"Y/N, I've known about you a long time before you've known me..."

-

Silence gripped onto the atmosphere as I tried to think of a reply. I couldn't figure out what he meant by that. Jungkook didn't seem too willing to explain either, so we awkwardly stood still avoiding any eye contact.

Woozi's voice echoed from the hallway and into the room as he knocked on the door. He never could've shown up at a better time.

"Jungkook? What was going on downstairs?" He asked from the other side of the door.

Jungkook opened the door and gave Woozi an expression that basically screamed embarrassment.

"Sorry, it was nothing. The owner was just going over some rules," he grumbled.

"Mm, ok." Woozi clearly sensed the tension, and tried to steer away from it by proposing we go to the beach. We agreed to go. Everyone wanted to take a break from unpacking, so we left right away. Taehyung reminded us to take our restaurant passes so we could get food there for lunch and dinner.

Since it was a hot day, we all changed into swimsuits. Jimin and Jungkook fearlessly showed off their abs, deserting any signs of their t-shirts. Poor, neglected shirts. But now, mine eyes did see blessed, lean abs that sucked up the sunlight. As for the other guys, they chose to be more modest, and included shirts in their wardrobe. I decided to be bold and wear a bikini. Naturally though, I covered it up with a sports shirt and jean shorts.

As anyone would've expected, Woozi was ecstatic about going to the beach. He'd gotten a beach ball, tubes, and boards from the garage that's set off to the side of the house. Jimin and Jungkook helped him carry everything. They seemed almost as hyped as Woozi, but not quite as much.

Suga and I had a different idea from the rest. We each grabbed a beach umbrella from the garage, and took towels to sit on. When we set up our umbrellas, the others began to criticize us.

"What are you two doing!" Woozi exclaimed.

"We're at the beach to actually DO stuff," Jimin sassed. A hint of amusement flashed in his eyes, though.

Suga ignored their comments and relaxed onto his towel, but I started to feel a little guilty.

"Let's go swim in the ocean!" Jungkook's face gleamed with a bright smile. "The water looks so clean, and the weather is perfect." The others, aside from Suga, cheered.

"Mm, ok, I-" I was about to give in until I remembered:

If I get into the ocean, I can't exactly wear my cover-up, but I don't want to take off the shorts and shirt...

"Actually, if you guys play a game on the sand then I'll join, but I'm not getting in the water," I finalized.

"Why aren't you getting in?" Taehyung asked.

"Because, I-"

"Are you, uh, on your, uh..." the handsome boy didn't even finished his sentence.

"No, I'm on my-"

"So, you forgot a swimsuit?" Jimin interupted.

"No-"

"Aha! So you can't swim!" Woozi guessed.

"I can swim just fine!" I countered.

"Ohhh, I know!" Taehyung rejoined, throwing his fist into his other hand, as an idea came to his head. "You had a traumatic experience with the ocean in your childhood, and you almost died, so now you're too frightened to get in anymore."

Woozi and Jimin gave him an impressed look that resembled two pupils looking at their master with admiration. Jungkook remained silent, pondering my reasoning a little more.

"That's incorrect," I tried to hide a smile. It was rather entertaining to watch them figure it out. Nevertheless, I put their frustration to an end. "The thing is... I'm," I paused for a moment, then continued, "I'm just not comfortable with my swimsuit."

I put my head down, letting my hair hide my face.

"It's a bikini, and I'm too embarrassed to show it, so I'll just sit under the umbrella," I looked to the side, ashamed of myself for ruining everyone's fun.

"Y/N, don't be embarrassed," Suga spoke comfortingly. "You're a beautiful girl, and we're all friends here anyway."

At first, I was shocked from how casually Suga said that. He didn't look embarrassed, and he was being sincere.

Y/N, he is your best friend. Of course, he's helping you.

Unfortunately, the compliment hardly boosted my confidence, but I still nodded and took off the shirt and shorts that covered my bikini. Feeling self-conscience of his opinion, I snuck a glance at Jungkook. He looked unhappy for a moment, but the expression faded as quickly as it showed up.

Woozi didn't waste another moment to lift the tension in the atmosphere.

"Ok, now that that's settled, let's go everyone!!" He skipped off toward the sea. (HavE YoU eVER BeEn tO tHe SeA - sorry, not sorry :3)

"Onward, friends! To the ocean!" Taehyung flourished a dramatized pose, pointing toward the ocean. He then followed in Woozi's steps, diving right to the water. Jimin followed shortly after.

