss?

Jimin pauses.

No, not the kiss.

It's the blowjob.

Definitely the blowjob.

Does that mean Yoongi didn't tell anyone about it? Or did he tell Hoseok? Jimin
tries to keep his eyes calm but they're flickering over Yoongi's face in search
of an answer he won't get.

"Huh? Really? What is it?" Taehyung asks, curious as ever, but Hoseok waves him
off.

"Only one question at a time!"

"It's Jimin's turn," Yoongi quickly diverts the attention from himself to Jimin
who takes a deep breath.

"Dare," he says, would never take truth.

"Oh, I have something!" Namjoon says before anyone else can, "Jimin, I dare you
to let someone draw something on your cheek with a marker!" Jimin scrunches up
his nose before he pouts, but he also doesn't want to back out on his first
dare, so he rolls his eyes and sighs.

"As long as it's no dick," he mutters while Seokjin is already up and searching
for a marker inside the cabin.

"Yoongi, you do it," Namjoon adds cheekily, and Jimin catches how Yoongi's jaw
goes slack and how he wants to protest before Seokjin is back and shoves the
marker into his hands.

"Why me?" Yoongi asks, and Jimin would like to know that answer as well.

"Because your drawings are the most atrocious ones," Jeongguk giggles,
brazenly, and Taehyung almost doubles over from laughter. It's really not
difficult to see how completely wasted they both are.

"Tsk, I'll show you!" Yoongi accepts the challenge and Jimin fears for the
honour of his cheek, but he just closes his eyes and lets him do it. Doesn't
want to complain at all when he feels Yoongi's warm fingers on his chin as he
turns his head a little. A second later, he feels the cold wet tip of the
marker and wrinkles his nose a little but still enjoys it more than he probably
should.

No one is telling him what Yoongi has drawn on his cheek, but all of them are
snickering like crazy when the marker is gone from his skin and he opens his
eyes and damn is he curious about what it could be.

"That suits you really well, Jiminnie," Seokjin says and Jimin pouts, hoping
that it really isn't a dick, but he's too proud to ask.

"I bet it's a masterpiece," he mutters, a little miffed, looking at Yoongi who
has snagged his lower lip between his teeth and grins a little. He resists the
urge to lift his fingers to his cheek and touch the black marker lines on his
skin.

"Okay, now that that's done—, Jimin. Who do you pick?"

"Yoongi."

"It was hyung's turn just now, that's not fair!" Taehyung protests, cheeks
puffed out.

"Life's not always fair, Taehyungie," Jimin grins before he looks at Yoongi,
"truth or dare?" Yoongi looks very sceptical, seems to contemplate his options
for a few moments before he chooses dare. It surprises Jimin because he hoped
for Yoongi to pick truth.

But then his mind short circuits and he starts talking before he can think
about the consequences of his stupid actions.

"You’ve got to kiss someone here for at least ten seconds."

It’s suddenly quiet around them and he instantly regrets his words when he
looks into Yoongi’s eyes and sees how all colour drains from his face.

But his hopes are high and his belief that Yoongi will choose him is even
higher.

Yoongi and he are fine again, he knowsthey're fine again. They were laughing
together and they had fun tonight and Jimin felt so comfortable with him and he
just wants to kiss him so bad like he does all the fucking time since they
shared their first kiss and there's just no way that Yoongi would not choose
him.

Yoongi likes him.

And Jimin desperately wants to show Yoongi that he likes him too.

Yoongi studies his eyes, lips pressed into a hard line, and he looks like he's
fighting an internal battle he cannot win. Jimin can do nothing but stare back
and repeat please please please in his mind over and over again.

But then Yoongi turns around to Hoseok and pulls his friend by his neck down
towards his lips.

The other boys are cracking up while Jimin's heart is cracking into pieces.

His eyes have gone wide, his jaw slack, and he forgets how to breathe as he
cannot rip his gaze away from how Yoongi is softly pressing his lips against
Hoseok’s who endures it without even the slightest hint of hesitation apparent
on his face.

Jimin feels his body tremble, nausea bubbling in his stomach as his heart sinks
and sinks. He can hear the others whoop and coo around them, but he doesn't
really register anything as his brain starts shutting off.

This should have been him.

Yoongi should have chosen him.

So why did he not?

"Ten seconds are over, guys. Get yourself a room," Namjoon jokes then and Jimin
is sure that those were not ten seconds but ten minutes. At least, they finally
pull apart again and Jimin slowly and stutteringly inhales through his nose
lest he'd suffocate.

"Shut up, Namu," Hoseok tuts, rolling his eyes, "what are you, five?"

"Didn’t know you two make out together when you’re alone," Seokjin teases them,
pokes Yoongi who huffs. Jimin doesn't want to hear all that anymore.

He has fucked everything up, long ago, probably from the very beginning.

So why does it suddenly hurt so much now?

It hardly ever hurt so much before, why does this almost kill him and make him
want to cry?

He's only a spark away from exploding, all the joy he felt during the evening
blown away by his own stupidity, his desire to continue playing this game
equaling zero.

He's not really listening to what the other boys are talking about, how the
game continues between them, looks after Taehyung and Jeongguk who suddenly
leave to go somewhere else. Their voices sound to him as if he was underwater
and his body feels like it was slowly fading.

He squeezes his half-empty can of beer until there are indents everywhere,
resisting the urge to just crush it. He wishes he could leave, too. He wants to
go home – or anywhere else for that matter. Just far away from Yoongi and the
images in his head of him kissing Hoseok. But it’s too dark already and he’s
not sure if he’d find the way back to the road on his own.

He gulps dryly, trying to dispel the nausea in his belly that threatens to
creep up his throat and he flinches slightly when he hears Seokjin's voice
cutting through him like a knife.

"Jimin," his head snaps up at the mention of his name, but he feels disoriented
and dizzy.

"Huh?"

"Your turn."

"O-oh. Yeah. Dare," he mutters because – whatever. He’s not keen on continuing
anyway.

How stupid of him to hope Yoongi would ever want to share a blanket with him or
give him his sweater.

He has to rub over his chest at the thought, hopes the pain will fade soon.

"Alright," Jimin looks at Seokjin with what he hopes is a bored expression and
not one that shows his thinly veiled fragility. Seokjin briefly looks at Yoongi
and then back at him, a smug smile playing on his lips that means nothing good.
"You’ve got to go to the school’s pool, jump in and take a proof picture of
it."

"Are you insane? Jin that’s way too much effort, and there are no busses—,"
Namjoon starts but Seokjin smacks the back of his head. "Ow, what the—,"

"Yoongi can take him with his car," Seokjin tells him as if it was obvious,
"unfortunately, he's the only one who's still sober. I've already had too
much," Seokjin adds and Namjoon looks like there was a light bulb going off
over his head.

"Oh. Yeah, that's true, indeed!"

Seokjin goes to pick up his Polaroid camera that lies on the table and walks up
to Jimin, crouching down in front of him, "you're not a coward, so you’ll do
it, right?"

Jimin studies Seokjin’s eyes and then looks down at the camera before he looks
back up again. The other nods at him subtly, as if he wanted to tell him
something completely unrelated, something much more meaningful.

Trying to harden his resolve, Jimin licks his dry lips and for once just
listens to what his heart is telling him to do.

"Fine, I'm gonna do it."
Chapter End Notes
     Yeah, when we said this is gonna be a slow build, we meant it hahaha.
     The burn has been there since so long ago but the build… oh boy.
     also, DON'T HATE US and we swear we're gonna personally put chewing
     gum into everyone's hair who thinks that Yoongi should have kissed
     Jimin here >:(
     Next chapter will be really soft~
     like
     cotton candy soft ♡
     We're vibrating in our seats from the excitement of finally being
     able to upload it askjdlsa. As always, it'll come out in two weeks
     time!
     In the meantime, come scream at us on twitter :)
***** Thirteen. *****
Chapter Notes
     We're in a zen-like state right now and we hope you will be too after
     this chapter (ꈍ ᴗ ꈍ✿)
     ☾ = Yoongi
     ☼ = Jimin
See the end of the chapter for more notes
                                      –☼–
"Why me, Jin? My dad's going to kill me if he finds out about this! It's
prohibited to enter the school grounds at night, especially jumping into the
freaking pool," Yoongi protests loudly and Jimin can see his body speak for
himself.
 
His limbs look tense, his eyes flicker from Seokjin to Jimin repeatedly and his
index finger scratches at the cuticles of his thumb as if his life depended on
it.
 
A shaky breath leaves Jimin's mouth when his mind tries to remind him that
Yoongi must find the idea of being alone with him absolutely terrible.
 
"Yoongi, you're a dense, stubborn idiot. You don't even have to do anything.
Just get in your car with Jimin and take him to school."
 
"Why the fuck are you winking at me like a—, ouch! Kim Seokjin, you—! Ow!"
Jimin passively watches how Seokjin smacks Yoongi on the back of his head –
twice – but with unseeing eyes. There's a lump forming in his throat that makes
him feel a little sick and when he feels Yoongi's big eyes on him again he
presses the piercing against the roof of his mouth so much it almost hurts.
 
"Don't worry, Yoongi hyung," he starts, as calm and collected as possible, "you
got some more minutes to spare, I gotta go pee first. And then we're just gonna
do it quickly."
 
He gets up, turns around and doesn't wait for an answer. Sure, he does have to
take a piss, but most of all, he needs a minute or two to himself to clear his
mind and collect himself.
 
He pretends to not hear Yoongi bicker with Namjoon and Seokjin while he's
walking away and tries hard not to explode right then and there, the image of
Yoongi kissing Hoseok flashing unbidden in his mind over and over again.
 
Chickening out would be an option, but he decides against it; if he lets Yoongi
take him to the school grounds he can just go home afterwards; school isn't too
far away from his home after all.
 
Jimin takes one cautious step after the other as he steps into the forest, the
light from the fire and the fairy lights slowly fading behind him. Only the
small flashlight he took with him shows the forest floor in front of him more
or less.
 
When the sound of the music and the others' voices is distant enough, he steps
behind a tree and relieves himself. If he's honest, it's a little weird to piss
into some bushes, but he's pissed at even weirder places before. Moreover, he
welcomes the silence, just listens to the song of the cicadas all around him
and almost fools himself into believing that he's not a mess right now.
 
When he's done and has zipped up his pants again, he turns around and the
flashlight starts flickering menacingly – before it dies down completely.
 
"Fuck you, you fucking fuck," he mutters under his breath, toying with the idea
of throwing the useless thing into the forest. He doesn't, however, and just
tries to follow the light on the clearing to find back to it, hoping he won't
trip over some roots or rocks on the ground.
 
Suddenly, when he gets closer to the back of the cabin again, he hears a faint
snicker that has him freeze in his tracks.
 
"Gukkie, that—, uh, that tuh-tickles," that's definitely Taehyung's slurred
voice, and now that his eyes slowly adjust to the darkness, he can also make
out the figures of two persons leaning against the back wall of the cabin. His
eyes grow a little wider when he realises what exactly is going on there.
 
"Sh-ssh, not s' loud, Tae," Jeongguk hushes him, voice no less unsteady, before
he cages Taehyung against the wall again, hands visibly moving underneath
Taehyung's – or Jimin's, technically speaking – shirt. Taehyung gasps as his
eyes fall closed when Jeongguk presses his lips against his, and Jimin's mouth
falls open.
 
His mind is reeling a little, the number of people he had to watch kissing in
front of him tonight becoming a little too much. And yet, he cannot rip his
eyes away from his two friends, swallows hard when Jeongguk detaches his lips
from Taehyung's only to go back a moment later.
 
It looks innocent enough, a little experimental even, clumsy would not even
begin to describe it, and yet Taehyung gasps against Jeongguk's lips before he
giggles again, abashedly averting his gaze to the ground.
 
"Kissing's nice, Jeonggukkie. Real nice," Taehyung says so quietly Jimin barely
catches it. Jeongguk straightens his back at that and puffs out his chest
proudly.
 
"It's nice, right? Real nice. Wanna—, wanna do it again?"
 
"I dunno. I feel kinda funny," Taehyung presses a hand against his chest and
rubs over it a little, but Jeongguk just shakes his head.
 
"You're just drunk, Tae. We dun have to do it 'gain if you don't wanna,
though."
 
"Hmm, maybe just one more time?"
 
They both seem to be lost in time for a few more seconds before Jeongguk leans
in and captures Taehyung's lips again, more daring than before.
 
The moment Taehyung tilts his head further back, drowning in the kiss as
Jeongguk holds him by the hips is the moment Jimin finally snaps out if it. He
knows that they're both drunk beyond belief but that doesn't mean he should
continue spying on his two friends making out like that. He shakes his head and
inhales shakily before he goes back to the others, throwing the useless
flashlight onto the snack table.
 
He doesn't question why Jeongguk and Taehyung are suddenly kissing each other
as if their lives depended on it, just assumes what he's always assumed: that
they've actually been a couple this whole time and they just didn't tell anyone
about it.
 
Weird though, the way they were talking about kissing as if they had never done
it before.
 
Jimin approaches the others again who look up when they hear his footsteps.
 
"I'm ready, can we go now?" he asks curtly, not really keen on spending some
unavoidable awful long and awkward moments together with the man he has
feelings for he never had for anyone else.
 
"Have you seen Tae and Gukkie? They've been away for a while now and they just
wanted to take a piss," Seokjin asks with worry in his voice as he lets his
eyes scan the darkness of the forest.
 
"Oh, yeah, don't worry about 'em. They're just a little busy, I'm sure they'll
be back soon."
 
"Uh, o-okay?" Jimin just smiles briefly, forced, before looking at Yoongi.
 
"You ready now?"
 
"Sure, uhm—," Yoongi looks at his friends one more time – Seokjin raising a
critical eyebrow – before he sighs and nods. "I'm ready."
 
As ready as one can be for this, huh, Jimin thinks bitterly and starts walking
into the direction of the path he came from earlier, without waiting for Yoongi
to take the first step.
 
He can practically feel Yoongi's gaze burning into him from behind as he walks
but he doesn't care. He tries to calm himself down by inhaling the heavy forest
scent that almost suffocates him. The warm, stifling air of this sultry night,
the remnants of a blue summer day, cling to him like a heavy blanket of heat –
or maybe it's just his jittery nerves and his racing heart, Yoongi's presence,
that makes him feel like this.
 
Awkwardness towers like a thick wall between them, the mood charged and no one
making a move to talk to the other.
 
Jimin knows that if he tried to speak right now he'd only shout at Yoongi,
would ask him what the fuck he was thinking when he went and kissed Hoseok. Why
he didn't kiss him instead. It's not like Yoongi had to kiss Jimin, he was free
to choose whoever he wanted; Jimin has zero claims on that. But for some
reason, he's still pissed at him and he wants to shout at him here! I'm right
here, you dense moron, why didn't you choose me?
 
"Jimin, wait," Yoongi mumbles after a while of Jimin stomping through the
forest without looking left and right. Jimin's stomach swoops for a second
before he turns his head a little to look over his shoulder. "You're walking
way too fast. Give an old man some slack," Jimin knows Yoongi tries to brighten
up the mood because his heart is made of gold but Jimin just scoffs, rolling
his eyes. He still slows down his steps a little so that Yoongi can catch up
with him.
 
The rest of the walk to Yoongi's car is spent in silence, and when they finally
reach the crossing where Seokjin's and Yoongi's cars, as well as some bikes and
Jimin's own skateboard, are parked, Jimin almost sighs in relief.
 
Before walking to the passenger side of Yoongi's mint-green car, Jimin grabs
his skateboard that he had placed in front of it earlier so that he wouldn't
have to carry it with him to the cabin.
 
"Wha-what are you doing?" Yoongi asks, confusion apparent in his voice, "you
won't need that, we'll just go to the school pool real quick and come back—,"
 
"I'm going home after that," Jimin says dryly and gets into the car, putting
the skateboard between his legs.
 
Yoongi, obviously bewildered, takes a moment before he opens his door, too, and
Jimin takes that chance to lower the car's sun visor in front of him, hoping he
will find a small mirror there. Luckily, there is one, and he tries to take a
look at his cheek in the dim light of the car's lamp.
 
"Jimin, it would be a real bummer if you went home now, we—,"
 
"I don't feel very well right now. Just take me to the school building so we
can get it over with, Yoongi."
 
"O-okay," they fall silent again, and Jimin is half glad for it, half sad
because Yoongi doesn't even try to keep him from leaving. He turns his head a
little to look at his cheek and pauses when he finally sees what Yoongi drew on
it earlier during his dare.
 
It's not a masterpiece but Jimin doesn't have to guess what it is.
 
A cotton candy on a stick with a little crown on its 'head' and two round eyes
drawn in black marker is adorning the rosy skin of his cheek.
 
The car starts moving and for some reason, in that moment, Jimin realises that
it was his own fault that the evening went to shit. After all, it was him who
pressured Yoongi into kissing him in front of everyone.
 
They were having so much fun before that. They were dancing together, and
chatting so happily all night and Yoongi has drawn their own little insider on
his cheek, right there, and it's fluffy and cute and it's smiling.
 
It looks so happy – so very much unlike Jimin himself.
 
He quickly pushes the visor up again so that he doesn't have to see the drawing
anymore and stares out of the window where he can still see his own reflection
against the dark night, the smiley cotton candy face beaming at him as if it
was mocking him.
 
His lips tremble briefly before he hardens his heart and speaks up again.
 
"What is this?" he asks, voice as flat and as emotionless as he can muster.
 
"Hm?" he can see in the reflection of the car window that Yoongi looks at him
briefly, so he just points at his cheek. "Uhm, it's a cotton candy."
 
"I can see that."
 
Yoongi looks back at the bumpy road, steering the car slowly and carefully
around another turn. His Adam's apple visibly bobs up and down before he speaks
again. "I-it's you. Cotton candy princess," Yoongi mumbles, voice barely
audible and rough from smoking.
 
"Oh," Jimin just says and leaves it at that. His assumption was true then. It
is their little insider and it makes him want to cry. Makes him realise that
Yoongi doesn't just see him as a spoiled brat, but this cute little thing on
his cheek and it makes his eyes burn with unshed tears because he fucked up so
much.
 
After a while of silence, Yoongi seems to not bear it any longer and turns on
the cassette tape in his car's player. A Bubblegum Princess song starts playing
– somewhere in the middle, which indicates that Yoongi must have been listening
to it before – and Jimin snaps his head towards Yoongi who immediately seems to
be all flustered, fumbling for the off button on the cassette player while
still having one hand on the wheel.
 
"Fuck you, you stupid thing, could you just please—," Yoongi curses under his
breath when the music keeps playing over the speakers as he tries to hit the
right button until the tape stops playing and a radio station comes up instead.
 
Yoongi's shoulders sag even more, gaze stubbornly fixed ahead, mortification
oozing out of him as if he just lost his pants on stage or just like that time
Jimin blew him in the school's bathroom and he came in Jimin's mouth without a
warning. Only this time, Jimin feels the entire force of Yoongi's embarrassment
right next to him and it drags him under right with it.
 
He can't help but watch Yoongi from the side, a weird feeling spreading in his
chest.
 
But before he can say anything, they arrive at the school grounds and Yoongi
kills the engine on the parking lot.
 
"Okay, let's get that stupid picture and then I'll bring you home," Yoongi
mumbles and gets out of the car quickly, almost stumbling over his own feet
when he does so. Jimin pauses at Yoongi's subtle offer to take him home
afterwards before he follows him and they head to the pool.
 
Yoongi seems to be really nervous about the whole ordeal, but Jimin decides to
just take it in stride. The school grounds are deserted right now, no one is
here, and the school's swimming pool lies dark and calm before them after
crossing the schoolyard and passing the gym.
 
Jumping in the school pool at night? No big deal.
 
"What are you afraid of, hyung? You'll graduate in like two weeks anyway."
 
"Hah, you're funny. You seem to forget that your homeroom teacher is my dad. My
life would be over if I was caught here."
 
"So we better don't get caught then," Jimin lifts a corner of his lips into a
half-smirk, starting to take off his crop top, his sneakers, socks and then his
ripped jeans, leaving him in only his pale yellow underwear. He realises that
Yoongi has turned his back to him, hands awkwardly rubbing his jeans-clad
thighs.
 
Does Jimin really make him that nervous? It's not like Yoongi hasn't seen him
in underwear before.
 
He doesn't question it any further, doesn't feel like teasing the other either,
and when he's done with undressing, he takes the final steps over the cold,
grainy concrete that leads to the pool ladder.
 
"Hoh, it's fucking cold," Jimin whines as he tentatively dips his foot into the
water. The weather has been so hot lately but the pool at night feels
unbearably cold for some reason.
 
"Come on, Jimin, let's get that picture done and then blast off," Yoongi urges
him as soon as he has turned around again and Jimin pouts.
 
"You shut up, you're not the one who has to go inside the pool after all,"
Jimin says, ungraciously trying to splash Yoongi with water with his foot. The
other just turns his body a little and dodges the attack. Jimin huffs and, as
quickly as he can, lowers himself into the dark water of the pool that is only
illuminated in some places underneath the surface along the edge of the pool.
 
He positions himself in the water to take a picture, making a peace sign and
sticking his tongue out, piercing and all. Yoongi lifts the camera in front of
his face, snapping the first picture with a flash. He takes another one just to
be sure before he looks at him again.
 
"I guess we're done, so let's go," Yoongi says, urgency and nervousness in his
voice, and Jimin lowers his body into the water again that doesn't feel as cold
anymore as it did just a minute ago.
 
"You really wanna get rid of me as quickly as possible, huh?"
 
"Jimin, please. Don't be like that now. You said you wanted to go home, so
let's go."
 
It's not like he can deny having said that. He really did want to go home.
 
But that was before he saw the cotton candy on his cheek and before he was
reminded of Yoongi's crush on him.
 
And now he feels like if they leave now, it will be over for good.
 
The situation screams missed chances and eternal regret and he cannot let that
happen.
 
"Hmm," he blubbers against the water's surface, his pink hair floating around
his head as he blows bubbles into the water and contemplates how to keep Yoongi
here without outrightly saying it.
 
Yoongi seems to lose his patience, puts the camera and the polaroids down at a
safe distance from the pool before he crouches down at the edge of it,
extending a hand to him.
 
"Come on, Jimin, we need to go," Yoongi reaches for his shoulder, trying to
pull him out but Jimin won't have it. In a moment of helpless despair, he grabs
Yoongi's forearm and yanks at it, making Yoongi lose his balance. It all
happens so quickly that Jimin only sees how Yoongi flies ungracefully into the
pool with a yelp, clothes and all, and vanishes under the surface before he
quickly reemerges again with a shocked gasp.
 
"Fuck! Shit, that's fucking cold! Fuck—," Yoongi wheezes, voice a few pitches
higher than usual, and Jimin tries to keep in his muffled giggles. "Fuck you,
Jimin, what the hell?"
 
"You look like a drowned cat, Yoongi," Jimin laughs cheekily as he watches how
Yoongi pushes his hair out of his face and rubs his eyes, carefree amusement
coursing through his entire body.
 
"You think that's funny, you little shit?" Yoongi snaps, and briefly Jimin
wonders if he's really that mad at him. Before he can wonder any further,
however, Yoongi lifts his forearms in front of his chest like a T-rex and
starts wading towards him, obviously poised to attack. Jimin shrieks when he
realises that Yoongi is about to get him and flees from Yoongi's grabby hands
as he's about to get tickled.
 
He squeals when Yoongi catches him, misses a beat to step away from him that
the other uses to wrap his arms around him and then he gets tickled
mercilessly, Yoongi's fingers relentlessly wriggling against his sides and his
stomach. He squeals and laughs in Yoongi's arms, simultaneously tries to break
free and to not drown, leans back against Yoongi's chest as he squirms in his
hold.
 
"Yoongi, stop, please, I'm sorry!" he wheezes, gasping for air, and he's
relieved when the tickling stops. However, he suddenly gets lifted up by
Yoongi's strong arms instead, and his stomach swoops violently and tingles from
the fact that Yoongi is able to manhandle him easily just like that.
 
"Revenge!" Yoongi shouts and Jimin squeals again when Yoongi throws him in into
the air in a perfect parabola, lets him plunge into the water, his frantic 'no
no no's drowned out when his body dips under the surface.
 
He immediately stands again and gasps for air, wipes his hair out of his face
and then stares at Yoongi who stands there cackling evilly.
 
"I swear, Min Yoongi, if I get to lay my hands on you, I'm going to fucking
kill you," he starts wading towards him now, but Yoongi doesn't budge.
 
"You can try, princess," there's a cocky smile on Yoongi's lips, his T-shirt is
clinging to his chest and arms and balloons underwater at the hem, but Jimin
has never seen him like that. So—, confident and unshakable. His eyes
unwavering and playful, as if all the shitty things they went through until now
have never happened.
 
It has Jimin's heart hammering in his chest.
 
Jimin catches up with Yoongi, stands face to face with him and feels brave
enough to put his hands on his shoulders before he moves them to his throat –
but Yoongi remains unimpressed.
 
"I'm going to drown you and tomorrow they'll find your body floating in the
pool like in one of those cheap horror movies," Jimin mutters, really close to
Yoongi's face, pretending to strangle him. But the other just curls up his lips
into a small grin, even though it's still a tad shy.
 
"You can be really cute if you want to, Jiminnie," Yoongi's voice is only a low
murmur, but it knocks the breath out of Jimin's lungs. Jimin can feel a blush
spread on his cheeks and he tenses a little when Yoongi suddenly puts his
trembling hands on his wrists as he tries to hold his gaze and fails from time
to time to do so. "In fact, you're a-always really, really cute."
 
Jimin feels faint and lightheaded and the need to kiss Yoongi again grows
bigger and bigger within him as their faces and bodies are so close to each
other. He needs so much to show him how much he wants him, to show him that he
wants more than just this, to show him that it's him he should have kissed
earlier and not Hoseok.
 
He leans in, eyes half shut, and he's so close, so very close.
 
He hesitates for a moment, can feel Yoongi's breath on his lips, can feel the
force of the gravity between them, like two magnets trying to resist the pull
but not really succeeding. Their foreheads and noses almost touch, Jimin's eyes
fall closed entirely and he remembers the sweetness of Yoongi's lips on his
when he kissed him for the very first time.
 
He wants it so much again, wants Yoongi to make his heart flutter again, wants
to feel that raw nervousness and vulnerability that he's never felt with anyone
else before. No one who counts, at least.
 
But just when he finally tries to overcome that final distance, Yoongi pulls
away and clears his throat, dilemma written all over his face. He quickly lets
go of Jimin's wrists as if he's been burnt, turns around in hesitation and
starts walking towards the edge of the pool.
 
Jimin stutters out a frustrated sigh.
 
"Yoongi, wait."
 
"Sorry, I-I shouldn't—. We should go back to the car, Jimin."
 
Yoongi pushes himself up at the edge of the pool, turns around and sits down
there while wiping the water out of his face, legs still dangling in the water.
Jimin doesn't waste a second before he comes between them and grabs his knees,
keeping him from going away any further.
 
"No, I think we shouldn't. I think we should talk."
 
"What about?"
 
Jimin groans in irritation, completely fed up with both of them dancing around
the subject any longer. "You know exactly about what, Yoongi."
 
"N-no," the older man retorts with a stubbornness Jimin would admire any other
time, but not right now. Not now that he's sure that this is their last chance.
"There's nothing to talk about, Jimin. You made clear to me where I stand and I
don't want to force anything and—," Yoongi starts to move away, but Jimin grabs
his calves and holds him back.
 
"Why did you kiss Hoseok?" Jimin asks with a hiss in his voice and a ferocity
that surprises even himself.
 
Yoongi snaps his head at him, round eyes staring at him in alarm before his
slack mouth hardens again.
 
"Why did youbuy condoms the other day?" Yoongi retorts just as vehemently and
Jimin looks at him in shock, pain spreading in his chest. For the beat of a
second, he doesn't know what to say and tries not to lose his mind.
 
"That's it? Is that all you care about right now? The fucking condoms?"
 
"No, Jimin, that's not what I—,"
 
"You know, if you wanted to fuck me you could have done that a long time ago!"
 
Jimin's voice rises in pitch and cracks at the end before it shatters. He's so
crushed and angry and the insecurity flaring in his chest brings him close to
tears – but he regrets the words as soon as they've left his mouth, as soon as
he sees his own hurt mirrored on Yoongi's face.
 
It's silent for a few seconds.
 
"That—, that's not what I wanted," Yoongi whispers quietly, broken.
 
"Then what is it that you want?" Jimin half shouts, half sobs because fighting
with Yoongi was the last thing he's ever wanted to do in his entire life.
 
"I—," Yoongi looks down at him, hesitating, before he whispers, "you. All I
wanted was to be with you. I wanted you to be mine, and I wanted to be yours."
 
Yoongi's words knock the air out of Jimin's lungs and when he feels Yoongi's
hands on his shoulders, his mind goes completely blank.
 
Jimin grabs the edge of the pool and he simply stares at Yoongi in mute rapture
and bewilderment.
 
"I wanted to be with you so much," Yoongi whispers, his trembling eyes dropping
again.
 
Yoongi's fingers are warm against Jimin's cold skin, strong and firm as he
holds him tenderly as if he might break him, and Jimin knows that if Yoongi
lets go now, he will do so forever.
 
But Yoongi told him he wanted to be with him.
 
And Jimin wants it too.
 
With a racing heart and shaking limbs, Jimin leans up with his body and his
nose brushes against Yoongi's before he presses their lips together with
urgency and hope blooming in his chest and the storm inside of his head finally
dies down completely and leaves behind nothing but a warm, fluttering feeling
of utter excitement.
 
And this time it's real, this time it's not just some ploy to make his ex
jealous. No truth or dare, nothing. This time they kiss without anyone being
there to witness it.
 
Only the two of them.
 
Water is dripping down from Yoongi's hair onto Jimin's face, but Jimin couldn't
care less, just finally does what he's wanted to do for so long, licks over
Yoongi's soft, plush lips with his tongue and slips it inside of his mouth when
he opens up for him.
 
I'm kissing him. I'm finally kissing him. Shit, he tastes so good, his tongue
is so soft and warm, this feels fucking amazing, I think I'm—. He's so shy, I
gotta show him that he doesn't have to—. Oh god, why is my heart beating so
much, I can't breathe, I can't breathe, I can'tbreathe—
 
Their noses press against each other, their foreheads too, and Yoongi's hands
are firm and strong on his neck, small shuddering gasps punching out of him
whenever Jimin nips at the swell of his lower lip.
 
Jimin has never felt like this from just a simple kiss. Has never had his chest
almost ache with the tingles and little explosions inside of it, has never felt
so weak or gotten out of breath so fast, has never felt so comfortable and at
ease with another face pressed so close to his.
 
They break the kiss with a shaky gasp and Jimin sinks down into the water
again, trembling, the cool liquid engulfing his body a welcome distraction from
the heat that has started to build up inside of him. Yet, his hands feel stiff
and cold from how jittery and spent he is, the adrenaline pumping through his
body not lessening in the slightest.
 
Yoongi pushes him away a little so that he can push himself off the edge of the
pool and slide into the water again. He looks at Jimin with heated cheeks and
eyes burning with intensity before he wraps his arms around Jimin's shoulders
and pulls him close, impossibly close; desperately, helplessly.
 
Jimin freezes up for a second before he relaxes again.
 
"I l-like you—," Yoongi mumbles into the crook of his neck, "I really, really
like you."
 
Yoongi's voice vibrates against his skin and Jimin's heart threatens to burst
from racing so much, his entire being entirely unprepared for those words whose
gravity he cannot grasp no matter how hard he tries.
 
Jimin stares at a random blurry spot in front of him, eyes blinking once,
twice, mouth slightly parted; his chest tightens and he's completely unable to
move.
 
After a few very, very long moments and laboured breaths, he slowly lifts his
arms and puts his hands cautiously on Yoongi's T-shirt clad sides as if the
other could disappear any moment.
 
What if this is all just a dream? What if—. Please be real, please don't
disappear—
 
Yoongi's hold loosens a little and when Jimin realises that he wants to pull
away, he holds onto him harder with a small whimper escaping his lips, cheek
pressing hard against his shoulder.
 
"Don't go, please don't go now," Jimin says, voice hardly above a broken
whisper, "y-you can't go now."
 
"I'm—, I'm not going anywhere, Jimin. Don't worry, I'm here," and Jimin knows
what Yoongi wants to tell him with those words. Deep down he knows it. "I'm
always here if you want me to be."
 
And Jimin wants to believe him so much.
 
He wants him to stay so much.
 
"I, uhm—," Jimin gulps hard, the words already burning at the tip of his
tongue, but they're so hard to speak out loud. He takes a deep shaky breath and
tries again while Yoongi patiently waits for him, just like he always does.
Like he's always done, despite everything Jimin ever did to him.
 
"I really like you too."
 
The words finally come out and Jimin feels like he's dissolving from relief.
 
He can hear Yoongi suck in a sharp breath, a tremor running through his
drenched body before Jimin can feel his hand at the back of his head, fingers
curling into his wet locks in an almost unyielding grip.
 
And it feels so good.
 
Yoongi pulls away a little, and finally, finally, looks at him again. Yoongi's
dripping hair sticks to his forehead and temples messily, some droplets still
caught in his eyelashes. His cheeks are red, either from the cold or their
hesitant confessions.
 
Jimin closes his eyes when he feels Yoongi's forehead press against his own,
and his lips open automatically in anticipation when the tip of Yoongi's nose
brushes against his again.
 
"You have no—, no idea how much I wanted to hear those words, Jiminnie,"
Jimin's heart is beating in his throat, shallow puffs of air punching out of
him as if he's just run for miles and miles.
 
"Me neither. I didn't know how much I wanted you to say them to me."
 
He grips Yoongi's wet T-shirt that clings to his body harder, the heavy fabric
bunching up between his fingers when Yoongi leans in and kisses him again, slow
and cautious but firm, lips opening and closing carefully over and over again
while gently sucking the swell of his lower lip between his own.
 
It feels so wonderful, liberating, better than anything Jimin has ever felt
before, more addictive than any drug in this world, and he could get lost in
Yoongi's kiss forever and ever as they get more daring until—
 
"Ouch!" Jimin yelps, instinctively pulling his face away from Yoongi's as he
sucks his own bottom lip in to lick at it.
 
"Oh god, Jimin, I'm so sorry!"
 
"You bit me!"
 
"I-I-I'm sosorry, Jimin! I didn't want to—. Oh god, please—," Yoongi's hands
are hovering over Jimin's upper arms, flailing, as if he wanted to touch him
but doesn't quite dare to do so.
 
"Ow," Jimin whimpers, a little exaggeratedly, because actually, Yoongi's clumsy
attempt at kissing him with passion doesn't hurt all that much. But seeing
Yoongi's fretting and flustered face is just too priceless and he enjoys every
second of it a little too much.
 
"Jimin, I'm sorry, I really didn't mean to, I—," Jimin can't stop the giggle
he's been trying to hold in and he quickly slings his arms around Yoongi's
shoulders to pull him closer again. Yoongi looks at him dumbly for a moment, a
little perplexed, but Jimin just rubs his nose against his and smiles brightly.
 
"You're adorable, drummer boy," Jimin whispers against his lips, and he can
feel Yoongi tense up before he splutters out some incoherent words, making
Jimin laugh again.
 
"I'm not!"
 
"The cutest ever," Jimin retorts, lovingly, stroking over the back of Yoongi's
head, playing with the damp lengths of his dark hair.
 
"Y-you're one to talk," Yoongi mumbles in return, gaze cast downwards, and
Jimin's chest swells with love and adoration for the other man.
 
They just stand there for a few more moments, mutely basking in each other's
proximity, before Jimin feels a shiver run through Yoongi's body that makes him
aware of the fact that they're still standing in that godforsaken school pool.
 
"Let's get out of here and go back, hyung, it's fucking cold."
 
"Okay. Yeah, let's get out, huh," Yoongi replies, making no move to let go of
Jimin despite noticeably shivering. Jimin's smile widens again before he
presses his lips against Yoongi's once more, drowning in the feeling of the
chaste, warm kiss.
 
Jimin breaks the kiss again with a sigh before Yoongi lifts him up and he
squeals, wraps his body around Yoongi's like a koala bear. Laughing, he buries
his face in the crook of Yoongi's neck as he clings to him. After a few
moments, he can feel the edge of the pool bump against his half-naked behind,
and he lets Yoongi set him down on the concrete.
 
He loosens his grip a little to look down at the other man, admires the way the
moonlight catches in his black and blue hair and how it plays on his soft
features.
 
"You're so beautiful, Jiminnie," Yoongi says, completely unabashed and in awe,
almost reverent, and now it's Jimin's turn to blush and stutter. He playfully
pushes Yoongi's forehead away a little albeit gently, and snags his lower lip
between his front teeth.
 
"Didn't know you can be such a sweet-talker, Min Yoongi," he giggles
breathlessly before he slings his legs over the edge of the pool, too, and
pushes himself up until he's standing, shaking his head free from the last
beads of water still running down his hair.
 
"Not really, but—," Yoongi laughs breathlessly, "I've been wanting to tell you
so many things but couldn't, y'know and—, suddenly I feel like I can and—," he
pauses again and shakes his head. Jimin watches how Yoongi gets out of the pool
now, too; how he pushes himself up at the edge of the pool, lean muscles
rippling underneath his black T-shirt which hugs his strong arms tightly from
being soaked with water, and Jimin has to swallow dryly.
 
He wants to be wrapped up in those arms so much again.
 
"What?" Jimin asks, a little distracted.
 
"It feels—, weird! I—, guess my brain can't really catch up with what just
happened," Yoongi says, still a little dumbstruck, and Jimin snorts softly,
shaking his head despite feeling the exact same thing as Yoongi does.
 
He quickly picks up the Polaroid camera from the ground and angles it at Yoongi
who is in the middle of wiping his hair out of his face, snapping a quick shot
of the other looking up at him, mouth open in a rather amusing 'o'-shape, and
Jimin cackles a little as he pulls the photograph out of the slot when it's
ejected.
 
"Did you really just take a picture of me like that?"
 
"Yep, I did. Let's take some together!" Jimin says enthusiastically, euphoria
still running through his system. He somehow can't stop giggling, his mind just
too dizzy and befuddled from all the happiness he isn't used to.
 
"Only because it's you," Yoongi grumbles after some hesitation, but then
complies. They take a few shots, not caring about the fact that Seokjin is
probably going to murder them for wasting his entire film.
 
There are now photos that show Jimin who has his arm slung around Yoongi's
shoulder, one where he makes a peace sign again, or one where he presses his
cheek against Yoongi's before he turns his head a little as if he was about to
kiss him (but doesn't), has Yoongi poke him in his cheek, takes one shot
unaware of how Yoongi is looking at him with gentle and adoring eyes.
 
When they're done, Jimin picks up his clothes and they're finally going back to
the car. Jimin is shivering at this point, his skin cold and still too damp to
put his clothes on. Yoongi, on the other hand, is still in his wet clothes, no
less trembling from the chill night air.
 
Yoongi doesn't go to open the car doors yet, opens the trunk of the car instead
and pulls out a blanket that he tosses at Jimin. "Make sure that you're dry."
 
"Thanks, hyung," Jimin says, grateful, and proceeds to take off his briefs
without a care. At realising what he's doing, Yoongi quickly whirls around with
deep scarlet cheeks, causing Jimin to grin broadly. He watches how Yoongi
starts peeling off his own heavy clothes, wringing the fabric out as best as he
can. Jimin does the same with his underwear before he wraps the blanket around
his shoulders.
 
"Don't be shy, I've seen all of it already, anyway, Yoongi," Jimin smirks when
he sees how Yoongi hesitates to get his boxers off, too, "just take them off, I
don't want you to get sick."
 
"I'm not shy!" Yoongi protests immediately, looking at him scandalised, and
Jimin almost believes him. But when he turns away again Jimin just bites his
lips and observes, amused, how Yoongi gets rid of the final piece of clothing.
 
"Here," Jimin says, putting the blanket around Yoongi's shoulders instead.
Yoongi jumps a little at the unexpected gesture, looks at him with big eyes.
"I'm dry now but you're clearly not." Yoongi frowns at that, obviously
displeased with that outcome. "Hey, I've already slept in much colder spaces
before, this is nothing. Moreover, I still have dry clothes and you don't."
 
Jimin puts his top back on before he lets his legs fight their way back into
the ripped jeans. He adjusts himself comfortably, used to the sensation of
wearing pants without underwear, before he notices that Yoongi is wearing his
fluffy black sweater, its length barely covering him to the middle of his
slender thighs, the end of the sleeves bunched up in his fists.
 
He looks fucking adorable.
 
Jimin storms over to him and circles his arms around his neck, presses himself
against him and drowns in the feeling of finally being able to do this. Of not
having to overthink his actions or if it'd be okay to touch him because that's
in the past now and he knows it is when Yoongi wraps his arms around him, too,
and pulls him close.
 
"You're not mad at me anymore?" Yoongi asks quietly and Jimin perks up at the
question.
 
"Huh? Why would I be mad?"
 
"Because I kissed Hobi. And because I mentioned the condoms."
 
Jimin gulps dryly, head sinking back against Yoongi's shoulder.
 
"I shouldn't have asked you to do that dare. I was an idiot, okay? That was all
my fault and I'm sorry. And forget the condoms, please? They—, they don't mean
anything. They really don't. I shouldn't have bought them—,"
 
"Protection is good, though. Very responsible," Yoongi is only mumbling but
Jimin understands him very well. He weakly slaps his arm and sniffs briefly.
 
"Don't think about the condoms anymore, okay? And I won't think about you
kissing your best friend anymore. Deal?"
 
Yoongi remains silent for a few moments before he chuckles and nods. "'kay,
deal. Let's just—, let's try to focus on… other things now."
 
"Mhm, I agree. For example on how incredible you smell, hyung," Jimin mumbles
against the hood of his sweater, Yoongi's scent clinging to it grounding him
like nothing ever did before. Yoongi tenses a little again before he lets out a
breathy laugh.
 
"Impossible. I must smell like chlorine."
 
"Only a little," Jimin smiles, letting go of him again and giving him a quick
peck on his cheek before he pretends that nothing has happened and walks around
the car to get to the passenger side, humming a random happy melody.
 
When he's finally sitting inside the car again, he checks his face in the
mirror again, realises he looks awful with his makeup running down his face. He
frowns and rubs the skin under his eyes but otherwise doesn't care all that
much.
 
What makes him a little sad, though, is that the cotton candy princess on his
cheek has almost faded completely and what remains is smudged beyond
recognition.
 
He pulls his lips into a frown and sighs before he perks up again when Yoongi
starts the car.
 
"I like it when you call me that," Jimin says, turning on the radio at a low
volume and leaning back in his seat to get comfortable.
 
"Hm? When I call you what?" Yoongi asks, eyes fixed on the street as he lets
the car roll out of the school's parking lot with practised ease. Jimin can't
help but find it hot that Yoongi is such a good driver.
 
"Princess," Jimin says, catching Yoongi off-guard, for the other snaps his head
towards him, tips of his ears turning red immediately.
 
"O-oh," Yoongi stutters before he clears his throat. "Well, I wasn't sure about
that. Y'know, it was just a joke at first but I—, I mean, I understand if you
want me to stop—,"
 
"Nah," Jimin interrupts him, putting his hand on top of Yoongi's naked knee,
"you know what I don't like being called? Shorty. Oh, or pinky! Or Min.
Absolutely horrible nicknames everyone called me without even asking if I'm
okay with them. They just did and I hated it."
 
Yoongi looks at him carefully from the side, his right hand slowly lowering on
top of his as he absentmindedly circles his thumb over Yoongi's skin. He halts
when Yoongi's fingers intertwine with his own, lips slightly parted when he
looks up into his eyes.
 
"I'd never call you anything you'd hate, Jiminnie," Yoongi's sincerity is
showing clearly in his eyes but Jimin didn't expect anything else from the
other anyway.
 
"I know. I know you wouldn't, hyung. You're the first one to ask me and the
first one who makes sure I feel comfortable," Jimin smiles but Yoongi's guarded
expression tells him that he shouldn't get into this topic any further now. He
wouldn't want to talk about his past now that they've finally started to get
more carefree around each other again.
 
"Jimin?" Yoongi asks after a while of comfortable silence.
 
"Hm?"
 
"Will you be my boyfriend, Park Jimin?"
 
Jimin stiffens at that word, feels his chest clench a little and his windpipe
clog up.
 
Boyfriend.
 
Boyfriend.
 
It's a word that scares him, that makes him feel insecure and a little
helpless, but he also knows what it means.
 
That Yoongi wants to be with him, and only him. That Yoongi thinks he's
precious enough to keep.
 
He shifts in his seat, squeezes Yoongi's knee a little tighter, and licks his
suddenly dry lips.
 
"Well, we kissed, we both said we like each other—, isn't it pretty obvious,
hyung?" he says quietly, the corners of his lips lifting into a soft, cautious
smile.
 
"Is—, that a yes?" Yoongi asks, insecurity dripping from his voice, and Jimin
had hoped he could avoid giving a clear answer. But after all that has
happened, maybe, he owes Yoongi one.
 
A clear yes or no.
 
And so he nods his head.
 
"Yes. Yes, I'd really like—," he inhales shakily, swallowing dryly, "I'd really
like to be your… boyfriend."
 
The grip of Yoongi's hand on his becomes a little firmer, and Jimin can hear
how the other lets go of the breath he must have been holding in.
 
It makes Jimin bite his lip from giddiness, his heart hammering away in his
chest.
 
He feels at ease and at the same time as if he could move mountains, and
everything that happened to him in the past suddenly seems like nothing. A ten-
thousand Joonhos could come and try to wrap him around their little fingers and
he wouldn't even blink.
 
All he needs and wants now is Yoongi.
Chapter End Notes
     You may ask yourself right now if you're dreaming, but NO YOU'RE NOT,
     YOONMIN FINALLY MADE IT!!! CAN YOU IMAGINE!??!! THEY MADE IT!! After
     almost 120k words they finally did the (real) smooch and levelled up
     their relationship status to boyfriends! WHOOP WHOOP
     Let's see if after all that angst you'll be able to handle all the
     fluff that is now to come :D srsly though, so much fluff you will
     wish for the angst to be back real soon :D :D :D (don't worry, it'll
     come back from time to time~)
     Kudos and comments are life and we love each and every one of you who
     have already left some on this fic, you're the real MVPs ㅠㅠ
     As always, you can also come chat with us about yoonmin on twitter or
     hit us up on curiouscat! ♡
***** Fourteen. *****
Chapter Notes
     Thank you all so much for all the reactions on the previous chapter
     ;;♡ We love you all so much!!
     This chapter has only one very short intense scene but we kinda had
     to put it in for the tension. Otherwise, please enjoy yoonmin being
     stupidly in love <3 (it's all saccharine fluff, tbh)
      
     ☾ = Yoongi
     ☼ = Jimin
See the end of the chapter for more notes
                                      –☼–
                                        
"Hey, boyfriend," Jimin hears Yoongi say after a few more moments of them
driving through the deserted city towards the forest. His heart skips a beat.
 
