Jungkook napped on Jimin's chest as the couple laid on his couch. His nose was against the skin of Jimin's neck while Jimin strummed his back through his black hoodie with one hand, scrolling on his phone with the other. They'd been like that for hours, at first talking about everything and anything, Jimin having come over to cook lunch with Jungkook which had turned into watching a movie which then turned into talking again and ended with them silently soaking each other's presence up on the couch.

They'd only officially been dating a week, but the couple had fallen into a routine of eating lunch together at Jungkook's apartment and then cuddling afterwards. They hadn't done anything further yet, but Jimin wasn't too worried. He didn't mind taking it slower for now; maybe they both needed it after the whirlwind they just went through.

Jimin snorted at Jungkook's secret smile as his hand went from scratching his back to playing with the hair on the back of his neck instead. His golden brown eyes flickered open and that bunny-grin overtook his face. Jimin only smiled wider, taking in the beautiful boy on top of him.

"What." Jungkook murmured sleepily, catching Jimin admiring him.

"Nothing." Jimin hummed, adjusting his hand to hold his phone better and teasingly scrolled through it. Jungkook pouted, his tattooed hand lightly covering Jimin's screen to steal his attention back.

"What were you thinking about? Was it me?"

"Just thought you look beautiful."

Jungkook grinned so boyishly and with such pure, innocent, joy, that it was Jimin who blushed instead of Jungkook. Jimin rolled his eyes, laughing as he resumed running his fingers through Jungkook's fluffy hair. He loved the feeling of it, loved the rain-water scent of his conditioner and the citrus-oud of his cologne. Loved being covered in it, going so far as to already have stolen a deep purple hoodie from Jungkook's closet, and had his boyfriend spray the entire thing in the scent.

"What are you doing tomorrow?" Jungkook asked, propping his arms under his chin and looking directly you at Jimin. Jimin blushed a second time, putting his phone down by their legs. He then pushed some of Jungkook's dark hair behind his ear.

"Whatever you're about to suggest."

Jungkook smiled. He turned his chin so he could kiss Jimin's palm and Jimin swatted at him as he rolled his eyes again, a laugh dancing across his lips. How had a week already gone by? He could spend eternity on this couch with Jungkook and wouldn't notice a single second passed.

"I was thinking, if you're free, I could pick you up from your place and take you out for dinner? There's a restaurant I was looking into around Olympic Park where we could get galbi-jjigae and then walk around afterwards. There's a charity performance going on by the stadium doing traditional songs and dances we could check out. Then, you know, come back to my place afterward."

Jimin's knees bent up around Jungkook's waist and he draped his arms around his neck lazily.

"You want to wine and dine me?"

"I've wanted to wine and dine you for ten years."

Jimin's smile spread slowly, matching Jungkook's mischievous one. He then leaned up and placed a kiss against Jungkook's neck lightly. "Alright, I like it. It feels special."

Jungkook opened his mouth and Jimin stopped him with a look.

"If you're about to say 'you're special' I'm going to have to fling my body off of Hoseok's balcony."

"But you are special." Jungkook teased, propping himself up so he was caging Jimin underneath him. His tattooed hand traveled under Jimin's dark purple hoodie, exploring each line of muscle as he worked his way up to his hips. "So special." Jungkook smirked against Jimin's ear and Jimin's eyes fluttered closed.

Jungkook moved to Jimin's neck, his lips touching the soft skin and Jimin's legs stretched out under him as a murmur left his lips. When Jungkook bit gently, squeezing Jimin's hip, the dancer moaned. Jungkook began to suck on on the skin, working on one spot and one spot alone, listening to the intoxicating melody of Jimin's increasingly labored breathes. Jimin's delicate hands found Jungkook's back, digging into the fabric covering the mass of muscle, until his phone began to buzz violently and both boys stopped with a jolt.

Jimin let out a whine at the interruption, which was followed by the sassiest, most nasty, eye roll Jungkook had ever seen. It made Jungkook crazy.

"Ignore it." Jungkook said against Jimin's skin.

"What if it's the opera house?" Jimin said like someone told him his non-existent dog died. He leaned up and kissed Jungkook on the cheek before reaching around him. When he saw the name on the screen he nearly fell off the fucking couch.

"Fuck. Shit. I'm sorry Jungkook, I have to take this." Jimin said, his eyes suddenly panicked. Jungkook sat up, giving Jimin space, but stayed next to him. He covered Jimin's hand with his own and kissed his shoulder as Jimin put the phone up to his ear.

"Minho. Hey. This is a really bad time." The person on the other line, Minho, murmured through the phone and Jungkook frowned when he couldn't make out the details of his words.

