note: currently dying because third year of uni is just ONE week in and i already have four reports to submit this upcoming week. i'm considering taking a semi-hiatus from updating but i don't want to do it at the same time ugh i want to CRY. anyways, moving on from my anxiety, enjoy reading you guys. i want to thank all of my followers because sometimes i think i really don't deserve all this love and just— thank you. i love every single one of you beautiful souls. <3

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"Jungkook, Minseok has to leave for a few days because his cousin's getting married, so I want all the papers on my desk in an hour."

"Yes, sir," Jungkook squeaked, watching the back of his boss as he left the room. Then he buried his head in his hands, silently groaning. 

Sometimes Jungkook didn't understand why he had decided to take up an office job instead of the opportunity he had been offered by Tesla after completing his vehicle engineering internship there. He had preferred the office job in New York over his dream job in Palo Alto because New York had been his brother's dream city to live in. And Jungkook had wanted to give his brother at least six months of enjoying his dream before lung cancer had taken him away. Jungkook, innocent Jungkook, had signed a contract of two years with the company he was currently stuck under. And oh boy, it was hell.

The site manager seemed to give him a hard time, always taking advantage of the fact that Jungkook wouldn't say no to dump other's work on him, and as each day passed Jungkook was growing more and more exhausted. This day was no different, and as sad as it felt to admit, Jungkook had grown used to all the extra work.

He stared at the computer in front of him, knowing that if he quit his current job it would take him quite a few weeks or months to find another one. And Jungkook didn't have the money to pay rent for months for an apartment in Manhattan while he looked for another job. He sighed, fingers furiously typing away at the computer in front of him.

"Why don't you just say no?" He muttered to himself, eyes hurting from having sat in front of the computer for an extra three hours the previous day. "Say no the next time."

The intercom on his table buzzed and Jungkook cleared his throat before answering, "Jeon Jungkook speaking."

"Yes, I know, my assistant is on leave so could you get me a cup of coffee from the canteen? Thanks."

Before he could answer, the call ended, and Jungkook slowly let out a breath he was holding. All he felt was anger, anger coursing through his veins and making them pop out. He was being treated like a servant at this point and Jungkook wouldn't encourage it further. He sat in his office, brows furrowed as he went back to the papers he had to submit in an hour. The intercom buzzed again but Jungkook ignored it this time, gritting his teeth in annoyance at the continuous noise.

"Jeon Jungkook speaking," he finally decided to answer, closing his eyes and taking in deep breaths to calm himself down.

"Oh look who took their time," the voice on the other end was brimming with sarcasm and Jungkook wanted to punch the site manager, "my coffee, now."

"I'm sorry sir," Jungkook responded, "but I signed up as a software analyst, not as a servant."

There was nothing but silence from the other end for a while and Jungkook thought he had done the right thing by finally standing up for himself, but boy, was he wrong.

"You're right," he heard the manager sneer, "and from tomorrow you'll be working as my assistant while we find another software analyst to take your place."

"Wait," Jungkook panicked, but the call ended again, a static beeping being the only noise ringing in his ears. "Shit," Jungkook muttered, pulling at his hair, "shit, Jungkook, you idiot."

He stood up shakily from his chair and rushed towards the site manager's cabin. His hands shook as he raised a fist to knock the door gently. "Come in," the familiar voice murmured, clearly sounding pissed, and Jungkook gulped as he entered the room. 

"Sir—"

"Ah, look who decided to show up," the manager smiled, looking pleased at the desperation that swam in Jungkook's eyes. "You have my coffee, yes?"

"Sir, I—"

"Do you have my coffee?"

Jungkook shook his head, "I'm sorry, I won't step out of line again. But please, don't degrade my career like this."

"Alright, get out," the manager spoke, causing Jungkook's heart to leap to his throat. He prayed the words weren't implying what he thought they did. "Get out, find another job, you're sacked."

"Please—"

"Get out!" 

Jungkook flinched at the raised voice, nodding and quietly stepping out. The door shut behind him and he leaned against it, tilting his head back to look up so the tears that gathered in his eyes would remain inside. The yelling had caused a few people to peek out from their respective cabins, and Jungkook flushed under the stares. 

"Hey, you alright?" A woman questioned, frowning as she took in his watery eyes. 

"I'm okay, I'm okay, no big deal," Jungkook muttered, smiling through his worry. "You guys get back to work, I'm okay."

Jungkook walked into his cabin and packed up his things, trying to calm down and think of other temporary alternatives before he found a new job. He grabbed all the business cards he owned, going through each one, trying to figure out which companies he could apply for, when a certain card caught his eye.

The bright logo of Park Industries glowed in neon yellow on the topmost right corner, with an elegant Park Jimin scrawled onto the topmost left corner. Two contact numbers were written on the card, one in a slightly bigger font than the other. Jungkook gulped down his panic and wiped his tears with the sleeves of his shirt. He fished out his phone from his pocket and typed a number onto the cracked screen with shaky fingers.