"Hm? What is it, boyfriend?"
 
He bites his lip and hides his smile behind his teeth. Yoongi does the same for
a moment.
 
"Is there—, some kind of protocol we have to follow now?" Yoongi asks with a
slight grin in his voice that indicates to Jimin that he's merely joking, or at
least just half joking, so he lets out a laugh at Yoongi's innocent question.
 
"Not that I'd know, but I'm not really experienced in that whole boyfriend
thing either, hyung. I guess we just have to find out?" Jimin looks at Yoongi
lovingly, his cheeks hurting a little from smiling so much.
 
"Yeah, I guess so. I guess we'll find out."
 
Jimin leans back in the car seat as a song he knows starts playing on the radio
and he turns the volume up a bit, starts singing along cheerfully, half-assing
the lyrics just as they arrive at the edge of the forest.
 
"Ooh, heaven is a place on earth," he sings before he has a change of mind and
starts rummaging through the glove box, looking for some smokes, humming along
to the melody. "Baby, I was afraid before, but I'm not afraid anymore—," he
continues singing before he a thought crosses his mind that causes him to
giggle.
 
"Hm? What's so funny, princess?" his heart skips a beat at Yoongi's deep voice
and at the nickname he drops so casually. When he's finally successful at
finding a half-empty pack of cigarettes, he pulls it out and shuts the lid of
the glove box closed again.
 
"That's our song now," he says resolutely, anticipating Yoongi's reaction which
comes in form of a hearty laugh.
 
"Really? We already have a song? Didn't know you could be so cheesy, Jimin-ah,"
Jimin petulantly sticks out his tongue at him and shows him his piercing.
 
"I like it. It's a nice song, and—," he makes a purposeful pause, "it's
meaningful because it's the first song that came up on the radio after we—,
after we became boyfriends."
 
Yoongi chuckles again, bounces a little in his seat when the car rolls over a
bump in the road. Jimin keeps humming along to the melody.
 
"Okay, then it'll be our song," Yoongi says softly without a hint of hesitation
and Jimin's heart swells all the more.
 
The headlights catch Seokjin's car and the bikes then, and Yoongi parks his car
at the side of the road before he kills the engine.
 
They both don't waste a second before they lean in without another word and
draw each other into a kiss again. It's not rushed, but it's clear that they
both wanted to feel it again. Jimin nibbles on Yoongi's bottom lip, grins a
little when Yoongi makes a soft noise of contentment at the back of his throat.
 
Giddiness spreads inside of him again when Yoongi cups his cheek and strokes
over the faded drawing of the cotton candy with his thumb. He can't help but
let his tongue dart out against the seam of Yoongi's lips, a current of
electricity running through him when Yoongi gasps and obediently opens his
mouth a little so that Jimin can lick inside of it again.
 
Before they can become lost to each other's kiss again, however, they both let
it fade out after a while, foreheads and noses still leaning against each
other. Yoongi stutters out a breath and Jimin has a hard time breathing
steadily, too.
 
"That was—. Jimin, you—. You're killing me," Yoongi seems to try his hardest to
form coherent sentences, but he's clearly unable to do so right now. Jimin
grins coyly and a little proud at making Yoongi forget how to speak. He pecks
his lips again before pulling away and opening the car door.
 
"Well, since you like kissing me so much, I gotta make use of this chance
before we're back with the others," he says cheekily, putting a cigarette
between his lips. Yoongi shows him a mighty pout before he gathers his wet
clothing (and Jimin's underwear, which Jimin just lets him do), the camera and
their polaroids.
 
"No kissing when we're back with the others?" Yoongi asks and Jimin briefly
pauses from lighting the cigarette.
 
"I don't know. They'd only make fun of us," Jimin mumbles, jutting out his
lower lip before finally drawing a flame from the lighter. They start walking
next to each other on the path that leads back to the cabin.
 
"Pft, they can try," Yoongi says confidently and Jimin snorts at that.
 
"You know them, they'll be relentless," Jimin hands Yoongi the smoke before he
tousles his own hair, trying to fix the half-dry mess on his head.
 
"Actually, I was hoping they'd finally stop teasing me about it," Yoongi sighs,
smoke puffing out of his mouth in white-grey plumes. Jimin raises an eyebrow at
him. "What? I didn't tell them anything about it – well, except Hobi – but
somehow Jin and Namu caught on anyway and—,"
 
"Yoongi, you weren't exactly subtle about it," Jimin snickers, the hand by his
side bumping against Yoongi's as he takes the cigarette back from him. He links
their pinkies together and hopes that Yoongi won't hear his racing heart
because it sure as hell is rushing in his own ears right now.
 
"I—," Yoongi sighs, shoulders sagging, "yeah, I guess I wasn't, huh."
 
"I'm glad you weren't though. Y'know, I wouldn't have gotten the memo
otherwise. I would have just mistaken it for something else and—, ah. I don't
wanna think about that." Yoongi takes his hand into his properly, intertwining
all of their fingers until they're holding onto each other firmly.
 
"Then don't, Jimin. It's 'kay. It's 'kay now as long as you're happy."
 
Jimin pauses, just looks at Yoongi for a moment, studying his eyes as he tries
not to freak out from the whirlwind of emotions inside of him.
 
"Yes, I am. I really am happy, Yoongi," Jimin smiles and Yoongi smiles with
him.
 
Jimin smokes up the cigarette and keeps it between his fingers after twisting
the rest of the ash out of it. The light of the cabin comes into view and they
can already hear the voices of their friends talking animatedly about something
that makes them laugh before the clattering of empty beer bottles can be heard.
Jimin feels his hands getting clammy a little and insecurity creeping back into
his mind.
 
He wants to let go of Yoongi's hand slowly but doesn't get very far.
 
"Do you want to let go?" Yoongi asks, voice careful and steps slowing down a
little. Jimin worries at his lips vigorously while twisting his tongue to play
with his piercing. "Holding my hand can't be more embarrassing than me showing
up in only my sweater and without underwear, if you ask me," Yoongi jokes and
Jimin lets out a breathless laugh.
 
"That's not it, hyung," Jimin replies, holding onto Yoongi's hands despite all
his fears. "It's just—, I'm nervous. Hobi isn't really fond of me and he'll
probably kill me if I mess anything up, and what if they all think I'm not—,
not good for you. I mean, you're great and wonderful and I'm just—,"
 
"Jimin," Yoongi halts his steps completely and turns to him, eyes and breathing
calm. Jimin averts his gaze to the ground, too scared of already fucking this
up. "First of all, this is our business, and our business only. Second, they're
our friends and I know that all they want for bothof us is to be happy. No
matter how much they're going to tease us, I know that they'll stand behind us
one-hundred percent. 'kay?"
 
"Even Hobi?"
 
"Especially Hobi, that protective little shit," Jimin's lips are coaxed into a
small smile by that. "And most importantly, third," Yoongi grabs his chin
between his thumb and index finger and makes him look up again, "you are the
wonderful one here. Gorgeous, brilliant, beautiful, amazing, lovely—," with
every word Yoongi says, Jimin's cheeks turn a shade darker until he can't take
it anymore and slaps Yoongi's arm lightly.
 
"Hyung, please—,"
 
"Maybe you don't see it yet, but I'll make sure to remind you every day. That
you are all those things and more," Jimin inhales deeply and looks into the
other's eyes with raw emotion shining in his own. He lets out a wet, quiet
laugh before he nods.
 
"You're already more amazing than I could've ever imagined, hyung," he quickly
pecks Yoongi's smiling lips again before he nudges his side, "'kay, then—.
Let's go before I chicken out."
 
When they step onto the clearing, hands laced together, they notice that only
Namjoon, Hoseok and Seokjin are still sitting around the fire, apparently
trying to build a tower of empty beer cans and bottles. The tower already has a
considerable height, but it is wavering dangerously, and when Namjoon spots
them coming closer, the beer bottle in his hand knocks the highest piece of
their artwork down and the entire tower collapses.
 
"They're back!" Namjoon exclaims, voice a little slurred from intoxication,
"fuck, Yoongi, what happened to you?"
 
"Why are—, is—, are—, your hair wet and where are your pants?" Hoseok chimes
in, eyes squinting in a strained manner as if he needed glasses.
 
Jimin holds onto Yoongi's hand tighter, surprised by the fact that them holding
hands wasn't the first thing they commented on.
 
"What can I tell you, guys. Some brat here thought it'd be funny to pull me
into the pool with him," Yoongi looks at Jimin accusingly – but without bite –
as he speaks and Jimin presses his lips into a thin line, playing innocent
while his heart is racing.
 
Seokjin guffaws at that and Namjoon almost doubles over with laughter before he
stands on wobbly legs and staggers over to them.
 
"Ey, that's my buddy," Namjoon says proudly, raising his fist for a fistbump.
Jimin reacts a tad bit too late, still holding the smoked-up cigarette between
his fingers. Before he can do anything anyway, Namjoon notices his other hand
that is still securely wrapped up in Yoongi's.
 
"What's this?" the other man asks dopily, pointing at their hands with his
index finger, "is this what I think it is? Has our Casanova finally made a
move?"
 
Jimin can feel the heat creeping up his cheeks at the unavoidable attention,
even more so when Yoongi sputters and shoves Namjoon away playfully at the
shoulder. He lifts their linked hands for everyone to see.
 
"I'm not answering stupid questions by stupid drunk idiots when the answer is
so obvious," Yoongi counters.
 
"Tsk, you're just envi-envious because you can't be drunk."
 
Yoongi lets go of Jimin's hand and puts it around his shoulders instead,
pulling him closer.
 
"Why would I be jealous of your cold, empty beer bottles when I can have him?"
Yoongi says sweetly before he grins at Namjoon's dumbfounded face. "Anyway. We
got the picture. That was one hell of an effort for a stupid dare, but it
definitely paid off."
 
"Wait wait wait, you're really—, a thing now?" Namjoon asks and Jimin bites his
lip.
 
Without being able to hide his infatuation, Jimin turns his head to look at
Yoongi again, causing both of them to break into enamoured smiles.
 
"Ooh, look at them!" Namjoon excitedly pats Yoongi's shoulder and the others
coo too, overly exaggerated, before Jimin throws them a pouty glare which shuts
them right up and makes them snicker under their breaths instead.
 
"Here's the picture, in case you still need proof," Yoongi says and shoves the
picture of Jimin in the pool into Seokjin's hands after he got closer to where
they're sitting around the died down fire. He keeps all the other photos hidden
in the pocket of his sweater, though. "Fuck, I really need to get out of my wet
shoes," he mumbles as he starts to line up his wet clothes –  and Jimin's
yellow briefs – on an unoccupied tree trunk next to the still glowing embers.
 
"Go and look for something to wear in the cabin, hyung, I got this" Jimin says
as he comes to help him with the clothes, sidling up next to him before he
takes them out of Yoongi's hands. He ignores the whispering that immediately
ensues behind them, only has eyes for Yoongi's smile and his rosy cheeks.
 
"I've only brought one shirt with me, guess I'll see what else I can find. Are
the little ones in there already?" Yoongi asks the others as he starts walking
towards the cabin.
 
"Yup, completely wasted and knocked out," Seokjin says with pursed lips,
obviously not amused by that fact. Yoongi just snorts and enters the shack
anyway.
 
Jimin goes back to pulling Yoongi's wet clothes apart, so that he can lay them
flat down on the trunk, when he feels a presence next to him. He looks up and
is surprised by Seokjin's smiling face directed at him.
 
"I'm glad it worked out," Seokjin says smugly, utterly complacent and
triumphant, "what a luckycoincidence that I had this glorious, spontaneous idea
of sending you two off alone." Jimin laughs and lightly shoves him with his
shoulder, grinning.
 
"Yeah, what a totally completely unplanned coincidence, huh," he retorts at
having his suspicions confirmed. Jimin's gaze softens before he bites his lip.
"Thank you, Jin," he whispers so that only he can hear it.
 
"Hm? I have no idea what you're talking about," Jimin doesn't buy his innocent
act in the slightest but still lets him pat his shoulder. "Told you it was
inevitable," Seokjin says with a wink before he hands him the polaroid of Jimin
in the pool that Yoongi gave him earlier. "Here. You should put it up on the
wall inside."
 
"O-oh," Jimin blinks at the photograph before he nods, "'kay. Guess I'm gonna
check on Yoongi now anyway." He smiles at Seokjin one last time before he turns
around and immediately catches Hoseok staring at him.
 
A lump forms in his throat at the other's intense gaze and Jimin has half a
mind to escape into the woods to live there as a hermit. Fuck, what will
Yoongi's best friend think of him now? What is he going to say? What if he is
against him and Yoongi being together?
 
Just when nervous cold sweat starts breaking out on his back, however, Hoseok's
lips split into a warm, reassuring smile before he looks away again as Namjoon
distracts him with something that looks suspiciously like a joint.
 
Jimin lifts his eyebrows but then just lets out a relieved sigh, glad that
Hoseok apparently doesn't want to dissect him for being with his best friend –
at least for now. He quickly walks to the entrance of the cabin and enters
before closing the door again.
 
He finds Yoongi rummaging through Taehyung's and Jeongguk's bags in the yellow
glow of the fairy lights inside the room.
 
"Found something?" he whispers, not wanting to wake up the two softly snoring
boys on the bed. Yoongi jumps a little at the sudden voice, making Jimin grin.
 
"Yeah. Guess I'm gonna wear Guk's boxers. Hey, do you want Tae's briefs?"
Yoongi asks leisurely, holding the folded briefs out to him.
 
"Uhm, yeah, sure," Jimin replies, accepting the underwear from Yoongi who
proceeds to put on Jeongguk's boxer shorts. Jimin peels his pants off of him
again and slips into Taehyung's briefs, glad to finally have gotten rid of his
tight, ripped jeans. Yoongi pulls a large T-shirt out of his own bag then and
exchanges it with the sweater he's wearing. Jimin just watches him while he's
hugging himself, still hopeful that he'll be able to borrow a blanket from
someone later for sleeping because it's gotten really chilly.
 
"Wear this," Yoongi mumbles, already stepping in front of him.
 
"Huh?" Jimin has barely a second to blink before Yoongi pulls his hoodie over
his head, catching him completely off-guard. He raises his arms out of reflex
so that he can put them through the sleeves and a moment later he's drowning in
Yoongi's black sweater, the hood loosely perched on his head, Yoongi's scent
engulfing him completely.
 
He lifts his hands to the neckline to pull it down a little, the long sleeves
covering his hands almost entirely so that only the tips of his fingers are
still peeking out from under them.
 
"Better," Yoongi murmurs, putting his arms around his middle before nuzzling
his nose into the crook of Jimin's neck and Jimin's heart starts hammering
against his ribcage, "need to keep you warm." Jimin clings to his boyfriend,
eyes suddenly feeling wet, but he just smiles and closes them, enjoying the
sensation of Yoongi rubbing his back with his hands to warm him up.
 
They pull away a little and Jimin could get used to leaning his head against
Yoongi so that their noses touch and brush against each other lightly, just
perfectly so that they can softly press their lips against each other again and
again.
 
They stand there like this for maybe a minute or two before Jimin speaks up
again.
 
"Jin said we should put up the proof photo on the wall," he says quietly,
picking up the polaroid he put down earlier.
 
"You could also give that picture back to me and we'll stick another one that
shows both of us to the wall. Luckily, we got enough of them so that we could
spare one and the rest we can keep," Yoongi grins and reaches inside the pocket
of the sweater Jimin is wearing now, pulling the pile of their polaroids out.
Jimin likes the idea, too, and so they choose a picture together before it's
being pinned to the wall with one of the spare needles that are sticking next
to the other photographs.
 
"They turned out really good despite the darkness. Andin spite of how awful we
look on all of them," Jimin says after a while of them just looking at the new
picture on the wall on which Jimin's makeup is smeared all over his face and
Yoongi looks like a drowned cat. But they're both smiling happily and it's all
that counts.
 
"I love them all," Yoongi agrees before they get startled by Taehyung making a
weird noise in his sleep. They look at each other before they snicker quietly.
 
"Are they a thing now, too? Or have they been before?" Jimin asks, hushed,
looking at the two on the bed, Jeongguk curled up on Taehyung's chest, Taehyung
having his arms tightly wrapped around him, abusing him as a pillow.
 
"Huh? No, they're not—," Yoongi furrows his eyebrows and tilts his head a
little, "why, what makes you think so?"
 
"Oh, uhm—," Jimin hesitates for a moment, wonders if it'd be okay to talk about
what he saw earlier, "I just saw them before we left, together. Uhm, quite—,
adorably making out against the cabin wall."
 
"W-what?" Yoongi gapes at him, mouth open, before he looks back at the others
and clears his throat, "uh—, well. Well, that's—. I don't know what to say, to
be honest. Are you sure?"
 
"They had their hands all over one another, I'm pretty sure I didn't
misunderstand anything there."
 
"O—kay," Yoongi says, perplexed, before he blinks at Taehyung and Jeongguk deep
in thought again and ushers Jimin out of the cabin. "Guess we're gonna know
more tomorrow, hm?" he says when they're still out of earshot from the others.
When they join them, Hoseok is playing on his guitar and Namjoon as well as
Seokjin are clapping along, still as chipper as if the party had just started.
 
Yoongi and Jimin sit down next to them, close to each other, and let the others
tease them as much as they want, they don't care. In fact, Yoongi behaves more
loudly and unrestrained in front of them than Jimin has ever seen him before.
More than once his boyfriend makes him laugh with some snarky remark or witty
joke that has him double over with his whole body and curl up into Yoongi
beside him, his heart racing all along.
 
Yet, Yoongi still seems shy when he takes Jimin's hand into his after a while,
playing with their fingers a little, a gesture that calms Jimin down immensely
and even makes him a little sleepy. He smiles at Yoongi before lowering his
head onto his shoulder carefully, just enjoying the other's warmth and his
proximity that he soaks up like it was the very essence of his life.
 
And maybe it is now.
 
"Jimin?" Yoongi asks after a while, voice a little rough from tiredness.
 
"Hm?"
 
"We could go to sleep now. Share a blanket and sleep on my sleeping bag as a
mattress," Yoongi murmurs and Jimin's eyes go wider, "would you—, would you
like that?"
 
"Yes," Jimin beams, pressing a kiss on his cheek, "yes, I'd really, really like
that."
 
He grabs Yoongi's hands and pulls him up, his heart beating wildly in his chest
as Yoongi's look of surprise switches to one of unconcealed adoration.
 
"Night, guys," Jimin says to the others who also look like they're gonna drop
dead under their blankets very soon, smiles when they all tell them goodnight
too, all of their gazes soft and good-natured.
 
Jimin wants to burst from all the giddy and warm feelings inside his chest.
 
"Hyung?" he says while he walks to the cabin with Yoongi between his arms and
his cheek pressed against his shoulder blades, hands clasped over the other's
stomach.
 
"What is it, Jiminnie?" Yoongi whispers back, putting his hands on top of
Jimin's.
 
"Uhm—," Jimin hesitates, his heart beating out of sync and rushing in his ears
before he finally dares to ask the question, surprising himself with how shy he
sounds. "Will you cuddle with me?"
 
Yoongi squeezes his hands more firmly, thumbs stroking them gently.
 
"There's nothing in the world I'd rather do right now."


 
 
 
 
 
                                      –☾–
 
When Yoongi's eyes flutter open they do so to the sight of cotton candy hair
that tickles his nose and obstructs his view from anything else.
 
His head feels like exploding from tiredness, his eyes feel sticky and his
stiff limbs are killing him but somehow he feels very light despite slumber
still clouding his sleepy mind.
 
The washed out pink strands shift a little then, brush against his face, and
Yoongi wiggles his nose so that he doesn't have to sneeze. He lifts his hand
and rubs at it before he licks his dry lips, his head spinning a little from
waking up so early after a long night.
 
The sun is already shining brightly through the window, plunging the room into
an ethereal washed-out hue of warm yellow and soft blue. Yoongi watches some
grains of dust floating through the air in the morning sun rays in the complete
stillness of the cabin. Only the breathing and soft snoring of his friends is
audible in the room.
 
Yoongi turns his eyes towards the ceiling and all of a sudden the events of
last night all rush back to him.
 
The truth or dare, him and Jimin swimming in the school pool, him and Jimin
kissing in the school pool. Him and Jimin kissing in his car, holding hands and
cuddling beside the dying embers.
 
And then he realises that Jimin is, in fact, lying right next to him, his body
that's snuggled up to him the actual source of the warmth he's engulfed with
under the blanket they're sharing. He snags his own upper lip between his teeth
and has to suppress an embarrassing squeal as his chest threatens to explode
with happiness.
 
He presses his lips together and tries to stop smiling because his cheeks start
to hurt – but it's impossible.
 
Oh my god, he thinks to himself, trying to catch up with the fact that what
happened yesterday was not a dream, oh god, it's real. It's really real. Jimin
kissed me. He really said he likes me. Jimin really wants to be—
 
He inhales shakily.
 
Jimin reallyis my boyfriend.
 
Jimin is still wearing Yoongi's sweater because he was so cold after they
returned from the pool yesterday. Yoongi let him have it because he's so
fucking fond of him he would give him everything he asks him for: his clothes,
his food, his cigarettes, his drum set—
 
Just. Everything.
 
He takes in Jimin's small body that is drowning in his black sweater, his lithe
form moulded perfectly like a missing puzzle piece against Yoongi's side.
 
Namjoon whimpers something in his sleep then and someone else groans as if in
response, and Jimin starts stirring in Yoongi's hold, a small whine escaping
his lips. He seems to realise that he's not alone yet stretches his limbs out a
little, his almost naked behind just briefly pressing against Yoongi thigh,
making Yoongi blush a deep shade of red before Jimin's elbow almost hits him in
the face when he pulls it back underneath the blanket.
 
He turns around in Yoongi's hold and his sleepy, puffy eyes immediately find
Yoongi's who is wide awake now.
 
And when their gazes meet, Jimin's lips stretch into the most beautiful, most
blinding smile Yoongi has ever seen.
 
"G'morning, drummer boy," Jimin whispers hoarsely, his fingers finding Yoongi's
side underneath the blanket, tangling into his T-shirt lightly.
 
"G'morning, princess," Yoongi whispers back stupidly, nuzzling his nose against
Jimin's, his heart skipping a beat. He's so fond, so damn fond of how Jimin is
barely able to open his eyes, hair sticking out in every direction, lips puffy
and way too inviting when he briefly smacks them together.
 
Jimin suddenly scoots even closer and simply buries his face in the crook of
Yoongi's neck, soft lips pressing against sensitive skin. Yoongi gulps heavily,
his grip around Jimin's waist becoming tighter when Jimin starts scattering
light kisses all over the column of Yoongi's neck. His eyes flutter closed and
his heart almost leaps out of his throat.
 
"Sleep well?" Jimin murmurs against his skin, and Yoongi feels himself melt in
his hold.
 
"Never slept better before," at that, Jimin giggles under his breath and pulls
away a little to look at him, head propped up on his hand as he looks down at
him. Yoongi's nerves start tingling more and more under Jimin's gaze, his heart
already complaining about the extra workload it has to do. "What?" he asks
after a while of Jimin just looking at him with eyes flickering all over his
face.
 
"Hm? Nothing. Just looking at my handsome boyfriend," Jimin replies
nonchalantly, gaze just softening even more before he leans down and presses
his nose against Yoongi's. Their foreheads touch and Jimin closes his eyes
before he stays that way, just gently rubbing the tips of their noses against
each other.
 
Yoongi must have reached paradise.
 
"D-did you sleep well, too?" he whispers after a while because his heart can't
take the emotional silence anymore.
 
"I wish I could sleep like that every day from now on."
 
"But on a bed, please, I think the floor has planned an assassination on my
back," Yoongi complains and Jimin just snorts before he crawls over him and
simply plops down on his chest with his upper body, causing Yoongi too wheeze
out a groan. "I guess you want to see me dead, too, huh?"
 
"No, I just want cuddles," Jimin murmurs against his shoulder and Yoongi puts
his arms around him, surprised at how unreservedly Jimin seeks his affection
now. But he'd be the last person on the planet to refuse him or to complain.
 
He pulls him closer and squeezes him in his arms, enjoying the small breathy
giggles that leave Jimin's lips. He can't help but chuckle a little as well.
 
"Hey," a groggy voice suddenly cuts through their pink-coloured lovey-dovey
haze, "can you two lovebirds be in love a little quieter? There are people who
are trying to die here."
 
"Shut up, Namu. We're not even thatloud," Yoongi hisses back, lips pursed in
annoyance.
 
"You're ungodly loud," Hoseok's voice joins them and this time Yoongi's cheeks
warm up a little at realising that not only Namjoon seems to be awake but his
best friend too.
 
"How long have you guys even been awake?" he asks in a stage-whisper, grumbling
a little when Jimin moves down from him and onto all fours, taking the warm
blanket that covers them both with him. Yoongi's hand automatically comes to
rest on his naked thigh.
 
"Long enough to hear you two being all cute with each other," Seokjin pipes up
too and Yoongi crosses his arms over his face in embarrassed surrender.
 
"Are Taehyung and Jeongguk dead?" Jimin asks quickly, distracts their friends'
attention elsewhere and Yoongi is eternally grateful for the intervention. He
turns his head to the bed as well, just when a sleepy Jeongguk lifts his head
from Taehyung's chest.
 
"Well, they certainly look like it," Hoseok remarks after taking a look at the
both of them as well. Jeongguk lets out a confused noise, eyes barely open and
hair sticking out in every direction. Taehyung stirs, too, and immediately
presses his face against Jeongguk's biceps.
 
"Oh, will you look at that, the other couple is awake as well," at Namjoon's
comment, Yoongi raises his eyebrows and that's when he remembers what Jimin
told him yesterday. That Jeongguk and Taehyung apparently made out with each
other behind the cabin in their state of intoxication.
 
"Are they one now? A couple?" Jimin asks, almost excitedly, and Namjoon turns
to look at him.
 
"Well, what I saw them do yesterday would speak for it, but they were too drunk
to form a coherent sentence afterwards, so I have no idea."
 
"You're too loud. What are you even talking 'bout?" Jeongguk complains, voice
hoarse and barely coherent, eyes still blinking rapidly as he tries to wake up
fully. Sleeping bags start to rustle around them as Hoseok and Seokjin begin to
move and pack their things up. Yoongi sits still while Jimin comes to wrap
their blanket around them both again.
 
"You two were making out behind the cabin yesterday. And I mean not just a
little," Jimin says gleefully with a sly grin on his face. Jeongguk's eyes go
completely round at this, eyebrows shooting to his hairline, while Taehyung
sits up and almost slams his head into Jeongguk's chin, creases from the
blanket imprinted on his red cheek. He frowns but still seems to be too
befuddled to talk. The hangover is clearly written all over his grumpy
expression.
 
"You did what?" Seokjin gasps instead, alternating between looking at his
cousin and Jimin.
 
"Y-yeah, we did what?" Jeongguk asks, too, a little more quiet as he rubs his
temples.
 
Yoongi's eyes widen at Jeongguk's question. "Don't tell me you don't remember!
How much did you fucking drink?"
 
"Uhm, I remember making drinks with Jimin and dancing around the fire but after
that…," Jeongguk trails off, eyebrows pinched, strained.
 
"You kissed," Jimin says, "or well, you also got a little handsy, but mainly
you kissed and—,"
 
"Jiminnie, we, uhm—, I don't think we—," Taehyung begins carefully but is
immediately cut off by Jeongguk who suddenly seems to be wide awake.
 
"You must have imagined things," he blurts out, voice a little more high-
pitched than usual, "we’re just friends! We wouldn't—, kiss," Jeongguk shares a
glance that screams 'what in the world' with Taehyung before Taehyung nods
vigorously. He quickly stops though when he winces from hangover pain.
 
"Right?" Taehyung agrees, "you don't go and kiss your best friend—, well,
unless you're Yoongi but—. Ouch! Hyung, not my head!"
 
"Little brat!" Yoongi says with a scowl in his voice after throwing a roll of
toilet paper at Taehyung's head, "watch your mouth and don't be rude to your
hyung. And drink something, seriously, you should take some painkillers."
 
"Wait, what did you mean by other couple, though? Well, 'other' couple that
would, in fact, be the only couple here," Taehyung asks with a cheeky smile
that slowly spreads across his lips and a hopeful gaze towards Jimin. Yoongi
feels heat creep up his cheeks.
 
His hand shoots to the back of his neck where he ruffles his own hair, his gaze
drops and his lips break into an infatuated smile because once again he's
reminded that he and Jimin are now, in fact, a couple.
 
"Yoongi and Jimin finally, officially, got their shit together," Hoseok says
leisurely before Yoongi can even open his mouth. His eyes snap to his best
friend and his smile is replaced by lips pursed in mild offence.
 
"Yah, it was not that simple, okay?" he protests but is immediately appeased by
Jimin's arms around his shoulders and his boyfriend's small nose pressing
against his cheek. His heart rate instantly picks up again. "Anyway, it doesn't
matter now. I—, I asked Jimin to be my boyfriend and he said yes."
 
Taehyung's face splits into a bright smile, complete with sparkling eyes and an
awed 'waaah' while Jeongguk's reaction is a little more subdued but no less
fond when he comes to pat Yoongi's back and congratulates them on 'finally'
making it.
 
"Thought you'd never do it, hyung," Jeongguk teases and everyone else who's
present nods sagely.
 
"You—, you all knew I had a crush on Jimin, didn't you?" Yoongi asks, eyes
moving from one of his friends to the next. They all nod. "Well, fuck." Jimin
snorts and pats his shoulder blade, as if he hadn't been the source of Yoongi's
misery during the past few weeks. "You be quiet! You're the worst of them all!"
 
"Hyung!" Jimin exclaims, squints his eyes in offence and Yoongi feels a shiver
running down his spine at the others death glare.
 
"I—, uh. I mean, of course, you're not, you're—, you're—," Yoongi stutters
before Jimin starts to smirk and bite his lip. The others are about to lose it
at this point, their stifled laughter echoing faintly through the room. Yoongi
is on the brink of despairing.
 
"Will you look at that," Seokjin can be heard in the background, "Jimin has our
Yoongi completely wrapped around his little finger. Have you guys ever seen him
this tame before? I certainly haven't—," Yoongi shoots him a glare and Seokjin
immediately shuts up but snickers together with Namjoon who's started packing
up his things, too.
 
Yoongi feels flustered and a little embarrassed, never really realised how
obvious he was with his crush; but apparently, his friends knew it all along.
He glances at Jimin who's still looking at him, his expression a lot softer
now.
 
Yoongi's heart almost leaps out of his chest when Jimin leans into him.
 
"I'm sorry, hyung. I know I'm the worst. You had to suffer a lot and that was
my fault and—," to make Jimin stop talking, Yoongi grabs his hands and gently
pulls one to his lips to kiss Jimin's knuckles. He doesn't know where that
bravery just came from but it feels – amazing. Even more so when he observes
the deep blush that is blooming on Jimin's cheeks.
 
"It was no one's fault, Jimin. We both didn't really know what to do and—, it
doesn't matter now, not anymore. Just don't walk away anymore, okay?" Jimin
immediately nods his head and pulls him into a hug, one that was much needed.
Yoongi inhales his scent and squeezes him firmly.
 
"Hey, lovebirds, you better help us clean up or I'm personally gonna kick you
in the ass," Hoseok says, but there's a faint grin on his lips and his typical
leader-glint in his eyes.
 
"Can you all stop calling us that? We get it!" Yoongi groans, doesn't want to
let go of Jimin, but then Jimin himself pinches his sides and causes him to
move and go and help the others. Yoongi doesn't mind, not really.
 
That morning is the perfect end of a new beginning.


 
 
 
 
 
                                      –☼–
                                        
Tick-tock, tick-tock, tick-tock.
 
A cool breeze is coming in through the window of Jimin's room, the sheer white
curtains swaying softly in the wind in front of a backdrop of grey clouds and
lush green trees that mark the beginning of the park that starts somewhere
behind Jimin's apartment block. It's been raining all afternoon and while that
cooled down the air considerably it's still warm in the small room.
 
Jimin is lying on his bed spread eagle, one of his legs limply dangling over
the edge of the mattress. He's staring at the ceiling and slowly squints his
eyes before he tilts his head that is resting on his fluffy pillow.
 
Maybe it's the lingering smell of the rain that makes him not hate his glow-in-
the-dark stickers right now, maybe it's the tranquillity of this Sunday
afternoon but most probably it's the fact that he will meet up with Yoongi in
less than an hour just to do nothing together.
 
Tick-tock, tick-tock, tick-tock.
 
If only that damn clock would tick the time away faster.
 
A sunray falls into Jimin's room, against the wall, over his face and he blinks
before his breath catches in his throat and his face splits into a giddy smile.
 
He quickly presses his lips into a thin line so that he doesn't explode and
curls up into a ball, pulling a pillow over his face before he rolls around,
laughing into it like a maniac before he almost drops off his bed. He catches
himself and, breathless, pulls the pillow off his face again.
 
All Yoongi's fault.
 
He's a little angry at Yoongi for rendering him into this giggly mess without
even trying, without even being here, but Jimin just can't help his heartbeat
spiking whenever the drummer's face appears in his vision behind his eyelids.
 
He looks at the clock again and decides it's time to get ready because he just
cannot wait any longer.
 
He jumps up, gets dressed in something comfy and makes himself just a little
pretty. Okay, a little much pretty. When he's done he snags his thin yellow and
blue cardigan from the coat rack and puts it on before he leaves the flat and
the building, stepping into the now brightly shining sun that makes the
leftover puddles almost sparkle with light.
 
Closing his eyes, Jimin deeply inhales the crisp air, fills his lungs and
smiles softly to himself before steadying his racing heart. He lets out the air
again before he starts walking in the direction of the convenience store. He'll
probably be too early but he doesn't care.
 
He wants to see Yoongi so badly.
 
All of his nerves are burning with giddiness when the store comes into view and
he briefly slows down his steps to take another deep breath, back straightening
a little before he takes the last steps to the entrance of the store. As he
walks through the door, he pushes his hair back with his sweaty yet cold hand
and directly looks for Yoongi behind the counter.
 
But there's no Yoongi there.
 
The store is, in fact, empty and looks almost as if it has been abandoned. Not
even when he stands on his tiptoes and tries to see if he can spot someone over
the tops of the shelves he can detect anyone.
 
"Hyung?" he asks carefully into the store, hoping for an answer. However, there
is none. He knows that Yoongi must be here. After all, he was the one who told
him when his shift will end and that's only in about ten minutes.
 
Jimin walks further into the store, pouting while worrying on the inside of his
bottom lip. Just when he decides to read some magazines, he hears shuffling
footsteps coming closer and when he looks in the direction of the cash
register, he sees Yoongi emerging from the back room of the store, wiping his
hands on the apron he's wearing.
 
When Yoongi looks up and sees Jimin standing there, he freezes in his tracks,
his eyes growing huge.
 
Jimin forgets how to breathe.
 
Yoongi is wearing a simple black T-shirt that is revealing his collarbones, his
hair is pushed back a little and Jimin can see his black eyebrow piercing on
his right brow. His skin is glowing in a natural, healthy complexion, darkened
a little by the summer sun.
 
Jimin licks his suddenly dry lips, quickly puts his best smile back on and
crosses the distance to the register in feigned nonchalance.
 
"There you are, hyung."
 
"Jimin—, sorry, I—. I didn't expect you yet. Uhm—, my coworker must arrive in a
few minutes, then I can leave," Yoongi doesn't really stutter but he obviously
has to scramble for his words and that makes it even harder for Jimin to calm
down his own raging heart. The tips of Yoongi's ears have turned the faintest
bit red; Jimin can see it when he finally reaches him and puts his elbows on
the counter.
 
"I know, I'm early, drummer boy, but I really wanted to see you."
 
Jimin smiles and Yoongi suddenly caves in and holds onto the cash register for
dear life as if he just tripped over something. Thing is, he was just standing
behind that counter.
 
Jimin can't suppress a small snort.
 
"Do I get a kiss as a greeting?" he asks, feeling bold. He usually wouldn't but
it's Yoongi and he's missed him so much.
 
Jimin can read on Yoongi's face how he tries to play it cool when he's so
obviously anything but. Still, Yoongi simply lifts a gentle hand to Jimin's
cheek to make him hold still, leans in and—
 
Presses a soft kiss against Jimin's forehead.
 
Now it's Jimin's turn to burn up.
 
He didn't expect such a simple, yet way more intimate gesture than a kiss on
the lips.
 
He didn't know boyfriends would do such a thing.
 
"Hey," Yoongi says softly against his skin and Jimin's surprised, rounded eyes
fall almost entirely closed, a small shudder of emotion rippling through his
chest. He searches for Yoongi's eyes when the other pulls back and looks
directly into them when he finds them.
 
"Hey," he whispers back, voice suddenly gone. "That was a fantastic kiss," he
adds and almost at the same time he wants to slap his own face.
 
That was a fantastic kiss, who the fuck says that?
 
Yoongi just huffs a laugh and then smiles at him, his blinding smile that shows
his gums and bunches up his cheeks so cutely.
 
Just then, the store bell at the door goes off and a customer comes in. Jimin
quickly rips his eyes away from Yoongi and straightens up.
 
Yoongi says his greeting to the customer, who vanishes between the shelves,
before he turns to Jimin again. "Hey, after ringing them up I'm just gonna go
change real quick and then we can go. Do you still wanna hang out at the park?
I mean, since it's probably still wet from the rain."
 
Jimin contemplates his options. He could use this to his advantage and go and
see Yoongi's room, but for some reason, he wouldn't want to impose himself on
Yoongi so soon. Plus, Yoongi's dad could be home and that's a kind of stress
Jimin doesn't want to face right now.They could also get back to his own room
but he knows that his mum had an early shift today, so she will be home soon
and he wants to be alone with Yoongi now.
 
"Nah, park is fine. If you still want to, of course."
 
"Sure, okay. Uhm—," Yoongi hesitates, his thumb and index finger rubbing over
his pierced earlobe, before he gestures at the lollipop tree and the bubblegum
box. "Do you want something?"
 
"Huh?" Jimin blinks, dumbstruck, and slowly looks at the candies. At the
realisation of what Yoongi wants to do, his eyebrows shoot to his hairline.
"You want to buy me something? You?"
 
Yoongi rolls his eyes. "Yah, it wouldn't be the first time, you spoiled brat,"
Yoongi actually juts his lower lip out before he just grabs a strawberry and
cream lollipop and a handful tattoo gums which he puts into Jimin's hand while
swiftly counting them with practised ease.
 
The only thing running through Jimin's mind is our hands are touching, our
hands are touching, our hands are touching—
 
And then Yoongi also adds a cold bottle of water ("you gotta stay hydrated"),
does something with the register and Jimin realises that Yoongi's just bought
him some of his favourite things in the world – and some water.
 
Giddily, he presses his lips into a thin line before he bites them. "You're the
best hyung, hyung!" he says, a sparkle in his eyes, and hugs his candies close
to his chest.
 
The customer that Jimin had already forgotten about comes up to the register
then and Jimin grabs his bottle and steps aside with a bounce in his step. He
puts the lollipop and all the bubblegums but one into his pockets before he
unwraps the one he kept, carefully as to not rip the tattoo sticker inside. He
pops the bubblegum into his mouth and looks at what tattoo sticker he got.
 
It's a set of lips, or rather, the lipstick imprint of one. Jimin snorts.
 
He licks his lips and watches Yoongi ringing up the customer, looking all fine
and dandy, all grown-up and responsible, and it does things to Jimin that he
shouldn't be feeling. Not now, not yet.
 
When Yoongi's done, Jimin briefly glances at the clock, then smiles at him. He
starts grinning evilly, moving the chewing gum from one side of his mouth to
the other.
 
"Hyung, come here for a sec," Jimin steps in front of the register again and
leans over it in order to get closer to the other. "Close your eyes, I wanna
give you a kiss."
 
"Huh?" Yoongi's cheeks turn pink and his eyes grow a little wider.
 
"Come on!"
 
Yoongi reluctantly does close his eyes and Jimin has to bite his lips to stop
himself from laughing.
 
"Jimin, what are you doing? Why are you—, what is this?"
 
"Hold still, hyung. Keep your eyes closed!"
 
"Jimin, why are you opening your water bottle? Are you doing what I think
you're doing?"
 
"No?" Jimin chuckles and presses the wet piece of tattoo paper on Yoongi's
cheek.
 
"Eek! Park Jimin!"
 
"You're ruining it, hyung, stop moving!" Jimin laughs, pressing the paper flat
against Yoongi's cheek.
 
At that, Yoongi pouts, his eyes downturned and his cheeks a little puffed out,
and Jimin feels like ice melting in the sun. It doesn't take long until Jimin
can remove the paper and Yoongi has a nice imprint of a kissy mouth enthroned
on his skin.
 
"Park Jimin, do you have a death wish?" Yoongi murmurs and sighs in
resignation. "You're lucky you're you."
 
"Payback," Jimin grins, thinking of the cotton candy Yoongi drew on his cheek
at the party, "now we're even."
 
Yoongi tuts. "What even is this? I thought you were going to—,"
 
"Hm?"
 
"Nothing," Yoongi mumbles and tries to take a look in the mirror above the
counter. His eyebrows instantly shoot to his hairline. Jimin feigns innocence.
 
"It is technically a kiss!" he says and Yoongi sputters, giving up.
 
"I swear, I'm—," Yoongi sighs, "my co-worker should already be here, he's
probably getting ready in the back, uhm—. I'm just gonna go get my stuff real
quick," Jimin nods, smiling, and watches Yoongi disappear – stumble, really –
to the back room again.
 
Jimin hums a random melody and absentmindedly wants to take a swig of his water
when he notices that he still has the bubblegum in his mouth. He pulls a face
and leisurely walks behind the counter where he finds a bin and gets rid of the
now flavourless gum.
 
When Yoongi comes back, he's already waiting at the door. His heart starts
pounding when he sees the other man.
 
"You look great," Jimin cringes a little because that wasn't so smooth. He's
also not used to handing out honest compliments, but what else can he say when
Yoongi looks so good in his black T-shirt and the snapback that he's wearing
backwards on his head, revealing his forehead.
 
Yoongi is a walking daydream.
 
Yoongi, with his fingers bashfully kneading his earlobe, lifts his lips to a
lopsided smile. "You look great too, Jiminnie. But then again, you always do."
Jimin laughs, wonders how he's ever deserved him.
 
"Are we good to go now? Oh, wait—," Jimin pauses, briefly bites his lips and
clicks his tongue piercing against his teeth as he looks into Yoongi's
questioning eyes and then leans in, presses his very real lips on the temporary
fake ones on Yoongi's cheek, letting them linger there for a few moments.
 
He can hear Yoongi suck in a sharp breath through his nose, Adam's apple
bobbing up and down.
 
"Now we're good to go," Jimin adds softly, pulling away again, looking into
Yoongi's eyes. Outwardly, Yoongi looks calm, but Jimin knows him well enough by
now that he can tell he's making him nervous.
 
Yoongi just nods, eyes not leaving Jimin's for a second. Jimin has to chuckle
again. Yoongi's unwavering, intense stare has the nerves in his entire body
burn and his insides tingle and his incessant giggling and laughing is really
just a way to play that fact down.
 
"Hyung, stop staring at me," he whines, all in good humour, while they walk out
of the store into the chilly after rain air.
 
But it's not like he can take his eyes off of Yoongi either.
 
Why did no one ever tell him how amazing it can feel to be in love?
 
Yoongi grins, such a happy and satisfied grin that makes his lips thinner and
his eyes crinkle at the corner. "I don't know why I should. Am I not allowed to
look at my boyfriend?" Yoongi looks away despite his words before he takes a
sudden step to the side. "Oh, watch out, Jimin-ah," Yoongi warns him and Jimin
is momentarily disoriented.
 
In the last possible moment, he sidesteps a puddle on the pavement and almost
crashes into Yoongi, laughs when the other catches him, eyes slightly widened,
before he proceeds to take his hand into his.
 
"Take better care of yourself, Park Jimin."
 
"Ah, but I have you now to take care of me," Jimin hangs onto Yoongi's arm,
unabashed, and smiles up at him so much his cheeks almost hurt. His entire
being almost hurts just from how good he feels. Yoongi rolls his eyes but
breaks into a smile again as well, his gums showing, before he tries to shake
him off.
 
"You're a brat," he says as he proceeds to pat the pockets of his jeans, not
looking very amused. "Ah, damn. I forgot to buy new cigs," he sighs, "guess I
have to quickly go back and get some, okay?"
 
"No, wait, hyung. You can have mine," Jimin is already reaching for his own
cigarettes when laughter and boisterous shouts can be heard coming down the
street. When Jimin briefly looks up to see what's going on, his blood freezes
in his veins.
 
Just a few metres away is a group of guys, all at Yoongi's age or older, all of
them way too loud and way too rude. They're steering their steps directly to
where Yoongi and Jimin are and Jimin feels his heartbeat quicken.
 
"Yoongi," he grabs the hem of Yoongi's shirt, "let's change to the other side,
okay?" he hates how small his voice sounds, and he hates that his fingers are
slightly trembling but he needs to get away.
 
Because he's had sex with at least three out of six guys in that group.
 
Because Joonho is right in the middle of them all.
 
His ex-boyfriend with the wolfish grin is just looking at the other guys while
observing them, a cigarette perched between his lips. There's nothing charming
about him, just the cold Jimin never really managed to get rid off; the cold
that always clung to him like a second, itching skin during the past two years
of his life.
 
Yoongi, seemingly oblivious, just looks at him questioningly before he takes
his hand. Jimin almost pulls away, his breath hitching in his throat. "Why?
What's wrong, Jiminnie?" Yoongi asks, worry lacing his voice. Jimin looks at
him helplessly, wants to say something, but no words come out.
 
His chest feels tight when he chances another glance at the group and, oh no –
Joonho is already looking at him.
 
The other's grin melts right off his face.
 
It only takes the fraction of a second before some of the others see Jimin too.
 
"Hey, is that Min?" one shouts, face astonished. "Min! You're still alive?"
 
"Eh, where have you been? Haven't seen you in ages!" another one hollers and
Jimin pushes Yoongi at his arm with his entire body so that they can finally
just walk away. But the group is already right there and they have no other
choice but to stay.
 
"Been busy," Jimin mumbles, eyes narrowed and expression blank while he forces
himself not to show them how weak he is. Yoongi next to him bristles, his
entire body tensing up, Jimin can feel it. When he looks at him he sees him
frowning, eyes dark, deep furrows between his brows. "Uhm, we gotta go."
 
