That is what makes Jimin and Youngjin drop out of their conversation and give him their attention. Despite the broad smile Jimin throws him, Jeongguk is not full of optimism. He does return the gesture with a gentle smile, but Jeongguk cannot bring himself to meet him with more impulse. Jeongguk defiantly walks to the drum kit and takes up his previous position, back straight and ready to play. Jimin seems to have noticed the change in atmosphere, sulks and sits down on the bench in anticipation, leaning back against the white wall. From the looks of it, he is excited, his eyes twinkling as he looks at the band members enthusiastically, and Jeongguk can't wait to see his reaction.

They kick off with "Lunar Kisses," a song from their last album that has received a lot of attention. A song that's about the power of the moon and its ability to create a magical and romantic atmosphere. The person is under a spell of lunar kisses that has transported them to a world of their own. They feel the presence of their loved one, even though they aren't there. It's about the power of love, and the beauty of the night, and is a reminder that we are all connected and can find magic and romance in the most unexpected places. It's possible that the enchanting aspect is what makes this beautiful piece Jeongguk's favourite song on the album.

Which makes it hard to believe that from the beginning of the writing process, this song sounded different, and they had a disagreement about how the song would come to be what it is today. At the time, all three were in the studio working on it. After Minsu came up with a guitar riff, both Minsu and Youngjin wrote the lyrics. Jeongguk also attempted to help, but writing and coming up with lyrics is more Minsu's and Youngjin's thing.

When they tried to figure out the rest, they got into a tangle. While Minsu wanted the song to be slower, ballad-y, Youngjin wanted it to be a more up-tempo, rock song. They were both convinced and passionate about their own ideas. Jeongguk had to watch neither of them give in.

"I think the song should be slow and emotional," Minsu said, shoulders back and chest out. "It's about love, the person is under a spell of lunar kisses that has transported them to a world of their own and I want the music to reflect that."

"But I think it would be more powerful if it was a faster song," Youngjin argued and sat tall in his office chair, leg bouncing, "The energy of the music would match the emotion of the lyrics."

Both got into a discussion, each wanting to be right and convince the other that their version was better until the discussion became heated, making Jeongguk uncomfortable, no longer knowing what he could do. He eventually plucked up his courage and interrupted them.

"Hey, guys," he exclaimed, resting both hands on his hips and relented, "Can we take a break? We're not getting anywhere like this."

They did and took a few minutes each to calm down. Even though they then sat down at the table, they didn't immediately come to an agreement, but at least they were willing to listen to each other's point of view.

"I think we should compromise," Youngjin threw in and added, "We can keep the slow tempo, but we can add some more energy to the music."

"That sounds fair," Minsu agreed, willing to listen and work this out. He made it clear before that this piece of music was going to be popular if they could deliver it well. "I think we can make it work if we can put it in the right places."

Thus, they had taken the time to work slowly and powerfully on it, piece by piece, so that everyone was happy with the result at the end. They had worked it into a wonderful piece, perfect speed and yet finished it with a tick of energy at the right places and without further discussion. Jeongguk couldn't have been prouder at that moment.

Before beginning the practice session, Jeongguk takes one final check at Jimin to ensure that he is comfortable and safe. Safe. Of course, he's safe while he's anywhere with Jeongguk. Even though he doesn't know what has got into him today, he feels more connected to the song today. It's like he's under his own spell. He brings his eyes back from Jimin and onto the task at hand; his drumsticks.

Jeongguk sets the beat by clicking the drumsticks, and immediately Minsu and Youngjin join in, strumming the first chords of their song. Youngjin steps up to the microphone and begins to sing in a light voice, which broadens with the next verse.

Everything goes well until Youngjin suddenly starts making one mistake after another. He keeps missing notes and then mixes up single verses, causing them to start over.

"Youngjin, what's wrong? We've been playing this for months," Minsu asks worriedly, a hint of confusion in his voice. "Let's try again?"

And so they start all over again. Youngjin's harmonic voice sounds through the speakers placed in the corners of the practice room after Jeongguk clicks his drumsticks. Their pace matches, and it makes him proud to see Jimin beams full of delight, moving his shoulders to the rhythm.

'I'm standing in the moonlight,

Feeling the cool breeze on my skin.

The stars are out in full force,

And the moon is shining bright.'

'I'm under the spell of lunar kisses,

I'm lost in a world of my own.

The world seems to stand still,

And all I can think about is you.'

'I can feel your presence all around me,

Even though you're not here.

Your love is like a warm blanket,

Wrapping me up in its embrace.'