"He's a busy man," Jungkook spoke to himself, hesitating to press the call button, "don't be disappointed if no one picks up."

He waited with bated breath as the rings went, and with each ring Jungkook felt his heart speed up more and more in panic. He was about to give up and hang up after the tenth ring when he heard a familiar voice, and heck, Jungkook immediately felt his panic fade away a little.

"You've reached Park Jimin."

"Mr. Park! I—"

"I've told you it's Jimin for you, haven't I?"

"Jimin," Jungkook felt himself tear up again and he furiously wiped away his tears, voice cracking as he said the name.

"Are you alright?" The voice on the other end sounded concerned and Jungkook sniffed to hold back his tears. "Hey, are you okay? What's wrong?"

"I— I—"

"Yes?" Jimin encouraged him to continue, "Go on, tell me what's wrong."

"I just— this is so stupid I should not have called but I saw your name and the first thing that came into my mind was to call you and—"

"Tell me what's wrong sweetheart or I won't be able to fix it."

Jungkook felt his heart skip at the nickname but he focused on Jimin's words, feeling even worse now about having called him and disturbed him for a pathetic reason.

"It's nothing, I'm so sorry for having bothered you while you're at work. I'm sorry." Jungkook hung up before he could hear Jimin's answer, his heart thumping wildly in his chest. "Stupid, he can't help you." 

Jungkook sighed, taking everything he owned and putting it in his bag, looking around his cabin one last time. A small photo frame was placed on the table, two men with their arms around each other in front of the Statue of Liberty, and Jungkook smiled through his teary eyes. He grabbed the photo frame and held it to his heart, somehow feeling comforted just by a picture of his brother.

"Things will work out," he muttered to himself, moving to leave the room, when the intercom buzzed again. Jungkook furrowed his brows, wondering who would be calling him now, but he picked up anyway. "Jeon Jungkook speak—"

"Come to my cabin right now," he heard the site manager, his voice sounded a little frantic. There was small pause before he heard a soft, "please."

Jungkook hung up and held the photo frame against his chest as he walked into the manager's cabin, eyes widening in surprise when he found a familiar figure sitting on the chair. Even from the back of his head, Jungkook could tell who it was.

"Jimin?"

The man turned, sliding down his sunglasses just a little bit so he could peek at Jungkook. "Oh, you're here, come take a seat Jungkook."

Jungkook eyed the chair warily, glancing at the site manager for permission. The man was sweating where he stood, hands wrung together as he motioned for Jungkook to take a seat. "Please, by all means."

Jungkook frowned, sitting anyway, and he looked at Jimin. "I'm not sure what's going on," he mumbled, voice small, holding his bag tighter.

"Give me like," Jimin looked at the rose gold Rolex on his wrist, casually flexing his wealth, "six seconds." He turned to face the site manager and slid a paper onto his desk. "Jeon Jungkook quits and will be working at Park Industries from now."

Jungkook's eyes widened and he opened his mouth to speak but Jimin waved his hand and he stopped. The billionaire stood, looking at Jungkook expectantly so he would stand, and the latter obeyed. He jumped to his feet, shooting one last glance at the manager as the two men left his cabin. His co-workers had decided to peek out again, and this time they were whispering about how Park Jimin knew him, and Jungkook wanted to bury himself underground.

"If you're flushed by this," he heard the billionaire speak as they neared the doors that would lead them out, "I'm afraid for your health."

Jungkook watched with a gaping mouth as Jimin opened the doors, flashes going off at the two of them instantly. Jimin waited for Jungkook to join his side before he stepped out, right into the mob of reporters. Jungkook held onto his arm, brows furrowed in concern. "Where's your security? Are you crazy to step out into the mob like that?"

Jimin removed his sunglasses and gingerly hooked them onto his shirt, crashing into Jungkook's chest as a reporter came too close. Jungkook held him almost immediately, trying to shield the billionaire's smaller body with his own broader one so he wouldn't get pushed around. 

"You see," Jimin grinned at Jungkook, "there's this wannabe-hero I know who would protect me from the crowd, so I didn't bother."

Jungkook shot him an incredulous look, "Do you realize you're putting me under a lot of pressure? I'm already scared, and you're making me scareder—"

"I don't think scareder is a word," Jimin snickered, much to Jungkook's dismay, "but I might be wrong." He felt a reporter come too close again, hitting his elbow, and Jungkook caught him again before he fell. "Oh, good catch! Ten points to Jungkook!"

"Can you not?" Jungkook felt someone jab him accidentally on his ribs and he yelped. 

"Okay show's over folks," Jimin detached himself from Jungkook, stepping forward to glare at the reporters who swarmed them. "Everybody who wants a lawsuit filed against them step closer!"

The mob cleared almost immediately, reporters backing away and making way for the billionaire to head to his car. Jungkook turned to look at Jimin with an expression that could kill. The man laughed, brushing his hair away from his face.