"You still hanging out with that shrimp?" Jimin already takes a step to leave,
holding onto Yoongi's arm, when Joonho speaks up. There's a bite to Joonho's
voice that shakes Jimin to his core. He snaps his head to look at him, just
like almost everyone else does, but Jimin doesn't hold his gaze, just huffs and
looks down again.
 
"It's none of your business who I hang out with," Jimin retorts, licking his
lips, "just leave us alone."
 
"Hey, Min," one of the guys grins, completely ignoring what Jimin just said,
"why don't you come with me and I'll let you sit on my face again," the other
guys wolf-whistle and make indecent sounds and obscene gestures and Jimin feels
like throwing up.
 
No, please no.
 
He doesn't even dare to look at Yoongi right now.
 
"Stop calling him that!" Yoongi says, voice rough and tone furious, his muscles
tense under Jimin's fingers.
 
And something within Jimin snaps.
 
Before the guy gets the chance to offend Yoongi, too, Jimin speaks up again.
"Sorry, I don't remember you or why in the world I ever sat on your face. Was
it because your nose is bigger than your dick?"
 
The idiot blanches a little while everyone else is cracking up. Everyone except
Joonho who barks at the guy to shut up and pushes his head with his flat palm,
his face red with anger. Jimin swallows and wants nothing more than to get away
from here.
 
"Hyung, let's just go, okay?" he whispers to Yoongi, staring at his shoulder
instead of his face. "There's no need in wasting our time with them any
longer."
 
Joonho's eyes are on him again, burning and icy at the same time. A shiver runs
down Jimin's spine.
 
"Fuck you, Min," the Nose Guy yells after them but Jimin ignores him and
soldiers on, "don't come crying when you're bored and dying for dick!"
 
Jimin rolls his eyes that are prickling a little obnoxiously, but he just
presses his lips together and walks away with Yoongi as quickly as he possibly
can without running. When they're finally around a corner and out of sight,
Jimin swallows down the lump in his throat and lets go of Yoongi before he
steps away a little, trying to hug himself.
 
He doesn't get very far, however. Yoongi is quick to take his hand back into
his and pulls him closer before he wraps his arms around him and holds him
against his chest.
 
Jimin momentarily loses his ability to breathe.
 
"Are you okay?" Yoongi asks and doesn't let go of him. Jimin feels his insides
melt and the tension bleed out of him as if it hasn't ever been there. He
practically sinks into Yoongi's arms and presses his nose into the crook of his
neck. He closes his eyes and inhales the scent that has become so familiar to
him.
 
"I'm fine. I'm fine but I'm sorry, hyung. I'm really sorry."
 
"What are you sorry for, princess? You didn't do anything wrong, 'kay? It's not
your fault they're assholes," Jimin lets out a breathless, wet laugh and
burrows his nose further into Yoongi's skin, arms circling around his waist so
that he can hold on tight.
 
"I know, I just—, kinda didn't want you to hear that stuff," he whispers,
remorse and embarrassment eating away at him. He never wanted Yoongi to know
even a fraction of the things he used to do before he started his new life.
 
"Jimin," Yoongi says, his voice calm and so deep and raw, leaving no room for
arguments, "your past is a part of you. We all have one and I don’t give a fuck
about what anyone says. If anyone talks shit about you again, I’m gonna punch
their fucking faces," Yoongi looks dead serious and Jimin can't help but let
out a wheezy laugh that is supposed to mask how touched he is.
 
"You really know how to win my heart, Min Yoongi," he says before he slowly
looks up at him.
 
"I'm just telling the truth."
 
Yoongi's intense gaze is in stark contrast with his soft features, with the
kiss-tattoo on his full cheek. It has been there this entire time and the
thought alone of Yoongi facing Joonho like this has Jimin smile again.
 
It tingles terribly in his chest, in his tummy, when he looks at Yoongi like
this, when their faces are already so close, but Jimin has been waiting for
this so long he cannot hold himself back any minute longer.
 
He leans in and finally captures Yoongi's lips with his again.
 
He sighs when their lips touch, his eyes fall close and their noses press
together so that he can hardly breathe.
 
He opens his mouth a little just when Yoongi gasps and uses this chance to draw
Yoongi's bottom lip between his teeth and suck at it before he lets go again.
He can feel a shudder run through Yoongi's body before he sharply sucks in some
air through his nose.
 
Jimin grins cheekily and Yoongi slaps his arm.
 
With a laugh, Jimin pulls away again and tilts his head back, all the fibres in
his body singing. When he looks back at Yoongi, the other is looking at him
with the gentlest smile on his lips.
 
"Don't you ever change, Park Jimin," Yoongi mumbles, lacing their fingers
together. Jimin's breath catches in his throat. "You are perfect to me, so
don't you ever change."


 
 
 
 
 
 
                                      –☾–
                                        
Life of someone who's graduating soon is pretty sweet, Yoongi thinks, sinking
deeper into the cushions of the old battered couch in the practice room.
 
Some of his classes were cancelled today because all the exams are over anyway
and they're graduating soon. Only two more weeks until everything is officially
over and the prospect of it makes Yoongi simultaneously happy and scared
shitless.
 
He sighs and starts solving his Rubik's cube for the thousandth time that day,
the individual cubes clicking loudly in the otherwise quiet music room as he
moves them swiftly. It's a little hot in there and he cannot even open the
window because that would just cause more heat to come in together with
probably five hundred spiders and sixty thousand mosquitos. He prefers
suffocating in the stifling air of the room to dealing with vermin.
 
It takes another few long minutes until he finally hears voices coming from the
hallway through the open door, the only source of some fresh air.
 
He recognises all three of the voices, but one of them instantly makes his
heart beat faster and his hands turn sweaty. He stops rotating his Rubik's cube
and looks up from his hands with bated breath.
 
Jimin is laughing when he enters the room together with Jeongguk and Taehyung
and Yoongi feels like he's watching the serene sky after a rain shower when his
eyes fall upon him. Said eyes almost detach from their sockets when he notices
that Jimin is currently sucking on a lollipop, his lips puffy and glossy from
twirling the candy between them.
 
He stares at him, dumbstruck and mesmerised, as Jimin tousels Jeongguk's hair
in a very annoying manner until the other has enough and swats his hand away,
making Jimin laugh even more.
 
Jimin looks so happy and pretty and Yoongi almost dies because, wow, he's
actually dating this boy now – well not that they have had a real date yet but
he's actually allowed to call Jimin his boyfriend and no one can take that away
from him.
 
Yoongi keeps his eyes trained on Jimin and observes how he puts his lollipop
back into his mouth before he turns around and their gazes meet, causing
Yoongi's racing heart to skip a beat – or several.
 
Jimin's lips stretch into the most dazzling of all smiles in the world upon
seeing him and Yoongi almost lets out a whimper because he's a lost cause and
so in love it physically hurts.
 
Jimin takes the lollipop between his fingers again. "Hey, hyung," he greets him
as he throws his bag into a corner of the couch and then straddles Yoongi's
legs as if it was the most normal and casual thing in the world as he comes to
sit on his lap.
 
The Rubik's cube slips from Yoongi's hand when Jimin leans down and kisses him
in front of their friends, hands cupping Yoongi's neck tenderly.
 
Yoongi's eyes fall closed, heat trickling down his entire back as he feels
Jimin's weight on his lap and his soft, plush lips nibbling on his own. He
grabs Jimin's thighs instinctively, trying not to be too dazzled by the feeling
of kissing Jimin after not having done so for an entire day.
 
But Jimin is simply overwhelming.
 
Jimin is the rush he feels before going on stage, the panic and thrill he
remembers from being with him in that narrow toilet stall, the warmth of waking
up next to him in the morning in a tangle of limbs and soft wake up kisses.
 
Jimin is shining brighter than a comet and Yoongi is so gone for him he feels
like burning up with this boy on his lap, kissing him with a passion that
sweeps the floor from underneath him.
 
When Jimin pulls away, a giddy smile is on his face that Yoongi is compelled to
return, noses brushing against each other briefly before their lips meet again.
Jimin tastes so sweet and heavenly Yoongi is already addicted.
 
"Sigh, they will never pay attention to us anymore, Taetae," Yoongi hears
Jeongguk say and Taehyung heaves an actual sigh.
 
"Yeah, we're just peasants, Gukkie. No chance of getting them to notice us when
they're so busy sucking each other's faces off."
 
"Yah, shut up you two," Yoongi snarls and almost throws his Rubik's cube at
their heads – which he doesn't do because that thing is actually precious. The
two just snicker and then unpack their things before starting to tune their
guitars.
 
Jimin simply wraps his arms around Yoongi and puts his chin on his shoulder,
his warm body pressing up against him. Yoongi hugs him close, sighs dopily.
 
"This is the best thing ever," he whispers and Jimin chuckles before he nods,
pulling back a little again before he puts his lollipop back into his mouth,
cheek bulging out a little obscenely.
 
Yoongi can't help but stare at it, remembering how Jimin's cheek bulged out
from his dick inside his mouth. It's an image he really shouldn't think of
right now, especially not with having Jimin sitting here on his lap.
 
Jimin seems to notice, however, how Yoongi is staring at him, lips curving into
a sly smile.
 
Oh oh.
 
"Yoongi, that time in the school's bathroom—,"
 
Can he fucking read my mind?
 
"Oh god, Jimin, don't," but it's much too late, it's all Yoongi is thinking
about right now, the blowjob fresh on his mind as if it only happened
yesterday.
 
"Ssh, let me finish," Jimin takes the candy out of his mouth and leans to
Yoongi's ear, smirking like the little devil he is, before he whispers, "I was
getting myself off to the thought of you behind that drum set," Yoongi gulps
thickly, suppressing a groan, "I was imagining you. Your strong arms. Your
broad shoulders—," Jimin pauses and his breath fans against Yoongi's ear, hot
and heavy, "—your hands on me."
 
"Dear lord, get a room," Hoseok's voice pipes up, and Yoongi flinches because
he didn't hear him arrive. Maybe it's better he's here now because Yoongi is
suffocatingand that surge of arousal in his nether regions isn't really helpful
either.
 
Jimin pouts, scowling at Hoseok who greets Jeongguk and Taehyung before he
unpacks his guitar. Jimin possessively runs his hands over Yoongi's chest,
causing Yoongi's stomach to do flip-flops and somersaults and he wonders how on
earth he's still alive. He gasps when Jimin's palms run over his T-shirt-clad
nipples and over his piercing, his grip on the other's thighs becoming harder.
 
Jimin snaps his head to him, smirking knowingly, and Yoongi can't believe when
he leans down again and kisses him again, this time with a force he didn't
think possible coming from the petite boy. He forces a moan that wants to
escape back down his throat and gasps when Jimin stops kissing the living
daylights out of him and just presses his lips against his innocently.
 
But if there's one thing by now that Yoongi knows it's that Jimin is far from
innocent.
 
"Okay, up with you two now, you can eat each other up later," Hoseok commands
and Jimin smiles at Yoongi one last time before slipping off his lap gracefully
like a cat, running his hands down his arms until they're holding hands.
 
Yoongi is completely unable to either move or take his eyes off of Jimin, mouth
slightly agape because—
 
Wow.
 
His knees give in for a millisecond when he stands and Jimin giggles when he
staggers towards the drums. Yoongi couldn't care less.
 
He's is on cloud nine, in paradise or some other heavenly place because, shit—
 
Park Jimin does things to him.
 
"Okay, let's warm up a little and then practise our song. The contest is less
than two weeks away and we gotta step up our game," Hoseok says and they get
ready to jam a little. It's all going well except Yoongi barely being able to
take his eyes off Jimin and for Taehyung and Jeongguk being a little more quiet
than usual.
 
It becomes clear as day to Yoongi that their behaviour is a little odd when
Taehyung offers Jeongguk his water bottle with a smile but Jeongguk refuses,
claiming that he's not thirsty. Not even five minutes later, however, when
Taehyung is practising something with Hoseok, Jeongguk goes to the washbasin
that is in the room and drinks from the tap.
 
Suspicious.
 
Yoongi furrows his brows and keeps a watchful eye on them throughout rehearsal
but cannot observe anything else that would be weird. After practice, they even
leave together like they normally would.
 
"Hyung?" Jimin asks when they're both on their way home after practice has
ended. Yoongi is steering his bike through the small, traffic-less street and
has Jimin's arms wrapped tightly around his middle from behind. Jimin is
leaning against him, head pressed against his shoulder and it feels so
wonderful.
 
"Hm? What is it?" Yoongi asks, tone calm and relaxed. The setting sun is
shining in his face and he has to squint his eyes a little, but he doesn't
mind.
 
"Will you take me out on a date?" Jimin asks, whispers, and Yoongi's heartbeat
picks up speed faster than a space rocket at launch.
 
"It's been three days and you already wanna go on a date?"
 
"Yah! Hyung! What do you mean by already? How long did you plan on making me
wait?" Jimin whines, his voice a little higher pitched than usual.
 
Yoongi scoffs, thinking he's misheard something.
 
"I thought we didn't have a protocol to follow or anything for that kind of
stuff!"
 
"We don't but—," Jimin presses his head harder against Yoongi's shoulder blade,
nose digging into his back. He doesn't continue for a few moments and Yoongi
can almost feel Jimin's shyness radiate against him with full force.
 
Shyness?
 
Park Jimin and shy?
 
Maybe he's only imagining things.
 
"Go on, princess," Yoongi encourages him, voice gentle again. There's a smile
playing on his lips that he cannot suppress, his chest filled with warmth and
love for his cute boyfriend who now digs his chin into his shoulder. Yoongi
ignores how that's actually a little painful.
 
"I'd really like to go on a date with you," Jimin speaks against the wind and
the blood rushing in Yoongi's ears, "please? I've—, I've never been on a date
before and I want my first one to be with you. Only for a while, let's go to a
place where no one else knows us."
Chapter End Notes
     It's already been 300 days since we've uploaded the prologue of
     Cotton Candy and look how far we've come! 120k+ words, almost 2k
     kudos (!!!) and yoonmin finally together T-T
     Thank you all so much for all the love Cotton Candy gets, we are
     truly blessed! We love you all ♡
     Yoonmin's song from the beginning is Belinda Carlisle - Heaven is a
     place on earth :)
     You can also find us on twitter!
***** Fifteen. *****
Chapter Notes
     Thank you all so much for all the love Cotton Candy still receives!
     We're so happy you liked the last chapter ♡
     This chapter is pretty intense but also sickly sweet, we hope you'll
     enjoy <3
      
     Warning: there's a very brief scene with homophobia but nothing too
     bad.
     ☾ = Yoongi
     ☼ = Jimin
See the end of the chapter for more notes
                                      –☾–
 
 
"Ma, pa, I'm going out tonight, don't wait for me."
 
Yoongi steps into the entrance corridor, leaving the mess behind that is his
room after trying on several thousand outfits. He desperately wishes Hoseok
would be here right now to tell him whether he chose the right clothes or if he
looks like a dumbass that tries too hard. His best friend would certainly know
what to do but that fucker had to meet up with Namjoon and Seokjin instead of
doing best friend duties today.
 
Now he just has to rely on his own non-existent fashion sense and hopes that
the red, loose pants, white tank top and black bomber jacket will somehow
convince Jimin that he looks like genuine boyfriend material.
 
"Where are you going, honey?" his mother steps into the hallway with a magazine
in her hand and a bowl of crisps in the other. She looks very surprised about
Yoongi's get-up and eyes her son from head to toe.
 
"Oh, just—, out with friends," he lies, smiling awkwardly, and his mother fails
horribly at hiding her grin.
 
"In this outfit?" she asks, impishly, and Yoongi's blood runs cold.
 
"Yeah. I'm off then, bye!" he says quickly but not quick enough as his dad is
already coming out of the living room behind his mum, putting an arm around her
shoulders.
 
"Take care when you drive at night, Yoongi."
 
Yoongi grins nervously at his dad's words and nods. "I sure will. Bye," he says
again and when he pulls the door closed behind him he can hear his mum say to
his dad 'he has even styled his hair, do you think he's got a girlfriend?' and
his stomach almost turns itself inside out.
 
He briefly leans against the door, presses the hand with his car keys against
his chest and takes a deep breath, suppressing the heavy feeling of guilt that
spreads in his stomach at not being able to tell his parents the entire truth
before he goes to his car that is parked in the driveway.
 
The sun already begins to fade when he finally sits inside of his mint green
rust bucket and turns the key in the ignition. Before he starts moving the car
out of the driveway, he checks if it's actually tidy and presentable.
 
"Please don't let me embarrass myself in front of him today," he repeats like a
mantra to himself while he drives in Jimin's direction, peeking at the clock
every few seconds to check if he's not too late. "Just this once I don't want
to make a fool out of myself, please."
 
He arrives, a little early, gets out of the car and goes to ring at the
doorbell of Jimin's flat before he walks back to the car and leans against it,
resisting the urge to light a cigarette, resisting the urge to fidget with his
fingers, trying to not look like he doesn't know what to do with his body while
his heart is almost leaping out of his throat.
 
It's okay. I don't have to look super cool or anything. Just be yourself, it's
fine. But why is my heart racing like this, why are my hands cold and, fuck,
get a grip, Yoongi. It's not like you meet him for the first time today, it's
just Jimin, for fuck's sake and—. Oh. Yeah, well, I guess that's actually the
entire problem—
 
In that moment the door of the apartment block opens and Jimin comes out and
Yoongi forgets how to breathe.
 
Holy shit.
 
Jimin is wearing his black hot pants, a light grey crop top with some band logo
on it that shows off his flat tummy and his belly button piercing, a long,
black-grey flannel that reaches to his knees and to top everything off a black
tattoo-choker that makes his neck look even more slender than it already is. On
his feet are a pair of creepers, the white ones with the black woven interlace,
whose thick soles easily make Jimin two to three centimetres taller. His pink
hair is styled so that his forehead is revealed and Yoongi thinks he's going to
choke from just looking at how perfect he is.
 
Instead of greeting him with a hug or even a kiss, however, Jimin says
something unexpected, throwing him off even more.
 
"If you don't want my mum to know about us right away then no hugging, no
kissing, and most importantly: don'tlook at the window!"
 
"Huh?"
 
Of course, he instantly looks at the window.
 
"Yoongi!"
 
"Sorry!" he says, quickly looking ahead again. Jimin is in front of him then
and visibly hesitates. "So—," Yoongi starts, clears his throat, "no hugging,
huh?"
 
"Uhm, no—," Jimin lifts his hand, falters a little before lifting it further
like Namjoon usually would when you greet him. And then it clicks with Yoongi,
his eyes grow bigger before he lifts his hand too and does the most awkward
fistbump of his entire life together with Jimin.
 
"Well, uhm. Hi," Jimin grins, strained, and Yoongi's lips lift into a stiff
half-smile.
 
"Hi," Yoongi replies before his hand goes to the back of his own head where he
ruffles his hair a little before he points at the car with his thumb, "wanna
get in?"
 
"Oh god, yes, please, or else I think I'm gonna die," Jimin laments and quickly
opens the door to climb in on the passenger side. Yoongi hurries to get in,
too, and as soon as both their doors fall close, the awkwardness between the
two dissipates and they both burst into relieved laughter. Yoongi's heart is
still beating fast inside his ribcage, but he's much less nervous now than he
was just a minute ago.
 
"Your mum is at the window, am I right?"
 
"You can bet on that," Jimin rolls up the sleeves of his flannel so that
they're bunched up at his elbows and leans back in his seat, "she was trying
really hard to not ask me questions, like, she was visibly shakingfrom holding
in her curiosity."
 
"And—, you didn't want to tell her what you're doing tonight?"
 
"Nuh-uh," Jimin says, fumbling with the radio now, "didn't know if you'd like
that."
 
"Very considerate of you," Yoongi says jokingly and grins at Jimin's cute pout.
The truth is, Yoongi is very thankful that Jimin didn't tell his mum yet.
 
"Hey, you didn't seem to be out to your parents and you know how parents can
talk – your dad is my teacher, so—," Yoongi's grin softens to a smile before he
licks his lips and nods a little.
 
"Yeah, you're right. Thank you."
 
Jimin just hums and starts looking for a radio channel that is not too annoying
while Yoongi drives down the street in the direction of the new McDonald's with
a drive-thru that has opened just a while ago. They're not talking, but Jimin
is quietly singing along to the song that is playing and it instantly puts a
spell on Yoongi that makes him smile. When they arrive and queue up after
turning into the drive-thru, Jimin suddenly leans over to him, puts his arms
around his neck and pulls him closer to press a kiss on his cheek.
 
Still not completely used to the sensation, Yoongi feels his ears and cheeks
heat up and his lips curl into a stupid smile.
 
"Jimin?"
 
"Hm?" Jimin looks so lovely and cute, his almond shaped eyes that are framed by
a dusky eyeshadow glimmering in the streetlights. He smells so damn good, like
jasmine and something warm and so rich that it makes Yoongi's heart flutter and
dance inside his chest.
 
Yoongi leans in and draws Jimin into a real kiss, every fibre in his body
burning up. His eyes fall closed immediately and the sensation of Jimin's lips
on his make him feel like he's floating.
 
"Finally," Jimin sighs against his lips and Yoongi snorts, affectionately
rubbing his nose against Jimin's before simply kissing him again because he
can.
 
Honking behind them rips them out of their hazy bubble soon though, and Yoongi
pulls away, cussing the driver behind them out while Jimin giggles against his
shoulder before throwing his head back in amusement and sinking back into his
seat.
 
Yoongi's heart rate picks up again. It's so comfortable with Jimin, so unlike
it was before, an eternity ago, and he wants to thank the heavens and whatever
gods there are for twisting his fate into becoming Park Jimin's boyfriend.
 
After they've got their burgers and milkshakes (and Yoongi only mildly having
embarrassed himself when he didn't understand the voice over the speaker at
once) they head towards the highway with their bag of food on Jimin's lap.
 
"Yah, Jimin, buckle up. I won't go on the highway like this," Yoongi says, his
tone a little grumbling, hand motioning for the seat belt next to Jimin.
 
"Hyung—," Jimin starts whining, the little brat, but Yoongi just raises an
eyebrow at him which shuts him right up and put on the seat belt sulkily. A
content smile appears on Yoongi's lips.
 
"I'm a safe driver, Jimin-ah, but this is very important."
 
Jimin sighs. "You're always so grown-up and responsible, hyung. You should
relax and have some fun!"
 
"I'm having more fun with you buckled up for more safety than with having you
fly through the windscreen and end up dead on the street."
 
Jimin clicks his tongue but Yoongi is more amused than anything. "You really
are no fun," Jimin says petulantly while starting to eat his fries one piece
and one bite at a time, sucking them up through his rounded, plump lips.
 
"That's what you signed up for, princess," at that, Yoongi can see how Jimin
starts grinning around his fry, his lips pursed out around it before he eats
it. He looks at Yoongi and quickly licks his fingers before he picks up another
one of his fries and holds it in front of Yoongi's mouth instead.
 
Yoongi doesn't even hesitate before he takes it between his lips and munches it
up.
 
God, he's really too gone for this boy.
 
He's also enjoying this a little too much.
 
They talk about this and that for a while; school, the upcoming holidays, the
band, the contest, the music that's playing on the radio. It doesn't really
matter what they're talking about because, in the end, Yoongi just wants to
hear Jimin's lovely voice; his annoyed groans when he talks about something
that irritates him, his low, amused chuckles when Yoongi tells him something he
thought only he would find funny. Yoongi needs nothing more than that.
 
Until Jimin suddenly comes up with an idea.
 
"Do you know that game, two truths and one lie?"
 
"Huh? Yeah, but what does that have to do with your history teacher and—,"
 
"Let's play that game, I start!" Jimin sounds so excited that Yoongi merely
sighs and smiles, humouring his boyfriend.
 
"Shoot away."
 
"Okay, you guess the lie!" Jimin doesn't think long, just goes straight to
business, "I started singing because my mum was a singer in a band before she
had me but then she stopped because of me. Second, I was four years old when I
wanted to become a singer, too. And, hmm—, third, I used to be in a band before
I was in Cotton Candy."
 
"Jimin-ah, if you say two things so easily and then have to think about the
third one, I'm gonna guess the third one is the lie."
 
"Are you really sure? Maybe it's just a trick?" Jimin grins and Yoongi snorts.
 
"Nope, I'm gonna stick to it. You haven't been in a band before us."
 
"Damn, yeah, okay. You're right. Cotton Candy is my first band."
 
"Thought so. You didn't seem to be really experienced when you first joined
us," Yoongi grins and lets Jimin shove his leg playfully, "is it my turn now?"
 
"Yep. Your turn!"
 
"Alright," Yoongi thinks for a bit before he starts, "I started playing the
drums when I was seven. I joined Cotton Candy only because Hobi asked me to
help out since his first drummer left but they never found another drummer and
so I stayed. And finally, when I was sixteen, I couldn't play the drums for an
entire week because I had strained the muscles in my right arm so badly I could
barely hold a drumstick."
 
"Your right arm, huh," Jimin smirks and Yoongi pales before he blushes a deep
crimson.
 
"Jimin! You're impossible, dear lord, you little shit! It was from playing the
drums, not from anything else!"
 
"Mhm, sure…"
 
"Park Jimin!"
 
"Okay, okay," Jimin laughs before he finally focuses on the guessing, leaving
Yoongi a little flustered, "hmm, number two is true, you already told me that."
 
"Huh, I did?"
 
"Yeah, during our first practice together," Jimin says matter-of-factly.
 
"And you still know that?"
 
"Yoongi, I might not look like it but I do remember the things you tell me."
 
"I didn't—. Not even I remembered that," Yoongi laughs, "okay, but what's the
lie?"
 
"Since you're so good at playing the drums, I'd say number three is the lie."
 
"Deng."
 
"What?"
 
"That was the wrong answer. I only started playing when I was almost thirteen."
 
"Hyung! Then that means you should take better care of your arms! They're
important!" Jimin whacks his arm with a worried pout on his lips.
 
"Ouch, then stop smacking my precious arms! And don't worry, I'm always
stretching now before playing."
 
"I hope you do, or else I'm gonna make you!"
 
Yoongi snorts. "Come on, next one!" Somehow, playing this game with Jimin is
really exciting. It's exciting to finally get to know more about the boy he
likes so much, a pleasant thrill thrumming inside his chest.
 
"I moved here from the city because my parents divorced. I'm still in touch
with my dad, though. Oh, and I wanted to marry my best friend in kindergarten –
of course, it was a boy."
 
Yoongi raises his eyebrows. "How enviable. Wish I had known back then that
could be a thing."
 
"Well I didn't know that could be a thing, it was just – right for me. So, you
think number three is a truth?"
 
"Yep."
 
Jimin takes a deep breath, holds it in for a few moments to build up suspense
and then simply says 'correct'.
 
"Damn, that was anticlimactic," Yoongi grins before he thinks about Jimin's
statements again, "hmm, I think number… two is false because you've never
talked about your dad."
 
Jimin sighs and slurps on his milkshake. "Yeah, it's definitely false. Haven't
heard from him in over two years. No idea where he is or what he's doing. Not
that I'd need him, fucker was never home anyway."
 
"I'm—, I'm sorry to hear that, Jiminnie."
 
"Don't be, it's nothing, really. My parents were only fighting in the end, even
though they tried to hide it most of the time, I guess… maybe it was better
this way. And hey, I turned out just fine even without him, did I not?" Jimin
grins and Yoongi's gaze softens.
 
"Yes. Yes, you did. You're flawless, princess," he says, lifting his hand and
gingerly strokes Jimin's cheek with his thumb, enjoys how Jimin leans into the
touch.
 
"Don't distract from the topic," Jimin says softly, "tell me something about
you, drummer boy."
 
Yoongi focuses back on the street and grins a little. "I thought about
switching from cassette tapes to CDs after making your mixtape—,"
 
"Now that's a lie if I ever heard one—,"
 
"Hey!" Yoongi laughs, trying to appear a little offended but failing, "hear me
out now, 'kay?" Jimin raises his eyebrows a little sceptically and crosses his
arms. Yoongi takes a deep breath and reconsiders his choice of truths before he
speaks again. "Whenever someone buys a strawberry-and-cream lollipop or Luckies
at the store I have to think about you. And—, I fell in love with you at first
sight."
 
Jimin snaps his head to look at Yoongi who can only see from the corners of his
eyes how the other's mouth pops slightly open.
 
"You did?"
 
"Hey! Maybe that's the lie!"
 
"It's not."
 
"It—," Yoongi sighs exasperatedly. "Yeah, it's not," he mumbles, cheeks red and
tight from the heat that creeps onto them.
 
"You really liked me since then, despite the way I—, was?" Jimin asks and he
speaks a little lower now, a little more reluctant.
 
"What do you mean by 'the way you were'? You were always wonderful to me."
 
At this, Jimin is quiet for a while and Yoongi starts worrying if he's said
something wrong.
 
"My first boyfriend," Jimin says quietly after a while, voice a little thick,
"took my virginity after barely two months of dating when I was fourteen."
 
Yoongi almost slams down on the brakes, his eyes growing wide at the sudden
bombshell being dropped on him. His head whips around to look at Jimin who is
worrying at his upper lip.
 
"It happened just after I moved here and didn't know anyone yet until I met him
and my impressionable, naïve ass fell for him head over heels. Two," he quickly
continues, giving Yoongi no chance to reply something, voice now hollow and
expression blank, "he dumped me pretty much the next day, after he finally got
what he wanted all along and said: 'you were a very boring fuck, come back when
you got better', quote end. Three, his dick was as huge as his ego. Now spot
the lie."
 
Yoongi looks at Jimin for a second and his thoughts instantly jump to Joonho.
He can feel anger and nausea bubble up in his stomach, his chest twisting with
very real, physical pain.
 
How can anyone on this planet treat Jimin like this? How does anyone dare to
treat Jimin like this?
 
"Jimin—,"
 
"Sorry," Jimin laughs wetly, but it's entirely void of humour, "I shouldn't
talk about that on our first date. Let's just forget about it and let me say
something else—,"
 
"No. Wait. Let's end the game here, 'kay?" Yoongi's gut feeling is telling him
that Jimin actually wantsto talk about this. That he's opening up to him, much
quicker than he'd ever expected and there's nothing else in the world Yoongi
wants as much as to listen to his boyfriend and share all his worries and his
pain. "Tell me about that asshole. It was Joonho, right?"
 
Jimin just nods slowly, munching on his fries. He looks so small even though he
never ever should.
 
"Yeah, it was him. Unfortunately."
 
"I knew he is a dick stain the first second I saw him. God, I really should’ve
punched him when I had the opportunity," Yoongi hits his fist on the steering
wheel, not too hard but hard enough to make Jimin jump a little in his seat. He
immediately shoots him an apologetic glance that his boyfriend responds to with
a small smile.
 
"I wish I would have punched him too, back then, back when it really mattered
but I wasn't as strong as I am now," Jimin says before he takes a huge bite
from his hamburger, holds it in front of Yoongi's mouth to take a bite too.
Yoongi leans forward and sinks his teeth into it. "Oh, but, in hindsight."
Jimin says with a mouth full of junk food, "you kissed me in front of that
bitch and that was a million times better than any punch would have ever been,"
at that Yoongi almost chokes on the bite of burger in his mouth.
 
"I, uhm—," he coughs, "that—. That wasn't exactly planned, just so you know. I
just wanted to—, to ask you out," Yoongi says, face turning beet red, "but then
that douchebag interrupted us and, yeah—,"
 
Jimin looks at him, mouth still moving in a chewing motion. It's a little
comical when it shouldn't be, but Yoongi feels like he's staring right into his
soul. He quickly averts his gaze back on the road again.
 
"Y'know, now that I know what you wanted to do, I'm glad he did. I'm glad he
interrupted us," Jimin says softly, putting his hand back on Yoongi's knee.
Yoongi doesn't immediately understand, but then Jimin continues. "Because if
you had asked me out then, I don't know if I had been ready. I don't know if I
had said yes. But it was that kiss that finally opened my eyes."
 
Yoongi swallows hard, feels like he's barely escaped death.
 
"You wouldn't have been ready," he repeats calmly, knowing exactly that Jimin
would have run away from him forever if he had the chance to confess back then.
 
"No."
 
"Not after what you—, what you went through." Jimin licks his lips, he doesn't
say anything. Yoongi has noticed how Jimin is trying to change the topic, that
there is more to say but that he doesn't want to talk about it now. Yoongi
would be the last person to force him to do so. "We don't have to talk about it
now. We can do it some other time, y'know. When we're not on our first date,
when you feel ready for it." At that Jimin laughs.
 
"Sounds pretty good to me, I didn't want our date to suddenly turn out so
gloomy," Jimin smiles, rubbing circles into Yoongi's knee with his thumb. "By
the way, my asshole ex was so wrong when he said you're not my type."
 
"Uhm—,"
 
"I think you're actually my only type."
 
"Am I now?"
 
"Yeah, I really like drummer boys," Jimin says cheekily and Yoongi's lower lip
quivers because he tries to not smile so goddamn much.
 
"I'd kiss you right now if I wasn't driving," Yoongi whispers and he can hear
Jimin's breath hitch in his throat.
 
"Are we there soon then?" Jimin asks lowly, the air in the car suddenly
shifting, charged and loaded, waiting for a spark to explode. Yoongi licks his
lips before he turns his head and meets Jimin's gaze that is holding the force
of a hundred hurricanes. "Because I'm dying to finally kiss you again."
 
Yoongi is suffocating.
 
"Jimin, you know how long it takes, you were there before."
 
"Yeah, but that didn't seem to take so long back then."
 
Not for you.
 
"You had your leg pressed against mine the entire time and I was dying. You
have no idea how long that drive was for me," Yoongi says truthfully,
remembering how he had goosebumps on his skin from only sitting next to Jimin.
Jimin just grins like the little demon he is. A cute demon though, one that
drives him crazy.
 
"Anyway," Yoongi clears his throat, "the road sign said five kilometres, so
we’ll be there soon. Can you feed me my burger? I'd do it myself but—," Jimin
immediately sits up and starts feeding Yoongi with little bits of his
McDonald's burger.
 
"Never thought that hyung likes to be fed like that."
 
"Shut up."
 
"Make me."
 
"I would if I could," Yoongi says grumpily and Jimin just smiles at him,
studying his eyes. "What?"
 
"Nothing. I just think you’re really hot if you’re talking like that. Not that
your shy side isn’t hot too."
 
Yoongi snorts, ignoring how he's on the brink of having a heart attack. His
hands on the steering wheel feel almost too damp and slippery to still hold
onto the fake leather. "Yeah sure. Shut up, Jiminnie, for real. And give me
something to drink."
 
Jimin visibly tries to suppress a grin at that before he bows his head with
closed eyes, offers him the cup with both hands and holds the straw in front of
Yoongi's mouth for him to take between his lips.
 
"As you wish, hyung-nim."
 
Yoongi almost snorts out the milkshake through his nose.


When they arrive in the city, Yoongi quickly parks the car near the venue.
Before he gets out, he checks again that the tickets he's already bought in
advance at the ticket corner at the mall are still securely stored in the
pocket of his jacket.
 
He climbs out of the car and locks it. He doesn't even get to turn around
properly before Jimin already steps beside him and wraps his arms around his
sides, pushes him against the car and at the same time pulls him closer.
 
When Jimin kisses him, he does so like a starved man.
 
Yoongi feels Jimin's lips on his and his eyes fall closed. He instinctively
buries his fingers in Jimin's hair at the back of his head, tugging at it
gently as Jimin's teeth nip and pull at the swell of his lower lip, tongue
darting out to lick into his mouth.
 
Yoongi's chest tightens with his quickening pulse, all his senses zeroed in on
only Jimin, Jimin, Jimin when they both open their mouths to run their tongues
against each other.
 
Jimin tastes like cigarettes, milkshake and temptation with a hint of ingrained
loneliness.
 
Yoongi is determined to kiss the latter out of him.
 
"Can we do that all weekend?" Jimin asks between more intoxicating kisses and
soft bites to his lips. His hands are fisted in Yoongi's tank top and his
thighs are pressing against his and it makes Yoongi dizzy. He leans his back
against the car to keep his balance. He doesn't know where up and down is
anymore.
 
"Y-you mean, standing in a parking lot all day?" he asks, tries not to stutter
but fails horribly.
 
"Nooo, silly," Jimin lightly slaps his chest and petulantly juts out his lower
lip. Yoongi is glad Jimin sounds as breathless as he feels. "I mean kissing.
Making out. My mum is working tomorrow," Jimin wiggles his eyebrows and Yoongi,
charismatic as he is, pokes his nose.
 
"You know we're gonna meet up with the others tomorrow," Jimin pouts briefly at
that before lowers his face against the crook of Yoongi's neck with a small
whine. A shiver runs down Yoongi's spine when his breath fans out over his
skin.
 
"Hmm, an audience is not an obstacle," Jimin mumbles, his hands now holding
Yoongi's hip, soft lips pressing featherlight kisses onto Yoongi's neck before
he detaches himself and looks up at him, a hopeful glimmer in his eyes and a
cheeky grin on his lips.
 
"Why did I just know you were gonna say this?" Yoongi says, voice a little
thick with temptation, "where's the Jimin gone that was afraid of being teased
by them?" Yoongi chuckles and Jimin shrugs, pout still in place. Yoongi needs
to keep himself from cooing at him. "I'm sure we'll find a way to sneak some
kisses tomorrow," Yoongi says and extends his hand towards Jimin. Jimin looks
down at it, blinks a few times before he looks back at Yoongi's face, a hint of
insecurity visible on it. "I really—, want to hold your hand right now, so—, do
you want to as well, or do I have to awkwardly pretend I didn't just want to
take it?"
 
Jimin laughs, the tension broken again as he almost leaps at his arm and wraps
his own arms around it, one hand sliding into his until their fingers are
locked.
 
They walk to the concert venue, hand in hand, sharing a cigarette. The breeze
is cool and ruffling their hair and Yoongi is glad for wearing his jacket
despite it being a summer night.
 
"Aren't you cold in only your flannel, Jiminnie?"
 
"Hm? No no, I'm fine," Jimin squeezes his hand a little more, presses his body
more against Yoongi's arm. Yoongi detaches his hand from Jimin's, but only to
put his arm around his shoulder, smiling at him.
 
"You can have my jacket if you—,"
 
"Hyung, it's fine," Jimin says, leaning into him to kiss his cheek, "we're
there soon anyway."
 
Yoongi sighs but lets him have his way.
 
When they get closer to the venue, Yoongi is getting a little more hesitant,
tries to ignore the stares of the people who are already queueing outside the
small concert hall where they had the gig as Cotton Candy a few weeks ago.
 
He loves Jimin, he's so proud of him and he's even prouder for being the one by
his side – but he doesn't have Jimin's confidence. He also didn't expect to
suddenly feel so nervous. He's never been confronted before about being gay
outside of his group of friends and the sudden anticipation of rude remarks or
malicious whispering has his stomach churn.
 
Jimin seems to notice his nervous tapping with his fingers against his thigh,
how he can't seem to look around and only stares at Jimin's shoulder and it
doesn't even take a second before he has the other's arms around him, his nose
pressing against the crook of his neck again.
 
"God, you smell so good, hyung," Jimin murmurs against his skin, making him
feel hot all over again, "what do you use?"
 
"Huh?"
 
"What cologne do you use?"
 
Jimin's lips brush against his skin and Yoongi wants to die. Other people who?
At the moment, he and Jimin are the only people on the entire planet.
 
"I—," Yoongi swallows, "nothing. Just—, shower gel and some deo," Jimin almost
groans at that and Yoongi really thinks he's going to push the daisies soon.
 
"Just when I thought you couldn't become even hotter you go and kill me again,
drummer boy. You smell so damn good I want to suck you up through my nose,"
Yoongi lets out a breathless laugh, holding onto Jimin's upper arms.
 
"Who's killing who here?" he says, his palms softly kneading Jimin's biceps,
trying to keep him warm; trying to find some purchase.
 
Just then, the doors finally open and the queue starts moving albeit slowly.
Yoongi takes out the tickets to show them to the ticket inspector when it's
their turn and then they go inside.
 
It's just like he remembers it. The only difference is that he sees the hall
from the audience's perspective now.
 
The lights are dimmed and it's rather dark inside, bass-heavy music is playing
lowly over the speakers in the background and there's a faint mist of cigarette
smoke lingering in the air, one that will undoubtedly grow heavier as the
evening progresses. Some people are beelining for the stage where a crowd has
already gathered for the front rows while others head straight for the bar.
 
"Are you a mosh pit princess?" Yoongi asks into Jimin's ear, causing the other
to laugh.
 
"A what?"
 
Yoongi grins. "Do you wanna go in the pit or rather stay on the sidelines?"
 
"You can bet my ass I'm going right in!" Jimin says with a wink and playfully
slaps his own ass, "come on, or we will have to stay on the sidelines." Jimin
grabs Yoongi's wrist and pulls him with him, a little to the left because they
can make good on some rows like that while still being in the middle of it all.
 
Now that they're in here, Yoongi doesn't feel the weight of people's gazes on
him anymore as drastically as he did before. He also tries hard not to care,
reminds himself that neither his parents nor his teachers nor anyone else is
here who could possibly know him. And even if someone did, he wouldn't care.
 
He would want to show them that he is Park Jimin's boyfriend. That he's got all
the bragging rights now.
 
The crowd around them grows and grows and their bodies are pushed further and
further against each other. Yoongi suddenly regrets still having his jacket
because it's so hot but he also doesn't regret it since wearing it prevents him
from touching Jimin's bare skin with his own – and maybe that's really for the
better right now.
 
Jimin is scanning the crowd with sharp eyes and an assumed expression of
mastered disinterest, one that Yoongi has sometimes observed before whenever he
couldn't take his eyes off Jimin when he saw him on the school grounds.
 
Of course, Jimin catches him staring when he turns his attention back to
Yoongi.
 
And of course, a sly grin appears on his lips, eyes slightly hooded.
 
"Hey, gorgeous," Jimin says, ignoring the blush on Yoongi's face. Jimin turns
to him properly and puts his arms across Yoongi's shoulders, compelling Yoongi
to put his free hand on his hip. "Do you come here often?" Yoongi snorts before
he grins at him, his cheeks almost hurting.
 
"Seriously, Jimin?"
 
"Yes," Jimin says lowly, "I'm very serious about you." Yoongi swallows heavily,
his pulse becoming thicker again.
 
"Usually when I'm here," Yoongi decides to play along, "I'm one of those on
stage." Jimin smirks at that, that coy smirk combined with hooded eyes.
 
"That's really sexy, drummer boy."
 
"How do you know I'm the drummer?" Jimin's smirk grows and his arms move again
until his hands are on his shoulders before they slide down his arms, squeezing
his biceps firmly. Jimin's lips are so close to his again, his hot breath
against them robbing him of his own, making heat curl unrelentingly in the pit
of his stomach.
 
Jimin kisses him again, and the rest of the world disappears.
 
They kiss until the lights go off and the music suddenly gets louder for a few
seconds before it turns off completely. Jimin pulls away a little, his eyes
glinting with the lights that start dancing in the narrow live hall, and Yoongi
can only stare at him in complete awe.
 
"Oh, it starts!" Jimin says, still a little out of breath, heavy eyes filling
with excitement as he turns to look at the stage. Yoongi puts his arm around
the small of Jimin's back, trying to steady himself, waiting for the first band
to start playing.
 
He doesn't really know much after that, lives purely in the moment.
 
Lives for Jimin bumping against him when they get all tangled up in the mosh
pit, lives for Jimin jumping on his back because he's a brat and won't ever cut
him some slack, lives for Jimin dancing in the crowd and shining more
beautifully than anyone else, drowning out all the rest.
 
That night, he lives for Park Jimin.
 
When two or three bands are done with playing their set, Yoongi and Jimin go to
the bar to get some beer that they gulp down like water before ordering another
one and retreating to one side of the hall, leaning against a wall side by
side. Their hair is a little damp, sticking to their foreheads, and they're
laughing at almost every other word they say to each other, adrenaline and
exhilaration coursing through their bodies.
 
"As much as I liked being on that stage, it's nice to be down here, too," Jimin
says against the loud screeching sounds of guitars and horrible vocals of the
current band. He has to lean in to Yoongi's ear a little and it only
intensifies his scent when he's so close to him. Thrilling, intoxicating.
 
"Yeah, it's a different kind of rush. A different kind of excitement. But you,
princess," Yoongi says, kissing Jimin's temple, "you belong on stage." Jimin
laughs throwing his head back before he takes another swig from his plastic
cup.
 
"You think so? Did you like it so much when I stood on that stage?"
 
"Yes. Yes, I did, Jimin. You were amazing. You could be a—, a star, you know."
 
Jimin laughs, bashful. He tries to hide the fact that he's blushing but Yoongi
knows. "Stop joking, drummer boy."
 
"I'm not joking! You have something only very few people have. You have that
aura, you can light up the entire stage with your presence alone. You're
glowing like a real star, Jimin, like the fucking sun itself," Jimin's smile
subdues, his eyes shiny but calm. He studies Yoongi's eyes and Yoongi knows he
doesn't agree with him.
 
"The truth is, you just liked me being on stage so much because you could look
at my ass the entire time, drummer boy."
 
Yoongi scoffs. "Excuse me? I had stuff to do, like drumming and trying to keep
the beat!"
 
"Mhm."
 
"Jimin!" he lightly whacks Jimin's upper arm with the back of his hand. Jimin
laughs at Yoongi's half-assed protest.
 
"It's okay, drummer boy, I know I got an ass to worship, so please feel free
to—," Jimin squeals when Yoongi's hand shoots to his side and starts to tickle
him. He laughs and curls into himself, the beer in his half-empty cup almost
spilling on the floor.
 
"Such a cheeky brat."
 
"But you love it," Jimin snickers and Yoongi pauses, taking a drag from the
cigarette he lit up earlier.
 
"I do. I mean, you're overwhelming me with it, sometimes, but I love it when
you're so confident."
 
Jimin puts down his empty beer cup on the ground and it only takes a few more
seconds before Jimin's lips are on his again.
 
The kiss is slow this time, deep and languid, and Yoongi takes his time to
properly map out Jimin's mouth with his tongue, to play with Jimin's piercing
and suck in his lower lip to nip at it with his teeth. Jimin encourages him,
lures him with his tongue more than once, rubs gentle circles into his hip with
his thumb, and Yoongi can feel his body relaxing against him.
 
Yoongi might not be an expert kisser – yet – but he thinks he's getting pretty
good at it.
 
Kissing Jimin is just as exciting and electrifying as it evokes a warm feeling
of familiarity and trust and Yoongi feels like he will never ever get enough of
it.
 
When oxygen runs out, Yoongi detaches his lips from Jimin and sucks in a
breath, feels his heart jump when Jimin chases after him. "Jiminnie, I can't
breathe," he laughs, leaning back against the wall. Jimin pouts and sighs.
 