Jungkook pulled at the collar of Jimin's - well, technically his - hoodie and brushed a kiss against Jimin's skin. He smirked viciously when Jimin's cheeks flushed and his voice faltered slightly while talking. It made Jungkook run with ideas for tomorrow night. Jimin saw the thought cross his mind and lightly flicked Jungkook's forehead. Minho said something else over the line and the playfulness died out of Jimin like it had been physically zapped out of him.

"Right. The notebook. Shit, sorry I forgot all about that. Are you two coming up this weekend?" Jimin said, his body tensing up and then relaxing again once Jungkook started to gently kiss the spot on his neck again. Jungkook was more intentional this time, aiming for a distraction rather than flustering his boyfriend. A grin grew on his lips. Boyfriend, his mind coo-ed the word. "This week works. It's fine. You're coming with Taemin, right?"

Jungkook stilled then, leaning back on the couch and looked at Jimin. He nudged Jimin's foot with his own to get his attention back on him and not on the phone call. Jimin nodded slowly, saying goodbye, and then hung up. His forehead fell into his hand and he let out a long, controlled, sigh.

"Sorry." Jimin said, his cheeks flushing. "Minho was a friend from Busan, he was close with that ex I was telling you about. Taemin has a journal of mine I need to get back."

Jungkook nodded. "I can come with you if you want? So you don't have to face him alone?"

Jimin shook his head. "What? No. I would never ask that of you. It's going to be awful and awkward and so uncomfortable. I'd never make you sit through that."

"Would it help if I was there, though?"

"Yes." Jimin crumbled. Jungkook reached for his hand; it shook in his grip. Jimin's eyes seemed a little hazy, too, like he wasn't quite in the room with Jungkook. Jungkook rubbed a circle on the back of Jimin's hand.

"Then I'm coming with. We get the notebook, maybe I punch the guy in the face, and we head home."

Jimin nodded slowly and Jungkook watched how with each circle around his palm, it was like Jimin was slowly floating back into himself. Jungkook took Jimin's phone gently out of his hand, and placed it back on the couch. "Come here," he said, reversing their positions so Jimin could cuddle into his chest instead of being under him. He kissed Jimin's head, wrapping his arms around him, and started to tell a completely unrelated story about this one time he worked a bouncer shift at the club he'd recently quit and had to deal with a group of actual clowns trying to get inside.

The story was meant to distract Jimin and grant some external noise to get his mind off of Busan by shocking it with something unrelated. Jungkook kept his hold on him tight, not wanting to initiate anything sexual when Jimin was clearly still a little out of it, but wanted to provide some physical comfort. Jimin wasn't reacting to the funny or shocking parts verbally, but Jungkook could tell the storytelling itself was doing its job as Jimin's breathing relaxed.

So he talked and talked and talked, until finally Jimin fell asleep on his chest, balled up in his arms.

* * *

Jimin's lungs were on fire as he got to the roof of Hoseok's apartment complex. His date with Jungkook wasn't for another six hours since Hoseok asked him to meet up at the butt-crack of dawn. Jimin had woken up at Jungkook's place, wrapped up chaotically in his bed, but noticed that Jungkook had slept on the couch with a thin blanket when he was sneaking out.

Jimin's memory after the phone call from Minho was incredibly spotty - he couldn't remember when or how he'd fallen asleep, if he walked to the bed or Jungkook carried him there, but seeing Jungkook laying on the couch in a position that just could not be comfortable in any universe made his chest tighten. He wasn't sure if he'd ever really talked with Jungkook about his anxiety, but somehow Jungkook had known just what to do to take care of him. He wouldn't have minded if they shared the bed, but it was a bar-is-in-hell level of consideration not to assume Jimin would consent to it in that mental state.

Which meant it was Jimin's turn to take care of Jungkook. So he left Jungkook a text about heading home and called Hoseok to resolve whatever was left causing friction between them. It was hard to just leave, though. Especially with Jungkook looking so crazy, knocked out on the couch. Jimin decided to cover him with a thicker comforter as a parting gift. It was more realistic than him trying to somehow get his own petite body to haul the muscled-up-motherfucker into his bed.

Jungkook carrying a sleeping Jimin - adorable, love, the cutest. The reverse? - chaos, destruction, someone's breaking a bone. Could he do it? Probably, yea. Jimin was strong as fuck. Would it make for the peaceful and loving morning exit he was trying to achieve? No. Probably not.

Hoseok had picked his phone up instantly and with the morning air still so crisp, he offered the vantage point of his apartment complex. His balcony's view was stunning, but from the top of the building the entire Han River could be seen. It sparkled in the sun and beyond it the sky started to dome in blooming colors of dawn. The stairs to get there though - a nightmare.

"I have coffee." Hoseok laughed as Jimin stumbled to him. The area was decked out for the tenants, outfitted with a fake campaigning set, lawn chairs, and even a projector. There was no one up there right now, and Hoseok was standing near the ledge to look out at the view. Jimin would have preferred the chairs to give his thighs a second to breathe because they yearned for it, but he swallowed the thought.