'I'm under—'

Again. Youngjin messes up and mixes up notes. It's as if his head is somewhere else entirely. Easily irritated as Jeongguk is, he would like to comment annoyed. However, Youngjin's apologetic expression makes him bite back a comment just in time. It may end up in an argument, and that's not what he wants. He's certain Youngjin isn't doing it on purpose; that's not the kind of person he is. Jeongguk knows he's a soft natured person, and something must have affected him, to act this way.

Minsu opens his mouth, most likely to ask what's going on. Youngjin simply shakes his head and waves his hand as if to dismiss the situation. Minsu and Jeongguk look at him with raised eyebrows, perplexed by his reaction.

"Sorry guys, and sorry you have to see this, Jimin," Youngjin says wryly, a faint smile on his face. "I'm not sure what's wrong with me today. It could be the excitement of Jimin's presence." He shrugs and laughs lightly. Nothing out of the ordinary, but Youngjin is one of the lead singers who usually performs in front of big crowds. Is it so important to him that Jimin is here?

"Doesn't matter." Jimin shakes his head and looks at him gently, trying to encourage him, "It can happen. Please try again. It sounded awesome so far. You can do it!"

When Jimin raises his hand, clenches it into a fist, and adorably lets the word 'fighting!' slip out of his mouth, Jeongguk cannot help but softly grin. He is always pleasantly surprised by Jimin's ability, which causes him to forget his negative feelings temporarily. It appears to help with the other band members too. Their facial features turn upwards, lifting the tense atmosphere.

With Jimin's positive words and actions, Youngjin takes a second or two to compose himself again. He takes a gulp of water from his bottle and shakes himself off to try the practice once more. Jeongguk draws a breath himself, relieved by Jimin's input. He takes a look at Jimin, and their eyes meet. Was Jimin watching him?

Jeongguk blinks, pulled from his thoughts by Youngjin, who lets his fingers dance on the guitar strings. Without further ado, he moves the drumsticks in tacks on each other, creating a high-pitched, woody sound, and they begin playing the song all over again. Jeongguk internally hopes that it will be the last time. They have more songs to play and Jeongguk has promised Jimin that they will go out somewhere together afterwards, which only makes the impatience grow.

In passing, Jeongguk catches Jimin pulling out his phone and filming them. Briefly worried that Jimin might put it in public, he accidentally hits one cymbal instead of a drum. But nobody seems to have noticed, which makes him breathe a sigh of relief, and on second thought... Jimin is not going to put the footage online. Why should he?

Jimin was talking just the other day about how surprised he is that no one has approached Jeongguk publicly in his presence, and such a video would only attract attention. So the odds are very low, but that doesn't rule out the possibility that it could still happen, and he will have to talk to Jimin about it afterwards, just to be on the safe side.

"That was great!" Jimin claps his hands joyfully at the end of the song, he has already put the phone aside and looks at all three of them with pride. "Ahh, I can't believe you guys played my favourite song from you first thing."

"I'm glad you liked it," Minsu pipes up, bowing forward jokingly, as one does at the end of a concert. It makes Jimin giggle, his eyes forming into crescents. A smile Jeongguk has completely fallen for. "Hope you like the other songs too."

"I'm sure I will!" Jimin says confidently, picking up his phone again as he suddenly freezes. His eyebrows go up, and he looks back and forth between Minsu and Youngjin momentarily before uncertainty flickers in his eyes. A little on edge, he stands up and unlocks his phone, which makes Jeongguk's eyebrows furrow.

"Can- Can I maybe have your phone numbers?"

Youngjin looks at him in surprise, but still nods happily, as does Minsu. "Sure!"

Jeongguk purses his lips and watches with a recurring odd feeling as first Youngjin and then Minsu type in his number and Jimin taps his phone a few times afterwards. Of course, this is one of the first things he asks since he has a new phone.

"You even put cute emojis for us?"

Hold on. What did Minsu just say?

Jimin saved their names with emojis, while earlier he saved him simply as Jeongguk without any special emoji. No emoji, no Jeonggukie. He frowns, seeing as this is unfair. Wait-since when does he care about this?

"Yes, I think they fit very well, don't you think so? A penguin for you and for Youngjin a rainbow."

"Why does Minsu get to be the cute animal?" Youngjin takes an audible intake of breath, followed by groaning and tipping his head back. Like a petulant child, Youngjin crosses his arms and pulls a downward face, as if his personality and demeanour had made a complete u-turn. Snorting, Jeongguk shakes his head at him, acting ridiculous. It's nothing new. He has a penchant for behaving in Minsu's presence like this. One moment he has this serious aura and the next he acts like the complete opposite.

"It's because I'm cuter than you." Minsu teasingly sticks out his tongue and looks at Youngjin with a pointed grin, body slightly leaning over his guitar. Another step and they would be in each other's face. Just kiss already!