Yoongi lets him steal his smoke, watching him in mute rapture.
 
"You need to work on your lung capacity," another whack to Jimin's arm that
makes him giggle. He watches how Jimin's lips puff out when he closes them
around the cigarette to take a drag. They look even more mesmerising when he
blows out an ashen cloud of smoke that briefly whirls around his face before
it's gone again. "I wouldn't want you to die, drummer boy, but I'm pretty sure
I won't be able to stop anytime soon." Yoongi's heart skips a beat.
 
"Death by kissing."
 
"He was only nineteen years old, but at least he died a blissful death."
 
"What a bittersweet ending," they keep bantering like this, snickering and
laughing heartily and in peace. Yoongi has grown accustomed to ignoring the
possible stares pretty quickly.
 
But it was just a matter of time until ignoring won't suffice anymore. It just
comes in a different way than Yoongi had expected. It comes in form of a girl
who approaches them just as they want to go back to the mosh pit crowd.
 
"Hey, do you have a light?" Yoongi whips his head around to look at the source
of the voice. Her long, wavy hair is a little dishevelled but shiny, her
eyelids smudged with thick, black kohl and her lips coated with a thick layer
of lip gloss. Yoongi eyes her warily, doesn't like being interrupted at having
fun with his boyfriend. He's a polite guy, however, so he nods his head.
 
"Uhm, sure—,"
 
"I remember you. You were here a while ago," the girl says as she flips her
hair behind her shoulder, "you were on stage. Your band was pretty rad," Yoongi
lifts his eyebrows. That was the last thing he had expected her to say.
 
"Uh, thanks," he takes the compliment, still processing the fact that she
actually remembers. She puts a cigarette between her lips then and leans in
just as Yoongi wants to hand her his lighter. He can feel Jimin's body tense
next to him. He briefly glances at him but to make this not even more awkward
than it is, he gives in and lights her cig, hopes she will just leave them
alone afterwards.
 
She puffs out the smoke of her first drag before her eyes land on Jimin, as if
she only now noticed him being there. Yoongi doesn't like the disapproving look
in her eyes.
 
"Are you gay or something?" she asks, the question so out of the blue that
Yoongi feels his entire body seizing up, his eyes going round. Her eyes wander
from Jimin's hair down to his legs and when Yoongi looks at Jimin, he can see
his gaze shift from reserved to something very, very cold.
 
"Are you straight or something?" he spits back and Yoongi has to suppress the
grin that tugs on the corner of his lips. A very pleasing feeling of
satisfaction makes itself at home inside of him at his boyfriend's prompt
comeback.
 
"Tsk," the girl makes, taking a drag from her cigarette, disregarding Jimin's
stare that screams how much he wants her gone. "You're not one of themthough,
right?" she looks at Yoongi again then and he feels his stomach drop and clench
in vexation.
 
One of them, what's that even supposed to mean?
 
He's so perplexed that she continues talking before he can reply anything to
her question. "You're actually cute. Why are you hanging out with your
bandmate? You could come with me instead?" she bats her eyelashes, bites her
lip suggestively and Yoongi's blood runs cold.
 
"No thanks—,"
 
"Hey," Jimin says, leaning his forearm on Yoongi's shoulder possessively.
Yoongi can feel how stiff Jimin's body has become, his eyes narrowed and his
chin jutted out a little as he tongues at the inside of his cheek before he
directs a saccharine smile at her, "yes, he's cute and that's why he's taken so
back off."
 
"What?"
 
"Shall I spell it out for you?" Jimin's smile vanishes in an instant and is
replaced by a murderous glint in his eyes, "he's mine, bitch. Fuck off."
 
"Jimin—," Yoongi tries but Jimin looks like he's going to pounce on the girl
any moment now.
 
"Don't you fucking dare touching him, you fucking piece of—," Jimin's voice
rises, and Yoongi has to grab his shoulders to hold him back.
 
"Chill, asshole," she spits back before she turns to Yoongi, "good luck
handling that batshit crazy fury."
 
"You don't know shit about us. Get the fuck lost and try your cheap ass pick up
lines on someone else," Yoongi steps in, can't believe how she just called
Jimin crazy and a fury. The girl leaves while flipping them off and Jimin huffs
through his nose before he rakes his fingers through his hair with too much
force, faking a laugh.
 
"What a bitch. Did she really think she could get on with you like that?"
 
"Forget about her, Jiminnie. She's nothing. Let’s just have fun, ‘kay? Let's
just focus on us," Yoongi pleads, not wanting to let anyone ruin their perfect
night.
 
Jimin's eyes are unreadable for a moment and remain like that even when he
curls his lips into a strained smile, eyes studying his face as if he was
searching for something before he turns around so that he’s standing in front
of him, caging him against the wall.
 
"You’re right, hyung. We are here to have fun," he says, his hands looking for
purchase on Yoongi's shoulders. Jimin sniffs briefly before he leans in to
nuzzle his nose against Yoongi's and kisses him again. From the first second,
the kiss feels different than their kisses did before. Yoongi cannot quite
pinpoint what it is, but it robs him of his breath.
 
Yoongi forgets about his lighter that’s still in his hand, lets it fall when
Jimin’s pierced tongue invites him, a groan leaving his lips when Jimin’s hands
start exploring his body, making him heat up considerably in the already hot
air of the establishment.
 
He has to break the kiss because he feels like he's suffocating. But even then,
Jimin doesn’t really let him catch his breath when he kisses down his jaw to
his collarbones, hands roaming over his chest, his shoulders and then carding
through his hair with a hard pull.
 
"Ji-jimin, this—," he bites his lips so he can stop a moan when Jimin pulls his
skin between his teeth and sucks a bruise into it. Yoongi is sure he either
melts or is about to pop a boner, body tensing up. His heart is racing,
throbbing in his throat, and his eyes fall closed when he feels Jimin’s tongue,
lips and nose on his skin.
 
When Jimin is done giving him a hickey, he drags his nose over his neck until
his lips are at Yoongi's ear. "You smell so good, drummer boy," Yoongi wants to
tell him that he's already said that, but all he can do his shudder and open
his eyes, not his mouth. Feels too overwhelmed by all these new emotions
coursing through his body to speak.
 
Whatever Jimin is doing, he does it really well.
 
"Wait, I-I can't breathe," Yoongi says with a breathless, desperate laugh to
make Jimin stop because the heat tightening inside of him is too scorching to
ignore any longer and he really doesn't want to go there right now. Not here,
not for another while.
 
Jimin instantly pulls his face away from his ear, leaning back a little. His
pupils are blown and an infinity of shades too dark and Yoongi realises that
Jimin is not really looking him in the eyes. They're looking right through him
and it sends cold shivers down his spine.
 
Jimin just presses their foreheads together, a certain desperation in his
touches when he suddenly tries to slip his hands underneath Yoongi's tank top.
 
"Jimin—,"
 
"You're mine, Yoonie. Mine," Jimin whispers against his lips, a deep furrow
between his brows, eyes tightly shut. His voice is wavering a little and all
the red alarm bells in Yoongi's head go off.
 
"Hey, listen—," Yoongi tries to get through to him, and when he lifts his hands
to Jimin's cheeks and softly strokes over them with his thumbs Jimin seems to
startle a little, eyes flying open again. They are wet and glistening in the
strobe lights that are dancing on his face and Yoongi's heart sinks. "Jiminnie,
are you—, are you crying?" Jimin closes his eyes again and holds onto his
shirt, hands trembling from the force he uses to hold onto him.
 
"She—, you—. She wanted to take you away from me."
 
Now it's Yoongi's turn to be taken aback, his chest tightening painfully.
 
And it hits him like a freight train.
 
Love does not heal wounds. Not like that. Not in a way that would be so
ridiculously simple.
 
He was so blind, so stupid to believe that he actually already knows Jimin.
That whatever happened in Jimin's past would simply stop to matter just because
his lame ass took him out on a date.
 
What did he even think?
 
Love does not heal wounds and what Jimin went through cuts so deep that he is
actually afraid that someone might come along to take Yoongi away from him, to
open the scars right up again.
 
As if Yoongi would ever leave Jimin for someone else. As if that was even an
option.
 
Yoongi holds Jimin gently but so that Jimin can't turn his head down to stare
at their shoes. "Calm down, Jiminnie. I'm here, 'kay? I'm here and I won't go
away." Silent tears run over Yoongi's thumbs.
 
"She was so pretty," Jimin sniffles and Yoongi feels a stab in his heart, just
stares at his beautiful boyfriend with utter helplessness. Beautiful miracle
Park Jimin with the glowing skin, dazzling smile, eyes that hold entire
galaxies.
 
"Hey, little fool," he says, "did you already forget that I'm gay as heck? She
can be pretty all she wants, I'd never be interested in her, 'kay? I'd not be
interested in anyone, I already have the most beautiful and amazing human being
right here, right in front of me." Jimin presses his lips into a trembling
line, eyes downcast, and Yoongi thinks he's shaking his head a little at his
words. It breaks his heart. "Ssh, don't cry, love. No one will take me away
from you. Why would I go anywhere else when I have you?"
 
Slowly, very reluctantly, Jimin looks up through his eyelashes, lips scowling
sadly, a deep crease of sorrow still edged between his brows.
 
"R-really?" Jimin's eyes are swimming with raw emotion and Yoongi has a hard
time keeping his heart together.
 
"Yes, princess. Only you. I only want you, 'kay?" Jimin clings to him harder,
burying his face in the crook of his neck, sniffling from time to time.
 
"O-okay."
 
"Don't worry, I’m here. I won't go anywhere," Yoongi repeats, strokes the hair
on the back of Jimin's head, slowly, gently, his fingers threading through his
soft, pink locks with all the affection he deserves.
 
"I'm your princess, right?" Jimin whispers, voice almost too quiet in the loud
venue, but Yoongi hears him loud and clear.
 
"Yes, darling. My princess. Amazing, beautiful and strong princess," he says
back, and, Jesus, Jimin holds way too much power over him. Yoongi kisses the
crown of Jimin's head, holds him close as they just stand there in the ever-
changing lights that bounce off the walls, their skin, their hair.
 
"Have I ruined it now?" Jimin asks quietly after a while, just when the last
band is about to start playing. His eyes only flicker up to look at Yoongi
briefly before being downturned again, almost shyly. It makes Yoongi's lips
curve up slightly.
 
He shakes his head a little, fondness oozing out of him. "No, you haven’t," he
rubs Jimin's waist with his thumbs, "nothing could ever ruin our first date. To
me, it's perfect the way it is – because I’m here with you."
 
Jimin's cheeks turn a few shades darker, but his lips curl up into an abashed
smile.
 
"We—, we could just pretend that that never happened?" he asks, hopeful, and
Yoongi nods in agreement.
 
"Sounds good to me," he kisses his nose, "wanna go and earn some more bruises
in the mosh pit with me, beautiful?" he grins and wriggles his eyebrows,
causing Jimin to laugh again. He likes that way more than seeing Jimin cry.
 
"It’d be my pleasure, idiot," Jimin kisses his lips again, just a chaste touch
of lips, before he takes both his hands into his, looking at Yoongi as if he
wanted to say something more but doesn’t know how. Yoongi doesn’t need to hear
it, not right now; he already knows that they're alright.
 
He squeezes Jimin's hands softly before he leads them back to the audience to
get lost in the crowd and the music.

 
 
 
 
When Yoongi halts the car in front of Jimin's apartment block, he damn well
hopes that Jimin's mother has left her sentinel position at the window and is
not currently watching how he's kissing the living daylights out of her son.
 
He knows he will have to let Jimin go, only for a while, but the thought alone
is bigger torture than having to listen to the radio station that is playing at
the convenience store all day during shifts. And that has something to say.
 
He's a man in love and he is so goddamn weak.
 
"I'm gonna miss you so much," Jimin says after breaking another kiss – Yoongi's
lost count of how many they've already shared – with a shaky gasp, his lips
swollen and shiny with spit. He looks like a walking sin.
 
"What did you say?" Yoongi has kinda not heard him over being busy with
committing Jimin's face to memory.
 
Jimin huffs and rolls his eyes. Yoongi would like to kiss the pout off his
lips.
 
"I said, I'm gonna miss you so much."
 
Yoongi softly smiles at his boyfriend, tucking a loose strand of pink hair
behind his ear.
 
"We're gonna see each other tomorrow when we meet with the others at the park,
Jiminnie."
 
"So? I'm still gonna miss you so much. That's at least… nine or ten hours until
I see you again."
 
"Jimin."
 
"Hm?"
 
His heart is thumping against his ribcage as he cups Jimin's cheek with one
hand, stroking it softly with his thumb. "Are you really that whipped for me?"
Yoongi asks with a sly grin, his eyes narrowing for a fraction. In truth, it's
not an easy question. It's actually the hardest question, because what if Jimin
says no and—
 
"No," Jimin whispers back, and oh. Okay. Yeah, okay. Yoongi pretends that his
smile didn't just falter with the trickle of pain rippling down his chest.
Jimin lets out a small huff through his nose at his reaction, smiling, half-
lidded eyes oozing warmth and affection.
 
"I'm much more than just whipped. I'm in love with you, hyung."
 
Oh.
 
Oh.
 
Yoongi's breath hitches in his throat at Jimin's words and his eyes grow
impossibly wide when the confession sinks in. He opens his mouth to reply
something but nothing comes out except for his heart that threatens to hammer
its way up his throat. Jimin chuckles and kisses his nose, merely dispelling an
insignificant amount of Yoongi's haze.
 
"Good night now, drummer boy, see you tomorrow," Jimin whispers, a broad, giddy
smile on his lips before he quickly kisses Yoongi again and hurries out of the
car.
Chapter End Notes
     "I'm in love with you" YES JIMIN SAID THAT
     Yoongi is mush.
     We're mush.
     The world is mush.
     We guess this chapter showed pretty well what deep-rooted
     insecurities lie beneath Jimin's surface? There's a lot he still has
     to overcome, but don't worry, he's got some help now and he's a
     badass princess after all <3
     Next chapter will be a bro chapter huhuhu we can't wait for that~
     As always, you can also come chat with us about yoonmin on twitter! ♡
***** Sixteen. *****
Chapter Notes
     The bro chapter that was promised~
     With some yoonmin who can't keep their hands off each other at the
     end hehe.
     This has gotten way too long but we hope you'll still enjoy ♡
     Also big thanks to our friends E, H, Lh, Ln and S who encouraged us
     and helped us a lot to ease our worries about this chapter. We love
     you guys ❤︎
     ☾ = Yoongi
     ☼ = Jimin
See the end of the chapter for more notes
                                      –☾–
 
 
 Yoongi shudders when Jimin traces the skin at the junction of his neck and
shoulder with his fingertip. He can't help but tilt his head a little, subtly
stretches his neck to give Jimin more space. There's no way he could ever
resist, enjoys Jimin caressing the hickey he gave him during their date way too
much.

Of course, Jimin catches on immediately and grins the most satisfied grin there
ever was.

A little grumpy, Yoongi juts out his lower lip and side-eyes his boyfriend, his
hands playing with Jimin's smaller one on his lap.

"It's been eighty-one days," Yoongi murmurs, looking down on Jimin's fingers.
How are they so slender and chubby at the same time? A mystery.

"Hm? What has been?" Jimin asks, putting his chin on Yoongi's shoulder. The
late afternoon sun falls on Jimin's face and the wind slightly ruffles his hair
and his body feels warmer than the low concrete wall they're sitting on next to
the school's bicycle station. His eyes are slightly puffy and the pink in his
hair is fading again but he looks so beautiful to Yoongi he's close to getting
emotional.

Yoongi sharply cocks his head to the side to knock his fringe out of his face
before a sheepish grin creeps on his lips. He licks them quickly and lets the
grin grow impossibly wide.

"Since we've first met," he says and Jimin snorts, "eighty-one days and now
look where we are." He brushes a stray lock of hair out of Jimin's face before
he rubs his thumb over Jimin's nose which he instantly scrunches up. It's so
cute Yoongi wants to die.

"You're such a sap."

"You made me into one."

"But I'm not sappy at all!"

"Mhm, sure."

"Hyung!"

They both snicker before Jimin leans up and brings him in for a kiss. Only a
short one, but a quality kiss nonetheless.

"Okay, maybe I am a little. It feels good though, it feels nice. I haven't felt
this nice in… a really long, long time," Jimin nestles his head against
Yoongi's shoulder again and closes his fingers around Yoongi's thumb. They fit
perfectly around it.

"I'm glad you do. You deserve to be happy," Yoongi kisses his temple before he
leans his nose against it. Jimin doesn't reply anything. Instead, he changes
the topic.

"They're a little late, hm?"

"Yeah, I guess. They should've been long done with packing up their
instruments. Another smoke?" Yoongi offers, already reaching for his back
pocket.

"Nah, not now. Already smoked enough today. Should cut down a little."

Yoongi raises an eyebrow. "What's with the sudden responsible behaviour?" he
asks with a smirk and decides against smoking another one as well.

"Tsk. Just don't feel like it," Jimin props his hands up behind himself at the
edge of the wall and audibly plays with his tongue piercing. "Hey, why did Hobi
disappear earlier? It's already been the second time he hurried off like that.
He's not—, avoiding us or anything?"

"Seokkie? Nah, he said he's busy writing songs with Namjoon. Didn't want to
show me though, but you know what kind of perfectionist he is. He won't show us
until it's exactly how it's supposed to be. Don't worry, everything's fine,"
Yoongi reassures his boyfriend, extending his hand to ruffle his hair. Just
when Jimin realises what he's about to do and wants to swat him away, they get
interrupted.

"Hyung!" Yoongi and Jimin simultaneously turn their heads in the direction of
Jeongguk's voice, the other sprinting towards them with his guitar case
bouncing on his back, Taehyung following closely behind. Yoongi lowers his arm
again.

"There you are. We were already worried you were abducted by aliens," Yoongi
says and Jimin snorts. They both get up and Yoongi reaches for his keys to go
and unlock his bike.

"Sorry, I realised that I lost my necklace after PE and we quickly went to look
for it," Jeongguk says, a little out of breath.

"Did you find it?" Jimin asks, a soft smile on his lips.

"Yes, thank god," Jeongguk's hand shoots to the pendant dangling from his neck,
fingers closing around it protectively.

"I would have hit you if you lost it! How can you treat my gift so carelessly?"
Taehyung whines, lightly slapping Jeongguk's arm. Jeongguk clicks his tongue.

"But I haven't lost it, not really! I knew exactly where it was! Stop throwing
a tantrum, you big baby," Jeongguk says and Taehyung huffs, miffed. He doesn't
look happy.

For a second, Jeongguk looks like he wants to ruffle Taehyung's hair like he
usually would when they're teasing each other, even lifts his hand a little –
but then he doesn't.

Yoongi furrows his brows.

It's like he's looking at his own past, once upon a time a few years ago – and
he doesn't like it at all.

He doesn't say anything though, gets on his bike and waits until Jimin is
seated securely behind him.

He watches the little ones saying goodbye to each other and – something is
really off.

There are no hugs, there's no clinginess, not even one of their handshakes.
It's a jarring experience and Yoongi thinks he's going to carry a trauma from
witnessing the two best friends acting so different around each other.

But then again, the changes were subtle, like Taehyung and Jeongguk sitting on
opposite ends of the battered couch in the practice room instead of next to
each other, like not sharing water bottles, like not playing with each other's
hair anymore, like the way they look away and pretend to be very busy when
Yoongi and Jimin kiss each other in front of them.

A heavy feeling of foreboding comes over Yoongi when Taehyung rolls away on his
bike in the opposite direction of where he, Jimin and Jeongguk have to go.

They start to move as well, the sun bright and strong and soon it has Yoongi
sweat a little despite only wearing a light, white T-shirt. He prays that Jimin
won't notice it as he has his arms wrapped around him and his chest and head
pressing against his back.

They ride down the road while Yoongi is listening to Jeongguk and Jimin who
talk about the movie they watched during their last lesson, quietly smiling
about their silly imitations of their teacher.

Jeongguk's house is the first one they pass after a while and so, naturally,
Yoongi slows down and comes to a standstill in order to say bye to his friend.
Jeongguk follows a few moments later, the brakes of his bike squeaking a little
before he puts both his feet on the ground on either side of it.

However, he doesn't get off, is gnawing on his bottom lip instead, knuckles
turning white from gripping the handles so hard.

"Hey, Guk. Is everything alright?" Yoongi asks, worry lacing his voice. He can
feel Jimin crooning his neck behind his shoulder in order to see what's going
on. Jeongguk is staring at his house for a few mute moments before he lets out
a weak sigh only to suck in a lungful of air again, as if he tried to calm
himself down.

"Yoongi hyung, can I—. Would it be okay if I came over for a while and—, talk
to you for a bit?" Jeongguk says at long last and Yoongi absentmindedly
squeezes Jimin's knee when the other's chin digs into his shoulder blade a
little painfully. He blinks before his gaze shifts to the house and then back
to Jeongguk.

"Of course. You wanna come over for dinner?"

Jeongguk hesitates but then he nods. "Yes, that would be nice."

"Okay."

"I'm just gonna ask my mother real quick, okay?"

"Sure, take your time."

Jeongguk gets off his bike and lets it sink to the pavement until it stays put
and then runs off to the house, unlocks the door and disappears inside. Yoongi
sighs.

"What's up with him?" Jimin asks, the concern Yoongi hears genuine and strong.

"I don't know. He's being a little weird lately. When he thinks no one is
looking, he gnaws on his thumb to the point of almost bleeding and sometimes
he's just staring holes into walls as if they've personally offended him."

"Taehyung, too."

"You noticed?"

"Hell yeah, I noticed," Jimin shoots right back, his grip around Yoongi getting
tighter again. "It's hard not to notice when a literal ray of sunshine suddenly
turns into this brooding, sulky shadow of himself. He's so quiet lately,
especially when he's around Gukkie."

"You think they had a fight?"

Jimin groans and pinches Yoongi's side. Yoongi tries to squirm away.

"Hyung, are you for real? Did you already forget what happened at the party?"

"I—. Oh."

"Yeah, oh," Jimin pats his back and then hops off the rear rack, straightening
his clothes, "I'm walking the last bit home. You should take care of him now.
Be a good hyung, okay?" Jimin leans in and kisses him, a chaste, homely kiss
that is as encouraging as it is intimate. After briefly nuzzling their noses
against each other, Jimin pulls back.

"See you tomorrow, drummer boy."

"See you tomorrow, princess."

Jimin walks a few steps backwards, smile dazzling, before he turns around and
walks down the street in the direction of his flat. Yoongi looks after him and
still can't believe his luck, that this is actually real.

When Jimin is out of view, he shakes out his hands, a little nervous about what
is to come. Yes, he prides himself with being a good hyung, he's really trying
his best to be the best hyung possible for his little brothers, but sometimes
even good hyungs don't know what to say.

But then again, it might not be all that important that he says anything at
all, maybe it's already enough that he's going to listen.

When Jeongguk finally re-emerges from his house, he isn't carrying his guitar
case anymore and he's wearing a thin cardigan. Undoubtedly because his mother
told him to, for it will be chilly later when he goes home.

"Where's Jimin?" Jeongguk asks, dark eyes round and questioning. He picks up
his bike from the ground again and gets on.

"Decided to walk the last bit to his house. You got the all clear?"

"Yeah, but I can't be home later than eight or I'll get in trouble," Yoongi
watches his younger friend, how his eyes look tired, how he can't seem to bring
himself to smile, his sagging shoulders. He wishes he could hug Jeongguk right
now but with their bikes between them that would only end up being a little
awkward. It has to wait for later.

"Then we have a few hours at least, hm? Alright, let's go."

The ride to Yoongi's house is a quiet one. Yoongi tries to make some light
conversation with Jeongguk but he soon realises that it's harder for his friend
to talk right now than it is to simply let the silence stretch out between
them. It's okay though, Yoongi understands that sometimes it's better to leave
the holes open instead of forcefully closing them.

They arrive soon. Yoongi opens the front door and can already hear his mum in
the kitchen, plates clattering and cutlery clinking when she grabs them out of
the dishwasher.

"Mum, I'm home with Jeonggukkie," he shouts, toeing his sneakers off
carelessly. Jeongguk next to him does the same, a little more neatly though as
if he remembered half-way through that you're not supposed to take your shoes
off like that.

"Oh," he can hear his mum say from the kitchen before she appears at its
entrance, a towel in one hand and a frying pan in the other, "hello, you two.
Long time no see, Jeongguk-ah. Everything going well?"

"Yes, Jangmi-ssi, I'm doing well. I hope you, too."

"Jeongguk is staying for dinner, ma. We're gonna go to my room for a while."

"Sure, Yoongi, of course," her tone is a little sarcastic and Yoongi juts out
his lower lip. She hangs the towel over the arm that is holding the pan and
comes to pinch Yoongi's cheek, "you're lucky I've actually planned to make a
proper dinner tonight and went grocery shopping, or else I couldn't offer our
guest anything but fried rice." She's relentless with her teasing and Yoongi
starts to whine in protest.

"Mum! Stop that! I'm not a baby and you're embarrassing!"

"Aw, am I embarrassing you in front of your friend, Yoongi-yah?" she smirks and
Yoongi wonders if she's actually the devil. He swats her hand away and rubs his
cheek, pouting. Jeongguk next to them just watches them in silence, trying to
suppress an amused grin behind quivering lips. Yoongi is glad that he smiles
again. "Don't worry, Jeonggukkie, I'm only joking. For you, I always have food,
my precious child. It's still some time until dinner, though, do you want
anything until then?"

"No, I'm fine, Jangmi-ssi," Jeongguk smiles and politely bows his head for a
moment, "thank you for letting me stay for dinner." Jangmi just smiles and rubs
Jeongguk's upper arm gently.

"I'll call you when I'm ready. You guys go and have fun," she says before she
disappears back into the kitchen.

Yoongi leads Jeongguk to his room and motions for him to sit down on the bed.
Jeongguk's tamagotchi makes some electronic peeping sounds, but Jeongguk simply
ignores it. Damn, something must be really wrong.

"Hyung," he says, doe eyes half-covered behind his dark brown fringe. It's a
miracle his mother hasn't dragged him to a hairdresser yet. "Thank you so much
for making some time for me. I'm so sorry for inviting myself over like that
and, you know—. You probably wanted to hang out with Jimin."

Yoongi frowns as he sits down with him on the bed. "Guk-ah, stop that. You know
that I love having you around. Nothing's changed, 'kay? And nothing ever will.
As soon as the summer holidays start, I can hang out with Jimin and with you
and the others every day. But today I want to hang out with you."

It's a little odd to hear Jeongguk say something like that. He's never had any
qualms about inviting himself over in the past. There have been times when he
was here basically every day, especially that one time Taehyung went on
vacation abroad with his parents for two weeks.

"I know, I just—. I don't know."

"You know but you don't know," Yoongi clicks his tongue and ruffles Jeongguk's
hair. He keeps a worried sigh to himself and leans back against the wall.
"What's bothering you, Jeonggukkie, hm? Is everything alright at home?"

He can see how Jeongguk's body goes tense but he waits calmly until Jeongguk
turns his head to look at him.

"No, I mean, yes. It's nothing, I just—. I don't know, I just didn't want to go
home yet," there is pain in Jeongguk's eyes when he looks away again. Instead,
he starts playing with his hands, picking at his cuticles.

"Have your parents invented some new rule or something to torment you with?"

Jeongguk laughs bitterly. "No, hyung. It's nothing of that sort, it's—, a
little more complicated than that." Jeongguk remains quiet after this, his
shoulders hunched and his head drooping and Yoongi thinks he must be gnawing at
his lips judging from the way his jaw is moving from time to time.

"It's got nothing to do with your parents, right?"

Another pause.

"Yeah. Well—, not really. I definitely don't want them to find out about it
because—, you know," Jeongguk shrugs his shoulders and Yoongi takes a deep
breath through his nose.

"Is it because—," he almost doesn't dare to ask, would rather wait until
Jeongguk opens up about it himself. It would just be cruel to make him say it
on his own when it must be so incredibly hard to do so. "Does it have something
to do with Taehyung?"

Jeongguk's reaction is immediate. He's starting to tremble now and his body
looks so tense Yoongi's afraid he is going to stop breathing.

"It's—," Jeongguk stutters out a sigh, "yes."

"Do you want to tell me about it?" Yoongi asks, voice hushed, as he pushes
himself off of the wall to lean against Jeongguk's back with his upper body.
Jeongguk lets out a small whimper and swallows audibly. Yoongi puts his arm on
Jeongguk's back, gently kneading his shoulder, realising how Jeongguk is
fighting against his inner turmoil. "Or you can tell me another time, it's
'kay, Gukkie, I'm gonna be—,"

"I just can't forget about the fact that we kissed," Jeongguk finally whispers
before he buries his face in his hands and curls up into himself even more.
Yoongi's breath hitches in his throat where his heart is pounding furiously.

"Guk-ah—,"

"I don't even remember it, I have no idea how that even happened but I know it
did and now every time I look at Tae I have to think about it. I'm thinking
about it when we're in class, during practice—, even after school, when he's
not even with me. Like all the damn time, and it's driving me crazy," Jeongguk
fists his hands into his hair and his breathing becomes more ragged.

"Jeongguk, ssh, calm down and breathe, for heaven's sake. You gotta breathe,
okay?" Yoongi says and wraps his arm more firmly around him, pulling him into
his embrace.

"I don't—. He's my best friend. I'm nuh-not supposed to think of him like
that," Jeongguk stutters, his voice rough and shaky. "There's just—, there's no
one else I could ask. I usually go to Tae with… stuff like this, but—. I
can't."

Yoongi almost can't bear how Jeongguk is cowering next to him, how he makes
himself so small, almost invisible. Gently, Yoongi tires to pry the other's
fingers from his hair to stop him from pulling on it so much.

"Hey, it's 'kay. What did you want to ask, hm?"

Jeongguk squints his eyes shut and bites his quivering lips before he takes
another small breath. "Am I—. Do I—, do I like boys? A-am I gay, hyung? Because
I kissed Tae?" Jeongguk whispers and Yoongi's heart is aching.

"Listen, Jeonggukkie, it’s okay to be curious, you know? Just because you
kissed Taehyung, it doesn’t have to mean that you're gay. Everybody wonders
what it feels like to be kissed. Just like Hobi and I did back then. There's
nothing wrong with that."

"But it's killing me!"

"Hey, your sexual identity is not defined by one single kiss—,"

"No, hyung, that's not what I meant. Oh god, that's not what I meant at all,"
Jeongguk pauses again, eyes wet and glistening, but he's not crying, "It's
killing me that I don't rememberit. It's killing me that I will probably never
get to do it again."

Something breaks within Yoongi, a tiny little fractured part that had just
waited to be broken.

His face contorts with an onslaught of emotion, everything he felt when he was
just a young boy suddenly rushing back to him in waves of almost nostalgic
memories. The time he had a crush on Hoseok and started to avoid him like the
plague, almost ended their friendship because he didn't know how to cope with
his own inner battle.

He was so confused about liking boys and not girls and felt so alone until he
finally let it out and just told someone. Someone who was no one else but his
best friend Hoseok who told him that everything was going to be okay.

He wants to tell Jeongguk so much that everything is going to be okay, too, but
the small, twisting feeling in his guts is proof enough that it's not that
easy.

"Gukkie—,"

"Hyung. I—, I think I like Tae. I like him so much and I don't know what to
do."

"Hey," Yoongi leans an arm around Jeongguk’s stomach as the younger finally
relaxes a little against him, "I understand that all this is so confusing,
Gukkie, it's okay. It's okay to feel this way. You've been friends with
Taehyung for how long now?"

"Ten years."

"Ten years. That's such a long time, and Taehyung is so very important to you,
I know that. But Gukkie—, I need to ask you, just to make sure, 'kay? Are you
sure you're not just curious about what the kiss felt like? I mean, because it
was your first kiss. Or do you wish you'd remember because it was Taehyungwho
kissed you?" Yoongi feels like an ass for asking this but Jeongguk seems to
understand nonetheless. He looks contemplative for a few moments, upper lip
pulled in so that he can gnaw on it, before he speaks again.

"I—, I'm pretty I'm sure it's because it was Tae. I just can’t get him out of
my head anymore. When Tae’s close to me, I—," Yoongi feels the back of
Jeongguk’s head press against his shoulder and he gently pulls him even closer
to reassure him. "I don’t know, hyung. I always thought he was cute and pretty,
because he is. God damn, he is so beautiful," a smile tugs on Yoongi's lips at
hearing Jeongguk talk about Taehyung like that. It's unusual, but for some
reason not at all strange.

"He's a real sweetheart, hm?"

"H-he's wonderful! My heart is racing so much whenever we’re in the same room.
When he cuddles with me, I feel so... so hot and he smells so good. Oh god, I
just—, every time he’s not with me, I miss him so fucking bad it drives me nuts
but being with him is—. It's like suddenly I don’t know how to behave around
him anymore. All I can think about is that I just really, reallywant to hug him
close and tell him how much I like him, all the damn time."

"Jeonggukkie, if you want to hear my honest opinion – I think you really are
head over heels in love with him," Jeongguk lets out a small whine at that and
buries his face in his hands again in a burst of bashfulness. "Hey, don't hide.
I know it's a scary thought but—, but do you really think Taehyung wouldn't
understand if you tried to talk to him?"

Jeongguk bites his upper lip and starts wiggling his foot.

"I-I don’t know how, hyung. I just can't. It feels like something has—, has
already changed between us," Yoongi gently grabs the other's foot and holds it
still because it's making him feel even more on edge. Jeongguk throws him a
small sheepish smile. "What if he knowsthat all I wonder about is how it felt
like to kiss him and that I want to do it again? I don’t want to lose him… he’s
my best friend. What—, what if he doesn’t like me back?" it comes out in only a
whisper and Yoongi knows what Jeongguk wants to hear.

That nothing is going to change even if Taehyung doesn’t like him in that way.
That they're gonna be alright. But Yoongi cannot promise him that. He cannot
speak for Taehyung.

"I don’t know, Guk-ah. You will never know if you don't tell him."

"I—, I’m just really scared of losing him. That's what I'm most scared of,"
Jeongguk wraps his fingers around the pendant of the necklace he's wearing and
rubs it between his thumb and index finger, holding on to something very
precious.

"I know it's not easy, Gukkie. Take your time, 'kay? I’ve got your back, you
can always talk to me. I know your friendship is strong, you will be able to
work this out, no matter what the outcome may be. I'm sorry I can't tell you
more than that," Jeongguk quickly shakes his head in disagreement and wets his
lips.

Jeongguk falls silent again, plays with the creases in his pants and broods
over his options.

"God, I wish I could remember the kiss," Jeongguk says after a while instead of
an actual reply but it's alright, Yoongi understands that some things in life
need time. "It's so not fair that I don't remember my first kiss. I swear to
god, I'm never gonna drink again."

Yoongi can't help but snort at that, patting his friend's back. "You don't have
to count that one if you don't want to. It's okay to wait for another chance."

"If you say so, hyung, then it must be true," Yoongi laughs, pinching
Jeongguk's side before he softly ruffles his hair. He's a little less worried
when Jeongguk looks up at him and at least smiles weakly again, "thank you,
hyung. I'm so glad could finally get it off my chest. I'm already feeling much
better because I was able to talk about it."

Yoongi just shakes his head as it rests against Jeongguk’s. He is relieved that
Jeongguk trusted him yet he feels so fucking bad for not being able to do more
at the same time; to not have all the right answers and all the solutions. It’s
something Jeongguk must make peace with himself.

All Yoongi can do is just be there for him.




 
 
 
                                      –☼–

Jimin really doesn't like picking up the house telephone. Usually, it's either
someone who wants to sell life insurances or thatvery essential new kitchen
utensil, or it's someone from his mother's work asking if she could
spontaneously take over a shift. His mum is currently at work, however, so he
guesses it's probably the former.

Nevertheless, he gets up from his bed where he's been taking a nap while
listening to Yoongi's mixtape for the past hour and groggily shuffles out of
his room into the narrow entrance corridor of the flat where the telephone sits
on a small, wooden cabinet.

Still a little sleepy, he takes the receiver out of its cradle and holds it to
his ear. "Hello, it's Jimin," he mumbles and tries to stifle a yawn, with minor
success. He's already circling the coiled cord around his index finger out of
habit.

"Yeah, hey Jimin, it's me."

He almost thinks he didn't hear right when he recognizes the voice and almost
drops the receiver. His mouth pops open and his brows knit together. He's
suddenly wide awake.

"Hobi?"

"Yes, that's me. Man, you sound even more surprised than I expected."

"What? No, I'm just—. I just didn't expect you to—, uhm. What's up?" Jimin sits
down on the carpeted floor, leaning against the wall, wrapping the kinked cord
of the phone further around his index finger, playing with it absentmindedly.

"Uhm, I gotta ask you for a favour. You can say no if you don't want to, of
course. But it'd be really cool if you say yes."

A favour? Him? He has no idea what the fuck is going on.

"Uh, okay? Well, shoot."

"Alright, you know that Yoongi hyung is leaving for university soon, yes?"
Jimin frowns at that, a faint pain throbbing in his chest when he's reminded of
that fact. He's always known that Yoongi will move to the city soon, but each
time someone mentions Yoongi leaving soon, he hates it more and more. Still
knows and accepts that it's inevitable.

"Yeah," he replies, throat suddenly a little dry.

"Okay, and you know how he likes to play tough but is actually a softie, so I'm
pretty sure he's going to miss us all terribly, right?" Jimin has no idea where
this is going, but for Yoongi he'd probably do anything.

"Mhm. Where is this going, Hoseok? Do you want me to beg Yoongi to stay?" he
lets out a laugh to downplay his nervousness, lets the cord of the receiver
fall loose before he starts wrapping it around his fingers again. Hoseok snorts
at the other end of the line and Jimin can almost see him shaking his head in
that sage way of his.

"I wish you could do that, but no, that's not it. I wrote a song together with
Namjoon, and it's going to be just an acoustic version, nothing too fancy, but
I need someone who will sing the lyrics. So, who else could I ask but you,
Yoongi's own dearest one and best vocal of the entire town?"

Jimin's heart rate picks up while Hoseok is talking, and when he calls him
'Yoongi's dearest one' it almost explodes. He gulps dryly and presses the
receiver harder against his ear.

"Only of the entire town?" he asks playfully, but quietly, teeth sinking into
his bottom lip. Hoseok tuts.

"Okay, okay, the entire country! The entire continent!"

"Ah, that sounds better," Jimin smiles, trying to suppress his overflowing
emotions. "Is that why you've been so busy lately?"

"Oh, you mean my super sneaky and totally not suspicious excuses to run off
right after practice? So that Yoongi won't notice anything's up? Yup, that's
exactly the reason," Jimin snorts at Hoseok's self-awareness, "so are you in?"

"I'd really like to sing your song, Hobi. I'd be—, I'd be really happy if I
could do that."

"Cool. Do you have time today, then? Since Yoongi's at work, we could totally
go for it right now. We quickly gotta go to the mall though to buy empty tapes,
mine are all full."

"Tapes."

"Yeah, cassette tapes, you know. The ones you can use to make your own—,"

"Yeah, I got it, I know what tapes are, Hoseok," Jimin laughs, a fond smile
appearing on his lips when he thinks about bickering with Yoongi over whether
cassette tapes or CDs are the superior medium for listening to music.

"Alright, I'm gonna be at the mall in about half an hour. Let's meet outside
where those weird round concrete blocks are, you know where?"

"Yeah, sure," considering that the mall sometimes acted as a second home to
him, he sure knows where those are. "I'm gonna get ready then. See you later."

After Hoseok said bye as well, Jimin gets up from the floor and puts the
receiver back into its cradle. He pauses, staring at the telephone before he
lets out a sigh.

Was he really just having a phone call with Jung Hoseok? Did he really just
agree to meet up with Yoongi's best friend? Yep, he thinks he did and he's
better getting ready now. After regaining his senses, he hurries back into his
room and starts rummaging through his closet to find an appropriate outfit for
a meet up that could possibly decide over his entire future.

Best friend approval.

It's definitely a life or death situation.

When a while later he stands outside the mall next to the aforementioned
concrete blocks, Jimin is for once not smoking a cigarette since he doesn't
even have any with him, but he's chewing one of the bubblegums Yoongi bought
him the other day. He's fiddling with some loose threads of his denim shorts
while taking good care that he doesn't accidentally bite down on his piercing
from how jittery he feels.

The weather is once again beautiful, the sun shining with the force of a
thousand ovens and a billion floodlights, is glaring into Jimin's face. He
wishes he had taken a pair of sunglasses with him.

When Hoseok appears, Jimin immediately sees that the other man had been much
smarter than him and actually has a pair of ombre sunglasses perched on his
narrow nose and his red hair that is half hidden beneath a baseball cap. He's
also wearing denim shorts but he has paired them with a white tank top and a
colourful Hawaiian shirt that he has half tucked into the waistband of his
shorts.

The nervousness of meeting up with the other man who Jimin sometimes thought
disliked him hits even stronger now, makes the adrenaline in his veins spike
tremendously.

It's the first time he's all alone with Hoseok and that fact only hits him now.

What if he doesn't know what to talk about with him? What if Hoseok doesn't
like the fact that Yoongi and Jimin have become a couple after all? What if
this is gonna be super awkward? Because he sure as hell feels like it might
turn out just like that.

But then Hoseok smiles when he gets closer and spots sight of him. It makes
some of the built-up tension within Jimin's body finally bleed out of him and
his shoulders relax a little. Jimin is even more surprised when Hoseok extends
a hand to him and pulls him into a bro hug when he takes it.

"Hey, Jimin-ah," he's calling me by a nickname, that's a good sign, right?
"Sorry, it got a little later, couldn't find my sunglasses," a smile tugs on
Jimin's lips at that and he waves off Hoseok's remark about being late.

"No worries, just got here, too," he lies. He's been waiting for at least ten
minutes already.

"Let's go inside, I'm melting," Hoseok sighs, "how are you never even breaking
a sweat? Ah, to be young again…"

Jimin snorts. "You're only one year older than me," he says with an amused
grin, never knew that Hoseok's antics could border on the diva-esque.

"That's beside the point. Summer's great, with all the open-air festivals and
stuff you can do, but the heat this year is horrible," Hoseok enters through
the open mall doors first and when Jimin follows after him, he's relieved to
find the inside of the mall considerably air-conditioned and cooled down.

"Have you been to one before? An open-air festival?" he asks curiously,
observing how Hoseok pushes his sunglasses up to rest on the top of his head.

"Yeah, sure. My parents love them. They took me and Yoongi to one two years
ago. Best two days of my life," Hoseok has a sparkle in his eyes when he
recounts the memory and Jimin can't stop smiling, the corners of his mouth
lifting into a small grin. He can't help but imagine Yoongi and Hoseok on the
festival grounds, shoes and legs covered in dirt, hair messy and a little
sweaty but both with bright smiles on their faces as they jump to the music of
the band that is playing centre stage.

Oh, how Jimin wishes he could be that band one day.

"I wish I could go to one, too. Must be hella fun to be surrounded by drunk
people twenty-four seven and roll around in the mud if it starts to rain."

"You make it sound horribly bad," Hoseok snorts, stepping onto the escalator
that leads to the first floor of the mall where the record store is located.
Jimin knows the way to the shop by heart, but he still lets Hoseok lead the
way.

"No, seriously!" Jimin didn't mean his remark to sound sarcastic, he'd
genuinely love to spend one or two days like that, surrounded by so many people
having fun, surrounded by his friends who would all make such an event an
unforgettable one, "I really wish I could experience this as well someday."

"Jimin, in five years or so we're gonna go to one and actually perform there,
how's that sound?"

Jimin laughs, throwing his head back. "With Cotton Candy?" he pauses, lets the
thought sink in properly before he smiles. He takes the step down from the
escalator when they reach the top and walks next to Hoseok. "Yeah. Yeah sure.
That'd be nice. Let's do that. In five years we're gonna be on that stage."

"It's a deal," Hoseok grins, holding his hand out to seal the pact. Jimin
quickly does a handshake with him, feeling all warm and funny inside, the
thought that he might even be with them in five years exciting and comforting.
He knows that before that, Yoongi will move away to go to university in another
city, but Jimin only has two more years to go before he'll be able to follow
him.

He's made up his mind about that.

He wants to go to university just like all of his friends. Of course, he'll
also do everything to be able to be with Yoongi. No matter what it takes, no
matter how much he has to catch up with school and his studying, he'll do it if
that means being with the man he loves so much.

"Hey, the song we're gonna record, what's it be like?" Jimin asks, reminded by
the thoughts of Yoongi going away soon about why he's here with Hoseok in the
first place.

"Emotional as fuck, or at least I hope so. It's going to be the profession of
my undying love for Yoongi – don't worry, strictly platonic," Hoseok says with
a cheeky wink when Jimin raises his eyebrows. "Already told you it's only going
to be an acoustic version. We can't professionally record it anyway so
Namjoon's tape recorder will have to be enough."

"It's gonna be fine. Yoongi is going to love it either way," Jimin says,
already bursting at the seams from curiosity about what kind of song it's going
to be. They enter the record store and Jimin notices the pop music that is
playing overhead, a lot more hustle and bustle inside the store than last time
when he was here with Yoongi.

Jimin knows where the cassette tapes are located now and so he immediately
turns left and taps Hoseok's upper arm to motion to him that he should follow.
He weasels his way through small groups of other people that are browsing
through some CDs and halts in front of the shelf with the tapes when he reaches
them.

"Ah, I haven't bought some in a while. I think it's been at least a year since
I bought a multipack and I've only used half of them. Gave the rest to Yoongi
when I got a CD-player," Hoseok says, his eyes scanning the various types of
tapes on display. Jimin can't suppress an amused huff.

"Of course you did. I bet he has heaps of cassette tapes piling up in his
room," he says, reaching for the exact same tapes Yoongi bought when they were
here together. A sudden burst of fondness courses through Jimin's body when he
looks at the tapes that remind him of the mixtape Yoongi made for him. "Yoongi
likes these ones. I guess they'll be fine?"

"Has that grandpa given you a lecture about which cassette tapes are superior,
or how do you know exactly which tapes we're looking for?" Hoseok asks, amused,
and takes the tapes from Jimin's hands. It's a bundle that includes three
tapes, definitely enough to record a single song on one of them.

"Yeah, he did. He bought these last time we were here and we had a little
discussion about whether CDs or tapes were the better medium for music," Jimin
bites his lips. That time he didn't understand how Yoongi could be so stubborn,
holding onto the belief that cassettes are so much better than CDs, but now
he's simply endeared by the fact, loves how Yoongi doesn't let anyone deter him
from liking the things he likes.

It's just yet another thing Jimin admires so much about his boyfriend.