"My three favorite words." Jimin hummed, grabbing a cup and leaning his elbows on the ledge. He drank a sip and nearly moaned from how good the caffeine was. Opposite to popular belief, Jimin preferred his coffee dark. He came across as someone who would pack it with sugar and flavor, he knew that, but he liked to think his personality was sweet enough on its own. The bitterness tasted like heaven on his tongue, the heavy earthy notes grounding him.

"You know, when I said I wanted to talk soon I hadn't meant right away." Jimin grumbled.

Hoseok laughed, taking a long sip of his coffee. "I've got a crazy schedule this week. It was either now or wait five days till I could see you. I didn't think that waiting would do either of us any good."

"Why five days?"

"I'm working on choreography for a new group debuting, then doing concept meetings for an established group I've worked with before, making the choreography, sending and filming demos, teaching it, and then monitoring the dance practice they're filming for it. They're doing a fast turn around for the music video so it needs to be done by the end of next week."

Jimin shook his head, taking another sip. The air was cold, morning dew somehow still gripping onto the sides of the steel buildings. The sky was beautiful too, a light grey color with patches of pink and purple bleeding through. Because of his dance training, his internal timer naturally woke him up before sunrise, but it had been a long time since he'd been outside to appreciate it.

"That's what I've got to look forward to soon. Once the show gets announced and rehearsals start up, my days are going to be packed again."

"So you accepted it? The ensemble spot?"

Jimin shrugged. "I've got to move forward somehow, right?"

"You could always come work with me instead. We'd love to have you."

Jimin smiled, but shook his head. He looked out at the Seoul skyline, the streets and people all so far away. "I love to dance, Hoseok. I love to perform. Busan doesn't get to take that away from me. There has to be better spaces for it. If it's not the opera house then I'll try again and again till I find where that is, but I have to believe that art can be made without pain."

Hoseok nodded. "So, you wanted to talk?" He transitioned, their back and forth coming to an end. Jimin nodded.

"There's no way to say this that doesn't sound awkward, but what happened last week? When Jungkook and I walked inside, you looked shocked, which of course makes sense, but it's more than that. You were mad."

Hoseok sighed and ran a hand down his face. "Jimin-ah." He started. "I knew Jungkook had a crush on you, but I never realized how big. When Jungkook had cornered you last year, you didn't run to Taehyung. You ran to me. Because I'm your Hyung. So I saw you that night and saw how absolutely devastated you were at the thought that Jungkook would use your or even his feelings as leverage to make you give up your dreams."

Jimin swallowed. He rubbed his thumb on the lid of his coffee, thinking back to the moment. It made his chest twist with conflict. "I know." Jimin said softly. "I had no idea he was ever interested in me. I mean, did you? Was I the only blind one?"

"We could all see a crush, but Jungkook can be so good at hiding his real feelings behind those big bright eyes that it can be hard to tell when he's being fully honest. I knew he looked up to you like crazy, but no I had no idea he liked you as much as he does. Which is what also makes me feel crazy. How did I miss that?"

"Did you ever ask?"

"Did you?"

Jimin snorted. He raised his coffee to that.

Hoseok repaid the gesture with equal irony.

"So that's what it was? You feel guilty?"

"Jungkook doesn't have family here in Seoul like we do. Jin and I practically raised him. So when it came out what he said to you the night you left, I mean it wasn't a stretch to think he would be worried to have any of us leave." Hoseok shook his head. "But then I keep wondering how scared he probably was to say anything before that, either. That it could have ruined your friendship either way. But then again you also could have said something to him about your feelings, instead of it turning into all of us only blaming Jungkook for this whole mess."

Jimin rubbed a thumb to his forehead. "Yea, I've been thinking about that a lot lately. I guess I was afraid of the same things he was."

"You you two hurt each other so badly this year, Jimin. And I had to watch. I spent this whole year trying to be the peace keeper only to find out there was nothing to peace-keep in the first place."

"Would it be better if Jungkook and I hadn't made up?" Jimin asked nervously.

"No, of course not." Hoseok sighed. "I was hoping you two would figure things out eventually. Yoongi and I had been working to find ways to help you both navigate it, but I just didn't think I would end up being collateral."

Jimin frowned. "Hoseok, this whole thing isn't really on you, you know? Maybe you feel like you wasted a year on our - there's really no good word for it so I'm just going to say 'drama,' - but I think this was Jungkook and I figuring it out. I mean we've been friends for years, we've grown up together, there's no clean way to transition out of that."

