"There's not a thing I could say, not a song I could sing, for your mind to change. Nothing can fill up the space. Won't ask you to stay. But let me ask you one thing: Oh, when did you fall out of love with me?"
~Alessia Clara, 'Out Of Love'

~~~

*Jimin's POV*

"Okay, Hoseok, here is your ticket," Jin said, handing the red-haired boy a piece of paper. "Tae, Kook, here are yours." He continued to pass out our tickets as we gathered in the airport lobby.

Dae yawned next to me. Our flight was at five o'clock in the morning, and Jin had made us get here an hour early to make sure we checked in on time.

The guys had been curiously eyeing Dae since we showed up. Besides the brief introduction I gave when we arrived, they knew nothing about him. They had no clue how we met, what our relationship was, why he agreed to go to a wedding in France with a group of strangers... It was quite fun, actually. Hoseok was about to burst with the millions of questions bubbling inside of him.

The only downside?

Yoongi.

He kept shooting these deadly glares at Dae, which wasn't fair. Yoongi brought Kyong, his boyfriend, and yet he was acting like he already hated Dae. I felt a bit sorry to Dae, since he had no clue what he was getting into when he agreed to be my date.

Once everyone had their tickets, we made our way to the gate. The attendant checked our tickets with our IDs and passports.

"Park Jimin?" She confirmed, holding my ID up to compare the picture to my face. I tried not to roll my eyes. I hated sounding arrogant, but come on. There was no way she didn't recognize me. Even if my hair color was different than the color I had in my photo, I was still easily recognizable. Finally, she was satisfied with her inspection and handed my belongings back to me. She held her hand out to take Dae's paperwork.

"Han Dae?" She verified, looking at his papers. Dae simply nodded.

"Your surname is Han?" I asked. Despite how long I've known Lulu, I never learned their last name.

"Yup," he said, popping the 'p' at the end. "I was given my mom's surname."

That made me realize something that I should've noticed a long time ago. I've never heard Lulu talk about Dae's father. Were we even close enough for me to ask Dae about his dad? Probably not.

We made it through airport security easily. We had flown countless times and knew the rules, so we didn't pack anything that would hold us up during baggage check.

Finally, we were able to board our flight. We each had a carry on, since our flight was twelve hours. Our extra luggage had been checked and stored in the plane. We would be flying first class, so our seats were at least comfortable and could recline during the long flight.

I relaxed in my seat after offering Dae the window seat. He had mentioned that he's never been overseas, and I wanted him to be able to see everything.

Everyone settled into their seats, and our flight took off. Dae was excitedly watching out the window. I had never seen him so animated, and it was adorable.

"So, I had a question for you that's been on my mind for a few weeks," I told Dae.

"Go for it," he replied casually.

"When I thanked you for helping me that night, you said I already thanked you," I reminded him, and he nodded once. "What did you mean by that?"

Dae let out a small laugh. "You really have to ask?"

I nodded, feeling genuinely confused about what he meant.

Dae sighed, readjusting so he was slightly turned towards me. "You've been coming by a lot, yeah?"

"Yeah... and?"

"Look, it's been just me and my mom for a really long time. My entire life, actually. My mom has had to work really hard to provide for us. Because of that, she doesn't have much of a social life. She doesn't have any friends to talk to. At least, she didn't until you came into our shop," Dae explained.

"So... you're saying I thanked you by being your mom's friend?" I asked.

Dae tilted his head, thinking. "It's more than that, really. Whenever you come by, you brighten the atmosphere of the restaurant. My mom may not show it, but I know she likes whenever you come by. Very few things seem to lift her spirits nowadays, but seeing you always puts her in a good mood. She cares about you, as if you were her son."

I felt myself getting choked up. I had no idea Lulu saw me as a son. She had become a mother figure to me this past year, and I really cared for her. It made my heart warm to know she also cared for me.

"And that's how you've thanked me," Dae continued. "By making my mom smile whenever you come by. I love my mom, and it makes me happy to see her happy."

"She sees me as a son, huh?" I smiled. Dae nodded. "Does that mean you'll start calling me 'hyung'?"

Dae laughed loudly, the sound making me jump a little. "Not even in your dreams."

"Come on!" I laughed. "If I'm your mom's son, that makes you my dongsaeng. You should call me hyung!"

Dae continued to laugh at my teasing, shaking his head. A scoff from behind us attracted my attention, and I whipped my head around. Yoongi's face turned a bright pink when I caught him staring at us.

"What's your problem?" Hoseok spoke up.

Yoongi rolled his eyes. "Nothing. Just that some of us are trying to sleep, and it's a little loud in here," he grumbled.