"Of course he did, our cassette tape supremacist," Hoseok snickers, causing
Jimin to do the same, while they start walking towards the register. After some
dispute, they settle on both paying an equal amount for the tapes, Jimin
insisting on contributing at least a little something as a sign of thanks for
being allowed to be a part of this. He wouldn't find the right words to express
his gratitude, so he'll at least try to show it in some way.

Moreover, Jimin has noticed that despite not stealing his mum's money anymore,
the money in his savings jar has actually increased a little over the past few
weeks. Maybe it's because he hasn't bought as many cigarette packs as he used
to, being able to bum lots of smokes from his boyfriend. Maybe it's because
he's not going out anymore where he sometimes had to use his money to buy booze
or maybe it's because he didn't feel the need anymore to randomly splurge money
on things he doesn't really need just to fill the hollow inside his chest that
he sometimes felt.

It feels great, however, to spend some money in order to make someone else
happy, something he's never actually done before.

He also doesn't mind when he has to buy his second bus ticket today in order to
take the bus to Hoseok's house. It's a little weird that he's going in that
direction not to visit Yoongi, but Yoongi's best friend instead.

It's actually his first time visiting one of his friends' houses that isn't
Yoongi's.

And that sets all his nerves on fire.

It's not only that he's visiting Hoseok and will probably see his room, it also
means meeting a new set of parents, means getting judged again, means being
either accepted or rejected, and that second option makes him wish he could
wear an invisibility cloak that lets him enter Hoseok's house and his room
without going through the ordeal of meeting new adults.

However, when he actually enters Hoseok's house a while later, after a calm and
comfortable bus ride during which they've talked a little about school, the
contest and the band in general, he gets positively surprised.

Hoseok's mother is really chill. Super chill – a little hippie chill, perhaps.

"Hey, mum," Hoseok says, immediately receiving a hug from the woman which
Hoseok returns briefly with a smile on his lips. It's adorable how her son is
at least one head taller than her. "How was work? Had many customers?"

"It's going better than ever before, Seokseok. Dad is staying a little longer
but I already left the shop to make dinner," her gaze falls on Jimin then and
he automatically straightens his back a little, the corners of his lips lifting
into a nervous smile, "and who have we here? You must be Jimin, right?" she
says, her eyes twinkling with genuine friendliness, "I immediately recognised
you because of your pink hair!"

Jimin can't even really react when she comes to hug him as well, the action so
unexpected that Jimin's body almost seizes up and pushes her away on its own
accord. Only almost, however, and when his mind has caught up with what's going
on, he actually relaxes a little again. Also, he thinks there's the lingering
smell of weed clinging to her, but he's not sure.

"Yes, I'm Jimin," he says after she let go of him again, his cheeks feeling a
little hot, "I'm the singer of Hoseok's band."

"My oh my, when you guys get all famous later the girls are all going to queue
up to be your groupies," at that, Hoseok snorts and rolls his eyes before
lifting his eyebrows.

"Nari, he's gay. I'll be the one who'll get all the groupies," Jimin blinks at
Hoseok calling his mum by her name, but he quickly waves it off as a family
quirk.

"Oh! Well, I'm sure Cotton Candy is also going to have lots of male fans," Nari
says with a wink at him and Jimin is momentarily dumbstruck about how easily
she's just accepted the fact that he's gay. Suddenly, she reminds him of his
own mother in that aspect and therefore he takes an instant liking to her.

"He's also very happily taken, mum," Hoseok pats her shoulder with a grin on
his lips.

"Ah, what a lucky boy that must be," she says with a small giggle, and Jimin
can't suppress a grin at the thought that she'd never guess that the lucky boy
is actually her son's childhood best friend.

"He sure is," Hoseok says and Jimin's heart flutters. Hoseok puts his hand on
Jimin's upper arm, starting to guide him into the house towards a closed door
with several posters and stickers being stuck on it. Undoubtedly the
guitarist's room. "We're in my room and record stuff, just so you know," he
shouts back over his shoulder, confirming Jimin's assumption.

Jimin takes in his friend's room, the various guitars and amps, the posters of
half-naked girls on the walls, a pinboard with photos of a little Hoseok and a
chubby-cheeked Yoongi. Jimin has to hold back a squeal of delight at seeing
Yoongi with such short hair and a bright smile with one tooth missing. There's
another photo that shows Yoongi behind his drum set, all proud and happy, his
hair actually being platinum blonde in the picture. Jimin can't rip his eyes
away from it, stares at his boyfriend's younger self in fascination. Damn,
Yoongi's always been really hot.

"Your mum's pretty cool. Didn't know she had that hippie aesthetic going on,"
Jimin says as a remark about her colourful ankle-length skirt, frilly blouse
and several thin braids in her hair. Hoseok snorts and motions for him to sit
down on the small red sofa that is placed on the left next to the entrance of
the room.

"My grandparents' fault. My parents grew up together in the same trailer park
before they fell in love when they were teenagers. They moved away to buy their
own house. Had to endure all sorts of shit and do all sorts of shitty jobs
before they had enough money, but then they made it and now we're here.
Wouldn't trade that for the world," Hoseok recounts and Jimin feels compelled
to smile despite the small twinge of envy that erupts in his chest.

"Your parents stayed together despite all the hardships, hm? That's—, that's
really enviable," he admits, rubbing his arm absentmindedly. Hoseok comes to
sit next to him, puts the cassette tapes they bought, Namjoon's recorder and
some music sheets on the tiny makeshift coffee table in front of the sofa
before he also leans the guitar against the edge of the sofa cushion.

"Your parents got separated?" Hoseok asks, blunt as he is, and Jimin nods. It's
still hard to admit it sometimes, a small voice at the back of his mind always
reminding him of the shame he felt when his old classmates had found out about
the fact that he's the child of parents who no longer wanted to be together.
When Jimin doesn't say anything for a few moments in order to sort his
thoughts, Hoseok speaks up again. "Sorry, didn't want to be rude, was just
wondering because you only ever talk about your mum."

Jimin quickly shakes his head. "No. No no, it's fine, I just—. My parents got
together when they were really young, too. You know, my mum wanted to be a
singer and she almost landed a deal, it was going really great and everything,
but then she got pregnant and, yeah," Jimin tries not to feel guilty for
something that wasn't his fault. "They quickly had to marry and somehow made it
work for the first few years, perhaps for my sake. They grew more and more
apart pretty fast, though. In the end, my dad was always just away at work, but
whenever he was at home, they were only fighting. So about two years ago, my
mum had enough and we moved here after she got a divorce. A classic, I guess."

Hoseok is quiet for a few moments while he's opening the pack of tapes they
bought in order to put one of them into the recorder. Jimin is gnawing on his
lower lip, wondering why he's just told him all that.

"That must have been really hard for your mum," Hoseok says after a while and
Jimin snaps his head up to look at him.

"Huh?"

"Yeah. I'm not talking about that she had to give up on her singing career, but
that she had to make such a decision. Single mums don't have it easy. She must
love you very much, Jimin. You might not have a family that looks the same as
mine or Yoongi's, but you sure have a mum to die for," Hoseok says calmly,
looks up at him when he's done talking and offers him a kind smile.

Jimin swallows heavily, rubs the palms of his hands against his shorts.

Yes. Yes, his mum does love him very much. He understands that now.

"I think—, I might tell her about the competition. I think she’d like that," he
whispers after worrying at his lips some more.

"You haven't told her yet?"

"Uhm, no. I wasn't sure about it."

Hoseok hums and nods in understanding. "You should definitely tell her. I’m
sure she will be very happy about it and come to see you on stage. Tell her
once you get home."

"Yeah, I will," Hoseok nods, pleased with Jimin's answer, while sorting the
music sheets, the paper rustling a little while he looks at each one of them.

They don't waste any more time then and get down to recording the song. Hoseok
plays the chords for Jimin on the guitar, humming the actual melody alongside
it. It sounds all sorts of gut-wrenching but at the same time so uplifting
Jimin is not sure how in the world Hoseok and Namjoon were able to compose such
a masterpiece. The acoustic guitar just underlines the feeling of nostalgia and
Jimin can only hope that he'll do it justice with his voice.

"Hoseok, Yoongi is going to cry like a baby when he hears that," Jimin deadpans
when Hoseok is done, looking at the other with a serious face. Hoseok lets out
a laugh.

"You think so? Not too cheesy?"

"No, not at all. It's—, it's really, really beautiful. You must really love him
a lot. Ah, when will my love for him ever compare."

Hoseok clicks his tongue and lightly smacks his thigh. "There's nothing to
compare. I love him my way, you love him your way. We both love him equally and
you're gonna show him just how much you love him by lending the song your
beautiful voice."

Jimin just smiles, somewhat abashed, and licks his dry lips while further
scanning the music notes and the lyrics.

After practising the song a few times, they make their first attempts at
recording it. All goes smoothly, and despite doing several recordings of the
song they're done after only a few hours. Jimin has poured his heart and soul
into his singing, his voice now a little rough but he has never felt better
about it.

"I'm sure hyung is gonna love it," he tells Hoseok a while later when they're
sitting on the couch while munching on some sandwiches Nari has prepared for
them. "Yoongi is a sap, he'll be totally soft for that song. Seriously, I'm
really sure he's going to cry when he hears it. And I'm probably going to cry,
too, but more because he has to leave so soon. I'm really gonna miss him so
much. No doubt he can take care of himself, but who's gonna take care of me?
I'm too cute to be left alone for so long! He's gonna die of Jimin-deprivation,
you'll see," he rambles on while having a big pout on his lips before he
realises how he's talking without a break.

He sheepishly takes a glance at Hoseok and finds the other smiling softly at
him.

"Jimin?" Hoseok asks after a while of seemingly being deep in thought.

"Hm?" Jimin hums, taking another bite of his sandwich.

"I'm glad you happened to him," Hoseok says and Jimin stops chewing abruptly,
his eyes growing big as he looks at the other. "What? Don't look so shocked. I
really am."

Jimin swallows his mouthful. "No, I'm not—, shocked. I mean. Maybe a little
but—. You know, it's just—. I really thought you hated me for a while."

Hoseok clicks his tongue, briefly looks away at a random spot before he looks
back at him.

"I admit, I was a little wary of you, yeah, but you just have to understand one
thing: Yoongi is my best friend and I would never let anyone hurt him. He's
going through enough shit as it is, what with his dad being a teacher at the
school he went to, the pressure coming from that, the prospect of moving to a
new city on his own and leaving everything he knows behind. Also, he might not
talk about it or show it a lot, but coming to terms with being gay as fuck
still isn't really easy for him either."

Jimin frowns. He did notice Yoongi's occasional reluctant behaviour when they
went on their date, but that quickly dissipated and after that, he didn't
really think about it anymore.

"Hyung really never mentioned it," he whispers, "he doesn't seem like it
bothers him or anything." Hoseok shakes his head.

"Yoongi tends to put his worries into a box and then shoves it far, far away
from anyone to see. He's always been like that. But he's fine, don't worry –
don't look so upset now."

"No, it's just—. He's done so much for me, he's always been there for me and
I—. I don't know. I don't know how to give any of that back."

Hoseok puts his sandwich down on his plate before he makes Jimin do the same.
"Jimin," he says, taking his hands into his own, "Yoongi has a mouth that is
fouler than a rotten tomato but when he's around you one could think he went to
a high-class butler training in England and graduated with high honours."

Jimin laughs, shaking his head. "That's very flattering."

"No, but seriously. You're doing more for Yoongi than you could imagine. Ever
since you two got together, he's glowing, radioactively and very annoyingly so.
I've never seen him like that before. He's constantly smiling and thinks he's
actually being funny with everything he says and—. It's wonderful seeing him
like that. And it's all thanks to you. You're doing so much for him, Jimin,
even if you might not realise it yourself."

Jimin isn't supposed to get as emotional as he feels right now, the feelings
inside of him stirring and whirling and mixing all together in a thick lump of
warmth and love that makes his eyes burn and the urge to suck on his piercing
unbearable.

He does the only reasonable thing he can think of right now.

He throws himself at Hoseok and pulls him into a tight hug.

The other, obviously a little perplexed at Jimin's outburst, stiffens a little
from surprise before he relaxes again and puts his arms around Jimin as well.

"Thank you, hyung," Jimin sniffles and soaks up the other's soothing pats on
his back.

"Ah, stop it, Jimin-ah. Why are you getting so emotional, huh?"

"You don't sound any better either."

"You called me hyung for the first time, considering that I sure as hell do
better than you," Hoseok pinches his side and laughs, pulling away again.

"Oh, shut up," Jimin whines and nudges Hoseok with his elbow with a big grin on
his face, wondering how he's ever deserved the things all of them have given
him; acceptance, friendship, love – a place he belongs.





 
 
 
Jimin doesn't stay much longer after they've finished eating.

With his heart and stomach full and having given Hoseok another hug, he leaves
the Jung residence and thinks about going to the convenience store in order to
buy himself some new credit for his prepaid phone. He briefly wonders if Yoongi
might still be working but then he takes a look at the clock on his phone and
sees that it's already much later than he thought.

Yoongi might actually be home right now.

He bites his lower lip and looks at Yoongi's house, shifts his weight from one
foot to the other and then back again while he hesitates to take the steps into
the direction that would actually bring him home.

He lets out a sigh, briefly squints his eyes shut before he lets out a little
whine and starts walking up to Yoongi's front door.

Screw Yoongi's dad should he be home, Jimin doesn't give a fuck. He wants to
see his boyfriend.

He rings the doorbell and waits some excruciatingly long moments before it
finally swings open and reveals Jangmi, Yoongi's mother. Her eyes briefly go
bigger in surprise before she starts smiling widely.

"Jimin-ah, hey. Oh dear, have I forgotten about you coming over today or did
Yoongi not tell me?"

"Good evening, Jangmi-ssi," Jimin says with a slight bow, "I'm actually here
without Yoongi knowing. I was at Hoseok's today and thought since I'm already
here I'd check if he's home. I have… something I wanted to ask him. About, uh—,
the contest."

"Yes, he's here, just got home a while ago," Jangmi moves to the side and
motions for Jimin to enter, "come in, I'm gonna call him." Jimin bows again and
enters the house, toes off his sneakers. "Yoongi-yah, Jimin is here," Jangmi
shouts up the stairs and then turns to him again. "Just go upstairs, he's
probably just gotten out of the shower."

Jimin suddenly feels a flush creep on his cheeks, and for some unknown reason,
he thinks he's going to stutter if he opened his mouth now.

It doesn't even take another moment before Jimin hears heavy footsteps flying
down the stairs and when he turns to look in that direction again, he sees his
boyfriend staring at him with huge, rounded eyes – hair still wet and no shirt
on whatsoever, only wearing a pair of comfy, grey Adidas sweatpants.

Why the fuck do Jimin's hands suddenly feel so clammy and his stomach a little
queasy at the sight of his boyfriend and why has it become so hot?

Jimin quickly lifts his hand for a quick wave and grins at Yoongi with feigned
nonchalance.

"Hi!"

"Ji-Jimin?"

"That's me."

"Not that I'm not happy but—. What are you doing here?"

Jimin doesn't answer right away when he sees Yoongi glancing at his mother,
follows his gaze to find her smiling before she tells them she'll leave them
alone then and walks towards the living room.

Jimin gets closer to where Yoongi is rooted on the stairs and only stops when
he's standing one step below Yoongi, creating the illusion that Yoongi is one
head taller than him. Somehow he doesn't like the size difference. He does
like, however, how low Yoongi's sweats sit on his hips, how Jimin can admire
his broad chest and muscular drummer arms and how he's almost on eye-level with
the black barbell of his nipple piercing.

He'd dieto let his tongue glide over it just once, just to see Yoongi's
reaction.

"I was at Hobi's just now and thought I'll see if you're back from work yet.
And I'm also dying to finally see your room."

Yoongi has already turned around on the stairs, albeit a little reluctantly,
and Jimin follows him to the first floor where his room must be located. Yoongi
freezes for a second, however, when Jimin mentions his room.

"Oh, uh—. Wait. You were at Hobi's? Why were you at Hobi's?" Yoongi asks with
genuine astonishment in his voice.

"Not telling you."

"Great, as soon as we're a couple you team up with my best friend against me
and have secrets from me?" Jimin grins and shrugs, enjoying Yoongi's curious
pout a little too much. However, he can sense that Yoongi is actually
positively surprised about Jimin and Hoseok apparently getting along well
enough to visit each other's homes.

Jimin definitely is, too.

Jimin keeps staring at Yoongi's broad, naked back as he follows him down the
hallway towards a white door that is slightly ajar and sports a huge Nirvana
poster and a sign that says 'Come in'. Yoongi reaches out to that very sign and
flips it around. It now reads 'Don't disturb'. Jimin has to suppress a giggle.

"Wow, you're really organised, hyung," he says and Yoongi just hums, a little
dejectedly, as he opens the door further to let him in.

Jimin hesitates briefly, savouring the moment considering that this will be the
day he will finally get to see Yoongi's room. He takes a deep breath and steps
inside.

He's probably never been this underwhelmed in his entire life.

He hears Yoongi mumbling an excuse about how he didn't know that Jimin would
come over before he starts scurrying from one corner of the room to another to
clean up the mess, Jimin too busy with staring to reply anything.

Jimin's own room is basically impeccable. It's tidy and spotless and everything
in it has its proper place where it belongs.

But in Yoongi's room, there are clothes strewn all over the floor and over
Yoongi's black bed, the desk is littered with loose papers and magazines and
other things like Yoongi's Rubik's cube. In front of the bed directly on the
floor, Jimin detects a small TV with a Playstation set up in front of it. Some
pillows that are resting against the bedframe show that Yoongi must usually sit
on the floor while playing video games.

Empty coke cans are on the bedside table and there are even some crumpled
sheets of paper scattered beneath the desk. On Yoongi's dresser, there's a
whole mess of snapbacks, deodorant bottles, more papers and magazines and even
a basketball that Jimin has no idea why it's actually on top of the dresser and
not at least somewhere on the floor.

The only thing in Yoongi's room that looks more or less tidy is a single board
shelf where his cassette tapes are neatly lined up, albeit not in any apparent
organised order.

It's a complete mess.

Jimin takes back what he's told Hoseok about Yoongi being able to take care of
himself.

He's suddenly afraid that Yoongi won't even survive an entire week after he's
moved to the city on his own.

He remains standing in the middle of the room while Yoongi is frantically
running around and trying to do damage control. MTV must be running on the
small TV in front of the bed, for there's music coming from its speakers before
a host says something about the next two music videos that are going to be
played. The window is open, letting in the cooled down evening air, making the
thin white curtains sway in the breeze.

For some reason, Jimin feels really at home right now.

Yoongi hurries past him again with an arm full of dirty laundry that he dumps
into a hamper next to the door and proceeds to run over to the desk again.
Before he can do that, however, Jimin grabs his wrist and holds him back.

"I probably can't stay for too long, babe, you don't have to clean up for me. I
want to spend every minute I can with you."

With some disappointment, Jimin realises that while he was busy checking out
Yoongi's room, his boyfriend must have taken advantage of him being distracted
to pull a T-shirt over his head. No naked skin for Jimin to explore after all.
What a bummer.

Yoongi studies his eyes, tips of his ears a little red but a grin forming on
his lips.

"I can't believe you're really standing here in the mess that is my room,"
Yoongi mumbles but complies, lets the paper piles on his desk be paper piles
and puts his hands on Jimin's waist instead.

Jimin just shrugs. "I don't care, I like your mess," he really couldn't care
less about the state of Yoongi's room when he feels Yoongi's warm arms snaking
around him, "say, now that the door is closed and you put up that 'Don't
disturb' sign – your parents won't come in here, right?"

His gaze wanders from Yoongi's eyes down to his mouth naturally. It's been too
long ago that he felt those soft lips on his own.

Yoongi grins before he wordlessly leans in and presses their mouths together.
Jimin instantly melts in his embrace, places his own hands on Yoongi's arms and
enjoys the feeling of smooth skin under his fingertips. He forgets that they
stand in the middle of Yoongi's room when he feels Yoongi's tongue against his
lips. He parts them for him, plays with his tongue, smoothes his hands over his
boyfriend's sides until Yoongi pulls away, gasping for air.

Jimin can't help but grin fondly at him, lowering his head against Yoongi's
shoulder, closing his eyes for a moment.

"Hyung?" he inhales Yoongi's scent, enjoys the feeling of Yoongi's head resting
against his as the other hums as a sign of acknowledgement, "can we just—,
cuddle on your bed? Just a little?" and god, he's craving cuddles and caresses
so much right now.

He feels Yoongi's cheek that's pressed against his head bunching up, his
boyfriend obviously smiling before he nods softly. "Sure, princess. Let's
cuddle as much as you want."

Jimin takes Yoongi's hand, pulls him towards the bed eagerly, not caring about
Yoongi's work clothes that are scattered on top of it, just shoves them out of
the way as he sits down on the soft mattress. Yoongi doesn't seem to care
either for he's waiting until Jimin lays down only to crawl half on top of him
before plopping down, letting out a whine of contentment when his head is
placed against Jimin's chest, one arm thrown over his stomach.

"Mh, I could fall asleep like this," Yoongi grumbles, before holding onto
Jimin's side with his hand, thumb stroking softly over Jimin's shirt, "god,
you're so comfy."

Jimin snickers and lifts his arms, loops them around Yoongi's frame. He hugs
him close against his upper body, one hand burying into Yoongi's hair, the
other lightly gripping Yoongi's white T-shirt.

"I wish we could just fall asleep just like that, too, but I'm afraid I won't
be able to stay long enough for that," he replies, soaking up his boyfriend's
proximity. He lowers his head so that his temple rests against Yoongi's hair
and inhales the fresh, lingering scent of shampoo he's being engulfed with.
Yoongi pulls his legs up a little more, knees bumping against Jimin's thighs.
He feels so warm and familiar and almost as if they've been made for each
other.

Maybe they are.

"That sucks. I wanna keep you here," Jimin lets out a laugh at Yoongi's pouty
complain, playing with his soft hair.

"Yeah, it does, but hey, the summer holidays start soon. Only two more days.
Can you believe that?"

"Not really, no. But knowing that I have to go to that stupid graduation
ceremony with my parents tomorrow helps a lot. It just sucks that you guys
still have classes tomorrow."

"It's 'kay, hyung, I'll see you afterwards and Jin promised me to take a
picture of you," Yoongi snorts an 'of course' and pinches his side which makes
Jimin squeak and flinch briefly before he tries to swat his hand away.

When Yoongi gives up, it's quiet for a while except for the music coming from
the TV, both lost in their own thoughts, Jimin still playing with Yoongi's hair
that is drying slowly under his touch.

"Are you nervous about Friday?" Yoongi whispers and Jimin inhales sharply
before letting out a brief laugh.

"You mean because my boyfriend still hasn't asked me if I want to go to the
dance with him?"  Yoongi looks up at him only to roll his eyes, the blush on
his cheeks giving him away though and Jimin almost can't keep himself from
cooing.

"No, silly. Your boyfriend doesn't need to ask you about that, he's your
boyfriend. Of course, we'll go together. No, it's not that, you know exactly
what I'm talking about, Jiminnie," and of course Jimin does.

The contest.

The reason why they found him, the reason why he joined the band.

"Yeah," he confesses in a whisper, letting his hand come to rest on Yoongi's
neck, "what if we won't win?"

Yoongi shakes his head, rolling onto his stomach so he can place his chin on
Jimin's chest to look up at him. "Then we won't live on a fancy camping-site at
the beach but near the shitty forest without any fresh water supplies or a
toilet. Would be awful but not the end of the world, it won't matter." Yoongi's
fingers caress his neck and Jimin has troubles believing him that it won't
matter; they all wanted to win so much, that's why they got him to join the
band in the first place.

He doesn't notice how he worries at his bottom lip until he feels Yoongi's
thumb pulling it away from his teeth gently. "But that won't happen, princess,
'cause we're going to win. You'll be awesome, we all will be hella great,
'kay?"

Jimin studies Yoongi's eyes until he leans up even more to nuzzle his nose
against Jimin's, "'kay," he whispers back before he pecks Yoongi's lips,
letting himself sink against the pillow when Yoongi smiles at him and places
his head back down on his shoulder, caressing Jimin's arm. Jimin sighs
contently and closes his eyes again.

Yoongi's right: it really sucks that he can't stay the night today. Jimin
swears he's gonna make sure to be spending every night with Yoongi during the
summer holidays. At least, he's gonna try.

He lets out a yawn, Yoongi's bed being too comfortable and the familiar scent
making him feel drowsy. Taking a nap right now definitely sounds very tempting.
Absentmindedly, Jimin slips a hand underneath his own shirt and scratches a
patch of itching skin, right above his belly button. When he pulls away and his
T-shirt slips back down, his eyes fall open again as Yoongi's fingers come to
gently tug at the hem of it instead, pulling it up once more.

Jimin tenses at the sudden unexpected touch, a gasp leaving his lips.

"H-hyung, what are you doing?" his heart picks up pace at the speed of light.

"Hm? Nothing. I'm just curious. About your piercing," Jimin inhales sharply,
his abdomen going taut when Yoongi touches his skin with his fingertips, a jolt
of electricity shooting through his entire body at the gentle caress, "it's so
pretty."

Yoongi's eyes seem to be following the traces of his finger, his intense gaze
almost palpable on Jimin's skin. Yoongi has become completely silent,
mesmerised by the feeling of Jimin's skin beneath his fingertips, and the fact
that it's the first time Yoongi touches him like that has Jimin reeling.

Heat tugs on Jimin's guts, pulls at his stomach while his heart is beating fast
and hard between his ribs. Yoongi's fingers burn his skin yet feel soft like
feathers, make him sensitive in a way he thought wasn't possible; he's never
felt like this before, and fuck, he wants him so bad. He can't help but crave
more of his touch, can't help how relieved he feels when Yoongi's finger slide
up almost as far as the hollow between his ribs, lets his tongue dart out to
wet his dry lips and sinks into the pillow, giving himself over completely into
Yoongi's care.

His stomach muscles twitch a little when Yoongi's long, slender fingers stroke
over his navel and his piercing, a burst of heat coiling in his groin at the
feeling of skin on skin. Jimin's mind gets more and more clouded with his
thoughts running wild. His breathing quickens slightly and, oh shit, Yoongi is
going to notice, he's going to notice for sure.

"Hyung—," his voice sounds a little higher-pitched than he intended, a little
more strained, it causes Yoongi to look up at him, alarmed.

"Jiminnie?" Yoongi sits up slowly, his body detaching from Jimin's, and it
instantly becomes so cold around him Jimin thinks he's going to freeze to
death. "Hey, is everything okay? Did I—. I'm sorry, princess, I didn't want to
upset you." Yoongi's voice is thick with worry and his eyes are frantically
searching Jimin's face for any hint of what to do. Jimin feels his cheeks heat
up.

"No, no no, that's not it. I'm—," he's trying to catch his breath, reaching for
Yoongi's hand as he leans up, too, "I'm perfectly 'kay but—," Yoongi holds his
hands as if he could break him when Yoongi is, in fact, the reason all the
cracks in his soul are slowly closing up again. "Yoonie!" Jimin rolls his eyes
fondly and bumps his head against his boyfriend's. "I'm fine it's just—. When
you touch me like that, it does things to me, you know. Good things. Very good
things."

Yoongi's eyes go round and his cheeks turn countless shades darker.

"Oh."

Jimin almost chokes on his own spit. How the fuck did he ever deserve someone
like Min Yoongi?

He bites his lip a little and nods, freeing one hand to cup Yoongi's cheek,
strokes over it with his thumb.

"Just look at what you're doing to me. You don't even have to touch me much and
I feel like this," Yoongi looks conflicted for a moment, almost as if he didn't
believe his words, but then he licks his lips and kills Jimin all over again.

"Like—, what?"

"Oh god," Jimin smacks Yoongi's upper arm before he throws himself back into
the pillow and his own arm over his eyes, palm up, to cover his reddening face,
"hyung, don't make me describe it."

Yoongi reaches for the hand that's covering Jimin's face gently and pulls it
away so that his arm stops covering his face. With a racing heart Jimin looks
up at him, and, Jesus, that was a mistake.

"Tell me."

It's only a whisper, yet he can hear Yoongi's nervousness in the way his voice
vibrates in his ears, sees the raw and genuine curiosity in his boyfriend's
eyes that are half covered by messy, dark hair. Jimin licks his lips and props
himself up on his elbows, face so close to Yoongi's he can feel the tension
pulsating between them. He ignores his own nervous heartbeat and the heat on
his face when he opens his lips, softly brushing his nose against Yoongi's,
savouring the moment.

"No," he whispers, gaze flickering down to his boyfriend's lips before looking
up at Yoongi's eyes again while biting his own lips, "I'd rather show you."
Yoongi's eyes darken at his words and before Jimin knows, their noses press
against each other and Jimin gasps when he feels Yoongi's lips press down on
his, eyes falling closed.

Yoongi's tongue darts out over his lips and Jimin shudders with a gasp, draws
Yoongi's lower lip between his teeth before he tilts his head a little and
opens his mouth eagerly only to lick over the seam of Yoongi's lips.

Jimin grabs his shoulders and quickly deepens the kiss, licks into Yoongi's
mouth with a fervour he didn't know he possessed. He sucks on Yoongi's warm
tongue which causes his boyfriend to moan into his mouth softly and Jimin feels
white-hot pleasure stir in his abdomen.

He comes to kneel in front of Yoongi without breaking the kiss and buries his
hands in Yoongi's hair instead, tugs on it in the heat of the moment, almost
desperate, and gasps into the kiss when Yoongi groans because of it.

He scoots even closer, sits down on Yoongi's lap after straddling his knees
with his own, keeping their faces pressed against each other.

When he feels Yoongi's hands slide down his thighs suddenly, their weight
settling at the back of them, Jimin lets out a low whine, his entire body
shuddering. God, he loves Yoongi's hands so damn much it's part torture and
part blessing to have them on his body.

It's too much and not enough all at once.

Jimin subtly presses back into Yoongi's hands before he rocks forward again and
repeats the motion. He can't help it, he wishes he could feel Yoongi's hands
roam everywhere over his body, have his fingertips mark his skin, feel him in
his bones, in every atom of his being. Wishes he could just show Yoongi a
fraction of how much he truly loves him.

He breaks the kiss to catch his breath, to let his lips trail over Yoongi's
chin, down his jawline, feeling Yoongi's heartbeat racing against his lips when
he reaches his neck and starts sucking on the skin gently. He drags his tongue
over it and relishes the throaty moan that Yoongi lets out at his tongue
piercing grazing the soft skin.

"God, I love hearing you, hyung," he says before he pulls the skin of Yoongi's
neck between his teeth, gasps when Yoongi shudders beneath him.

But Yoongi gently stops him by putting his fingers under his chin, grabbing it
with his thumb and index finger and pulling him up just to kiss him again. The
gesture makes even more heat unfurl in his stomach, makes it harder to breathe,
his heart racing a mile a minute.

If only Yoongi was able to understand what he doesto him.

Jimin puts his arms around Yoongi's broad shoulders, bites playfully into
Yoongi's full bottom lip, eliciting another sharp breath from him. Yoongi
breaks the kiss and leans back when Jimin wants to follow him, making him pout
a little but he can't even be mad when he looks at his boyfriend and finds him
so gone, panting hard, his chest heaving with every intake of air and eyes
burning with an intensity that robs Jimin of every coherent thought he still
had left.

"Damn, Jiminnie, let me—, let me fucking breathe," Yoongi sounds choked up and
his Adam's apple bobs up and down heavily. It makes Jimin grin a little despite
his muddled mind.

"Hyung," he whines when Yoongi proceeds to lie down on his back, biting his lip
to suppress an infatuated grin, "don't go away," he scoots after him, hands
sliding over Yoongi's chest.

He watches Yoongi for a few moments, watches how he's trying to catch his
breath, how he puts some space between them. He has his eyes closed, cheeks
flushed and chest rising and falling rapidly, one arm lying limply over his
abdomen while the other is by his side.

Jimin doesn't want to breathe, he wants to suffocate with Yoongi's lips pressed
against his.

God, he wants to feel him so bad.

"Fuck, you'll be my death, Park Jimin," Yoongi mutters and Jimin can't help but
snicker, decides that Yoongi can have his break later. Jimin goes on all fours
on the mattress and turns to Yoongi.

He crawls over Yoongi's body and lets himself plop down, "hyung! Just let me
love you." Ignoring the groan Yoongi lets out at bearing the brunt of the
sudden weight on top of him before breathing out a laugh, Jimin snuggles up to
him and continues pressing wet kisses onto Yoongi's collar bones.

"You're seriously such a demanding brat sometimes," Yoongi grins and ruffles
Jimin's hair. Jimin tuts and whacks his shoulder lightly, throwing him a pout
and his best puppy eyes.

Yoongi stares at him for a whole second before he clicks his tongue, suddenly
attacking Jimin with both hands that tickle him mercilessly, making him scream
with laughter.

After a few moments, they lie there, breathless, giggly and spent, Jimin now
curled up on Yoongi's chest, drawing patterns with his fingertip onto Yoongi's
arm.

Suddenly, Yoongi puts both arms around him instead of just loosely having them
draped around his torso and pulls him impossibly close, nose burying in Jimin's
hair. Jimin's stomach tingles with warmth and contentment.

"Jiminnie?"

"Hm?" Jimin smiles, enjoying how Yoongi's hand comes to rest at the nape of his
neck, strong fingers massaging it gently. He feels so comfortable he could fall
asleep any moment now.

Yoongi takes a deep breath, his chest lifting a little as it fills with air,
before he lets it out again. There's another pause before he speaks again.

"Nothing. It's nothing, Jiminnie," He suddenly seems very nervous, so Jimin
wants to look up. But Yoongi doesn't let him, just hugs him closer, making his
cheek press against Yoongi's collarbone.

"Hnn, hyung!" Jimin huffs and wedges a leg between Yoongi's, snuggling up even
closer. Yoongi chuckles against the crown of his head before he presses a soft
kiss into it. Jimin rolls up his eyes to catch a glimpse of his face but he
still can't really look at him. He immediately closes his eyes, however, when
Yoongi threads his fingers through his hair, fingernails lightly scratching his
scalp.

"I guess I should go home soon, Yoonie. I haven't told my mum that I'm out
today and she'll be worried."

Yoongi nods, "'kay. I'll take you home."

"You really don't have to—,"

"But I want to," Yoongi kisses his forehead and Jimin pouts and melts at the
same time. Yoongi sits up and pats his thigh. "C'mon, we're gonna take the car,
that will be faster than when we take the bike."

"You just want to get rid of me, drummer boy" Jimin whines, knowing very well
how flustered he can make Yoongi with statements like this.

"Nice try, Jiminnie," Yoongi grins, however, before he licks his lips, smugly,
"that doesn't work with me anymore." There's a mischievous glint in his eyes
and Jimin gasps at how his plan of making him flustered didn't work out. On the
contrary, Yoongi bites his lower lip, almost lasciviously, and Jimin feels like
he's the one being seduced for once.

"Wait, where's the shy guy who was barely able to look me in the eye and what
have you done to him?"

Yoongi laughs. "He has learned that his princess likes to tease him a lot and
that two can play this game," Yoongi kisses his nose with a triumphant smirk on
his lips and Jimin huffs and squints his eyes.

"Not sure if I like that."

"You love it," Yoongi says, confident, and god fucking dammit, yes, he's right;
Jimin is so damn weak for him it's not even funny anymore. "You wanna go now?"
Jimin feigns to be miffed, studying his fingernails. "Jimin, baby, please,"
Yoongi pleads, wraps his arms around him and scatters kisses all over his face.
Jimin can't help but giggle at that.

"Hmm, alright. Because it's you, I forgive you," Yoongi lifts his eyebrows,
unimpressed, causing Jimin to snicker again. Jimin kisses his cheek before
nuzzling his nose against it, "thank you for taking me home."

Yoongi's gaze softens immediately before he quickly pecks Jimin's lips again
and gets up and off from the bed. "Let's go now. Your mother is worried about
you otherwise." Jimin follows him, legs slightly wobbly because of the
lingering aftereffect of Yoongi's intense kisses.

Jimin is going to have very nice dreams tonight.

Yoongi doesn't even bother to put on some other clothes and Jimin follows him
down the stairs again where Yoongi shouts to his parents that he's gonna take
him home and he'll be back in a few.

For the first time, Jimin wonders if Yoongi's parents have already caught on to
them being more than just friends or whether they're completely oblivious to
the fact that something between them has changed.

He shakes off his curiosity and shouts a goodbye in the direction of the living
room after Yoongi's mum has given Yoongi the okay.

When Jimin steps outside, the air is still warm enough not to shiver, but it's
already almost fully dark. He inhales the scent of summer, fills his lungs to
the brim before he slowly exhales again. His heart feels so light and his head
is completely free of any negative or sad thoughts.

Wow, he thinks, hopping down the three steps that lead up to Yoongi's front
door, life can be really beautiful.

Just when Yoongi starts to lead him to his car, his attention gets caught by
the clattering, metallic sound of a garbage can lid being put back on. When he
whips his head around, he sees Hoseok standing at the bottom of the steps of
the neighbouring house. He waves at him with a broad smile on his face, also
calling Yoongi's attention to his best friend's presence.

"Oh, you're still here, Jiminnie?" Hoseok asks, surprised and Jimin nods.

"Couldn't resist finally getting a glimpse of Yoongi's room," Jimin grins,
earning a light smack to his upper arm. His grin just grows wider and he throws
his arms around one of Yoongi's to hug him close, cheek pressing against his
shoulder.

"Hey, Seokkie, Jimin told me everything about what you were doing at your
place!" Yoongi shouts over the fence and Jimin instantly lifts his head again
to stare at him with wide eyes.

"Nice try, hyung," Hoseok retorts without missing a beat. Jimin turns his head
to look at him and bites his lip, smiles again when Hoseok winks at him.
"Pretty sure Jimin can keep a secret. We won't tell you now, you'll find out
eventually when the time is right."

"Eventually? You can eventuallykiss my ass, punk," Yoongi huffs and sticks his
tongue out, causing Hoseok to roll his eyes and stick up his middle finger.

"See you tomorrow at our final rehearsal. Don't break your legs while taking
the steps on stage to get your diploma, we need you on our stage on Friday,"
Hoseok grins and waves them goodbye.

"Yah!" Yoongi shouts again and Jimin bites his lips to suppress a burst of
laughter when he sees Yoongi's pouty face. Heart overflowing with happiness, he
waves back at Hoseok, leaning a little against his boyfriend.

But when Jimin looks up at Yoongi again after Hoseok has gone inside, he can
see the fondest expression on his face looking down at him before he puts his
flat palms against Jimin's back and playfully pushes him towards his car to
take him home.
Chapter End Notes
     Can you already guess what event finally arrives in the next chapter?
     hehe ksajdla
     We can't believe we've already come so far in the fic ㅠㅠ it's been
     such a long journey and we still have some chapters to go~ (we're
     also getting closer to that one special event probably everyone has
     been waiting for ever since yoonmin got together /snorts ... it's not
     like they can keep their hands off of each other for much longer)
     From now on, we don't know if we can still keep up with the two-week
     update interval since we've basically run out of pre-written chapters
     and we're stressed, but we'll do our best!
     We'll update you about when the next chapter is coming out on
     twitter! ♡
     Well then, see you hopefully soon <3
***** Seventeen. *****
Chapter Notes
     Hello hello, we're back with a new chapter with our favourite 90s
     boys <3
     We hope you'll like it!
     ☾ = Yoongi
     ☼ = Jimin
See the end of the chapter for more notes
                                      –☾–

With a strained sound, Yoongi heaves the last tom of his drum set onto the
platform trolley and makes sure that it won't drop off the moment the trolley
starts moving.

"You're really alright with staying here on your own?"

"Joon-ah, please, I'm alright. It's okay, you guys go first. I stay, keep an
eye on our stuff and wait for the little ones."

"We'll be right back as soon as we set up the instruments," Hoseok promises, an
amp cradled in his arms.

"'kay, leader! Now, off you go," Yoongi rolls his eyes but still grins at his
worrying friends. He watches how they walk out of the room and then down the
bustling hallway before he shuts the door and shuts off the sounds from outside
the room, shaking out his arms before he rubs his elbow. It's not that he's
nervous about the contest, no, he's confident about them winning that thing,
but something within him makes him feel anxious for some reason.

When he turns away from the door, it's strange to see the music room without
his drums on the low pedestal where they belong. Well, technically it's the
school's drum set but he's pretty sure no one has played it as much as he did
for the past three years.

He just stands there for a few fleeting moments, staring at the empty spot
while his thoughts jumble and scatter in his mind.

Three years.

He has been at this school for three years and today is actually his last
official day as a student here. It's a strange thought, one that makes him feel
on edge and his guts tingle with nerves, and he definitely doesn't feel ready
for what is to come.

It's always the same old song. There's always something to live for from day to
day, a goal of some sort, a date in the calendar that you hope will somehow
magically alter your life for the better. Entering high school, graduating high
school, starting university, milestones that carry some weight, announce a
change.

But as soon as that date draws closer you realise that life has to go on after
that.

Yoongi will have to move out of his home, move to the city, leave his friends
behind. Leave Jimin behind. Start a new life without knowing what will happen
from there. Sure, there are still the summer holidays left, but even the
thought of having to readjust to a completely new and unfamiliar life has him
suck in a deep breath.

Yoongi decides he might as well use the practice room as much as he can before
he only comes back again on weekends to play the drums for one or two hours.
Damn, he'll miss hanging out here with his friends, hiding in here on rainy
days during breaks, pretending to practise when actually he lies around on the
old couch with Seokjin, Hoseok and the others.

Absentmindedly, he walks over to the piano and sits down on the narrow bench in
front of it.

It's silly how many memories this instrument alone carries for him. He thinks
back on trying to teach Taehyung and Jeongguk to play the piano a little,
snorts when he remembers how whiny Taehyung was when he couldn't get the song
right and how Jeongguk had to cuddle him happy again. Rolls his eyes when he
thinks back to how he sat here with Namjoon so many times, arguing about the
melody of one of their new songs until they almost shouted at each other.

He presses one of the keys, lets its sound reverberate through the room before
pressing another one.

Becoming a music major sounds great and all but, god, he will miss all this so
much, wishes he could stay in this room just a little while longer. Only until
he actually feels ready for becoming an adult – even though he's sure as heck
that that will probably never happen.

The faint squeaky sound of the door opening can be heard then, and he quickly
turns his head over his shoulder to look in that direction to check who it is.

His breath catches in his throat when he sees Jimin standing there, cheeks
pink, eyes free of any traces of makeup, skin golden and glowing. He's wearing
his pink Dr Martens on his feet, frayed, dark denim hotpants, black fucking
fishnet stockings and Cotton Candy's band T-shirt.

He looks like a vision and Yoongi almost chokes on his own spit.

Jimin's lips curl up, eyes disappearing into crescents, cheeks bunching up a
little when he speaks. "Hey, hyung. What are you doing here all alone?" Jimin
asks and Yoongi gets his grip together, lips twitching into a smile.

"Nothing much, was just thinking about stuff. The others are setting up the
instruments at the stage," he waits for Jimin to walk over to him, returns the
kiss Jimin presses on his lips with closed eyes and a feeling of serenity
coursing through his veins.

When Jimin pulls back a little, his eyes flutter open again, hearting beating
in his throat.

"Hey princess."

Jimin grins, kisses Yoongi's nose before he sits down next to him on the narrow
piano stool, nudging him a little with his ass so that he makes some room for
him.

"What were you thinking about, drummer boy?"

Jimin leans his chin on Yoongi's shoulder, big eyes looking up at Yoongi and
Yoongi wants to kiss him so badly, wants to be closer to him. Fuck, lately he
has a feeling that no matter how close he is to Jimin, it's just never quite
enough – and it's not even been two weeks since they've become a couple.

"Mh, was just thinking about how next time I'll step into this room I'll no
longer be a student here. And not gonna lie, I'm scared shitless," Jimin
studies his eyes and hums before closing his own, turning his head so that his
cheek is squished against Yoongi's shoulder.

"I'll miss you so bad, hyung," it's only a whisper but it carries a weight that
settles deep in Yoongi's heart.

"Me, too, I'll miss you so much. But it's just an hour away, Jiminnie. I'll
come over on the weekends and we'll talk on the phone every day. We could even
write letters, if you want to?"

"Of course, I want to! Don't you dare not writing me," Jimin pouts when he
looks back up at him, the cheek that was pressed against his shoulder a little
red. He licks his lips and sighs, "but only when you're not busy with your
studies."

Yoongi has to smile, smoothing his knuckles over the reddened cheek and nods,
"I promise."

"We—, we'll be alright. Right?"

"Yeah. Hell yeah, we're gonna be alright," Yoongi twists his body so that he
can put his arms around Jimin's torso, pulling him closer.

"Right? It's only two years. They'll go by in the blink of an eye and then I'll
go to university, too," Jimin beams and Yoongi's heart skips a beat at the
image in his mind of Jimin being a university student, still by his side.

It's what will keep Yoongi going. Another one of those magic dates to look
forward to.

Yoongi kisses Jimin's pink hair, inhaling the sweet scent of his shampoo. "If
we're not famous by then, sure. Oh, or maybe I'll end up dropping out of
university. You know how much I like to study. Not."

Jimin laughs and, in the process, softly bumps against Yoongi's body with his
shoulder, "don't be silly, you'll do just fine." Yoongi hums and buries his
nose further into Jimin's hair.

They sit there in silence for a while until Jimin's leg starts to wobble
obnoxiously, making Yoongi positively go insane more and more.

"Jimin-ah," he gently places a hand on Jimin's thigh, feeling the texture of
the fishnet stockings on his palm. Jimin stops wobbling his leg and smiles up
at him sheepishly. "You're nervous, huh?" Yoongi asks, his hand faintly
kneading Jimin's thigh.

"Yoongi, the whole fucking town will be there, I'm dying, 'kay? My mum will be
there, all of those assholes will be there, our teachers—,"

"Okay, okay. I got it, it's 'kay," Yoongi says and Jimin throws him a miffed
gaze.

"I might—, have," Jimin swallows, "stage-fright. A little," and while Yoongi
has always kind of known about Jimin's nervousness before performances, he's
still surprised about Jimin openly admitting it.

Yoongi's gaze softens and he shakes his head. "Don't be scared, everything is
gonna be fine. You're gonna blow them all away," Yoongi claps his hands once
before flexing his fingers. "Come on, I'll play something for you. It'll
distract you,"

Jimin bites his lips, obviously trying to suppress a smile but his sparkling
eyes give him away, "really? You'd play the piano for me again?"

"I'd do anything for you," Yoongi rolls his eyes fondly and nudges him a little
with his elbow before he starts playing, knowing exactly what he wants Jimin to
hear.

Gentle and slow, he starts moving his fingers over the keyboard. The mellow
tune he played for Jimin so many days ago carries through the practice room,
sounds almost jarring in the calm silence of the summer afternoon, inside their
own little bubble. The sounds that float around them are filled with a yearning
Yoongi can barely contain while his fingers smoothly glide over they ivory
keys.