I slowly emerged from the shadows of my umbrella, receiving one last reassuring look from Suga. I modestly covered my chest with my arms and looked anywhere but at Jungkook, who stood right in front of me.

Without any warning, the tall, gorgeous boy took my hand in his, and pulled me with him.

Locked hand-in-hand, we ran to the sea. Our faces were flushed from a rush of adrenaline and joy. As we reached the bank of the water, I could feel it cold on my feet. Jungkook didn't let me hesitate to get in. In one swift movement, he stepped back, locked his arms around my torso and pulled me down into the waves.

When I recovered from the surprise and stood up, everyone laughed at me playfully. And so we all let loose and had a great time. After about an hour spent in the water, Woozi, of all people, got out. Since our fun mood-maker got out, everyone else followed. I was starting to get cold anyway.

I was shivering for some time while wrapped up in a towel, but eventually the sun warmed my body. Taehyung started getting out some drinks from the cooler that he conveniently brought along.

"Want a drink, Y/N?" He asked, "I brought water bottles and soda."

"Just water, thank you," I smiled and took a bottle from Taehyung. I felt far too dehydrated to drink anything else. The cool water felt so soothing on my dry throat. The salt from the air and sea was washed out of my mouth.

"Who wants to play beach ball?" Jungkook asked. He was smiling brightly and twirling a volleyball on his pointer finger.

God, why does he always look so daMN ATTRACTIVE

The entire group responded positively, even Suga.

We split into equal teams of three: Suga, Jimin, and Jungkook on one side, and Taehyung, Woozi, and myself on the other. Suga and I shared a competitive glare for a moment until we broke out into playful smiles.

"Oh, you're on, Y/N!" Suga taunted.

"Step down, peasant. I've conquered entire countries," I declared in a mighty voice.

After a few more comments going back and forth from everybody, the game was set to begin. Taehyung served the first ball, and Suga, with a fired up spirit, jumped to hit back, but in all his excitement, he ended up missing. Of course, I flashed a somewhat triumphant smirk. All in good fun, though.

I believe Jungkook took my gesture towards his team to heart, because after a few more points from us, it began to go downhill. The score was 5-0, and Woozi was already cheering for our victory, even though we needed 15 more points for the game to end. Suddenly, a burst of fire set flame to Jungkook's inner athlete, and he ended up picking their score up.

Eventually, they were in the lead, the score being 10-9. After a back and forth struggle, Jungkook, Jimin, and Suga won the game, 20-17.

It took 30 minutes, and several pats on the head from Suga to finally cheer Woozi up again, and by that time everyone was feeling especially hungry. We all unanimously agreed to go get some lunch from the diner that we had free access to.

It was a bit of a walk to get to the diner from the edge of the shore where we once were. Everyone was incredibly exhausted, since we had to drag along all of the towels, the two umbrellas, the cooler, and our individual bags where everyone kept their passes.

Lunch was replenishing for everyone. We left the mildly air-conditioned diner with fresh faces and satisfied appetites.

When we returned to our original spot on the beach, everyone did their own thing and time flew by. I, myself, was reading a book for quite some time, and I noticed that the sun was beginning to set. Once again, the young group of friends grew hungry and tired. Taehyung suggested we go eat dinner, and we were all obligated to agree with the adult.

On the trod back to the diner, Jimin was nagging for permission from Suga to lift his t-shirt. Suga insisted against it, but Jimin managed to flash some of Suga's belly before getting elbowed in the side. Woozi and Taehyung on the other hand were having a rather calm discussion about a more educating subject: the alarming spread of ligma.

That left Jungkook and I to ourselves. It was a rather sober experience to be walking quietly beside him after such a long, active day. Neither of us said a word but continued on in content silence.

—

Dinner was a masterpiece. The food was most enjoyable. (And y'all already know by now that I'm lazy and won't be specifying what everyone ordered. You can pick! <3)

I had high hopes for the upcomingweek , since that day was such a blast. I noticed everyone having a good time around the table. The boys always seemed to have something to talk about, and I was comfortable just listening.

After some time passed, I was ready to go back to the house and relax. I didn't speak up about it though, and four of the guys wanted to get dessert.