"Really?" Jungkook questioned as he followed the billionaire to his car.

"I like theatrics, I was part of the student theater group back in MIT."

"Okay genius," Jungkook rolled his eyes, "no need to flex."

"I really wasn't," Jimin smiled, firing up the ignition and looking over at Jungkook. As he had expected, Jungkook was busy admiring the interior of the car with wide, sparkling eyes. "So this is—"

"An Acura NSX," Jungkook's voice wobbled in excitement and maybe Jimin thought that was the most adorable thing ever but he would never say it out loud.

"Right you are," Jimin smirked, opening his mouth to say something else when his phone rang. "Excuse me one moment," he said to Jungkook, placing a bluetooth earpiece into his ear. Jungkook realized it was private conversation so he turned his gaze away. "Yes, right, yes just buy the whole damn thing. Alright, goodbye." 

Once he was done he turned to look at Jungkook, flashing him a sweet smile. "Sorry about that," he said, parking his car and walking towards Park Tower. Jungkook held the photo frame tighter against his chest as he followed the billionaire, suddenly realizing this had become a routine for the two of them. "Business shit, always on my head."

"Ah," Jungkook nodded, "must be hard."

"Being a genius? Hm, I find it easy, I wonder how."

Jungkook rolled his eyes as the elevator doors shut, now getting used to Jimin's personality. As the elevator ascended towards the penthouse, Jungkook realized he had no idea why he was here. He wasn't injured and he didn't need any medical treatment, yet here he was again, standing in the private elevator that led to his penthouse.

"Wait why am I here?" Jungkook frowned as the elevator doors opened and Jimin stepped out. "Oh wait, shit, you didn't even ask me to follow you inside and I just followed you inside when maybe you were expecting me to get home and now I've embarrassed myself—"

"Shut up, you're giving me a migraine," the billionaire smiled, motioning Jungkook to take a seat on the couch. "If I didn't want you here, you wouldn't be here dumbass."

"But why—"

"TV?" Jimin cut him off, taking his silence for a yes and switching on the television. 

Jungkook backed further into the couch when the 65 inch LED TV came to life, resulting in Jimin to break out into a fit of giggles. Jungkook had never heard Jimin giggle before this, but he would be lying if he said he didn't want to listen to it again. A news channel displayed headlines and Jimin tossed Jungkook the remote, giving him permission to change to whatever channel he wished.

"You still haven't told me why—" Jungkook started, but his jaw dropped when his previous workplace was shown on TV, along with the headlines A New Addition To Park Industries. He turned to look at Jimin, who was casually leaning against the kitchen counter, a glass of water in hand.

"What?"

"You bought the entire company?" Jungkook's eyes were wide as he watched Jimin take a sip of water from the glass. 

"I mean, the manager was saying shit about an idiot named Jeon Jungkook when I entered his cabin. And then he went on and on about how you were an incapable fool who wouldn't get him coffee, to me, I think he had it coming."

Jungkook gulped, turning back to the TV before he looked back at Jimin. "So you bought the entire company?"

"Well, yes," Jimin shrugged, placing the empty glass on the counter and stretching his arms above his head.

"But I— I mean— you gave me a job under Park Industries! That's already so much more than I could have ever dared to ask of you. And then you—"

"Migraine," Jimin pointed to his head, "remember. Don't give me a migraine." He moved over to the couches and plopped down on a single seater. "Now listen," he locked eyes with Jungkook, "you haven't once asked me what you're going to work as under my firm. Do you want to know?"

Jungkook bowed his head a little, trying to be grateful, but he felt a smack on the top of his head. "Ouch," he rubbed his head, pouting at Jimin, who was now smiling at him.

"Don't bow to me like that I'll kick your ass."

"I just needed a job," Jungkook muttered, shaking his head. "I don't care what you make me do; work at an office, at an electronics manufacturing division, anything. I was just really worried about getting a job, and now you gave me one so I'll take it without asking you what it is."

Jimin stared at the man for a few seconds, pushing his tongue against his cheek. "Okay. I might have gotten you the position of vehicle engineer in our cars manufacturing division where we collaborate with Tesla, but if you're still interested in an office job that's fi—"

Jimin stopped himself when Jungkook threw his arms around him, encasing him into the warmest hug he had ever received in his entire life. He didn't know what to do with his hands for a few seconds, before he finally gathered the sense to awkwardly pat Jungkook's back. Jungkook pulled away from the hug, a huge smile reaching his ears, but then he realized what he had just done and his cheeks burned hot, a rosy tint taking over his melanin skin.

"I—" Jungkook rubbed the back of his neck, coughing out of nowhere. "Um, sorry, I should have asked."

"You needn't."

"I'm sorry what?" Jungkook gaped at the man in front of him who, much like himself, was averting his gaze as he spoke.

"You needn't ask."

~

❝ SOMETIMES YOU GOTTA RUN BEFORE YOU CAN WALK. ❞