Jimin's head finds its way back to Yoongi's shoulder after a while, slow and
careful. Yoongi glances at him briefly, finding his boyfriend's eyes closed and
features relaxed and his skin tingles, satisfied with the knowledge that he was
able to calm him down a little.

"I know that melody. I'd recognise that one anywhere," Jimin mumbles after a
while of just listening. "You were playing it for me when I came to your house
for the tutoring session we had. I love it so much. It's the most beautiful
thing I've ever heard."

Yoongi smiles and hums, fingers slowly coming to a halt. "I actually wrote it
myself. It—, I wrote it for you—, or well, I wrote it while thinking of you,"
he briefly closes his eyes with a shiver of awkwardness, hating how much he
sometimes still stumbles over his own words in front of Jimin. Jimin just looks
up at him with big eyes, arms still holding onto his waist.

"You—. Hyung, why would you write something so beautiful about someone like
me?" Jimin laughs, hesitance swinging in his voice and Yoongi wishes Jimin
would finally at least try to understand how gorgeous and perfect he is to him.

Yoongi's tongue lies heavy in his mouth when he opens it, heart beating up to
his throat, his face ablaze with heat and he definitely feels a lot like
throwing up from the prickling sensation in his stomach.

"'cause I love you," he says, and Jimin freezes.

Yoongi's heart is beating through his entire body and he has to bring himself
to look at Jimin, really look at him and see the human being no one else can
see. There's awe on the other's face, mouth slightly parted, eyes trembling,
skin a little paler than before but he's beautiful and every single fibre of
Yoongi's being aches for him like it did the very first time he ever saw him.

"I love you so much, Park Jimin."

Yoongi averts his gaze to Jimin's hand that finds his own and lets Jimin wrap
his fingers around his thumb like he usually does, just with much more force
this time. Slowly, Jimin puts his other arm around Yoongi's torso and presses
his face against the side of his neck, a stuttering sigh leaving his lips,
fanning against Yoongi's skin. Yoongi closes his eyes.

"I love you too. I love you more than anything," Jimin's voice is wavering and
thick with unshed tears, and no matter how much Yoongi nudges him with his
nose, he just won't look up to meet his gaze, clings to him even more instead.
"You're the best thing that's ever happened to me, hyung, and all I want is to
deserve you. You deserve nothing but the best as well."

"Jimin, I've already found more than I could've ever asked for. There's no one
in the world I'd rather love than you," Yoongi says and remembers how utterly
hopeless he was when he fell in love for the first time in his life. How he's
now able to smile so hard his cheeks hurt.

"You're a sap and a sweet-talker," Jimin mumbles against Yoongi's skin and
Yoongi snorts a laugh before he kisses the top of Jimin's head.

They remain seated on the piano bench, so close and comfortable with each other
that they're separated by almost no space and yet too much space all at once.
There are soft kisses, noses nuzzling against each other, fingers caressing
hands but nothing they do is able to scratch the itch that simmers beneath
Yoongi's skin when he looks into Jimin's smouldering eyes.

Yoongi's thoughts quickly go somewhere they shouldn't be going right now and he
has half a mind to pull Jimin onto his lap, to press him close against his body
and slide his hands underneath Jimin's band shirt – just when the door to the
room is yanked open again. Yoongi and Jimin both flinch when they're ripped out
of their intimate moment but they don't move away from each other like they
used to when they turn their heads and see that their friends are back.

All of them, except for Jeongguk.

"Fuck, can't you guys, like—," Yoongi says, throwing one hand in the air,
"like—,"

"Did we interrupt something?" Namjoon smirks his evil smirk and Yoongi feels
heat creep up his neck. Jimin just snickers and rolls his eyes, pointedly wraps
his arms around Yoongi's shoulders and stays like that. Yoongi's heart is still
jack-hammering in his throat when he notices that Jeongguk really is not with
them even though he should be.

"Where's Jeongguk? Is he still not here?" all of them pause and look at him,
shaking their heads.

"Tae went to wait for him at the school's entrance before but he still hasn't
arrived," Seokjin says, worrying his lips.

"Gukkie and his parents are super late, even though we said we wanted to be
here early," Taehyung says sadly, worrying his bottom lip.

"Maybe you should try calling him, Tae," Namjoon suggests and Taehyung quickly
accepts the Nokia Seokjin hands him in order to call Jeongguk's number.

"Hyung, he doesn't pick up," Taehyung says after a minute or so of trying to
reach him and all of them whip their heads towards him. Hoseok is the first to
speak up.

"We still have to get ready. If worst comes to worst, we gotta wing this show
somehow without Jeongguk," a flash of hurt flits over Taehyung's face, his lips
set into a deep scowl before he presses them into a thin line.

"But, hyung—,"

"Taehyungie, Hobi is right, we at least need to put on our band shirts now and
get ready for the stage," Jimin says while stepping next to Taehyung, putting a
hand on his shoulder. "The contest will begin in a few minutes and our turn
won't be until at least another forty minutes in. Maybe he'll arrive until
then."

Taehyung sucks in a breath before he exhales slowly again and nods. Dejected,
he goes to the couch, opens his backpack, pulls out his T-shirt to change into.
Yoongi throws a worried glance towards the door and steps next to the couch as
well, hopes that Jeongguk is okay. He also picks up his band shirt to exchange
it for his current one.

Yoongi takes off his plain white shirt, discarding it on the armrest of the
couch for the time being. While he's unfolding his band T-shirt, he can feel
Jimin's heavy gaze on him and there's that feeling again, that longing that
sizzles beneath his skin. He throws his boyfriend a quick look, holds it before
Jimin's eyes flicker down and wander over his torso, before Yoongi pulls the
black and pink Cotton Candy T-shirt over his head.

Jimin juts out his lower lip a little before he purses it, jaw tipped up and
eyes telling Yoongi that he would have liked to look at him a little longer.
Yoongi feels a sudden heat pool in his stomach but Jimin already turns away.

"Come here, Taetae," Yoongi hears Jimin say and watches how his boyfriend sits
the bassist down on the couch before he starts doing Taehyung's makeup,
"Jeonggukkie will come soon, don't worry. Just look up at the ceiling for me
now, 'kay? No no, don't move your head so much," Jimin giggles and Yoongi is
grateful that Jimin is trying to overcome his own uneasiness in order to
distract their youngest a little.

The nervousness in the room otherwise is palpable, especially their roadies
showing their agitation openly by walking up and down the room, sitting down
and getting up again shortly afterwards, wobbling legs and tapping fingers. It
kinda drives Yoongi mad.

Soon enough they can hear how the show begins on the stage outside through the
open window.

Yoongi only starts to worry for real when it's only three more participants
before them.

"Let's call him again, Tae," he says and almost can't bear how crestfallen
Taehyung looks and how sadly he nods when he accepts Yoongi's phone to call his
best friend.

Just at that moment, however, the door flies open and Jeongguk storms in,
completely out of breath, eyes red-rimmed and cheeks flushed. Everyone jumps up
from where they've been sitting and immediately rush towards him, fretting over
him, coddling him.

"Jeonggukkie, are you okay?"

"Damn, we were worried sick about you."

"Where were you, buddy? What happened?"

Jeongguk sniffles and shakes his head. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry, hyung," he
says to Hoseok, gaze averted to the ground, "I wanted to wear my ripped jeans
for the performance but my parents didn't let me and I tried to persuade them
but—," Yoongi knows Jeongguk's parents are weird and really strict but there's
a twisting sensation in his stomach that there's more to Jeongguk's story. "We
had a—, a fight and they almost didn't let me go at all and then we were just
really late and—," he stutters out a sigh and lets his shoulder slump.

Jeongguk's eyes are so damn red it's obvious that he's been crying.

But Yoongi won't ask him about it. Not now when everyone else is present. He'll
talk to him about it later.

Relief washes over him when he watches how Taehyung hugs Jeongguk tightly, both
arms wrapped firmly around his best friend while Jeongguk has his just loosely
draped around Taehyung's back. "I'm just so glad you're here now. Your parents
can go to hell," Taehyung says and Jeongguk's face, for the briefest of
seconds, contorts in agony.

"I know, Tae. I'm sorry, I'm really sorry—," Jeongguk replies, nose pressing
against Taehyung's shoulder, eyes now closed as if he was savouring every
second of that moment, soaking up Taehyung's warmth.

"Hey, we gotta get Jeongguk ready now," Seokjin chimes in then, patting
Jeongguk's back amicably. All hell breaks loose again, everyone running in
circles, all of them fighting for the only mirror in the room to check
themselves for the last time, their time gradually running out. They should
have been behind the stage aeons ago.

Jimin quickly styles Jeongguk's hair after Taehyung has helped him pull the
band T-shirt over his head which Jeongguk let him do with a face as red as a
tomato. Meanwhile, Yoongi realises that his drumsticks are not in the back
pocket of his jeans like he thought they were and frantically starts searching
for them.

"God fuckin' dammit, where the fuck are my drumsticks?"

"Here, Yoonie," Jimin shouts across the room and points to the couch where
they're about to be swallowed up by the leather cushions.

"Thanks, babe," Yoongi says and grabs them before they're all ready to go – or,
well, as ready as can be.

Their group hurries towards the sports field where the stage has been set up,
ignoring all the festive food and gaming booths that have been set up around
the school area, and come to stand next to the stage behind a curtain. Not a
first-class backstage area, but it'll do. A dance group is still on stage and
Yoongi knows that it's going to be their turn after that performance ends.

He lets his gaze wander over the rows of chairs that are set up in front of the
stage, visitors, parents, other students and teachers alike filling up the
seats so that almost no empty chairs are left. He absorbs the atmosphere,
watches all the smiling faces, listens to the hushed murmur of people quietly
talking to each other and searches for his mum in the crowd.

He first finds Jeongguk's parents sitting alone a little further at the back,
Jeongguk's dad having his arms crossed over his chest and his features set into
an austere expression, almost like a stone statue. Namjoon's, Seokjin's and
Taehyung's parents are the next ones he detects, all of them sitting together
in the second row, Seokjin's dad with a camcorder in his hand. They all look
excited when they see the band standing there and wave at them, showing thumbs
ups.

He also makes out Jimin's mum, Sohyun, sitting alone on the right side of the
stage. He nudges Jimin's shoulder which makes the singer stop biting his lips
and look in the direction of Sohyun instead. When she notices them looking at
her, she almost shyly waves at them and they both wave back with a smile.
Yoongi quickly averts his gaze again, though, not feeling completely ready to
face her for the first time after becoming Jimin's boyfriend.

Finally, he finds his own mum sitting together with Hoseok's parents near the
stage as well, just on the other side of the audience. The mothers immediately
jump up when they finally have his attention, waving colourful, self-made signs
that read Cotton Candy and Good Luck in their hands. Yoongi would feel
embarrassed about them behaving like fangirls, but he's too nervous for that,
just smiles at them sheepishly after rolling his eyes dismissively.

He shakes out his hands again, stretches his wrists a little and tries to
ignore the fact that the jury who will decide about who will win the contest is
taking notes of the current performers before he hears Hoseok's voice calling
for their attention.

"Hey guys, it's our turn now," he gathers the band in a circle and puts his
hand in the middle. Jeongguk and Taehyung immediately copy him before Jimin and
Yoongi join their hands, putting theirs on top of them along with Namjoon and
Seokjin. "No matter what will happen, we're gonna be absolutely fucking amazing
and rock that stage and blow everyone away with how rad Cotton Candy really is,
alright?"

"Yes!" they all shout in unison.

"You're gonna be the best," Namjoon cheers.

"Let's get that fucking prize!" Hoseok's heat is almost palpable and all their
faces split in huge smiles.

"Let's do it!" they answer Hoseok's call and simultaneously move their hands
down briefly before pulling apart all at once, pumping their fists into the
air, stretching their limbs again, trying to take deep breaths.

Yoongi glances at Jimin one last time, shares a look of encouragement and a
smile carrying his affection, discreetly squeezing his hand before they have to
part.

The dancers who performed before them step down from the stage and the band
quickly hurries to the instruments together with Seokjin and Namjoon who help
them move everything in the right places, turning on amps, guitars and
microphones. Namjoon and Seokjin jump down when they're finished and join their
parents, eagerly waiting for the show.

Yoongi sits down behind the drum set, putting in his earplugs.

He twirls one drumstick in his hand, knowing that when the others are ready he
will be the one who will start their performance.

Everything around him dims and all the memories rush back to him at that
moment; the audition where they found Jimin, the countless hours they've
practised this, talked about this, hoping for the best outcome.

And now it's here, just like that, and there's no turning back.

A rush of nervousness tingles through Yoongi's body. He shifts a little on his
stool, adjusts his feet on the pedals of the bass drum and the hi-hat, and when
Hoseok faintly nods his head, he lifts his drumsticks and hits them together
four times, counting one, two, three to set the beat before he crashes them
down on his toms and cymbals, the guitars and Taehyung's bass setting in
immediately afterwards.

And then, after the intro is over, Jimin starts singing with his honeyed voice.

Yoongi feels the adrenaline pump through his entire body, his limbs acting on
muscle memory as he's keeping the beat steady and flowing. His vision zooms in
on his cymbals and the snare before he chances a quick glance at the audience
again and catches a glimpse of Jeongguk and Jimin back to back, the guitarist
having his head thrown back against Jimin's shoulder while Jimin is singing his
lungs out. Yoongi smirks, puts some extra force into his hits before he bites
his lips, his arm muscles flexing with every hit.

Jimin whirls away from Jeongguk, fires the audience up like a pro – a little
more subdued than he usually would when they're playing an actual gig in order
not to upset any sensitive ears –  before he turns away from the audience. He
walks a few steps towards the drums, hips swaying, front teeth biting his full
bottom lip before he wiggles his eyebrows at Yoongi.

Yoongi has to keep himself from laughing, is almost bursting with happiness and
excitement.

Hoseok is playing his guitar solo then before Taehyung jumps to the centre of
the stage and plays a short bass interlude, and the tempo of the song slows
down. Yoongi adjusts the rhythm to the most emotional part of their
performance.

Jimin stands in the middle of it all again, his back turned to Yoongi, pink
hair catching the sun rays of the dying day beautifully as he has one hand
raised to his heart and Yoongi just knows that he's singing with his eyes
closed as he becomes one with the music that whirls around him.

There's beauty in the way his voice cracks and wistfulness in how Jimin's naked
soul flickers through for the briefest of moments when he sucks in another
breath.

At that moment, it's not about the damn prize money anymore.

It's about a set of planets aligning somewhere at the far end of the universe,
their set of planets, just in the same way they've all aligned down here on
this ridiculously small stage in their human bodies that were written in
letters of DNA.

Yoongi feels it deep within his soul, a nostalgia for something that doesn't
lie in the past yet, and he has to fight hard to keep his emotions at bay.

A fleeting moment later, the last sounds of Hoseok's and Jeongguk's guitars
echo over the sports field and Yoongi holds onto his cymbals with his fingers,
chest heaving from panting so hard he feels like he's suffocating.

There's a loud ringing in Yoongi's ears despite his ear protection, a murmur,
rather, that only amplifies when he pulls the plugs out to not miss out on the
cheers of the audience. Yoongi looks at his band members and sees that they're
all in the same state he's in, broad smiles plastered on their faces, exuding
happiness and euphoria. He puts his drumsticks back into the pockets of his
pants and stands up to emerge from behind his drum set.

The others have put down their instruments as well and when he steps forward,
they all meet in a tight group hug in the middle of the stage, emotions and
cheerfulness overflowing between them.

"We made it! We really fucking made it!" Hoseok cheers and all of them laugh as
they jump in a tight circle, stepping on each other's feet but no one cares.

"Cotton Candy is the fucking best!" Jimin chimes in.

"Long live Cotton Candy!" Taehyung agrees.

"I love you guys so much," Jeongguk almost whines, voice cracking with emotion,
and he immediately has all arms around him.

After coming down from their high a little, they clear the stage and hop down
from it so that the next participants can have their turn.

Once they're on the ground again, they scream and laugh at each other, happy
and hyperactive, adrenaline still coursing through their bodies.

Yoongi wants to go and hug Jimin, but when he finds him with his eyes, the
other is suddenly sprinting away in the direction of the seats and he sees how
Jimin flings himself at his mother, wrapping his arms around her and hugging
her tightly while she squishes her cheek against his head.

"You sang wonderfully, my baby," Yoongi can hear her say and he thinks she's
crying but there's a wide smile on her face while she's rubbing Jimin's back.
He feels a small burst of fondness erupt in his chest at seeing his boyfriend
so close with his mother and at his shoulders trembling a little, too.

He also sees Jeongguk being hugged and cuddled by Taehyung's parents together
with Taehyung and a few moments afterwards, Yoongi has his own mum all around
him, her hand mussing up his hair in a particularly embarrassing way.

"You were sooo awesome, Yoongi-yah, the most awesome of all the awesome sons
out there. I'm your biggest fan!" she laughs and pinches Yoongi's cheeks.

"Mum, could you please—," he swats her hands away and pouts, glad that at least
Jimin is not here to witness him being babied by her.

"Kiyoung has everything recorded so that your dad will be able to watch it
later. I'm sure he's going to be very proud of you, too," Yoongi briefly
glances at Hoseok's dad who is smiling at his son and then nods, fringe falling
into his face. It's a pity his own dad couldn't be here for the contest because
he has teacher duties in the gym, preparations for the dance and stuff, but at
least everything has been caught on tape for him to watch later.

"Mama, come on, don't be so shy," Yoongi suddenly hears Jimin's voice again and
turns his head in his direction. He sees him dragging his mother towards them
by her wrist, her cheeks a little flushed and her posture timid. Jimin
introduces her to Yoongi's mum and Hoseok's parents and Yoongi can feel how
there's an instant connection, a new blossoming friendship between all of them
when they start talking together animatedly. He couldn't be any happier.

"They seem to get along well," he whispers into Jimin's ear after a while of
observing them and Jimin giggles before nodding enthusiastically and leaning
towards his ear.

"My mum really needs some friends. Tell your mum she should invite her some
time, for tea or something," Yoongi snorts but then he glances at Sohyun for a
moment as she's talking to his own mum and smiles.

"I guess you're both soon going to be invited over for a barbecue with my
family and the Jung's from the looks of it," he says and they both snicker in
amusement. When he looks up and catches Sohyun looking at him with a knowing
little grin on her lips though, his own smirk vanishes right off his face and
his heart drops into his stomach.

He can read it on her face.

She knows.

He gulps heavily and feels his heartbeat quicken, fingers nervously playing
with the hem of his shirt. He knocks his fringe out of his face with a quick
movement of his head before he sneaks a look at Jimin who seems to be oblivious
to his mother's sharp eyes.

All the other families, except for Jeongguk's, gather a little away from the
stage then and greet each other as if they hadn't seen each other in years.
Taehyung's parents distribute plastic cups filled with drinks that they've
bought at a festival booth and they all gulp them down eagerly. Yoongi watches
them, searches for Jeongguk with his eyes and feels relief when he comes
walking towards them – without his parents in tow. Yoongi suppresses a sigh.

"Where's your mum and dad?" he asks him and Jeongguk sniffs his nose, playing
it cool.

"Went home. Which is good. Can't be bothered with my dad's constant nagging any
longer," Jeongguk murmurs back and Yoongi throws him a wary glance before he
shares a pointed look with Jimin who has witnessed the brief exchange.

"The results will be announced in about fifteen minutes. I think I'm gonna be
dead by then," Hoseok distracts them though, his hair still sticking to his
forehead a little. They all heave a collective sigh and let themselves be
humoured by their parents who try to cheer them up and reassure them that
they've been by far the best performance they have seen.

"It'd be insane if you won't win," Yoongi's mum says and everyone instantly
agrees with her.

"You guys were great on stage today," Namjoon adds, "hardly ever saw you so
passionate during rehearsal compared to up there."

"Might be because it's way more fun playing for an audience than for a wall,"
Hoseok says with a grin, "not to mention that we actually really wanted to win
this thing."

"What time is it?" Taehyung asks Seokjin while teetering on his tiptoes.

"I don't know, it keeps changing," Seokjin says with an amused smirk. All of
them groan in unison and Seokjin laughs complacently, his arms shielding his
body when Taehyung and Namjoon hit him for the bad joke. "Hey!" Seokjin
continues and everyone tries to stop him, knowing what is coming, "why did the
tomato blush?" he doesn't wait long until he gives the answer because they're
all gearing up to make him stop, "because it saw the salad dressing!"

Seokjin lets out his high, squeaky laughter, shoulders pulled to up to his chin
and eyes disappearing in little half-moons, while all of them swarm him and
smack him more – or less – mildly on his back and arms.

"Your humour or lack thereof is atrocious," Yoongi complains but he knows that
all of them are glad about their friend's attempt to ease their nervousness a
little.

"I have no idea what you mean. You can count yourself very lucky, Yoongi-yah.
After all, you're gonna be blessed with my absolutely funny and pleasant
presence every day soon when we're roommates. Aren't you looking forward to
that?"

Yoongi side-eyes him sceptically before he huffs. "You wish, Mr Bad Joke. I'm
only gonna tolerate your absolutely annoying presence because it'll make living
there cheaper. And you can cook."

Seokjin gasps, mock-offended. "Yah! I will have to deal with your terrible
messy tendencies after all, my dude. I swear, if I'm gonna find one dirty boxer
shorts too close to my bed I'm gonna throw it out of the window!"

Yoongi and Seokjin shortly afterwards find themselves in a mutual headlock,
still bickering with each other about their future roommate rules while the
others just let them, used to everyone's antics. As soon as Yoongi manages to
break free from Seokjin's hold, he flees behind Jimin's back and peeks over his
boyfriend's shoulder.

"Jimin, protect me from this mean man."

"Yoongi, your room really is pretty messy. But I'm glad you'll have someone who
cooks for you, so I don't have to worry that much about you going to die."

"What's that supposed to mean? Hey, aren't you supposed to be on my side?"
Yoongi pouts, and Jimin throws his head back with a laugh.

It takes another twenty or so minutes until all the participating contestants
are done with their performances. That's when they're called back on stage
together with everyone else, groups of students mingling in the narrow space,
all closely huddled together. In the middle of it all, Yoongi discreetly links
his pinky with Jimin's, holding onto it tightly. He can feel Jimin's eyes on
him, but he just drops his gaze to the ground smiling softly, squeezing his
finger a little bit tighter.

The announcement of the winners begins and Yoongi not only wants to die from
nervousness, but also from the late afternoon sun burning onto his head. He
feels like he's going to melt soon, his back slick with sweat and his dark hair
sticking to his forehead. He licks his lips and almost misses the announcement
of the third place.

The crowd erupts in cheers at the name being called, and Yoongi lets out a
sigh. "Thank god, not us," he whispers and Jimin nods in agreement, watching
the winner of the third place step to the front of the stage, accepting their
prize.

He inhales shakily, his heart hammering against his ribcage. What if they don't
win? What if they only come in second? Or not at all? They've worked so hard
for this, and more than anything he just couldn't bear his bandmates to be
disappointed and sad if they didn't win.

"The second place," the jury member speaks through a microphone, "is a tie!
Congratulations," the dance group they saw before and a rhythm gymnast get
called, and Yoongi feels his head going fuzzy and swimming with nervousness.

He can feel Hoseok's body next to him shift from foot to foot, sees how
Taehyung wipes his hands on his shorts again and again, sees Jeongguk's big,
blank eyes and how he gnaws on his lower lip without noticing – and finally
Jimin who leans more and more against his arm, seeking support.

"You think we win?" Jimin whispers close to his ear and Yoongi shudders from
his hot breath fanning against it. He feels like he can't speak so he just
clumsily nods his head, gaze still fixed straight ahead.

"Please, please, please," Taehyung repeats like a mantra somewhere next to him,
and goddammit, Yoongi could swear the jury lets them suffer on purpose by
dragging this out so much.

"The first place and winner of this year's prize money is—," Yoongi hears the
voice over the speakers, but it sounds muddled and his focus is blurry. He
swallows dryly, chest constricting with heart palpitations. He can hear the
stage creak, hushed voices whisper, and he could swear he can feel Jimin's
pulse racing through his pinky, melting into his own.

And then the tension leaves him all at once.

"Our very own rock stars, Cotton Candy! Congratulations!"

At first, Yoongi's eyes just grow impossibly wide and he stares at Hoseok in
disbelief. His friend looks equally stunned before he breaks into a huge smile
along with Jeongguk and Taehyung who start to squeal in excitement.

"We won!" Hoseok says, breathless, "we fucking made it!"

Not even a second later, Yoongi feels arms wrap around him from the side and he
almost stumbles into Hoseok next to him, catches himself just barely when he
catches the weight of Jimin's body barrelling into him. He can hear his friends
laugh before he's being pulled into a group hug that, honestly, feels a little
gross from them all being so sweaty but Yoongi couldn't care less at that
moment.

"We're the fucking best!" Jimin growls loudly, sending a shiver down Yoongi's
spine. He wants to kiss him so fucking bad but it has to wait for later.

They jump up and down, revelling in the cheers and applause they receive,
revelling in the fact that all the hard work, all the practising and fretting
and getting the T-shirts and holding that faithful audition has actually paid
off in the end.

Of course, it has paid off.

Yoongi has received so much more than he'd ever bargained for.

Still laughing and pumped with a new rush of adrenaline, they step to the front
of the stage to go and accept their prize. The principal, the head of the jury,
hands it to them and congratulates them again.

After all of them have thanked him profusely, the crowd of participants
disperses and everyone steps down from the stage again. The band members are
still jumping up and down when they come back to Seokjin, Namjoon and their
parents.

"What did we get?" Namjoon immediately makes grabby hands towards the cheque
they've received and Hoseok shows it to him, chest jutted out bursting with
pride. "So much cash? Holy shit!"

"Jimin, you still want half of the prize money to yourself?" Seokjin asks with
a smirk on his lips and Yoongi can see a deep blush appear on Jimin's cheeks,
his lips immediately pursing into an indignant pout.

"No, I don't even want a seventh of it," he immediately says, smacking
Seokjin's upper arm.

"But you've earned it, fair and square," Hoseok agrees and Jimin shakes his
head.

"You can keep your stupid money, but—," he pauses, gaze softening to something
that almost – just almost – looks shy and bashful, lips curling into a smile,
"you definitely have to take me with you on your road trip. Now more than
ever."







After celebrating a little with their parents and then saying goodbye to them,
it's time to get ready for the dance.

Yoongi is not really nervous about it, just intends to have a good time with
his friends and to enjoy his last hours at this school. He severely doubts that
he'll be coming back often unless it's for practice with the band.

Though he doesn't want to rule out the possibility to visit Jimin during a
longer break should he ever have the opportunity.

He has to admit that being seen as Jimin's cool older college boyfriend does
have a pleasant ring to it.

He has thoroughly dried himself of the sweat that clung to him and has used
more deodorant than usual, his body feeling a little fresher than before. He's
in the middle of putting on his wine-red tie after getting into his black dress
shirt and dark jeans when he feels a presence looming next to him. He blinks
and turns his head only to find Jeongguk standing there, gaze lowered to his
hands.

"Everything alright, Guk-ah? You need help with your tie?"

Jeongguk shakes his head. "No, uhm—," he quickly lets his eyes dart to Hoseok
and the others who are present. Yoongi notices that neither Jimin nor Taehyung
have come back yet from going to the toilets together in order to get changed
and redo their makeup. "It's about my parents," Jeongguk whispers.

"Because of what happened earlier?" Yoongi replies, voice equally hushed.

"I really wanted to wear my ripped, tight jeans to the contest but my dad
said—," Jeongguk swallows, "he said they look gay and he doesn't want his son
to look like—, that."

Yoongi lets out an uneven breath.

Namjoon and Seokjin's voices suddenly get louder as they keep bickering
vehemently with each other and Yoongi bites his lip, anger flaring in his
chest.

"Your dad is a dick," he says crudely and Jeongguk lets out a humourless laugh.

"Yes, sometimes he really is. I tried to stand up for it, insisted on wearing
them and I'm glad I just did but now I feel—, I feel really small, hyung. He
looked so mad when they left after our performance earlier. He didn't even want
to see if we won."

"Gukkie—," Yoongi starts, pulls Jeongguk into a brief but tight hug. Just then
the door to the music room swings open again and Jimin marches in, hand laced
with Taehyung's. They're both giggling and snickering and squeal when they
tumble over their own feet. They look like the most carefree boys in the entire
world and when Yoongi looks back at Jeongguk he finds he's looking at the
complete opposite.

The most uneasy and distressed soul there ever was.

"Hey, I'll be there for you no matter what, 'kay? We'll figure this out
together, promised," Jeongguk gives him a small nod and the hint of a smile.

"Thank you, hyung," Yoongi squeezes his shoulder but then he suddenly has Jimin
all over him and all his brain cells start singing a lullaby before going to
sleep one after the other.

"Hyung, are you ready?" his boyfriend asks as he's hanging on his arm, chin
perched on Yoongi's shoulder. Jimin's smouldering smokey eyes are staring up at
him and Yoongi's knees slowly lose the ability to keep him upright. Jimin's
lips are full and glossy, his hair soft and shiny and Yoongi thinks he's going
to die.

He forgets how to breathe, how to speak, how to function. Forgets that the
others are there too for a second or two.

It doesn't help that Jimin is wearing his black ripped jeans again, the same
ones he wore to that fateful party, as well as a sheer black button-up shirt he
has tucked into his pants. There are vivid white silhouettes of palm trees
printed on it and Yoongi could swear he can almost see his tanned skin shimmer
through the thin, translucent fabric.

Yoongi swallows, tries to tame the urge of pinning his boyfriend against a wall
and kiss him senseless.

"I'm, uh—, gym. Yeah, let's go gym now," Jimin giggles at Yoongi's stuttering
and fucking curls his fingers around Yoongi's tie, pulling on it to tug him
along as he takes a few steps backwards. Yoongi learns at that moment that he
is a weak, weak man and that he'd like to drop to his knees in front of Jimin
right then and there.

He's in a dream-like state when he enters the disco-turned-gym with his friends
and Jimin on his arm.

It's nothing short of mirage-like when Yoongi takes in the lavishly decorated
interior of the huge hall in which he used to play basketball, or twisted his
ankle that one time when they had to play football in groups of five or four in
his first year at high school.

A phantasmagoria of blinking lights cast by a gigantic mirror ball in the
middle of the ceiling dances on the walls and bounces off the already dancing
and moving bodies of the crowd of students. It's not fully dark yet inside the
hall despite the obvious efforts of lowering the blinds of the huge windows
that Yoongi has hardly ever seen in use.

"Dudes and dudettes, before everyone is going off to do whatever, let's take a
picture together!" Seokjin suggests and waves his camera in front of him. They
agree and ask someone to take a picture of the entire group, all seven of them
plus Jihae and her friends, and Yoongi feels his gut clench when he hears the
sound of the shutter.

"Hey, everything alright?" he can hear Jimin's soft voice amongst the sound of
the disco music and turns his head to him. He nods.

"Just—. Kinda overwhelmed, is all," he smiles and takes Jimin's hand into his.
He looks around and finds that he and Jimin are the only ones still standing
there. "Huh? Where have the others gone now?"

"Said they wanted to secure a table for us. Oh, over there! Come on, hyung,"
Jimin detects them and drags Yoongi along who stumbles after him with a smile
on his face.

"You can be so bossy sometimes, Jiminnie," he grins and puts both his hands on
Jimin's hips from behind, pressing his nose against the other's neck as they
reach the cocktail table their friends have hogged for themselves.

"I'm gonna show you just how bossy I can be when you don't shut up, babe,"
Jimin retorts and Yoongi isn't sure if he's really miffed or just pretending.

"Is that a promise or a threat?" Yoongi asks playfully, lips grazing the shell
of Jimin's pierced ear. Jimin shudders in his embrace before he twists his
slender neck to look back at him.

"You might find out. Later," there's a small triumphant smirk on Jimin's lips
when Yoongi swallows audibly.

He hadn't thought of that possibility yet but – boom.

Now that seed was planted in his mind.

And it would only sprout and grow for the remainder of the night.

Yoongi doesn't know if it's a blessing or a curse.

"Drinks all around!" Namjoon hollers then, bursting the bubble that has started
to form around Yoongi and Jimin like it usually does when they stare into each
other's eyes for a little too long. "Sadly, it's all non-alcoholic but oh
well."

"We can get wasted later at my house," Seokjin says and earns an enthusiastic
'yes!' from Hoseok and Namjoon who give each other a fist bump.

"Remind me to not touch any booze tonight," Taehyung says with slight horror on
his face, "not even a little bit! I'm not gonna have a hangover of doom again."
Jeongguk next to him nods along to his words but the distant look in his eyes
shows that he's not really listening. Yet he mumbles something that sounds
suspiciously like 'maybe I'm gonna need a drink… or two'.

They all cheer with their white grape juice, talk all over each other about the
contest, about their plans for the road trip, about what else they're gonna do
during the summer holidays, before Seokjin and Jihae vanish to go dancing to a
bouncy pop song of the previous decade.

Yoongi still has his chin perched on Jimin's shoulder from behind, his position
comfortable and warm with his arms draped loosely around Jimin's hips. He
doesn't really think about how other people see them, all he wants is to spend
a nice evening with his boyfriend – as a couple, like every other couple
present, too.

"Jeonggukkie, let's go dancing too!" Taehyung suddenly says after downing his
faux-champagne and takes a weak-looking Jeongguk by the hands before pulling
him to the dance floor. Jeongguk is smiling at him before he lets out a brief
laugh at something Taehyung says to him and Yoongi is relieved to see them both
like that again.

It feels so much more right than having them both step around each other like
they might break at every word they say.

"Still can't believe they're not dating," Jimin says to him suddenly and Yoongi
realises he's not the only one who's been observing them. "Ah, just look at
them, they're so cute, what the fuck," Jimin coos and Yoongi smiles.

He watches how Taehyung and Jeongguk's giddy smiles gradually grow more mellow
as they keep staring into each other's eyes and how the world around them seems
to disappear when Taehyung puts his arms loosely on Jeongguk's shoulders.

Yoongi is rooting so much for his younger friends.

What better place to get together than at the school dance?

"They're both scared. Jeongguk is scared," Yoongi says so that only Jimin can
hear it. Jimin nods. Yoongi doesn't have to tell him what exactly he and
Jeongguk were talking about the other day, Yoongi knows that Jimin understands
anyway.

"You just kinda want to shove them together and make them kiss, finally. I
swear to the stars on my ceiling that there's going to be an intervention if
they aren't a couple by the end of the night," Yoongi snorts and shakes his
head.

"Let them figure things out by themselves, Jimin-ah."

"Hrmph," Jimin sulks and turns around in Yoongi's hold, "wanna go dancing too?"

"Uhm—,"

"Hyung! Hyungie hyung," he whines, all cute and sly, "please?" At this point,
Yoongi is just playing coy. Jimin has already started dragging him to the dance
floor and Yoongi resigns, legs moving on their own shuffling accord.

"Jimin-ah, you know I can't dance."

"Oh, come on, Yoonie. We've practised this at the party in the woods already,
remember?"

"You can hardly call that practice…," at that moment, the upbeat song of course
changes to Elvis Presley's 'Can't Help Falling in Love' and Yoongi feels a
twinge of awkwardness spreading in his chest. He could have faked dancing with
Jimin to a faster song just like he did at the party, but this—

This is almost too intimate among so many people who could potentially know
him.

"Just take my hands, I'll guide you," Jimin takes Yoongi's hands and puts them
on his hips unabashedly, gives them a soft squeeze and then leans his forearms
across Yoongi's shoulders so that he can softly play with the hair in his neck,
never taking his eyes off of his. "See, pretty simple, right?"

Yoongi moves from foot to foot, gently swaying to the slow beat of the music.
He knows his cheeks are red and his lips feel dry, and to make matters worse,
he can hardly look Jimin in the eye.

He's too beautiful and blinding and Yoongi's heart almost bursts from having
his body pressed against his so close.

"Your makeup today is really pretty, baby," Yoongi murmurs and Jimin's face
splits into a dazzling smile.

"Really?"

"Yes, you've made yourself even prettier than usual today," Jimin leans their
foreheads together and Yoongi's breath catches in his throat, "still can't
believe my lame ass snatched the most beautiful boyfriend of the entire
school." Jimin giggles and blushes before he goes back into tough Jimin-mode
and looks at Yoongi with half-lidded eyes, plush lips pursed a little.

"There's no one else in the world who could have me, hyung. I'm too good for
everyone else, only you can have me," Jimin says, almost petulantly and Yoongi
knows he's trying to be playful while being dead-serious. Tough Jimin-mode.
Always carefully downplaying his true feelings and trying to put a veil of
nonchalance over them. Yoongi knows it all.

That's why he simply leans in, giving Jimin a chaste kiss on the lips. He
ignores all the incredulous eyes on them, all the curious whispers, all the
judgement and the disbelief that Yoongi, the teacher's son, is with someone
like Park Jimin. Or with a guy. Or whatever.

Just fuck them all, it all doesn't matter.

They simply love each other and the world is fucking beautiful.

Yoongi wants to kiss him again, deeper this time, longer, but Jimin carefully
turns his head to the side a little when Yoongi leans in again. "Maybe we
shouldn’t, hyung. People are watching already and I—,"

"I don’t care, Jiminnie. Let them watch," he doesn’t care about what anyone
thinks or says. Couldn’t care less when he captures Jimin's lips and kisses him
again. Jimin giggles cutely when Yoongi nibbles on his bottom lip, pulls away
again.

"But what if a teacher sees us and tells your dad, Yoongi? Or," Jimin briefly
lets his eyes flicker around the hall, "if your dad himself sees us?"

Yoongi blinks.

Yeah, well, shit, he didn’t think about that, that’s true. He's always been
careful around his parents with how he behaved, didn’t want them to know
anything – at least not until he’d be able to move out of the house.

But honestly, right at this moment, it doesn’t bother him at all when he looks
into Jimin’s eyes.

Elvis is going on about how he can't help falling in love and Yoongi fucking
agrees.

"Still don’t care. Guess, that’s why people say love makes you brain-dead," he
gives a lopsided grin, Jimin snorts and smacks his upper arm.

"Yeah, sure, idiot," Jimin murmurs against Yoongi's lips, leans against
Yoongi’s body and kisses him again.

Hands soon don't remain where they don't cause a flurry of heat ripple through
their stomachs and Yoongi can't help but press himself just that tad bit closer
into Jimin's body, hands firmly gripping the sides of his behind. But never
quite his behind itself. Yoongi is not brave enough for that.

Jimin, on the other hand, is not shy about being a little too touchy to still
be counted as decent. More than once his fingers brush over Yoongi's ass and
that's what makes Yoongi gasp into their kisses, makes him try to tame the
growing fire inside of him that is fed by their deep, long stares and tongues
gliding against each other.

Yes, Yoongi thinks as the music keeps playing in his ears, just take my whole
life. You can have it. There's no one I'd rather give it to.

Jimin's nose runs along the column of his neck then, to his ear, making all the
hairs on his neck stand on end from the rush of electricity running down his
spine.

Everything feels like a fever dream.

There's no Hoseok flirting like there's no tomorrow with one of Jihae's
friends, no Namjoon trying to make plans with some of his classmates to smuggle
booze into the gym, no Seokjin and Jihae slow-dancing somewhere not far away
from them, no Taehyung and Jeongguk who are looking into each other's eyes as
if they could crush each other's worlds with one single word.

There's suddenly no music and no glittering lights sparkling on their faces
anymore when Jimin leans in and whispers into Yoongi's ear.

"Let's go somewhere we can be alone."
Chapter End Notes
     Thank you all so much for still reading and loving this fic! ㅠㅠ We'll
     work hard on it to post more soon!
     ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)
     More. Hehe.
     As always, you can also come chat with us about yoonmin on twitter! ♡
***** Eighteen. *****
Chapter Notes
     An entire chapter of yoonmin making sweet love to each other, you're
     welcome (ꈍ ᴗ ꈍ✿)
     (And we really mean, all of it. If you don't like reading smut you
     can basically just skip the entire chapter ♡)
     Shout-out to our Vanny for reassuring us about this chapter, we love
     you darling, our baby boy lover number one ㅠㅠ♡
     ☾ = Yoongi
     ☼ = Jimin
See the end of the chapter for more notes
                                      –☼–
"I can't believe we're actually going to do this in the cabin," Yoongi murmurs,
taking Jimin's hand into his.
 
"Well, there are not that many other options than the cabin. Maybe your car…
but the cabin is definitely cosier, so—. Or do you wanna stay here?" Jimin
grins and points over his shoulder back at Yoongi's car.
 
"Over my dead body," Yoongi retorts without missing a beat and Jimin snickers,
shaking his head. He hops on a tree trunk that is lying on the ground along the
path without letting go of Yoongi's hand, walking on it while keeping his
balance.
 
"The others are going to kill us," Jimin says and slows down in the middle of
the tree trunk, looking down at Yoongi. God, how can someone be so beautiful?
 
"Well, I sure can keep a secret. Depends on if you can, too, princess,"
Yoongi's voice is quiet but he's grinning a little, albeit nervously. Still
standing on the trunk, Jimin quickly leans down and kisses him reassuringly,
cupping his cheeks.
 
"My lips are sealed," Jimin whispers against Yoongi's mouth, eyes half-lidded.
He kisses him again and squeals into the kiss when Yoongi suddenly grabs him by
the waist and lifts him up before he puts him back on the ground. Jimin
snickers, arms now securely locked around Yoongi's neck, and presses more
kisses onto Yoongi's lips.
 
"It's gonna be alright, right? They won't know, right?" Jimin whispers and
Yoongi nods softly, reassuring him that their friends won't know. Yoongi takes
his hand again when they continue walking, following the path that is lit up
thanks to their flashlight.
 
"Don't worry so much, Jimin-ah. No one will know."
 
Jimin just hums and nods before he falls silent. He loves the calmness that the
forest brings with it, the air fresh but saturated with the heavy smell of pine
trees, fireflies dotting the darkness here and there with their luminous light.
All of it makes him hyper-aware of why they are here, makes his heart race with
excitement but also foreign nervousness.
 
Jimin knows that Yoongi feels it, too, the air around them tense and full of
anticipation. He knows it because Yoongi's hand is cold, a little sweaty but
firmly holding his own.
 
Jimin smiles, takes a deep breath and tries to break the silence.
 
"Hey, hyung. When you're a college student, are you going to buy a motorbike?"
Yoongi almost stumbles over his feet next to him before he raises a questioning
eyebrow at him.
 
"Why would I do that?"
 
Jimin sighs, dreamily. "Because, it'd be so cool if you came to pick me up with
it after school on the days you're in town," he says and Yoongi snorts, shaking
his head with a laugh.
 
"Any other wishes, your highness?" Yoongi bows slightly, his free hand doing an
elegant wave in front of his chest which has Jimin laugh out loud in turn.
 
"Oh, come on, it'd just be so hot! And I've always wanted to ride a bike."
 
"You only want to brag about dating a college student. One who doesn't drive a
hideous mint-green car that almost falls apart."
 
"What? No!"
 
"Admit it."
 
"No! Yoonie," Jimin whines and hangs onto Yoongi's arm, batting his eyelashes
at his boyfriend. Of course, Yoongi is partially right, but he would never
admit that. "I don't want to brag about having a college boyfriend, I want to
brag about having you!" he says with sincerity, and watches Yoongi's eyes turn
softer.
 
"Still don't know why you would want to do that, but to each their own, I
guess," Yoongi says with a slight smirk and Jimin pouts, pressing his head
against Yoongi's shoulder.
 
"Because you're the most amazing boyfriend in the whole wide world and because
I love you," Jimin says stubbornly, brain not really catching up with his mouth
as he speaks. As soon as the words so casually leave his mouth, however, he can
feel his cheeks turn pink. Yoongi too, next to him, drops his gaze with
reddened cheeks. They fall silent but it doesn't take long until Jimin feels a
soft set of lips press into his hair.
 
"Love you too, Minnie," Yoongi murmurs and Jimin's heart soars.
 
When they reach the cabin, he lets go of Yoongi's hand so he can open the door
for them and Jimin walks inside first, heart pounding in his chest.
 
"We still have some blankets here from last time," Yoongi informs him and Jimin
hums to signal that he's heard him. He makes his way to the bed, sets down his
backpack next to it and turns on the battery-powered fairy lights that snake
around the window frame. They shine warmly and light up the cabin soft golden,
make him feel like he's just reached home.
 
He takes a deep breath before he turns around to Yoongi again, hands clasped
behind his back, and he hopes that he looks beautiful. Yoongi looks at him as
if he was, as if he really was something precious and it makes his heart race
all the more.
 
Jimin's lips spread into a broad smile and he can almost hear Yoongi's breath
catch in his throat, sees the little hiccup in his breathing.
 
They both know exactly what they're here for and Jimin shall be damned if this
is going to turn out anything less than perfect – especially for Yoongi.
 
"Hyung," he wants to say, but it comes out only as a broken whisper.
 
Why is he so nervous?
 
Why the fuck is he so freaking nervous about something he's done countless
times before?
 
Yoongi's eyes shift for a moment, his jaw is clenched hard, body unmoving.
They're just looking at each other as if time was frozen, the tension in the
air almost suffocating and Jimin is afraid that when he doesn't move now, he's
never going to do it.
 
So he walks back to Yoongi who still just stands there with some blankets
jammed between his arm and his hip and takes his free hand to guide him towards
the bed.
 
"We better, uhm, spread these out first," Yoongi murmurs, eyes hidden beneath
his fringe, ears red, "dunno how dusty these bed sheets actually are."
 
"Hm, sure," Jimin replies, his own hands a little cold as he helps Yoongi
smoothing out the blankets on top of the mattress, though they're nothing
compared to Yoongi's shaking ones.
 
When they're done, Jimin sits down at the edge of the bed and pulls Yoongi
closer by his hips so that he stands in front of him between his legs. Yoongi's
hands come to rest on his shoulders, searching for purchase, and Jimin's head
tilts back a little so that he can look up at his boyfriend's face.
 
"Have I already told you that you look really, really hot in that black shirt
and with that tie? I really, really like that tie," Jimin says to ease Yoongi's
nerves. Yoongi huffs a laugh but says nothing more; there's only another heavy
swallow audible in the otherwise quiet room.
 
Jimin grins cheekily, downplaying his own nervousness, before he starts opening
the button and the zipper of Yoongi's pants with skilled fingers. He nuzzles
against Yoongi's crotch with his face, eager to show Yoongi just how much he
loves and adores and wants to please him.
 
Yoongi's body seizes up instantly.
 
"Ji-Jiminnie, slow down or—. Just—, can we maybe just… slow down?" Yoongi
rushes out, cheeks and ears burning red, his hands on Jimin's shoulders
squeezing harder, not pushing him away but holding him in place. Jimin pauses
and tries to read Yoongi's face, wonders if he's already crossed a line.
 