"I know, Jimin-ah. Really, I do. This is between you two and you both navigating what you needed to get to this point, which I'm happy for you to have, but that also means I isolated Jungkook for a whole year for no reason. I mean; I thought you both were heartbroken and hurting each other. I pushed him so far away on accident, that he dated a girl who stripped him of his personality for months and I didn't even notice! I know this isn't about me, really please trust me that I'm not trying to make it about me, but I don't know how to process that guilt. And then to find out that I had done all that damage control for no reason, that you guys were actually on the same page? I feel so frustrated which is worse because obviously I would rather you guys get along than not."

Jimin sat quietly, listening. He gave Hoseok space to continue if he needed to, but wanted to think about his reaction before providing any input. Selfishly, Jimin didn't fully understand Hoseok's perspective. Both men had operated under the information they had presented to them. Jimin had been hurt; Jungkook the same. Everything is clearer with retrospect, of course, but no one blamed their friends for doing what they thought was the best thing at the time. But Jimin also felt like that wasn't the response Hoseok needed right now. It felt dismissive, so he kept it to himself, walking down his second path of thought.

"I'm sorry, Hoseok." Jimin said. His voice was kind as he scooted closer to his friend. "You're not a bad friend."

Hoseok's expression crumbled.

"Except that I was. I'm your Hyung. I'm meant to take care of the two of you. We all tried to talk with Jungkook, but Jungkook didn't want to discuss it. All of us were worried that if we started the conversation, he might shut us out, so Yoongi spear-headed waiting. I should have stepped in; instead I let him drift away! I put all this pressure on him and moral judgement when he needed someone to lean on. I wouldn't call that being a good friend."

"Do you really think Jungkook thinks of you like that? Hoseok, from what I saw you were just doing your best to navigate both our emotions. You warned him about me being at your apartment that one time, you didn't turn him away. Who knows what would have happened that night if you haven't given him a place to run to. I think you're being too hard on yourself, but you have to go and talk to Jungkook yourself to believe that." Jimin sighed, looking out at the sunrise. He smiled fondly. "To be honest, I think Jungkook just misses you."

"You think he doesn't hate me for it?"

"Would you hate me if the roles were reversed? If I did everything you did but it was between you and, I don't know, let's say Taehyung, then would you hate me?"

Hoseok sighed, ruffing his own hair. "No."

Jimin put a hand on Hoseok's arm, suddenly feeling like he understood. "Talk to Jungkook, Hyung."

Hoseok sighed, a weight visibly lifted from his shoulders and he shook his head with a laugh. "We're just a friend group of abandonment issues, huh?" He joked, trying to ease the heavy air. It seemed to work, and Jimin snorted.

"How about you, though?" Hoseok asked. "How are you feeling about all of it? You two officially dating?"

Jimin beamed. "Yes." He said, lifting his coffee to the city of Seoul. "One week strong."

Hoseok smiled then, nudging Jimin with his shoulder. Jimin's eyes turned into crescent moons, stretching his arms over his head and soaking in the setting sun.

"No, in all honesty Hyung, I feel really good." He said, dropping the stretch but the smile stayed. "My last relationship was so unhealthy and it'll take some time to sort everything I went through in Busan, but it doesn't feel scary anymore. Processing everything doesn't feel so lonely. I get to watch Jungkook find his rhythm, too. He's so excited about recording music and has all these big plans. It gives me hope that I can get there too and Jungkook is so patient for me to. I don't feel any rush, I guess. Like we have forever to figure it all out."

Jimin blushed.

"Not that I'm not putting effort in. That's not what I meant. I'm going to be there for him too and I want to support him and work for this relationship and make sure he always feels loved and cared for - but it doesn't feel like I've got a timer on it. Is that sounding the way I'm meaning it? It's a positive thing. I feel secure and - I'm rambling, aren't I? Jungkook said I rambled once and now I can't stop noticing it. I guess what I'm trying to say is that I don't feel any pressure to make this all or nothing. It just feels like all. So I'm not worried about where it might lead with us. God, does that make any sense?"

"I think I see what Seokjin sees in you guys." Hoseok laughed, a wide older brother grin on his face

"How about you? Anyone you're looking at?"

"Are you asking as Jimin or as Taehyung-ie's best friend?"

"Winter bear out of the cave?"

"What."

"Like cat out of the bag. But it's a bear. It's his thing. You should know this."

"Right. Well. It was hard not to guess he might have some feelings after he stayed on Drag Race night when all the rides left." Hoseok said, his smile faltered slightly. "But how I feel? Honestly, I don't know. Is that terrible?"

Jimin sighed. "No. It's not." He answered, looking back out to Seoul. "You'll figure it out. It's what we do."

Hoseok snorted and Jimin leaned his shoulder against Hoseok's, his head following, and the two friends stayed side by side till the sun rose fully in the the sky.

_________
A/N:
I promise next chapter will be only Jikook date interaction 🙇‍♀️🙇‍♀️

- Vio