I excused myself and went outside. The sun was just over the horizon, and a breeze blew in a chill. I wanted to put a bit of distance between the diner and myself, hoping to peacefully watch the sunset.

For aesthetic's sake

I got a good distance from the diner before I plopped myself onto the sand. It still felt warm from the sun's afternoon and evening glow. The wind was still chilly though, so I scrunched myself up, and hugged my knees. The ocean waves reflected the deep purples, reds, pinks, and oranges of the sky. I admired the breathtaking view, and suddenly regretted not bringing my phone to take pictures.

It wasn't even five minutes after I left, that I sensed someone approaching me from behind. Well, "sensed" someone; more like heard the sand sift beneath someone's feet as they walked. The person stopped right beside me. I looked up, to my left, and saw Jungkook looking down at me. I couldn't tell what he was thinking.

"Sit down," I said, patting the sand.

He did as I suggested and sat down beside me. There was no space left between us; I tried not to feel anxious while sitting so close. 

We sat in silence for a few moments. It was enough time for me to notice how warm he felt, how much his eyes glistened in the fading light, the way he looked around at times trying to think of something to say. My observations made my heartbeat louder, and I was worried he would hear it, even over the sound of the wind. I came to my senses, realizing I had been staring at him for too long. He noticed and looked at me as well. I quickly turned my head to stare at the sea, the sand, the sky; anywhere that didn't make my face burn.

"Y/N," Jungkook spoke my name softly, almost hesitant.

"Yes?" I glanced back at him, waiting for him to continue.

There was a long pause before he spoke up again.

"Y/N," once again, he gently spoke my name.

I looked at him. He spoke so carefully, as though the slightest discouragement would scare him off.

"Do you still remember what I said to you earlier today?" He asked.

"You said a lot of things today," I replied, dumbfounded.

"I'm talking about when I told you that I," he paused. "I told you that I've known you for a longer time than you're aware."

"Oh," was all I managed to say.

"Y/N, I like you," Jungkook deadpanned. He looked and sounded sincere, but I didn't know what to tell him. "I've liked you for a long time, but I'm afraid you never noticed me until recently."

I looked back to the sea and turned more to look at where the sun was almost completely set. He definitely heard my heart beating. Husky shades of purple and blue, and faint tints of red whisked through the sky and the clouds. He definitely noticed my blush spreading to my neck, then down to my shoulders. Nothing felt real.

I didn't say anything to Jungkook, and so he continued.

"You've always been so popular in school, you know? It's not surprising that I knew of you, because some people talk about you, and I am in the same homeroom," he glanced at me and I nodded, letting him know I was listening. "Well, you never even looked my way once. For a very long time, I couldn't work up the courage to confront you, either. Instead of sucking it up, and talking to you, I took a crazy approach. I spread my own rumors about myself, hoping you would get wind of some of them. Some were painfully accurate too, which were based off of my childhood."

He breathed out a light laugh and thought over his next words.

"My struggles were in vain. I was so desperate that I was willing to do anything. Some things aren't for me to be proud of. Yoongi ended up noticing me before you did, actually. He confronted me about my behavior and said to stop trying so hard, and we ended up having a fight over it." He finished his confession with an awkward smile.

"Jungkook, why did you decide to tell me all of this?" I asked out of both genuine curiosity and the desperateness of my flustered mind.

"It's so hard to hide it, Y/N," he said. "After so long, I'm finally able to be close to you. I can play volleyball with you and sit here beside you, and I'm so happy now. I don't want to hold myself back anymore." With that final statement, he leaned over and wrapped me in a warm hug. I felt my shoulders tense, and my eyes widen. I tried so hard to not think about how much my face was burning, or how fast my heart was pounding against my chest.

I wasn't even sure what to say. I didn't know how to respond or what I felt for him. I didn't want to provide him with a hope I'm not sure I can live up to.

The sun disappeared beyond the horizon. I gazed up at the stunning arrangement of stars in the sky, and it was there, there in his arms, that I experienced the most beautiful moment of my life.

THE END
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JUST KIDDING PFFFT HAHAHAHAHA
A/N so I finished this LONG ASS chapter. It's almost 3,000 words lmao. I really wanted to pop off on this chapter and I hope that it was enjoyable for everyone. I haven't used that much description in my earlier chapters, but I want to change that. I want to elaborate more on my story.

Anyways, thanks for reading and please stay updated! ^-^ <3 🥰