"Here, grandpa. You can borrow my earplugs and go to sleep now," Hoseok tossed him a small bag. Yoongi muttered something under his breath, putting in the earplugs and reclining in his chair. Kyong was typing away on his computer, oblivious to the events surrounding him. I gave Hoseok a grateful smile before turning back in my seat.

"That grumpy guy with the blonde hair," Dae said lowly, "thats your ex, right?" My eyes widened. "Min Yoongi, yeah?"

I winced. "Is it that obvious?"

Dae snorted. "Oh please. You guys kept giving each other angsty stares when the other wasn't looking in the lobby, and just now he got annoyed when we were laughing together."

"Well, you guessed correctly," I sighed. "We broke up nearly seven months ago, and that guy sitting next to him is his new boyfriend."

Dae looked back at Kyong. "Ah, okay. So that's why you needed a date, because Yoongi was bringing his boyfriend," he observed. I sheepishly nodded.

"So that leaves three," he said, looking around.

My brows furrowed together. "Three what?"

"Three guys I can flirt with," Dae smirked. "Jungkook, Taehyung, and the guy with red-hair who's name I can't remember."

"Hoseok," I corrected. "And yes, they're all single, but Jungkook and Taehyung just split up, so I wouldn't advise hitting on either of them during the trip unless you want to make things awkward."

Dae chuckled. "I'm just kidding, Jimin. I don't go around hitting on random guys. Plus, I'm already on a mission."

"And what would that be?"

"To make sure you have a good time at this wedding, despite the fact that your ex is here with his boyfriend."

I smiled warmly at Dae. He was surprisingly sweet. I regretted not spending more time getting to know him before this trip.

After various movies, meals, and naps, we finally arrived in Paris, France.

Hoseok groaned dramatically as he stretched out after getting off the plane. We gathered up all our bags and waited on the van that was supposed to take us to our hotel. Luckily, the van ride was short, so we didn't have to spend much time in the cramped space.

"Alright, here are the room assignments," Jin announced when we got to the hotel lobby. We all exchanged glances. We had assigned rooms?

"Jimin, you're bunking with me," Jin said.

"You're not sharing a room with Joon?" I asked.

Jin shook his head. "We're not sharing a room until after the wedding. And I need you close by as my best man. Sorry, Dae, but I'll be stealing Jimin for the nights," Jin smiled at him. "Do you mind bunking with Hoseok?"

Dae glanced at Hobi and shrugged. Hoseok seemed rather amused with this arrangement.

"Yoongi, as Joon's best man, you'll be bunking with him and Jungkook." Yoongi nodded, not seeming bothered. "And that leaves Kyong with Taehyung."

I caught the flash of annoyance on Kyong's face, but he quickly covered it with a polite smile. Curiosity filled me. Kyong was usually so laid back; why did he seem bothered about sharing a room with Tae? It then dawned on me that Tae was crashing with Yoongi. Maybe Kyong was feeling a bit jealous of him?

We parted ways and settled into our rooms. Flinging myself onto the soft twin bed, I immediately dozed to sleep.

Over the next couple of days, I was busy running around with Jin. We had a lot to check on before the day of the ceremony. Namjoon and Jin wanted this wedding to be extremely private, which was difficult considering their statuses. They hired extra security to keep people from crashing the wedding, like reporters or homophobic bigots that were looking to disrupt this beautiful celebration of love.

As for me, I was particularly busy preparing for the bachelor party. Well, it wasn't really a traditional bachelor party. Jin hated the idea of 'celebrating their last night of freedom'. He found it outdated and, frankly, dumb. Plus, he wanted to get a good night's rest before the wedding, and didn't want everyone to be up late getting drunk. I agreed with him on that part. I wasn't looking forward to dealing with everyone if they had hangovers during the wedding.

Instead, we were having a party as a group three days before the wedding. Jin encouraged me to reach out to Yoongi for help with the planning, but I stuck with doing it on my own. I wasn't necessarily trying to cut Yoongi out of his duties as Joon's best man, but I didn't think I could spend that much time alone with him. It was safer if I handled it myself.

I felt bad about not having free time to spend with Dae, but he reassured me that he didn't mind. Hoseok had offered to show him around the city, and was keeping him company.

After several hectic days, it was finally the night of the party. I was excited to let loose and relax after feeling so stressed these past few days. I wore a pair of tight black pants and a white button up shirt, leaving the top few buttons undone to reveal my collarbone. My silver hair was purposefully made to look a little messy, and I put on a tad bit of eye makeup and clear lip gloss.

"Jiminie!" Hoseok whistled when I stepped out of my room. I grinned, giving him a playful twirl. "Damn, you look hot!"

I laughed. "Thanks, hyung. You don't look so bad yourself," I complimented him. He wore a dark purple silk shirt, and dark slacks. "Are you ready to go?" Hoseok had volunteered to go to the club early with me to make sure everything was ready. The rest of the guys would be bringing Namjoon and Jin later.