"We can take it as slow as you want," he says in a low voice, gently pulling
Yoongi next to him by taking his hand, "c'mere." Yoongi resists a little, face
still the colour of a cherry, before he sits down next to him. The way he's
pointedly avoiding to look Jimin in the eye has Jimin worried to his core but
the alarm quickly settles to a low throb within his chest when Yoongi speaks
up.
 
"I'm sorry, it's just—. I don't really know about—, any of this. I guess I'm
just scared of fucking this up and—. I mean, I've never done this before."
 
Jimin immediately cradles his face in his hands and tilts his own head a little
to the side, a soft smile playing on his lips in hopes of reassuring Yoongi
when he looks up at him. He really doesn't want him to be so scared.
 
"Hey babe, 's all fine. Just relax. We don't have to do this if you don't feel
ready, okay? We have all the time in the world, we don't have to do it now."
 
"No! I want to. I-I mean, I really would like to, but what if I—, uhm," Yoongi
wraps his fingers around Jimin's wrists and lets his head hang low, closing his
eyes. "It's just—, I'm really nervous." Jimin's hands run from his hot cheeks
down to his flushed neck where he can feel Yoongi's pulse hammering against his
palms.
 
"It's 'kay to be. Actually, I'm very nervous, too," Yoongi looks back up,
studies his eyes; the small, doubtful pout on his lips making Jimin smile.
"Don't look at me like that. I—, I don't want to mess this up either – mess
usup. 'course I'm friggin' nervous, dude."
 
"Dude," Yoongi snorts and Jimin's smile grows impossibly wider.
 
"Look, I'm gonna be honest with you," Jimin says and it's so incredibly hard
for him to do so. But this is Yoongi and he's already told Yoongi things he's
never told anyone ever before and he knows he can trust him. Would trust him
with his life. "When we walked here, I thought this isn't gonna be much
different from what I already know. Piece of cake and stuff because I've
already done it before and I know I'm good at it. But as soon as I set foot in
here, my heart almost dropped to the ground."
 
He shifts a little so that he can rest his forearms across Yoongi's shoulders,
wanting to be closer to him. Yoongi smells really good, Jimin notices – the
familiar mix of clean laundry, deodorant, the faint smell of cigarettes and
something so distinctly Yoongi which grounds Jimin to him so that he can
actually continue to speak.
 
"I'm fucking nervous about doing something wrong because being in a
relationship is somuch different from what I know and I love you so fucking
much that I'd hate myself forever if I screwed this up. Not only that, I'm
also—. You have no idea about how much I'm scared of losing you because of
this."
 
"Jimin, baby—,"
 
"Sex means that people leave," Jimin continues, "they leave, and before I knew
it I was the one who left them." His voice starts trembling but he quickly
smiles through his emotions, looks up from their laps and into Yoongi's eyes.
"Sorry, I'm just—. I can't fully shut it out but as long as I have you, I know
I'll feel safe."
 
Yes, he wants this. Wants to be insecure and feel raw and vulnerable, wants to
be embraced in Yoongi's arms and be told that it's going to be alright.
 
He wants to feel him so bad.
 
"I won't leave you, princess, and you won't mess anything up," Yoongi promises
and Jimin tries to believe his whispered words, closes his eyes when he feels
Yoongi's forehead against his. He returns the soft squeeze when Yoongi takes
his hands into his, playing with Yoongi's fingers absentmindedly on his lap.
"It's just, what if—," Yoongi continues when Jimin remains quiet, "what if I
come as soon as you touch me? Again," Yoongi mumbles, gaze fixed on Jimin's
collarbones.
 
"That's—, that's what you're worried about?" Yoongi nods, gnawing on his lips.
"I—," the events of that afternoon when Jimin blew Yoongi in the school's
toilet rush back to the forefront of his memory and he feels guilt and remorse
creep back to the surface. "Oh, Yoonie—," he remembers what he said to Yoongi
back then, what an insensitive prick he was.
 
That Yoongi ever wanted to speak to him again afterwards is nothing short of a
miracle.
 
"I'm actually terrified," Yoongi admits in a hushed voice before he wets his
lips, hair covering his eyes again.
 
"Hyung, no, wait. What I said back then—," Jimin shifts closer to him, twists
his body so that he can press closer against Yoongi, "I didn't mean to make you
feel this way, I was—. I didn't know any better. It doesn't matter how long you
last, or if you haven't done it before. The only thing that matters is that we
are both together and feel good. I just want to feel you and be close to you."
 
Yoongi looks at him through his fringe, foreheads bumping together again,
before he moves his head and nuzzles his nose slowly against Jimin's, making it
difficult to keep his eyes open.
 
"Besides," Jimin's lips curl up, "we have all night and I have an entire box of
condoms."
 
"You—, what?" Jimin's grin grows before he licks his lips in anticipation.
 
"Hey, come here, baby boy," Yoongi looks up at the nickname, eyes wide, "let's
just cuddle, 'kay? I could really use some good old cuddles right now." Yoongi
lets out a relieved sigh before he nods and they both lie down on the mattress
next to each other. Jimin tucks his head under Yoongi's chin and they lie there
for a while, softly whispering to each other about this and that, sharing slow
kisses in the shine of the fairy lights.
 
"The road trip is going to be a blast," Jimin whispers, drawing circles on
Yoongi's chest through the fabric of his shirt, tugging on the tie from time to
time.
 
"Mhm. Have you ever been on one?"
 
"No, my parents were always too busy for that kind of thing."
 
"Hmm."
 
"But you guys have already been?"
 
"Yeah. Last year, we went to the mountains. It's a really nice experience,
Jiminnie. I hope you'll like it, even if you have to use stinky camping site
toilets."
 
Jimin scrunches up his nose before he giggles, kissing Yoongi again. "I'm sure
I'll survive as long as I can be with you twenty-four-seven for a while."
 
Yoongi smiles and caresses his hair.
 
They both relax gradually and before long, Jimin shifts his weight so that he
can gently move Yoongi onto his back, follows his body until he's lying on top
of him. Their chests are pressed together and their lips seem to be locked in a
perpetual kiss until Jimin is sure that he's mapped out every corner of the
cavern of Yoongi's mouth.
 
He leans up on his forearms and straddles Yoongi's thighs, never taking his
eyes off of his boyfriend's. Yoongi's pupils are blown, dark and full of
intensity as their lips find each other again and this time Jimin cannot resist
the heat that is coiling relentlessly within his guts.
 
While loosening Yoongi's tie, he experimentally rolls his hips against
Yoongi's, both of them letting out a gasp into each other's mouths when their
clothed crotches brush against each other. Yoongi's hips buck up and Jimin sees
it as an invitation to repeat the movement.
 
Yoongi's brows are drawn together in concentration, lips parted and breathing
ragged, and Jimin can't get enough of the heat between them when he continues
to grind against Yoongi's crotch.
 
"You—, can you help me get rid of your shirt?" Jimin asks as they start
undressing each other, trusts his boyfriend to let him know if he wants to
stop. Yoongi's hands are trembling but not as much as Jimin's entire body
whenever Yoongi's fingertips brush against his naked skin. While Jimin opens
button after button on Yoongi's shirt, his fingers trail down Yoongi's chest as
the warm skin and his pierced nipple is getting exposed and he can feel
Yoongi's heart pounding against his ribcage.
 
"Hyung, you okay with being top?" Jimin asks eventually and Yoongi wheezes.
 
"I-I guess?"
 
Jimin smirks, continuing to kiss his skin. "Good. That's good. You'll do good,
hyung."
 
He leans back a little to admire and appreciate his boyfriend's beautiful body
when they've managed to remove all of their clothes except for their underwear.
Yoongi's skin is glowing in the fairy lights, lips wet from kissing, muscles
rippling under his skin in his arms and upper body. Jimin feels a warmth spread
in his chest at seeing Yoongi lying there with messy hair, darkened eyes and
his almost shy demeanour.
 
"God, you're so hot," Jimin breathes and Yoongi leans an arm over his face with
a groan, head turning a little to the side on the pillow. "No! Don't hide,
wanna see you."
 
"Then stop saying stuff like that or I'm gonna combust. 's already hard enough
to have the most beautiful human being on the planet sitting almost naked on my
crotch."
 
"Hard, hmm," Jimin grins, outlining Yoongi's still clothed firm erection with
his fingers. He earns a gasp and a slap on his knee from Yoongi who lets out a
helpless whine. "Look at me, Yoonie."
 
Yoongi does look up at him and Jimin arches his spine a little to look more
alluring, enjoying Yoongi's flustered face in front of him when he bites his
lower lip. He shifts his legs so that one knee is between Yoongi's and presses
it gently against Yoongi's crotch. Another strangled sound comes from Yoongi's
throat, his hands now scrambling to hold onto Jimin's knees and when Jimin
caresses his skin with his fingertips, waiting until Yoongi relaxes a little
more, he notices something that makes him smile.
 
"Hyung, you do know that you are allowed to touch me in whichever way you want,
right?" Jimin asks rhetorically, amused but also deeply touched by how Yoongi
is avoiding to touch his butt or knead his thighs. But he longs for it so much,
wants Yoongi to explore every inch of his body and make him his.
 
"But I am touching you," Yoongi mutters defiantly, causing Jimin to roll his
eyes with fondness. He grabs Yoongi's wrists, pulls them behind him, places the
palms of Yoongi's hands square on his ass and keeps them in place for a few
moments with his own to make sure that Yoongi won't pull them away again.
 
His heart is fluttering in his chest at feeling Yoongi's strong hands on his
half-naked ass cheeks, makes it hard for him to breathe.
 
"So, there. Now you're touching me properly," Jimin smirks and Yoongi just
gapes at him, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down. They hold each other's
gazes until Yoongi purses his lips a little and squeezes Jimin's butt, once,
then twice, as if he was a fucking stress ball. Jimin snorts out a laugh before
he leans down and draws him into another kiss, his thigh pressing against
Yoongi's erection unabashedly while he pushes his ass into Yoongi's hands to
spur him on.
 
The moan he draws from Yoongi with his movements travels right between his
legs, to his dick that stirs with even more arousal.
 
He starts exploring the ridges of Yoongi's chest with his mouth, kisses from
his collarbones down to his nipples in order to reach the object of his desire.
 
God, how long has he waited just to do this!
 
Way too long.
 
He takes in every single one of Yoongi's reactions, looks up at him through his
fringe as he tentatively licks over Yoongi's pierced nipple, the grip of
Yoongi's fingers that have come to rest on his upper arms getting instantly
stronger. Jimin smiles at how Yoongi bites his lips when he repeats the motion,
relishes in the small shudders that go through Yoongi's body when he swirls his
tongue a little more firmly around the quickly hardening nub.
 
"You're so sensitive," Jimin sighs and Yoongi's hips buck up a little when he
sucks on the nipple piercing, lets himself be guided by Yoongi's strangled
moans. Jimin gasps against Yoongi's damp skin in return before he flicks his
tongue against the barbell again and again, thumbs trailing along the lines of
Yoongi's hip bones.
 
When Jimin glances up at him, he finds Yoongi's eyes closed and mouth parted
and happiness surges through him when he sees how Yoongi is thoroughly enjoying
this. It's all that really matters.
 
Soon, unable to wait any longer, Jimin kneels back onto his calves and gets rid
of his own last piece of clothing. He doesn't take his eyes off of his
boyfriend in front of him when he removes his tight, black briefs, doesn't feel
particularly shy at being naked in front of Yoongi, only grins wider when he
sees how the other suddenly doesn't know where to look anymore.
 
"Jimin. Sh-shut up," Yoongi says and Jimin bites his lip, smiling sweetly.
 
"I didn't even say anything, hyung."
 
"But you thought it! Don't—, don't make fun of me," Yoongi mumbles.
 
"I'd never make fun of you, baby boy, you're just too cute," Jimin whispers and
leans over him again, one hand next to Yoongi's shoulder, one against the
wooden wall behind Yoongi's head. "Gonna make you feel good," he adds, lips
brushing against his boyfriend's until he's kissing him softly again, subtly
rocking his naked hips against Yoongi's smooth thigh, drawing another deep
sound from his throat and, damn, it feels so good.
 
They kiss languidly for a while, hips slowly moving against each other, both
craving for the friction, both lost in the moment. Jimin doesn't stop caressing
Yoongi's skin, encourages him to do the same and Jimin is not used to this.
 
He's used to fast and hard, not gentle and slow. He's used to being manhandled,
getting it over with quickly and feeling sore afterwards. He's used to being
toyed with and then thrown away. Not this.
 
He's never felt so relaxed and cared for, has never felt this burning urge
within him to take his time, to please his partner as much as he wants to
please Yoongi.
 
When Jimin hooks his index fingers into the hem of Yoongi's trunks, pulling on
them without the intention of removing them yet, he looks up to his boyfriend's
eyes asking silently for permission. Yoongi's eyes are a stark contrast to his
body, calm and unwavering while his limbs are tense. But then he says a quiet
'yes' and Jimin smiles. He slowly removes Yoongi's underwear, helping his legs
out of it before discarding it on the floor where their other clothes lie in a
messy pile.
 
Quickly, Jimin comes over him again and kisses his cheek. "Will you prepare me,
hyung?" he asks sweetly and Yoongi lets out a brief cough, cheeks ablaze.
 
"Sure, if you help me a little."
 
"Yes," Jimin nods and lies down next to Yoongi on his back, one hand on
Yoongi's naked thigh. He winks at him, blows him a kiss in exaggerated
playfulness and his heart soars when Yoongi lets out a brief laugh and starts
moving onto his knees and hands without Jimin having to tell him to.
 
They kiss again and Jimin wishes he'd already have Yoongi in him, his own
erection throbbing and aching for attention. He spreads his legs and pulls
Yoongi closer with the heel of his foot, enjoying the sensation of naked skin
on naked skin, enjoying even more how there is this intimate sense of love and
trust between them.
 
"Lube and condoms are in my backpack," Jimin murmurs, eyes not leaving
Yoongi's.
 
"Fuck, we're—. We're really gonna do this."
 
"You can still opt out," Jimin grins, "but I guarantee you, I'm gonna jerk off
to the sight of your cock if you do and nothing will stop me." Yoongi sputters
and quickly leans over the edge of the mattress to rummage through Jimin's
backpack. He doesn't have to search long, the lube and the condom box are
almost the only things in Jimin's bag.
 
After gaping at Yoongi's ass for a second or two, Jimin watches Yoongi with
hawk-eyes and sees the exact moment he freezes after pulling the things out of
the bag.
 
Yoongi looks at Jimin briefly before averting his gaze back to the box of
condoms.
 
"Jimin."
 
"Hm?" he hums sweetly, a small smile playing on his lips that he tries to
suppress.
 
"Are those—. The ones you bought that day?" Yoongi holds up the pink cardboard
box and looks Jimin dead in the eye, gaze dead serious and Jimin really has to
stifle a laugh now.
 
"Yeah, I still had them, so—,"
 
"They're—," Yoongi swallows, features emotional, "they're unopened."
 
Jimin's gaze softens as does his grin. He moves out of his reclining position
and sits up to take the bubblegum flavoured condoms out of Yoongi's hands and
puts them next to their legs.
 
"That's 'cause I've always intended to use them with you. I never wanted to use
them with anyone else, Yoongi. I only bought them for us."
 
"You—. But we were not even close to being together then," Yoongi says,
stunned, and Jimin's cheeks turn a little pink.
 
"Yeah, I actually wanted to, uhm—, ask you if you're up for it that day but
then you seemed really mad and I got discouraged," Jimin shrugs, inwardly
cringing a little at the awkward memory.
 
Yoongi lets out a huff and flicks his finger against Jimin's shoulder. "You're
an idiot, Park Jimin," Yoongi says with a hint of disbelief in his voice before
he comes to kiss Jimin's nose, "but an adorable one. Who in the world thinks
buying condoms to woo someone is a good idea?" Yoongi grins and Jimin blushes
even more. Heck, why is he blushing so goddamn much tonight? "Also, great. My
dick is going to taste and smell like bubblegum when you take my virginity.
Cool."
 
"Virginity is only a social construct, hyung, it's nothing to be afraid of,"
Jimin lies down again and Yoongi looks at him, stumped. "Hey, at least you'll
have an interesting detail to remember about your first time. Now come here or
else I'm really gonna do it myself," Jimin whines, his impatience getting the
better of him. He gets comfortable on the pillows and the blankets they've
spread on the mattress and spreads his legs.
 
His insides burn when Yoongi's insecure gaze shifts to one of intensity and
pure curiosity.
 
Jimin licks his lips when Yoongi crawls back between his legs and holds his
breath when he starts scattering kisses down his neck, his collarbones, his
chest. A breath punches out of him when Yoongi reaches his pierced belly button
and his teeth softly nibble on the sensitive skin there. It makes Jimin's legs
tremble with the sheer force of his arousal.
 
"Squeeze some lube onto your fingers, hyung," he says, breathing shallow.
Yoongi snaps his head up before he glances at the lube bottle as if it was some
mysterious alien object. Jimin watches him as he opens the cap with a click,
his hands still visibly trembling as he pours the colourless liquid onto the
pads of index and middle finger.
 
"Fuck, it's cold," Yoongi mutters and sits there a little like a lost puppy,
buys himself more time by closing the cap of the bottle again but Jimin is
quick to not let the insecurity seep back into him.
 
"Don't be so shy, baby boy. You can't do anything wrong, 'kay? I'll guide you,
I'll tell you how I like it."
 
"Alright, I'll just—. Uhm, yeah."
 
"Hey, I haven't done this in a while, too, so we're both basically starting
from zero," Jimin smiles at his boyfriend. He spreads his legs a little further
and pulls his knees up to his chest half-heartedly, giving Yoongi better access
to his entrance. "Just spread the lube a little and do one finger first."
 
"You're saying this as if you're teaching me how to knit," Yoongi says flatly
and Jimin lets out a laugh, nudging one foot against Yoongi's shoulder for
better balance.
 
Yoongi, despite his dry remark, does as he's told and Jimin's heart flutters
when Yoongi finally lets his lube-coated fingers brush against his entrance.
His eyes fall closed when he feels a careful finger circle his rim, the small
pushes against it hesitant and experimental.
 
"This good?" Yoongi murmurs, his free hand resting on the side of Jimin's thigh
making small sparks of electricity erupt on Jimin's skin whenever he moves his
fingers.
 
"You don't have to be so careful, babe, I won't break," Jimin smiles and
extends his arms, making grabby motions with his hands. Yoongi understands and
drapes his body over him again without removing his hand from between his legs.
Their lips meet in another kiss and Jimin gently pushes his hips against
Yoongi's finger, a gasp leaving his mouth when Yoongi meets the movement with
some resistance that makes the tip of his finger slide past the lubricated rim.
 
"Fuck," they both pant in unison and share a heated gaze before Jimin pulls him
down again to crash their lips together. Among teeth and tongue, Jimin can feel
Yoongi's finger slide in further, the sensation making him squirm and moan in
pleasure.
 
"Y-you're fucking tight," Yoongi says against his lips before he kisses to his
ear and tugs on Jimin's pierced earlobe with his teeth.
 
"And your finger is a fucking miracle. Add another one."
 
"A-already?"
 
"Just do it, hyung. I'm alright," Jimin says, tilting his head to the side so
that Yoongi can scatter small bites down his neck before he starts sucking a
dark hickey into his skin. Jimin's hands roam over Yoongi's sides, his back and
then his ass, fingers digging into the soft flesh. Yoongi moans against his
skin and both of their breaths are shaking.
 
Yoongi's second finger prods at his entrance along the first one then and
slides both in slowly. Jimin lets out a hiss because, goddamn, it's really been
a while and Yoongi's fingers are fucking huge. Yoongi, of course, immediately
stops all movement and lifts his head to look at him.
 
"Told you it's been a while," Jimin says matter-of-factly, tries to even out
his breathing but fails. Yoongi throws him a wary gaze but then he simply
continues to carefully push his fingers into him and Jimin's entire body
quivers. His head dips back and his skin dances with sparks of electricity, his
heart almost bursting from beating so fast. He feels a little like he's
floating. Feels like Yoongi is worshipping every inch of his skin.
 
Yoongi thrusts his fingers in and out of him with increased ease and god, he
seems to know exactly what he's doing because soon enough Jimin's cock is
already leaking onto his abdomen with small bursts of precum.
 
"Fuck, yes—. More, Yoongi, more, right the-oh—," Yoongi keeps massaging just
the right spot, his fingertips caressing his prostate over and over again.
Jimin's fingernails dig into Yoongi's skin as his eyes flutter shut and a rush
of arousal ripples through his body, Yoongi's skin burning on his as wave after
wave of heat washes over him.
 
Holy shit, Jimin is really not used to this kind of overwhelming pleasure. It's
almost too much, too fucking much and Yoongi's cock has not even been anywhere
near his hole yet. And yet he feels the pressure already building up in his
abdomen.
 
He lets out a heavy sigh as Yoongi keeps exploring his skin with his mouth
wherever he can reach, his hot breath spilling out between each gentle bite.
Jimin can't do much more than tangle his fingers into Yoongi's hair and tug on
the strands from time to time between breathless moans.
 
"It feels so good, hyung. I think I'm in love with your fingers," Jimin says, a
drop of sweat running down his temple because it's so unbearably hot in the
small cabin, the windows fogging with their breaths. Yoongi licks his alluring
lips, keen eyes looking up at Jimin with a glint of pride in them. Jimin makes
a mental note to praise him more.
 
"Jimin," Yoongi says, fingers slowing down and no, no, no, he needs more! Jimin
lets out a needy sound and scrambles with his hands for Yoongi's strong arms.
"I wish you could see yourself. You're so gorgeous, baby. I love you so much,"
Yoongi murmurs against Jimin's lips and Jimin has a hard time to keep his eyes
open, to keep his sanity together.
 
 
"I need you, Yoongi, please—," Jimin whimpers when Yoongi moves the pads of his
fingers just right against his prostate again, his body arching into Yoongi's
that is holding him closer as if Jimin could disappear any moment. Jimin
presses his shoulders into the mattress when Yoongi doesn't stop stroking the
bundle of nerves, his entire body going tense from all his nerve endings being
set on fire. "I want you inside of me. Nuh-now. I'll—, hnn, help you with the
condom but I need you so much now."
 
"What a generous offering," Yoongi murmurs, obviously to downplay his own
nervousness, but his gaze is telling Jimin how much he needs him, too.
 
Yoongi slowly removes his fingers from Jimin who tries to ignore how his rim is
clenching around nothing, the empty feeling he is left with. Chest flushed and
heaving, he sits up and tries to calm down.
 
Yoongi's lips curl up into a lopsided smile as he props up his hands behind his
back, legs sprawled out a little wobbly in front of him, slightly parted. His
cock is hard and glistening with precum between his legs. Jimin is overcome
with hunger and hastily picks up the pink bubblegum condom box, takes out one
square and rips it open.
 
He kneels between Yoongi's legs and comes to kiss his neck when he rolls the
condom onto Yoongi's erection with practised ease. Yoongi clenches his fists
and his body goes rigid.
 
"Relax, hyung. You're doing perfectly fine. Gosh, your dick is so goddamn
perfect, I swear I'm the luckiest guy in the universe who's gonna get the
dicking of his lifetime."
 
Yoongi huffs out a laugh. "You're such a sweet-talker, princess. Though your
words are almost too dirty to be considered—, oh fuck," Yoongi lets out a
strangled gasp when Jimin wraps his fingers around his length and starts
pumping him a little. Jimin would die to hear Yoongi's pleasured noises over
and over again.
 
"Shut up, baby boy, I'm gonna talk about your flawless dick until the day I
die."
 
"Ji-jimin, not too much, 'k-kay?"
 
"Hmm," Jimin just hums, licking over Yoongi's salty skin, savouring the taste
of it while enjoying the hard and heavy weight of Yoongi's cock in his hand and
his warm skin on his own. He pours more lube onto Yoongi's cock and spreads it
with his fingers before he strokes the base of it to make sure the condom sits
well.
 
"I'm so lucky to be your first, Yoonie. So damn lucky," Jimin says, kneading
the hard head of Yoongi's erection with skilful fingers, heart skipping a beat
when it gives a hard twitch.
 
"You got that wrong, I'm the lucky one here," Yoongi says with a groan, hooded
eyes half covered by his fringe. There's a small, playful smirk tugging on his
lips, one that Jimin returns. "I'm so fucking lucky."
 
Jimin bites back a huge smile and cups Yoongi's cheeks, caressing them with his
thumbs and nuzzling their noses together.
 
"Are you ready?" he asks and Yoongi pouts.
 
"No," he deadpans but gently pushes Jimin down by the shoulders. Jimin laughs
and complies, lies back down again until his body is covered by Yoongi's
broader one again. Yoongi is breathing heavily, his skin flushed around his
chest and collar bones, his lips red and swollen from their kisses and Jimin's
never seen anything more beautiful.
 
His own breathing is quickening when he pulls his knees towards his chest to
make more room for Yoongi between his legs. He's never wanted anything so
unbearably much, has never pulsated with so much arousal that he can hardly
contain himself. His throat gets tighter and anticipation buzzes beneath his
skin when Yoongi grips his thighs, commits his boyfriend's adorable,
concentrated expression to memory.
 
Jimin grins and softens instantly when Yoongi kisses the inside of his wrist
lovingly, his hands coming to rest next to Jimin's side, his thighs pressing
gently against the back of Jimin's.
 
"Tell me if I—, hurt you, 'kay?" Yoongi's voice trembles when he speaks, his
hand shaking a little when he lines up his cock with Jimin's entrance. Jimin's
body quivers when he feels the tip of Yoongi's erection poke against his
perineum.
 
"Relax, hyung, you won't hurt me. You're so gentle with me, I know you're gonna
do perfectly fine," Yoongi looks at Jimin for a few seconds before he
concentrates again and slowly pushes the head of his cock past Jimin's rim.
Jimin sighs at the feeling of being finally stretched out by Yoongi's girth and
throws his head back with another groan when Yoongi slides in further, fingers
digging into the muscles of Yoongi's upper arms.
 
"O-oh, fuck," Yoongi whimpers and lets his head drop against Jimin's shoulder.
 
A rush of arousal flares through Jimin's groin, his toes curl from the feeling
of being filled up. He tries to relax his body, but it's hard what with being
so terribly overwhelmed by Yoongi's proximity. He caresses Yoongi's arms and
wraps his legs around Yoongi's waist, wants to give both of them time to
adjust. The movement, however, only makes them both moan at the same time.
 
Their chests are pressed together when Jimin starts moving a little, just
undulating his hips slowly and it's enough already to make Yoongi gasp before
he suppresses another moan, the grip on Jimin's thighs becoming harder. Jimin
tries to keep his eyes open to watch his boyfriend as he continues to roll his
ass against Yoongi's pelvis as best as he can, slow and with Yoongi buried
completely inside of him.
 
Yoongi looks unbearably hot with his eyes closed, brows knitted together in
concentration and lips slightly parted.
 
Only, Jimin notices, he's stopped breathing almost entirely.
 
"Hyung, you gotta breathe. You can't fuck me if you're dead," Jimin chuckles
between another moan, and Yoongi lets out a long sigh, fingers digging into
Jimin's hips. "Can you move?"
 
"B-barely," Yoongi wheezes, beads of sweat clinging to his pierced brow, his
chest flushed and damp and glowing and Jimin lets his eyes roam over his
beautiful body. He can feel Yoongi twitch inside of him, causing him to bite
his lip; making it so hard to resist to just fuck himself down onto Yoongi's
dick.
 
"Just try to move your hips slowly. It's gonna be alright, Yoonie. I'm right
here," Jimin whispers against his lips, gently threading his fingers through
his hair in a reassuring manner.
 
Yoongi slowly pulls out until he's only half buried in Jimin before he pushes
back in. He picks up a rather clumsy rhythm, his thrusts uncharacteristically
out of sync, but Jimin is in heaven at feeling so full every time Yoongi rocks
back into him, his cock teasingly close to his prostate.
 
"Y-you're so tight, Jiminnie," Yoongi groans and starts pulling out again
before pushing in, more steady this time and Jimin's eyes fall half closed with
a gasp. It feels so tender, so slow and good and Jimin thinks he's going to
faint for a second.
 
"Feels so good, baby boy, you're doing—, hah, so good," Jimin spreads his legs
more before he wraps them around Yoongi's waist again, "hm, yeah, just like
that. God—."
 
Jimin tastes every single one of their mingling breaths hot and heavy on his
lips as their bodies move together, the sensation of smooth and slick skin
gliding against each other absolutely tantalising and electrifying. They lose
themselves in each other when Yoongi keeps thrusting into Jimin, the air so hot
and humid around them that it's hard to breathe.
 
Jimin doesn't really believe in fate, he doesn't believe that there's a preset
plan for him that has made him steer his steps until he's ended up right here,
right underneath Yoongi's weight to be consumed by him, body and soul; but when
he looks into Yoongi's dark eyes that are so close to his that he can see every
particle of life in them, every speck of colour, there is no single doubt
within Jimin that this moment had been born, maybe millions of years ago, in
the heart of a star.
 
Jimin lets himself be devoured, loves how Yoongi's thrusts become shorter and
wet, slapping sounds and muffled moans echo through the cabin as if they were
the only two people remaining on the planet. He doesn't control the noises that
spill from deep within his throat when Yoongi's cock starts hitting his
prostate more and more often, his limbs tingling every time Yoongi rubs against
it.
 
He buries his fingers in Yoongi's hair and pulls, hard, eliciting a moan from
his boyfriend that he reciprocates with needy mewls of pleasure when Yoongi's
hands slide up his thighs, gripping them hard, fingers digging into his skin.
 
Yoongi burrows his face into the crook of Jimin's neck after a short while and
Jimin loves how hot Yoongi's ragged breaths feel against his skin. Loves how he
can press his nose against Yoongi's damp hair and breathe in his enticing
smell. Loves to be trapped between the mattress and Yoongi's body, Yoongi's
hands holding onto his wrists now.
 
He never felt so complete as he does now being so close to Yoongi, could get
addicted to this; he might already be.
 
But Yoongi suddenly gets slower again and Jimin lets out a whine, tries to push
his hips upwards to urge Yoongi on.
 
"Fu—, Yoongi, please—, don't stop," he mouths at Yoongi's throat when his
boyfriend lifts his head to take a breath, biting and sucking on the skin.
Yoongi shivers and groans, slows down more before he comes to a complete halt,
buried deep inside of Jimin. "Nuh-no, hyung!" Jimin sobs, shuddering and
whimpering from the sudden lack of stimulation, "s-stop fucking edging me."
 
"My legs are fucking sore, Jiminnie," Yoongi whines right back, short of
breath, and Jimin groans. "My stamina is shit," Yoongi adds and Jimin can't
help but laugh at the absurdity of the situation. He leans up and kisses Yoongi
on the lips. "Sorry, I gotta—, just for a sec—,"
 
"Touch me, hyung," Jimin pleads sweetly, his own erection flush against his
stomach, wet from precum. He revels in Yoongi's reddened cheeks and chest, in
how his eyes flutter close when he starts undulating his hips against him, not
patient enough to wait any longer, making both of them moan again.
 
Jimin's entire body shudders when Yoongi's long fingers wrap around him and
imitate Jimin's slow movements with just the right pressure.
 
Holy shit, this feels so much better than when he's touching himself.
 
His pierced tongue flicks out again to wet his lips while he doesn't take his
half-lidded eyes off of Yoongi's dark ones. Jimin can feel the blood rushing in
his ears when Yoongi looks at him with marvelling worship in his eyes, feels so
fucking beautiful beneath his stare.
 
Yoongi's grip hardens around his cock, his thumb massaging the spot just below
his head just right and Jimin lets out a lengthy, ragged moan, his eyes now
tightly shut.
 
Yoongi starts moving again and Jimin's heart is beating erratically in his
chest as he swallows Yoongi's thick length up to the hilt each time he meets
Yoongi's thrusts with a movement of his own hips.
 
"God, yes—, please just—, just like that, princess. It's perfect. So puh-
perfect," Yoongi says and Jimin revels in the praise, a soft gasp leaving his
lips when Yoongi presses against his prostate just right. He never wants to
stop moving now, wants to feel the drag of Yoongi's cock inside of himself
forever.
 
"Fuh-fuck, hyung—," he whines, his entire body tensing with all the shivers
running down his spine, "fuck, fuck fuck—, don't stop—," he scrambles for
Yoongi's shoulders and burrows his face into Yoongi's neck as Yoongi fucks into
him, high-pitched moans filling the entire room, his body rocking back and
forth with the force of Yoongi's thrusts.
 
"Jiminnie," Yoongi whispers close to his ear and Jimin lets out a sob, his lips
pressed desperately against the column of Yoongi's flushed neck. "Jiminnie, I-
I'm gonna—, hah—,"
 
"Y-yes, issokay, come on, baby boy," Jimin struggles to articulate any coherent
thought but damn he wants Yoongi to come inside of him so much. His cock gives
a hard twitch at the thought. "Come for me, hyung."
 
Yoongi's hips stutter then and Jimin makes sure that his boyfriend is buried
deep inside of him when he comes with a low moan. He almost dies when Yoongi's
thrusts turn into short, trembling ones before he stops completely and just
presses hard into Jimin, Yoongi's cock pulsating and twitching as he spills
into the condom.
 
Jimin wishes for the first time ever he could feel the cum, hot and thick,
inside of himself instead.
 
Yoongi has his eyes closed in bliss while he's coming down from his high and
Jimin can't take his eyes off of him. "So pretty, you're so pretty, hyung. So
lovely," he whispers and leans up to press their foreheads together lovingly,
rubbing his nose against Yoongi's, making Yoongi whimper more. He closes his
eyes, too, and takes in Yoongi's proximity with his other senses, smelling him,
feeling him close, hearing his heavy breathing.
 
After a few moments of careful pampering, Yoongi pulls out his softening length
with slow and careful movements and drops down next to Jimin on the mattress.
Jimin smiles. "Lemme help you with that," he says, turns around so that he's
resting on his side and reaches down with his hand to take the condom off of
Yoongi.
 
"Hnn, no, don't—," Yoongi whines and twitches when Jimin touches him. Jimin
just smirks, enjoying the raw state Yoongi currently is in a little too much,
trying to suppress the urge to touch himself.
 
"I'd like to tease you much, much more, but because I'm a kind soul I will
spare you," he says, tying the condom at the bottom and letting it drop a
little further away to the floor.
 
"Yeah, you are," Yoongi says and Jimin looks at him in slight confusion.
 
"Huh?"
 
"A kind soul. You are a kind soul," Yoongi says and Jimin blushes. They share a
long stare, eyes not leaving each other as they're lying there, Yoongi's
breathing evening out again slowly. "I'm—, uh, since I already came, how do you
want—, y'know."
 
Jimin grins a little before bites his lower lip and pushes himself up,
both hands planted next to Yoongi's head. "How do I want you to get me off?" he
asks bluntly, and Yoongi rolls his eyes but nods with his cheeks blushing
again. Jimin melts at Yoongi's adorableness and straddles his thighs.
 
"Just touch me, babe. I'll feel fucking ecstatic when your divine fingers touch
me again," Yoongi snorts but the tips of his fingers already slide over Jimin's
thighs again, thumb kneading the supple flesh firmly, causing goosebumps to
erupt all over his body. "Hmm, this is exactly what I'm talking about," Jimin
murmurs. His cock is almost hurting from craving attention, the itch for more
developing into an intense throb in his groin, makes his whole body simmer with
heat.
 
"Didn't know you had a finger fetish."
 
"Only for yours, drummer boy," Jimin grins when he sees Yoongi preen at his
statement, "only for you—," he stops talking and shudders, lips parted in a
silent moan when Yoongi circles his fingers around the base of his cock because
it feels too good, too sweet. His thighs tense again and again when Yoongi
finds out how to flick his wrist just right with every drag, his entire body
quivering when he's getting closer to his climax.
 
Jimin really isn't used to someone touching him like that after they had their
share.
 
He definitely isn't used to it and the thought alone makes tears almost spring
to his eyes. There's happiness in every fibre of his body when he realises that
he's allowed to get used to this now, that he has Yoongi now whose touches are
so careful and so filled with love that he almost threatens to burst at the
seams from all the overwhelming emotions raging inside of him.
 
It's all he really needs to finally come undone.
 
Liquid fire trickles through his body as his climax consumes him, white
staining Yoongi's pretty flat stomach and reddened chest as spurts of cum land
on them. "Hn, hyung, hyung," Jimin whimpers, voice high and needy, Yoongi's
hand milking him for all he's worth. He collapses onto Yoongi's chest and tries
to catch his breath, pleasure and satisfaction thrumming through his body.
 
"You're so amazing, gorgeous. So stunningly beautiful," Yoongi says softly as
he presses kisses into Jimin's sweaty hair. Goosebumps erupt on Jimin skin and
he feels warm and weak inside because he can believe Yoongi's every word, knows
that they are all true.
 
The forest seems to be alive with the symphony of cicadas all around them, with
the treetops rustling in the warm summer night breeze, and the world has never
looked more brilliant and dazzling in Jimin's eyes than underneath the dimly
glowing fairy lights.
 
Jimin feels sated, blissed out and absolutely satisfied, and a wave of
exhaustion comes over him that makes him feel like he could just close his eyes
and fall asleep like that. But his cum is cooling off and drying between them
and he really wouldn't want to wake up with it sticking to their bodies
tomorrow.
 
"Yoonie, gotta… gotta clean up," Jimin mumbles lazily into Yoongi's
collarbones, his nose ghosting along his Adam's apple. He shows no intention of
moving.
 
"Yeah," Yoongi replies just as languidly and keeps his arms around Jimin, too.
After lying there for a minute or two, Jimin finally starts to move – but
doesn't get very far. "Don't go away," Yoongi whines, already half asleep and
tangles his legs with Jimin's to keep him in place. Jimin snickers and nuzzles
his neck, inhaling his scent.
 
"Who would have thought that you'd be so needy after sex," he grins and Yoongi
huffs softly.
 
"I'm fucking exhausted, let me live," Yoongi says and pulls him even closer,
mumbling something about Jimin being too far away.
 
Jimin chuckles again, the wide smile on his lips almost painful.
 
"Hyung?"
 
"Hm?"
 
"You were wonderful; this was wonderful," Jimin says, voice hushed, "you are
the best boyfriend in the whole world, you know that?" Jimin lifts his head off
of Yoongi's chest and looks at round eyes and pink cheeks. He leans down and
kisses him briefly. "The absolute best. I'm gonna keep you forever, I hope
you're okay with that because you ain't got another choice."
 
Yoongi snorts and loosens his grip around Jimin's smaller frame but comes to
cup Jimin's plump ass with his big hands instead.
 
"'m fine with that. Wanted to say the same," Yoongi mumbles before they peck
each other's lips again. And again for good measure. It's quiet for a moment
while their taking in each other's features, their flushed cheeks, dishevelled
hair, before Yoongi shifts a little and Jimin feels his boyfriend's knuckles
caressing his cheekbone. "It was wonderful. It was wonderful because it was
with you."
 
Touched and endeared, Jimin leans down and kisses Yoongi softly and
affectionately on the lips, never wants to let go of him again.
 
Jimin finally leans over the edge of the bed to get to his backpack and Yoongi
rolls onto his side, mumbling something about how cold he feels without Jimin
close to him. Jimin quickly comes back and does his best to wipe Yoongi's chest
and stomach more or less clean with the wet wipes he's brought before he wipes
himself with the damp tissue and, Jesus, he's craving a shower so bad right
now.
 
When he leans over Yoongi to turn off the lights he detects the wet spot on the
blanket they were lying on and stares at it in mild – or not so mild – shock.
 
"Shit, the lube and—, other stuff I guess has run everywhere," Jimin laments,
"hyung, we're fucked—,"
 
"Literally," Yoongi interrupts dryly in a slurred voice and Jimin throws him a
pointed gaze. Yoongi's hair sticking out in every direction, his eyes are half
closed, and he looks like he won't move for the next hundred years; he's
probably not really getting the seriousness of the situation.
 
"I said, we're fucked, we defiled the fucking cabin, hyung! Our friends will
come here again! We will come here again and they're gonna sit on that goddamn
bed!" he exclaims and Yoongi bites his lips, suppressing a laugh. "It's not
funny, hyung!" Jimin whines while pulling on the dirty blanket Yoongi is still
lying on.
 
"Actually, it's very funny," Yoongi says and Jimin rolls his eyes. He finally
rips the blanket from underneath Yoongi's ass and tosses it next to the bed on
the floor, lets himself be hugged by Yoongi around his waist, nose pressing
against his back, "we'll think of something tomorrow, 'kay?"
 
Jimin turns off the fairy lights before sinking down into Yoongi's arms,
turning to face him. "'kay. Maybe we can go to my place to clean it tomorrow.
Then we can also take a shower before going to Taehyung's and Jin's place. My
mum won't be home," he says, legs intertwining with Yoongi's. He leans his head
on Yoongi's upper arm, nose nuzzled against his boyfriend's chest.
 
"Sounds like a plan to me," Yoongi mumbles and lets out a contagious yawn,
hugging Jimin closer. They lie there and share slow kisses, lazy hands
caressing warm skin until Yoongi starts drifting off.
 
Jimin watches his relaxed features in the dark for a moment, carefully brushing
some hair out his face before snuggling up even closer to Yoongi's body.
 
"Thank you, hyung," he whispers in the stillness of their little sanctuary.
 
And he knows that when he wakes up tomorrow morning, Yoongi will still be
there, will still call him princess. Will still love him just as much as he
does now, and maybe even more.
Chapter End Notes
     Wow. Okay. Was this even smut though? shjshjs we have no idea what
     exactly that was haha just that this was so soft and they're so in
     love and precious together ;~; Long live yoonmin ㅠㅠ♡
     Starting from next chapter the story will progress a little more
     fast-paced again! :3
     our_twitter | our_curiouscat
***** Nineteen. *****
Chapter Notes
     We finally managed to update on a Thursday again, whoop whoop!
     Enjoy~
     ☾ = Yoongi
     ☼ = Jimin
See the end of the chapter for more notes
                                      –☼–
                                        
When Jimin wakes up, it is to Yoongi staring at him, head leaning on his hand,
lips curled up into a soft smile. Mild sunlight is illuminating his features
and his eyes radiate warmth and adoration just like they did a few hours ago
when Yoongi told Jimin for the first time that he loves him.
 
Jimin looks up at him through bleary eyes and strands of pink hair, a goofy
smile on his lips. God, he's tired and his eyes burn – but what is it to him
when all he feels is love and lightness and happiness.
 
"You're snoring so cutely," Yoongi says and Jimin instantly protests
vehemently.
 
Him? Snoring? No way, not even cutely!
 
"Shut up, hyung, one day I'm gonna catch you snoring like a buzz saw," he says
and climbs on top of Yoongi's naked body, burying him underneath his weight.
Yoongi groans but his smooth skin touches his own and Jimin thinks he must be
in heaven.
 
It is already kind of late judging from the position of the sun in the sky, but
they still take their sweet time to cuddle and kiss each other – morning breath
be damned – before they finally gather their things including the dirty blanket
and make it back to Yoongi's car in the warm morning air.
 
Jimin can still feel it in his body that he had sex just a few hours ago. He
feels it when he sits down on the passenger seat of the car, when they walk up
the stairs to his flat and when he undresses before stepping into the shower.
It's always there, always reminding him that he was one with Yoongi, that he
shared something with him that he never wants to share with anyone else again.
 
For the first time ever, it's not a haunting feeling.
 
Not one that fills him with remorse and regret but one that makes him feel
happy and loved. And craving for more.
 
"Is this the only shampoo you have?" Yoongi asks carefully as they're standing
in Jimin's tiny shower together, suds of shampoo already running down Jimin's
skin. He squints an eye open and looks at the shampoo bottle in Yoongi's hand.
 
"Yup," Jimin grins, "what? You don't like your hair smelling like cherry
blossom?" Yoongi pouts, but then he shrugs.
 
"Well, it smells good on you so it can't smell too bad on me," Yoongi says and
starts lathering up his hair with the sweet smelling shampoo. Jimin smiles. His
boyfriend really is the best.
 
They actually wanted to save time by showering together but as soon as Jimin's
hands start spreading shower gel on Yoongi's body, all sense of time gets lost
on them again. Jimin enjoys this too much, Yoongi's smooth, wet skin under his
palms, Yoongi's small gasps when he draws closer to his crotch, the way Yoongi
gives him brief kisses under the running water.
 
Jimin can feel Yoongi hardening against his thigh and there's no way he could
resist taking him into his hand properly.
 
He didn't think they'd be getting more intimate again so soon, but he'd be the
last one to complain.
 
Yoongi's legs are trembling when Jimin starts stroking him, slow and sensual.
It doesn't take long until Yoongi is returning the favour, their foreheads
pressed together and their mouths open, gasping for air without breathing in
the water that is raining down on them.
 
It's heaven, it's bliss and Jimin never wants to be deprived of it again.
 
That's how they're spending the rest of the morning, pressed close together and
getting each other off in the shower before finally getting out and dressed in
clean clothes, Yoongi borrowing clean trunks from Jimin.
 
"We can return the blanket to the cabin tomorrow when it's dry," Yoongi says
while they're hanging the now clean blanket on the washing line in the laundry
room of the apartment block, "you just mustn't forget to smuggle it into your
room tonight, Jimin-ah."
 
"I will, just remind me of it later."
 
They go back to Jimin's flat and eat some chocolate chip rolls before finally
going back to Yoongi's car, happy and in the best mood possible.
 
Belting out the lyrics to the song on the radio, they're driving down the road
that leads back to the forest. Only this time, they don't go into the forest
but turn right and roll along the edge of it, right through a very nice looking
neighbourhood with big houses and beautiful gardens that are in bloom with all
sorts of fragrant summer flowers.
 
Jimin has his window rolled down and his arms dangling out of it, the sun
shining brightly and the wind ruffling his hair as he takes everything in.
 
"Wow, Jin and Tae really live here?" he says in an astonished voice and Yoongi
snorts.
 
"Yeah. Jin's dad is a doctor and his mother a lawyer. Tae's dad is some high
ranking police officer. They're pretty well off," Yoongi explains and Jimin
just hums. He would have never guessed that both of his friends are so rich.
But then again, Taehyung owns a computer and a seemingly endless assortment of
video games and consoles and Seokjin has that sophisticated and calm air about
him that probably comes from being wealthy and growing up comfortably. It kind
of makes sense.
 
They stop in front of two houses that are very close together and also look
pretty similar, tall and with balconies and cute windows and flowers hanging
from them. Yoongi parks the car in front of an open garage and Jimin hops out
into the heat of the midday sun. His eyes remain huge and impressed as he looks
around while following Yoongi around the corner of the house in the direction
of the garden. He's almost blind to the path, too busy turning his head left
and right to take everything in.
 