"Hold up, we're still waiting for someone," he said. My brows knitted together in confusion. Before I could ask who he was talking about, the door to his room swung open, and Dae stepped into the hall.

"Dae? You're coming too?" I asked.

Dae shrugged. "Hoseok said he was going with you, and I didn't really want to stay here by myself."

"Well, thank you for helping out," I smiled at him.

Grabbing my bag of supplies, we called our rented van to take us to the club.

I had rented the club out for the night so it would just be the nine of us. Hoseok and Dae made quick work in helping me put the decorations out. We hung pictures of Namjoon and Jin from strings attached to the ceiling, and put pink candles on the tables. I ordered food ahead of time so the guys wouldn't have to wait to eat when they got here.

The hour had passed by quickly, and before I knew it, the guys had arrived. I felt extremely thankful to Hoseok and Dae. I would not have finished on time if they didn't help out.

Jin's eyes lit up as he took in the room. Jungkook and Tae cooed as they looked at the pictures hanging from the ceiling. Namjoon's dimples appeared as he smiled, looking at how happy Jin was.

Joon looked over at me and mouthed, 'thank you'. I smiled and nodded, feeling warm that I was able to do this for them.

As expected, the guys dove right into the food, stuffing their faces. Kyong sat in the corner of the large booth, taking small bites of his food. I signaled for the bartender to start bringing out the drinks, and the group shouted out various cheers.

I held up my shot glass. "To Namjoon and Jin!" I shouted. The guys cheered and raised their glasses before downing their drinks. Hoseok hopped over to the jukebox, and loud music blared from the speakers. He grabbed Jungkook by the wrist and pulled him onto the dance floor. I smiled as I watched them jump around excitedly. It was nice to see them be friends again.

Dae leaned over to me. "Wanna dance?"

I raised an eyebrow. "You dance?" I asked.

Dae smiled and shook his head. "Nope. But I want to be a good date. So, let's dance."

We both quickly took another shot before heading to the dance floor. I laughed as Dae awkwardly tried to move to the beat. Eventually, everyone was out on the dance floor. I swayed my body expertly to the music, letting the rhythm guide my movements.

"You're a good dancer," Dae remarked.

"Good," I laughed. "I have to make a living off of that fact."

"I suck at this," Dae stilled his movements, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Want me to help?" I offered. Dae raised a brow. I smiled and stepped closer to him, placing my hands on his hips. Dae flinched at the sudden contact.

"Relax," I giggled. "I'm just going to help you get into the rhythm."

I slowly moved us together, letting Dae feel the beat of the music. Once he started to get the hang of it, he was able to gently sway without me guiding him. I kept my hands on his hips, though, and continued dancing with him.

Goosebumps started to rise on my skin. I looked up and saw Yoongi watching us from across the floor. He lightly swayed side to side, with Kyong in front of him. Kyong had his hands placed on Yoongi's waist, and Yoongi was holding onto his shoulders.

Our eyes met, and everything around me disappeared. The music became muffled, and the people were just silhouettes swirling around us. The only thing that existed was me and Yoongi.

I gulped, longing to race over to him. My body desired to press against his as we moved to the music. Dancing with Yoongi was absolutely euphoric, and fuck, I missed it. I missed him.

"Thank you for the help, Jimin," Dae said as the song ended, pulling me out of my trance. "Now, it's my turn to help you."

I tilted my head in confusion. "What do you—"

Before I could even finish my question, Dae was making his way to the other side of the dance floor. He tapped on Kyong's shoulder, smiling as he spoke. Kyong smiled back as he nodded. Dae lead him to a different section of the dance floor, looping his arms around his neck and pulling him in for a dance.

My jaw slightly dropped. Dae was bold, asking Kyong to dance while his boyfriend was standing right there.

Yoongi didn't seem to mind, though, because his attention was still on me. My palms grew sweaty as we stared at each other. Yoongi took one step in my direction, and I panicked. I raced off the dance floor and into one of the back rooms. I leaned against the wall of the storage room, trying to calm down.

My heart nearly leapt out of my chest as the door handle jiggled. Yoongi stepped into the room, locking the door behind him.

~~~

Ooooooh, what's gonna happen next?? I know! ...kind of lol

This was my makeup/hairstyle inspiration for when Jimin goes to the club:

I really did not expect Lulu and Dae to become such big parts of the story. I wrote the Ajumma character on a whim when I was having writer's block, and ended up developing a whole ass story for her

And before anyone asks, yes that airplane picture is of the first class seating area for Korean Air 😂 Mama does her research

Until next time, loves!
-Gumbie