Yoongi takes his hand into his when he seems to notice that Jimin is just
stumbling along and that's what rips Jimin finally out of his reverie. He
smiles and squeezes his boyfriend's hand, looking ahead now.
 
The garden is huge, stretches from the two houses to the edge of the forest and
seems to be shared by the two families from the looks of it. There are some
small bushes scattered in a straight line in the middle of the garden, but
otherwise, there's no indicator that their gardens would be separated.
 
Some vegetables are growing to the left along the path Jimin and Yoongi are
walking on but everything else is covered by lush, green grass that seems to
grow taller and taller the closer it gets to the forest. Otherwise, it's short
and impeccably cut.
 
To Jimin's right, in the middle of the two houses, is a big fireplace and
further back he can see an actual swimming pool in the ground.
 
Taehyung and Seokjin are really fucking rich.
 
"Hey," a voice catches his attention and he whips his head towards the garden
seating place in front of the house they just walked around. It's Namjoon who
is sitting with the other guys and Jihae and her girl friends around a large,
white table in the shade of the blinds that cover the entire patio. When Jimin
gets closer, he sees that there are ashtrays on the tables, a jug of ice tea
and plastic cups of various colours, a bowl of crisps and another one filled
with peanuts.
 
Their friends all look pretty hungover but quite happy nevertheless.
 
All except for Jeongguk.
 
And why the fuck is Taehyung sitting alone by the pool?
 
Namjoon's broad grin distracts Jimin, however, and he blushes when he sees the
other's knowing gaze. "Our two love birdies have finally risen as well,"
Namjoon chirps, mischievously, "so, had a good night, you two?" he wiggles his
eyebrows and Jimin rolls his eyes.
 
"Definitely better than yours," Yoongi deadpans, and Jimin licks his lips,
grinning.
 
"And why would that be, I wonder?" Hoseok asks with a hint of playful sarcasm
in his voice because—
 
Of course, they all know what Jimin and Yoongi have been doing last night.
 
Jimin just hopes they will never find out whereexactly they did it.
 
"How was the party?" Yoongi bites back with the same teasing lilt to his voice
and plops down on an empty chair next to Jeongguk.
 
Suddenly, Hoseok and Seokjin start biting their lips and Jeongguk averts his
gaze to the table, starts playing with the tablecloth. Jimin blinks, caught
off-guard by the sudden weird atmosphere that hangs over the table. Even the
girls remain quiet and just continue nursing their ice tea cups.
 
"It was great. The guys got shitfaced but no one puked, so that's a plus,"
Jihae says and her friends, Soomi and a girl Jimin has seen maybe once or twice
before, snicker along quietly but a little subdued. Jimin remains standing
behind Yoongi and plays with his hair. He's still wondering why his honey bun
is not sitting with them, his gaze remaining fixed on him.
 
"Why's Tae alone at the pool?" he therefore asks and Hoseok throws a glance
behind him in the direction of the pool. Taehyung is sitting at the edge of it
with his legs dangling in the water, something small clutched in his hands.
Jimin frowns but when he looks to Hoseok for an explanation, the other just
shakes his head briefly before glancing at Jeongguk.
 
"Taehyung hasn't been really well tonight," Seokjin explains calmly and
Jeongguk winces a little when Yoongi puts an arm around him. Jimin observes the
entire thing with suspicious eyes. "Hobi found him crying all alone sitting on
the ground somewhere on the other side of the house. He didn't want to tell
anyone what's wrong though, not even Jeonggukkie."
 
Only now does Jimin notice that Hoseok's yellow T-shirt is stained with black
kohl in the shoulder area and his heart starts hurting.
 
Oh, snap.
 
Jimin has a pretty accurate idea why Taehyung wouldn't have wanted to talk to
Jeongguk about it if it's about what he suspects it is. Especially when
Jeongguk slowly turns his head to where Taehyung is sitting at the pool,
expression agonised and insecure.
 
Jimin can feel Yoongi move his head, too, looking up at him. Their gazes meet
and Jimin nods, understanding him without words.
 
"I'm gonna check up on him," Jimin announces and presses a kiss on top of
Yoongi's warm, fluffy hair before he walks towards the pool. Faintly, he
registers someone teasing Yoongi for smelling really sweet but he pays it no
mind, only has Taehyung in his vision now.
 
He doesn't know what has happened but if he finds out that Jeongguk has somehow
hurt Taehyung, he's gonna throw hands. He loves them both, but when it comes to
Taehyung, Jimin takes no jokes.
 
Taehyung looks uncharacteristically spaced out when Jimin gets closer,
expression blank and mouth set into a hard line. Jimin finally recognises what
he's holding in his hands; it's his tamagotchi. However, he's not playing with
it, he's just holding it, eyes unfocused with makeup still smeared messily
around them from when he was crying.
 
"Hey, Taetae," Jimin says softly, takes off his sneakers and socks and
carefully sits down next to him, feet dipping into the cool water. Taehyung
only glances at him briefly, eyes devoid of any emotion.
 
"Hi," he mumbles and Jimin hugs him and cuddles him, but Taehyung remains
mostly unresponsive and tense.
 
"Hey, are you okay, honey bun?"
 
"Mhm," Taehyung just hums, Jimin's chest constricting further.
 
"How’s Edwar the third doing?"
 
"Not well. He's dead."
 
"O-oh. I’m sorry," Jimin says softly and with concern lacing his voice. It's
the third time Taehyung's tamagotchi has died in just a short time and it's
just so peculiar of Taehyung to let that happen when he was crying about its
death just a few weeks ago. Jimin's worry at least doubles for every single
pixel pet that has already perished.
 
"Hm, it doesn't matter. It was getting on my nerves anyway," Jimin's eyes grow
wider at Taehyung's statement.
 
"Really? But—, but you loved that thing—,"
 
"Yeah, but I couldn't sleep anymore because of it. It just went peep peep all
night and I wanted to throw it out of the window."
 
"Oh," Taehyung has never talked about his tamagotchi like that, what the heck
is wrong, "well, maybe you'll sleep better now that it's dead and—,"
 
"Nope," Taehyung interrupts him again and Jimin falls silent at the finality in
his tone. He has never seen Taehyung so upset, not even when he had been
bullied.
 
Jimin can almost feel how Taehyung would like to have him gone right now. How
at the same time he would like to keep him here without knowing how to voice
it.
 
"Tae," Jimin hugs Taehyung closer and sighs in relief when Taehyung finally
leans against him, searching for Jimin's comfort, "I'm—. I'm so sorry, honey
bun." Jimin doesn't say out loud what for, but he certainly doesn't mean the
stupid pixel pet and he's pretty sure Taehyung knows that too.
 
Taehyung doesn’t reply. He remains quiet and presses his face against Jimin's
chest, breathing a little uneven and heavy. Jimin rubs his back and hopes it
will comfort him because no matter how much he loves Taehyung, he's still shit
at this whole friendship thing and he still doesn't know what to say.
 
After a few moments, Taehyung presses his lips into a thin line and holds his
breath before he lets it out again.
 
"Do you think he likes me?" Taehyung whispers and Jimin furrows his brows,
knowing exactly who Taehyung is talking about, "I mean, really likes me? As—,
as in, more than just a friend?"
 
"Uhm, Tae, I can’t—,"
 
"Because I wish he would," Taehyung interrupts him again, his voice coming out
in barely a whisper, yet still managing to catch Jimin off guard. He looks and
sounds so sad it almost breaks Jimin's heart the same way that Taehyung's
façade is slowly crumbling.
 
Jimin lifts his head and takes another look at Jeongguk who's still sitting
with the others, eyes just as blank as Taehyung's were a minute or two ago. How
does no one see that these two just finally need a push in the right direction?
At least, it seems like Yoongi is saying something to Jeongguk that makes him
look briefly to the pool before averting his eyes again. Jimin runs his hand
through his hair in frustration.
 
"He danced with you at the dance yesterday, right?" Jimin asks cautiously after
a moment. Taehyung nods his head and Jimin draws some hope from that. "So, that
says something already!"
 
"No, you don't understand," Taehyung sounds tired and exhausted and Jimin can't
blame him.
 
"What do I not understand, honey bun? Explain it to me."
 
"I mean," Taehyung straightens up again and takes a deep breath before he
closes his eyes and collects himself. "I made myself pretty, I even put makeup
on, just like I did at the party in the woods but – he didn't kiss me again,"
his voice sounds so thick Jimin has trouble understanding him, "I mean, after
the anniversary party—, he got so defensive the next morning about the kiss and
yesterday I—, I realised how dumb I was for suddenly getting these feelings
and—, I still got my hopes up. That was so dumb of me after he was so upset
about the kiss and when he clearly doesn't feel the same—,"
 
"Tae, why would you even think that?" Jimin has had enough, "I don't know what
exactly it is between Jeongguk and you, but that shit's real. I know real
feelings when I see them," Jimin has seen them so many times before. Every time
he looked into Yoongi's eyes and saw his own longing reflected back at him.
 
Taehyung sniffles and shakes his head, feet swinging back and forth in the
water of the pool. "We danced together and at first I thought we were having
fun but then he suddenly let go because that stupid Elvis song was playing and
I probably just looked into his eyes for too long and he felt—, he felt
awkward. I could read it on his face. We're neverawkward with each other,
Jimmy. Never. We—, we never used to be awkward."
 
"Maybe it was just a little bit too much for him all at once, Taetae."
 
"Well, he quickly excused himself to the bathroom and didn't come out for about
fifteen minutes and when he came back to our table he just stood there and
stared off into space."
 
"He was probably still just a little shaken up by what happened with his
parents earlier that day."
 
"I know, that's what I thought, too. But—, I tried to ask him 'bout it but he
just evaded the question, only said that it was the usual and—," he pauses and
Jimin has never seen so much pain in his features before. "I just… I miss him.
Even when he's right next to me it feels like he's miles away. It feels like
I'm not allowed to touch him anymore and it hurts so fucking bad," Taehyung
says wetly before he sniffles. "He doesn't hug me anymore, he doesn't look at
me anymore either most of the time. All because of that stupid kiss. I'm losing
him because of that stupid kiss."
 
"You would never lose him, honey bun. I know it, he's your best friend. You
should tell him about your feelings. He will understand."
 
"But I don't want huh-him to just uh-understand," Taehyung sniffles and hugs
himself, "I'm tired of missing something I've never had. I just want him to
luh-love me back. Why can't he just love me back?"
 
Jimin's heart finally breaks.
 
"I just want him to love me too."
 
He's got to do something about this.
 
"Taehyung," Jimin says, voice almost austere, and he grips Taehyung's shoulders
decidedly. He can feel Taehyung's too warm skin through his thin T-shirt, the
tension in his body and he holds his vexed gaze, "first of all, your feelings
are neither dumb, nor stupid, you hear me? And I know how hard it is to tell
someone how you really feel. I know it's scary to bare yourself to someone
who's so important to you. But it will be worth it, no matter what will happen
afterwards, at least you won't have to agonise anymore about what could've
happened had you opened up to him."
 
Jimin doesn't know Taehyung like this, he is not used to him wanting to give up
without even trying. Taehyung always seems so strong, always shows his happy
face but maybe he and Jimin have got more in common than Jimin ever thought.
 
They're both masters at hiding their true feelings.
 
But in Taehyung's case, Jeongguk is his greatest weakness that renders him
readable like an open book.
 
"Tae, you should really go and talk to him. You—, you have no idea how much I
still regret not having talked to Yoongi sooner. If I had then maybe—,"
footsteps can be heard then and they both whip their heads around to look at
who it is. Jimin’s eyes widen.
 
"Tae, I—, we… can we talk? M-maybe alone if that's okay?" Jeongguk stands there
and looks oddly small and fragile. Jimin lets his gaze wander over the other's
face to gauge his intentions.
 
Jimin smiles at Taehyung reassuringly when the other looks to him for help and
squeezes his shoulder before letting go of him.
 
"Go, honey bun. Please," he whispers and Taehyung nods softly before he gets
up.
 
"I wanted to tell you something, too," he mumbles to Jeongguk and the both of
them turn to walk inside of one of the houses. Taehyung's, Jimin assumes.
 
Jimin looks over at Yoongi who's observing them keenly before he says something
to the rest of the group and gets up, walking over to Jimin.
 
"Everything 'kay?" he asks when he reaches the pool, rolls up his pants before
he puts his legs into the pool as well, throwing a look at Taehyung and
Jeongguk who are now standing in the living room.
 
"They're talking," Jimin whispers excitedly, observing them through the sheer
white curtains of the French windows that are swaying in the breeze, crossing
his fingers for them with his heart pounding in his chest.
 
"Hm," Yoongi hums in his deep voice before he pinches Jimin's arm.
 
"Ouch, hyung!" Jimin complains, petulantly pouting at his boyfriend. "What was
that for?"
 
"Don't stare at them like that, you nosy baby," Yoongi admonishes him and the
intensity of Jimin's pout grows.
 
"But they're so cute!" he looks back to the swaying curtains despite Yoongi
telling him not to and feels more excited anxiousness well up in his chest,
legs swinging back and forth in the water. "Besides, don't pretend you're not
curious too!"
 
Yoongi scoffs and puts his chin on Jimin's shoulder, glimpsing towards the
house as well. Jimin grins contently.
 
Taehyung stands there just as forlorn as Jeongguk. His makeup really is the
biggest mess but Jeongguk is staring at him as if he was the most beautiful
thing he ever saw. Taehyung doesn't even seem to notice it because he's too
busy staring at the floor. Jimin can see their lips move but he can't hear what
they're saying and it's nearly driving him mad.
 
Only when Jeongguk abruptly stops almost biting his lips off does Taehyung
slowly look up at his friend – who will not much longer just be his friend,
Jimin is sure of that.
 
"Is he telling him now?" he whispers to Yoongi who has his eyes glued to their
two friends as well.
 
"I don't know, but I think Jeongguk is going to faint soon," Yoongi replies
with some worry in his voice. "Fuck, I swear to god, Jeonggukkie, don't mess
this up."
 
"Jeongguk is in love with Tae, isn't he?" Yoongi nods against his shoulder
without moving his chin away. "I knew it! I mean, it was not that hard to
guess."
 
"He's scared," Yoongi admits and Jimin feels his heart clench for his friend,
"he's scared because he's fallen in love with a boy who is also his best friend
and the most important person in his life. That they're talking now is a huge
step for him."
 
"He's going to be okay and—, oh my god," Jimin's eyes widen with a gasp. "Oh my
god, hyung, look!" he whisper-shouts and repeatedly hits Yoongi's arm in
excitement before he grips his hand, hard, feet splashing in the water.
 
In the living room that is flooded by the light of the midday sun, Taehyung is
cupping Jeongguk's cheeks while Jeongguk's fingers are tangled in Taehyung's
hair. Their foreheads are pressed together just like their noses and when
Jeongguk's lips move to form inaudible words again, Taehyung nods his head
quickly as if he doesn't want Jeongguk to change his mind about whatever he's
just said.
 
And then they both lean in and kiss each other, slow and sweet and very
careful.
 
Jimin suppresses a squeal and almost shoves Yoongi into the pool from
unadulterated and vehement delight. "They did it, they finally made it, they're
ki—hmbl," Yoongi puts his hand over Jimin's mouth and pulls him into a
headlock, ruffling his hair.
 
"You're too loud, Jimin-ah," Yoongi says, but there's joy in his voice and a
barely concealed grin. Jimin softly bites Yoongi's finger and laughs when he
lets go of him, pulls him into a bone-crushing hug. He keeps glancing towards
Jeongguk and Taehyung and hopes they're gonna come out of there soon.
 
But they don't.
 
Because they're too busy sucking each other's faces off.
 
Jimin plants his chin on Yoongi's shoulder now and taps his finger against his
knee impatiently.
 
"Jimin, come on, you stalked them enough, now let them have their moment,"
Yoongi softly whispers into his ear and Jimin whines.
 
"But, hyung!"
 
"Up with you," Yoongi says and pulls Jimin up by his wrists despite Jimin's
unamused protests. Miffed, Jimin lets Yoongi hug him from behind while he's
being steered back to the table with the others. Just when they're about to
reach it, Seokjin gets up and says something about getting ice cream from the
basement. Instead of going into his own house, however, he starts walking
towards Taehyung's where his cousin is currently busy getting to know his best
friend at another level of intimacy.
 
Jimin and Yoongi freeze simultaneously.
 
"Uh, I can go and get it!" Yoongi blurts out. "I mean, I'm already standing and
I know where it is!"
 
"Nah, it's fine, but you could get some beer from my basement, I don't think
Tae's pa has some," Seokjin replies and walks towards the other patio, still
oblivious.
 
"A-ah, Seokjin hyung," Jimin, stiff like a board, hollers after him and cringes
inwardly at being so formal. He can basically feel all the others' questioning
gazes on him, "what kinds of ice creams are there in Taehyungie's basement?"
Jimin says the last words definitely louder than socially acceptable.
 
Seokjin looks at Jimin dumbfoundedly and Namjoon speaks up.
 
"You alright, little bro?" he asks and Jimin feels his cheeks tighten with
flustered heat. Taehyung and Jeongguk really fucking owe him one.
 
"Just wanna know what kind of ice cream you have?" he says with a self-assured
confidence that makes Yoongi next to him burst out laughing. He shoots his
boyfriend a death-glare.
 
Just then, a flustered Taehyung and a Jeongguk with a head as red as a tomato
come stumbling out of the other house, squinting their eyes at the bright
sunlight. Jimin briefly directs the death-glare at them instead before his
features soften at the happy twin smiles that are on their lips.
 
"Actually, it doesn't really matter," Jimin singsongs as he skips past Seokjin
and directly towards his two friends. They both blink at him in mild confusion
but when they see the giddy smile on Jimin's face they both bite their lips
bashfully. Jimin puts an arm around each of them and pulls their heads closer
to his, whispering with a grin so that no one else can hear.
 
"Alright, and now you're gonna tell me all about it."


                                      –☾–
 
Whoever invented summer holidays was a genius, Yoongi thinks, a day after their
little garden party and Taehyung and Jeongguk becoming a couple.
 
Granted, it's a Sunday anyway, but knowing that he won't have to go to school
the next day is a feeling as cosy and snug as a warm summer breeze enjoyed in
the shadow of a tree.
 
Only, Yoongi is currently not anywhere near a shadow and rather burning to
death in the hot afternoon sun when he and Jimin arrive at the abandoned train
station where all the others are already hanging out underneath the roof of the
old station building.
 
Yoongi is done with life, doesn't want to move one bit when he stops his bike
and puts his feet shakily on the ground. Jimin hops down from the rear rack,
pats Yoongi's back and gives him a kiss on the cheek.
 
"You sure I shouldn't ride the bike next time with you in the back, hyung?" he
asks with a cheeky smirk on his lips, that little demon.
 
Oh god, Yoongi loves Jimin, he really does, but his boyfriend seriously needs a
bicycle of his own.
 
"Shuddup, babe," he pants and grabs the water bottle that Jimin hands him with
a laugh. He drags himself up the concrete stairs to the train station on feet
feeling like lead while Jimin almost dances up the steps next to him. He
begrudgingly glances at him and pouts, envious of his boyfriend's apparent heat
resistance.
 
"Hey, there you are!" Namjoon greets them first and proceeds to give Yoongi a
brofist when he approaches him before he pulls him into a half-hug. He pauses
and gives Yoongi a deliberate sniff. Yoongi squints an eye in suspicion.
"What's this, hyung?" Namjoon asks, "no cherry blossom scent today?" he grins
and Yoongi shoots him a warning glance.
 
"No, unlike you, I shower every day," he deadpans, causing Namjoon to stifle a
laugh.
 
"You probably just didn't want any more mosquito bites," Jeongguk snickers.
 
"Mosquito bites?" Jimin blinks at Yoongi before looking to Namjoon and Jeongguk
for an answer. Yoongi gives them a sign to not expose him but just after doing
so he wonders why he'd even tried, for Taehyung already opens his mouth.
 
"Oh! Didn't he tell you? He was chased around by mosquitos when we were in the
forest yesterday! He was constantly flailing his arms or smacking the little
beasts off of him, it was hilarious to watch."
 
Yoongi smacks the back of Taehyung's head, who pouts at him, and dodges the
kick Jeongguk aims at Yoongi directly afterwards. When he looks back at Jimin,
his boyfriend has his arms crossed over his chest and is tapping his foot.
 
"Yah! That's got nothing to do with my shampoo! I had no mosquitos following
me!"
 
"Well, they have never bitten me that much before, so I'm not sure, babe," they
stick their tongues out at each other and then giggle, having the others roll
their eyes at them before they all sit down in their little group circle and
just talk for a while, until Namjoon gets his spray cans out and Jimin examines
them, intrigued.
 
"Have you guys made those graffities here?" Jimin asks and Namjoon nods,
already shaking a can that makes a rattling noise.
 
"Yup. We figured, out here, no one actually cares about these old walls," he
raps his knuckles against a more or less blank wall and grins. Yoongi just
watches him from the floor, legs slightly bent so that he can rest his elbows
on his knees. Jimin, however, jumps up and stands next to Namjoon.
 
"Can I make one too?" Jimin asks enthusiastically, "have you got any pink?"
Yoongi smiles and just watches Jimin spray the wall for a while, the others
around him chatting while he still tries to cool down a little. Taehyung and
Jeongguk soon leave to explore the area – or maybe sneak off to make out, who
knows – while Seokjin lies down on the ground to play Snake on his phone and
Hoseok starts reading his new guitar magazine.
 
Yoongi soon realises what Jimin is spraying to the wall.
 
It is actually the little cotton candy with the crown and two button eyes that
Yoongi drew on his cheek during their game of truth or dare.
 
Yoongi really has to keep his heart from bursting now.
 
Jimin's bell-like laughter is echoing beneath the roof of the train station and
Yoongi's gaze lingers a little longer on him from where he's sitting a few
metres away; he still can't believe how carefree and happy Jimin looks.
 
He's made a complete u-turn from the first time Yoongi ever saw him.
 
He's not the reserved boy anymore who only smiled when he tried to seduce
someone, who lied and tried to be someone he was not. He's not pretending to be
tough anymore when he actually feels vulnerable and raw.
 
Yoongi's heart starts beating hard against his ribcage when the strap of
Jimin's tank top slips down his shoulder without the other noticing
immediately, his beautiful tanned skin looking so inviting Yoongi almost gets
up just to go and kiss it. He blushes when he sees the hickeys he's left on
Jimin's neck, being reminded of what they did two nights ago.
 
He can still hear Jimin's pretty moans in his ears and feel his warm skin
against his, almost tastes his scent on his tongue.
 
Yoongi quickly squints his eyes and shakes his head.
 
Not the time.
 
Instead, he lets his gaze wander further off to the train bridge over the
river, to Jeongguk and Taehyung who are now sitting there playing Pokémon on
their Gameboys, probably on their tenth play-through. Maybe they already know
the game by heart, so well that they can afford to constantly glimpse in the
train station's direction, whispering amongst themselves and looking kinda
suspicious.
 
For once, they are no doubt not talking about anything Pokémon related.
 
There's a constant smile on both of their lips and the way they look at each
other reminds him a lot of how he sometimes just can't take his eyes off Jimin.
 
"I'm glad they made up," Hoseok, looking up from his magazine, says and Yoongi
blinks at him with his natural pout on his lips. He squints his eyes at the
glint in Hoseok's, wonders how much he's already noticed about Jeongguk and
Taehyung not being just friends anymore. They haven't told anyone yet, and to
people who don't know them very well, they might still act completely the same
together as before.
 
But Yoongi knows them, and Hoseok knows them, and they're definitely not the
same anymore.
 
He nods before he turns his head back to look at the little ones with warmth
filling his chest.
 
"Yeah, me, too. They're, uh, finally back to how they were before. Already
thought they'd been exchanged by clones or something, haha," Hoseok hums at
that and turns the page of his magazine. He does it like Yoongi's father would,
with sunglasses riding down the bridge of his nose and eyebrows raised.
 
"Yoongi hyung," Jeongguk suddenly calls him and he looks towards the rusty
bridge where Jeongguk is waving him over. He tilts his head to the side a
little before he jumps off the platform and shuffles towards them.
 
The heat is flickering over the rail tracks and the crushed rocks beneath
Yoongi's feet must be so hot they almost scorch the soles of his shoes. He's
glad when he reaches the shadows of the bushes that grow next to the beginning
of the bridge. Yoongi seriously doesn't get why his friends think being out
here in the heat is more fun than soaking in the cool water of the lake on the
other side of the town.
 
"What is it, Jeonggukkie?" Yoongi asks after his two friends have scooted over
and he's sat down between them. Jeongguk hands him a Capri Sun and he pricks
the pouch with the orange straw, almost spilling its contents all over him in
the process – but just almost.
 
"Hyung, we don't want to pretend we're not boyfriends in front of the others.
We did it yesterday and today and it—, it feels kinda wrong," Jeongguk says
quietly even if the others are too far away to eavesdrop.
 
Yoongi blinks at him, then looks at Taehyung while trying to ignore the sweat
that is running down his back.
 
"Are you sure? Not that I'm against it or anything but you hopefully know that
you don't have to rush anything," Yoongi murmurs back, squeezing Jeongguk's
knee.
 
"We're sure, hyung," Taehyung agrees and Yoongi turns his head to look at him,
"we're nervous but you guys are our friends – well, and my cousin – and we know
they're gonna be okay with it." Yoongi's lips curl into a soft smile and he
hums in agreement.
 
"Moreover," Jeongguk adds, a bashful smile playing on his lips, "it's—, it's
kinda hard not to touch him or hold his hand all the time because—, because I'd
really, really like to do that," he whispers and Taehyung's face flushes, a shy
smile tugging on the corners of his lips.
 
"Aw," Yoongi coos and puts his arms around their shoulders, pulling them close,
"you two are so goddamn sweet I'm gonna get diabetes." Jeongguk giggles with a
scrunched up nose and nudges Yoongi's side with his elbow. "I hope you know
that we are all gonna support you no matter what, 'kay? And if you ever need
anything, you'll go and talk to one of us, alright? Don't suffer all alone,"
Yoongi says in good-natured strictness and the two nod in agreement.
 
"Yes, dad!" they say at the same time and Yoongi smirks.
 
"Good boys," he pats their heads and Taehyung grins around his straw while
Jeongguk swats his hand away.
 
"Let's do it now, Gukkie," Taehyung whispers and Jeongguk bites his lip, takes
a deep breath before he nods.
 
Yoongi scoots backwards on his ass before he jumps up and dusts off his pants,
his Capri Sun pouch fixed between his teeth. Taehyung and Jeongguk follow him
back to the station, a little more slowly.
 
"Guys, uh, can you listen for a second?" Taehyung tries to get their attention
and everyone looks up from whatever they're doing. "Jeongguk and I—, we want to
tell you something," Yoongi's own heart almost starts racing when everyone
draws closer curiously. Jimin, no doubt already sensing what is coming, splits
into a big smile around the lollipop he's sucking on, looking happy and content
when he skips next to Yoongi.
 
"What is it, you two?" Hoseok prods gently, lips curled up. Everyone else stays
calm, obviously realising that this is something important for their friends.
Taehyung and Jeongguk both take a deep breath before they take each other's
hands.
 
"So, we—, uh, we're—," Jeongguk starts stuttering and Taehyung looks a little
pale around his nose.
 
"God, just look at them. All stammering and blushing. I'm so weak for them,"
Namjoon chirps and Yoongi glares at him. He was really hoping that for once
their friends would behave but no chance.
 
"They're the fucking cutest," Seokjin joins in as well.
 
"Goddamn, can't you just let us talk for once?" Jeongguk raises his voice and
everyone falls silent again, expressions amused. "We—, Taehyung and I, we're a
couple," he rushes out and Yoongi smiles serenely at him, feeling like a proud
dad.
 
"We know," Seokjin says and Yoongi's face almost derails, "oh, come on, you two
were all shy yet lovey-dovey yesterday, it was so adorable."
 
"Yeah, when we played in the forest yesterday, they were way too busy staring
at each other instead of looking for hints to find you guys," Namjoon says to
Hoseok and Jimin and Taehyung immediately protests that they were not, all
flustered and abashed.
 
Everyone just snickers at them.
 
"A-anyway, it'd be great if—. We don't want anyone to know except for you guys,
'cause of—, because of my parents," Jeongguk throws a glance at Taehyung before
staring at his feet and Taehyung softly squeezes his hand. Everyone's quiet for
a moment before all declare their complete support and promise to keep it to
themselves.
 
"We're really happy for you guys," Seokjin says and goes to hug them both. "I
love you, Taehyungie. And you," he addresses Jeongguk, "take good care of my
little cousin, you hear me?" Jeongguk blushes but nods eagerly.
 
"Wait," Hoseok interjects, "does that mean I'm the only person who's now single
in this godforsaken band?" his mouth pops open and he looks like he's
regretting all his life choices – before his face suddenly lights up. "On the
other hand, that means all the groupies are going to be mine!"
 
Namjoon gasps, elbowing Hoseok in the side. "Hey! Songwriters and roadies are
sexy, too, Hobs! I'll show you!"
 
"Ah," Jimin joins in and hangs onto Yoongi's arm, "isn't it great that we won't
be the ones who get teased anymore now, Yoonie?" Yoongi almost loses his
balance at being called 'Yoonie' by Jimin in front of the others.
 
"You calling me that doesn't really help, Jimin-ah," he murmurs and carefully
watches the others' grinning faces.
 
"Yah, Jiminnie, what do you mean by we are the ones getting teased now?"
Jeongguk points at Jimin who innocently smacks his lips around the lollipop
before licking his lips.
 
"Uhm—," Jimin starts and then squeals when Jeongguk and Taehyung both pounce on
him and start chasing him around, all of them snickering and screaming bloody
murder. Yoongi sits back down and leans against a pillar. There's a calmness
inside his chest that makes him a little sleepy. Granted, he's still somewhat
worried about what could happen if Jeongguk's parents ever find out, but
Jeongguk wouldn't be alone, he would have them. And he's sure Taehyung's
parents would help the young couple, too, when they find out one day.
 
Yoongi groans when he suddenly has someone plop down on his lap and wrap their
arms around his neck. He doesn't even have to open his eyes to know who it is.
 
"Jimin-ah, you're fucking heavy," he puts his arms around his boyfriend and
pulls him closer.
 
"Protect me, hyung," Jimin giggles and pokes Yoongi's neck with the stick of
his lollipop when he wants to bury his face in the crook of his shoulder.
 
"Hnn, Jimin, you're like a goddamn bulldozer," Jimin snickers more and Yoongi
gives up, arms hanging limp next to his sides as he lets Jimin cuddle him to
death.
 
"Jimmy, don't think you'll get away so easily!" Taehyung shouts and Jimin's
head snaps up again, lips pouting.
 
"Hyung, hold this for me," he says and hands Yoongi the half-faded lollipop.
Yoongi just blinks after him when Jimin runs away from the other two again and
sighs.
 
"I'm too old for this shit," he mumbles and puts the lollipop into his mouth.
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                      –☼–
 
Jimin wipes the sweat off his brow before he lets his arm drop back onto the
grass.
 
Nirvana is playing faintly on Namjoon's ghetto blaster somewhere next to him
where the other guys and Jihae are sitting in the shade of another tree.
Namjoon and Hoseok are smoking cigarettes but Jimin doesn't feel like one at
the moment. Actually, he rarely does lately. Jeongguk and Taehyung are lying
next to him but they're at arm's length away from each other, not cuddling like
they usually would. It's simply too fucking hot for that right now.
 
"I'm melting," Jimin whines softly, even his cropped T-shirt feeling like too
much fabric on his skin. He's kind of envying Yoongi who is currently working
at the air-conditioned convenience store. But then again, he also doesn't. He's
enjoying the summer break way too much for that. At least, it's Yoongi's final
work day at the store; after that, his boyfriend is going to be free for real.
 
"I want to die," Taehyung murmurs, sounding just as exhausted, and grumbles
when Jeongguk reaches out to pet his hair.
 
The park is crowded by people who are picnicking or strolling along the shades
of the trees, children are playing and there are sounds of boys and girls
playing football and other kids shooting their huge ass water guns. All the
sounds are mingling in Jimin's head to the point he feels dizzy and on the
brink of falling asleep.
 
"Hey, guys," Seokjin hollers at them after a while, "Hobi suggested we could go
to the mall instead of sweating our asses off here, you up for that?"
 
Jimin shoots upright and jumps to his feet. He wobbles a little just
afterwards, his mind spinning and his blood pressure dropping before adjusting
to the sharp movement.
 
"Let's go!" he beams and gathers up his skateboard from the ground. The others
groan at him to take a chill pill but they're grinning and Jimin shows them his
tongue piercing before they all get going together.



After taking the bus to the mall and playing their X or Y game (which makes
them end up in a discussion of whether 'All Dogs Go to Heaven' or 'The Fox and
the Hound' is the sadder children's movie), they all bicker about where to go
first.
 
Taehyung wants to eat ice cream; Jeongguk too, of course. Hoseok wants to go to
the guitar shop and Namjoon to the magazine store while Jihae pleads to Seokjin
to either go to the clothing store or the makeup section of the department
store.
 
Jimin doesn't really care about where they're going. He just watches them and
remains quiet but there's a smile playing on his lips as he observes his
friends' carefree antics.
 
He's just happy to have air-condition now and to spend time with all of them.
Only Yoongi is currently missing to complete his happiness, which makes his
heart throb with longing for his boyfriend.
 
Yoongi would probably want to go to the record store again. They could sneak
off alone for a while and go to the photo booth to get a strip of four
hilarious black and white couple photos, could share ice cream together or just
stroll through the mall with fingers intertwined.
 
Jimin sighs. Life is really unfair sometimes.
 
A touch to his elbow alerts him to the fact that his friends have finally made
up their minds to do one thing after the other, visiting the clothing store
first. While Jihae is seriously looking for clothing items, Jimin and the
others are trying on all sorts of clothes and accessories they won't buy.
 
"Hey, Gukkie, look at me," Jimin says and puts some heart-shaped sunglasses on
Jeongguk's nose, "now look at Tae!" He grins when Jeongguk does it with a
confused expression on his face. "Yup, I see no difference. Same heart eyes as
before."
 
Jeongguk pouts and reaches out for Jimin to tickle him, causing Jimin to squeal
and dodge the attack. He runs around a circular clothing rack to get away from
Jeongguk while Taehyung is laughing at them.
 
"Jeongguk, have mercy on me!" Jimin snickers while hiding behind another
clothing rack. He observes how Taehyung sidles up to Jeongguk to wrap his arms
around his boyfriend.
 
"Gukkie, don't you want to look at me with heart eyes?" Taehyung says with fake
pout and puppy eyes in place while he hangs on Jeongguk's arm. Jeongguk flushes
and starts to stutter, the heart-shaped glasses still on his nose. Jimin is
cackling quietly to himself, endeared by how cute those two are with each
other.
 
Jimin steps out from behind his hiding place and puts an arm around their
shoulders. He doesn't mind touching them or being touched by them anymore, the
physical contact not unpleasant like it was in the past.
 
"Let's try on more clothes! We're gonna choose each other's outfits," Jimin
smirks and bites his lip mischievously.
 
"That sounds great!" Taehyung immediately says and Jeongguk grins, putting the
glasses back on the shelf.
 
"You're so gonna regret this," he says and Jimin snorts. But then he looks at
Taehyung's eyebrow wiggling face and squints one eye at him in suspicion.
 
He ends up in the baggiest fucking pants Taehyung could have found in the
entire store, combined with a T-shirt that is probably five numbers too big for
his frame. Jimin is drowning in fabric and he feels like a bad cartoon
character version of himself.
 
"Wow, now I only need some of those hideous platform shoes and I could go to a
rave," he deadpans when he looks at himself in the mirror, unimpressed with his
outfit.
 
"Jimin, what have you done to me!" Jeongguk whines when his head appears behind
the curtain of the changing cubicle, "I can't come out like this!" Jimin turns
his head to look at him and smirks.
 
"Come out of there or I'm gonna drag you!" Jimin says, already stepping closer.
Jeongguk quickly vanishes behind the curtain again and a faint whine can be
heard from behind it.
 
"I look way too… sexy like this," Jeongguk says and Jimin laughs.
 
"Do you like it?" there's a long pause before Jeongguk speaks up again.
 
"Yes?" he says, a little insecure but still convincingly enough. Jimin yanks
the curtain open from the other side where Jeongguk is not holding onto it and
laughs when the other squeaks in shock.
 
"Oh my god, you look so cute!" Jimin coos immediately upon seeing his friend.
 
Jimin knew the clothes he would choose for Jeongguk would be an unusual choice,
one that Jeongguk would probably never have made on his own. But he just
couldn't resist.
 
Jeongguk is wearing a bright pink T-shirt and the tightest fake leather shorts
he could find. The hems of the shorts dig into the meat of Jeongguk's thighs
and Jimin raises his eyebrows at the sight. He whistles and purses his lips in
approval.
 
"Hey Tae, your boyfriend looks like a whole delicious meal, you should get out
of there soon," Jeongguk turns beet red at his comment and Jimin just hears the
clinking sound of Taehyung sharply pulling his own curtain open in the cubicle
behind them.
 
"Jimin, are you ogling my boyfriend?" Taehyung gasps, a small scowl on his
lips. Jimin presses his lips together and suppresses a laugh. He shrugs.
 
"He's got nice thighs and a nice booty," Jimin says while stepping behind
Jeongguk and resting his fingers on his shoulders to push him out of the
cubicle, "you should take a good look as well."
 
"W-wait, Jimin, he can look at me while I'm still in there—," but too late.
Jeongguk is already standing outside for all the world – and especially
Taehyung – to see.
 
Taehyung's mouth pops open at the sight of his boyfriend. A blush spreads
across his nose and cheeks and Jimin can see how he suddenly has a hard time
breathing. He smirks when he realises that Jeongguk has a similar reaction to
seeing Taehyung in the clothes he chose for him.
 
Taehyung is wearing denim dungarees with a yellow T-shirt underneath and he
looks absolutely adorable, Jimin thinks. They both contrast each other so much
and yet they still so obviously belong together. He watches how the two look at
each other, how Taehyung steps closer and checks out Jeongguk's outfit without
hesitation, how he seems to like what he sees. Jeongguk is a little more
reluctant, probably from shyness.
 
"You're so cute. So beautiful," Jeongguk mumbles to Taehyung, making the
other's flushed face almost split in half from his wide smile, and Jimin wants
to melt at how innocent and adorable they are together.
 
Just then, the voices of their friends can be heard and Jeongguk, like a
frightened deer, runs back into his cubicle to hide behind the curtain.
Taehyung quickly follows him and Jimin decides to distract the others. He
throws himself into a super cool pose when they come around the corners and
grins when they start laughing at his ridiculous outfit.
 
"Oh my god, Jimin, what is this?" Seokjin asks, wiping a tear from his eye.
 
"It's great, right? I'm only gonna wear this from now on!" Jimin says, mirth
playing in his voice.
 
"You look like a try hard gangster rapper," Namjoon chuckles and Jimin proceeds
to give him a fistbump.
 
"Ayo, I'm gonna quit the band and go solo with my rad rhymes," Jimin says in
his most silly voice and the others crack up at him. It feels kinda great. He
loves this kind of attention, what can he do?
 
"Where are Tae and Guk?" Hoseok asks curiously and Jimin smirks, resisting the
urge to look towards the changing cubicle.
 
"Also trying on outfits. We picked them out for each other."
 
"Oh, that explains a lot," Seokjin chuckles and lifts his camera to snap a
picture of Jimin. Jimin quickly does another exaggerated pose for him. "Damn, I
can't wait to show that to Yoongi."
 
"Uhm, we're gonna get changed again and then meet up at the exit of the store?"
Jimin suggests so that the others will leave them alone again. Taehyung is
still in Jeongguk's cubicle, after all, and he somehow has to get back to his
own. The others agree with his suggestion and soon he is alone again. He turns
to Jeongguk's cubicle and whacks against the curtain with the flat of his hand.
"Hey, you two, stop making out and get changed. We gotta go."
 
A moment later, a flustered Taehyung appears, hair a little dishevelled and
lips swollen from kissing. Jimin smirks and watches him disappear inside his
own cubicle again. He sighs and feels happiness coursing through his body at
seeing his two friends being so happily in love with each other now.
 
The feeling lingers when he observes Taehyung and Jeongguk after stepping out
of the clothing store, how they're locking their pinkies thinking they're
sneaky about it, or how they cuddle briefly from time to time and how they look
at each other's lips obviously holding back from kissing the other in public.
They might fool everyone else, but not Park Jimin, Jimin sees all of it.
 
Next, they head to the department store where Jimin tries out makeup together
with Jihae, looks at Pokémon cards – booster packs, as he learns – with
Taehyung, Jeongguk and Seokjin at the gaming section while Hoseok and Namjoon
are flipping through porn magazines a little further away. Of course.
 
Curious, Jimin steps closer to them behind their backs and pulls a face at the
obscene pictures he sees. He rolls his eyes at the other two guffawing all the
time, snickering like hormonal teenage boys – and well, technically they
arehormonal teenage boys.
 
"Oh wow, her tits are huge," Hoseok says, undeniably impressed, when Namjoon
turns to another page, while Namjoon nods along.
 
"Yeah," Jimin chimes in, making his friends jump a little by announcing his
unexpected presence. His gaze remains trained intensely on the naked and very
well-endowed woman in the magazine, "damn, don't you just wanna—, grab those
boobs and—, squeeze them and—," Jimin underlines his statements with grabby
hand motions before he bites his lips, "smash your face into them and—,"
 
Namjoon and Hoseok just gape at him with slight horror on their faces.
 
"Oh god! Oh god, Namu, make him stop, please, this is so fucking creepy!"
 
"Who are you and what have you done to our gay fairy?" Namjoon gasps and Jimin
just bursts out laughing, wiping a tear from the corner of his eye.
 
"You should've seen your faces just now, oh god," Jimin snickers more, "hah, my
stomach hurts."
 
He pats them on their shoulders before turning around, having seen enough naked
female bodies for his liking today and walks back to Taehyung and the others
who are waiting for them to go on.



When they're having lunch at the food court after visiting many, many more
stores, everyone is fooling around together while sharing french fries and
hamburgers with each other. There's a thrum of warmth and happiness in Jimin's
chest, one that doesn't seem to ever stop, and the smile that is plastered on
his cheeks even starts to hurt a little after a while.
 
Only when he watches Taehyung feeding Jeongguk some of his in ketchup dunked
fries does he start to miss Yoongi again.
 
Has he eaten yet? he wonders, letting out a small sigh, I hope there's not too
much going on at the store and he gets to rest soon.
 
He lets his head sink down onto the table with a small thud and starts sulking,
wishing Yoongi was here.
 
"Hey, Jimjim, you good?" Hoseok asks and Jimin shakes his head against the
table by slowly turning it left and right.
 
"Miss Yoongi," he mumbles, finding it unfair that his boyfriend is the only one
who can't spend a nice day with them. Immediately, he has the hands of Hoseok
and Jeongguk pat his back and everyone cooing at him – which makes him sulk all
the more.
 
He flinches when his mobile phone vibrates in his pocket and indicates that
he's gotten a text message. He fumbles for his back pocket to fish his Nokia
out, excitedly checking if it's Yoongi who might already be off work.
 
But it's not.
 
Jimin's face falls when he sees a number that is not saved in his contacts but
which he, unfortunately, recognises anyway.
 
He almost snorts in disbelief and stares at the phone screen. A cold shiver of
nausea mixed with anger trickles down Jimin's spine and settles at the pit of
his stomach.
 
He rolls his eyes briefly, presses the button that opens the message and forces
the storm inside of him to calm down a little.
 
"junkyard, friday, 10pm or else I’ll show the shrimp who u really are"
 
Joonho. Fucking Joonho.
 
Why does it not surprise Jimin in the slightest that his ex still has his
number? Jimin should have known. He should have known that Joonho will not
simply fuck off, when he saw him at the school festival. It was only for a
second but Jimin is sure it was him standing somewhere to the side of the
audience. He immediately forgot about it again afterwards because of all the
happiness and adrenaline that surged through his body from the performance and
winning the contest. But now he's brutally being reminded of it.
 
He's wondering why Joonho didn't try to ruin their day right then and there,
when he had the chance and with all his friends and especially Yoongi being
there. Jimin knows he would definitely begrudge Jimin his happiness and try to
make him miserable.
 
Looks like he guessed right.
 
"Hey, Jigglypuff, is everything alright?" Jimin hears Jeongguk ask with a mouth
stuffed full of fries. He whips his head around to look at him, eyes wide for a
second before he inhales sharply and tries to smile, forcing the anger down.
 
God, he's so fed up with letting Joonho dictate his life and all the decisions
he's made in the past.
 
"Yeah, all good," he just says and squeaks when Seokjin suddenly presses a cold
can of coke against his cheek. He glares at the other and tries to calm down
his pounding heart. The nausea just won't go away though.
 
He quickly deletes the message on his phone and pockets it again. Why should he
keep it? Space is sparse on his phone and he'd rather keep the cute messages
Yoongi texts him sometimes instead of Joonho's threat. Tsk, as if he'd still be
interested in what his asshole of an ex has to say when he has someone as
perfect as Yoongi now, and friends that would go through thick and thin with
him.
 
"My sister has found us another gig we could play," Namjoon says and this
catches Jimin's attention.
 
"Wait," he says, "you got a sister?"
 
"Two, actually," Namjoon smiles, dimples showing, "one older and one younger.
Namhee is a journalist for a music magazine and pretty involved in the scene.
So she usually knows where we could go and perform. It's very convenient,"
Namjoon grins and Jimin can't deny that he's impressed. This is indeed very
practical.
 
"Same location as last time?" Hoseok asks and Namjoon shakes his head.
 
"No. Same city, but bigger location," Namjoon looks like he's cracked the
jackpot and they all start to get excited. Jimin would too, but Joonho's
message keeps tossing his mind around like a ship at sea in a storm and
everything else fades into the background until Seokjin firmly grips his
shoulder and Jimin realises with a start that everyone else has already gotten
up to leave.
 
Seokjin smiles at him with amiable, attentive eyes. "Come on, Jiminnie, the
others still want to check out the instruments shop," he says and Jimin nods.
 
"Yeah, I'm coming," he says quietly and pushes every thought about Joonho far,
far away into the darkest corners of his mind.
Chapter End Notes
     ;_; vmin are broulmates…
     Also, this didn't turn out quite as angsty as we had anticipated
     because we changed Jimin's reaction to Joonho's message to a more
     angry one instead of making him scared of it. He's way more confident
     now than we had originally planned. ♥
     We hope you liked it~
     And also, thank you so much for all the reactions to the previous
     chapter, we love y'all ;-;<3
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