However, Minsu's grin instantly falls when Youngjin counters, leaving him speechless, "True. You may be cuter, but that also means I'm sexier." Jeongguk should be already up and tell them to give their bickering a break. He should tell them to continue their band practice, and yet he can't focus. Seeing Jimin doesn't hold back a giggle as he sees them both bickering, distracts him. "So Jiminie, about the emoji..."

The said hybrid raises an eyebrow pertly and looks at him challengingly. "Which emoji would you like?"

"Yeah, so how about a fox or a bat?"

Minsu snorts. "Are you Batman?"

"I'm obviously not, Minsu. Just say you're jealous that he didn't give you that opportunity. What's wrong with a bat?" Youngjin grumbles in disbelief and snorts contemptuously. He gives Minsu a stink eye and looks like he's about to dive headlong into an argument.

"Nothing, it's just that you're taking this whole emoji thing a little too seriously." Jeongguk draws in a sharp breath and watches as Minsu raises his fingers, moving his index finger and thumb closer together and hinting 'a little'. Stressed, Jeongguk bites the inside of his cheek and thinks about how he can stop an altercation from breaking out. He has to think of something fast.

"I won't! I just want to have the right emoji, that's all," Youngjin states, crosses his arms over his chest and glimpses at Jimin, hope burning in his gaze. "How about a bunny, then?"

"Oh, um... I-I'm afraid the emoji is already taken," Jimin sputters, blinking rapidly as he turns crimson. To Jeongguk's surprise, Jimin acts very shy and remains very polite in rejecting Youngjin's proposal. "Should I put the fox? I think it suits you well, too."

Youngjin hums and thinks for a moment, shrugging his shoulders, he finally replies, "I don't mind. I believe you when you say it suits me well."

"I really do believe that it suits you. Plus, I think it suits you more than the rabbit." Jimin nervously shifts from one foot to the other, his cheekbones raising.

Jeongguk shoves his hands into his jeans pockets and looks thoughtfully at the brown chair on the wall to his left. How could he have already given away the rabbit emoji if he had only just given him the phone? Jimin only has his, Minsu's and Youngjin's number saved. He didn't even save his name with an emoji. Could it be that he remembered his brother's number? Jeongguk unconsciously pouts at the thought of everyone getting a cute emoji except for him.

"Very well, now that that's done, would you like to try playing guitar sometime before we move on?" Minsu asks curiously, unclipping the guitar from his shoulder and holding it out to him in anticipation.

"Really?" The corners of Jimin's eyes crinkle and his whole face lights up, fingers itching to reach out. "I'd love to!"

"Here you go." Jimin carefully accepts the guitar with an oomph, having underestimated the weight. Minsu helps him put it over his shoulder and alters the strap, fitting his delicate figure better. He adjusts it thus the weight balances out, his left arm and wrist are in a more comfortable position in which Jimin can hold the neck of the guitar right and get his fingers in the correct place. "Just strum the strings and try to make a sound."

"You're holding the guitar wrong," Minsu observantly remarks, stepping in front of the hybrid to change the position of his fingers. "...And your fingers are in the wrong position. Also, be careful not to strum too hard, or you'll hurt your fingers."

"Understood." Jimin nods and watches as Minsu places his fingers on the strings of the instrument. The ears on his head move slightly as he looks down at his short fingers, back and forth between his left and right hands.

Jeongguk knows by now he could sit and watch Jimin do whatever task he has at hand. Currently, it's him trying his absolute best to play the guitar, but he's struggling to get the correct coordination for his fingers and hand. Throughout this mini lesson, it's clear Jimin is getting frustrated as his lips form a pout and his eyebrows knit together. Jeongguk picks up on the frustration straight away when he sees the plump lips turn from a smile to a hard line.

He watches closely when the tip of his pink tongue peeks out from between Jimin's, shortly licking them, causing Jeongguk to wonder if they are really as soft and plump as they look. In fact, he stares at them for a moment too long and wonders how they feel against his.

The sudden urge to find out and taste Jimin's lips makes him panic and freak out inside. He never wanted to see Jimins lips like this, all pouty and scrunched up. The lips that have been blessed to Jimin should always remain, plump with the minutest bit of bounce, tinted with rose pink and not forgetting to be soft to the touch. He blames the sudden urge on the fact that he's been in such a weird mood all day and just needs to blow off steam, but he can't be sure. It's not the first time he's had such thoughts. Jimin would certainly be disgusted if he knew how he had just imagined kissing him.

Yah!

Despite telling himself to pull himself together, he finds his gaze drawn to Jimin again. Somehow, he must be able to put an end to it.

If he could just-

Oh, fuck, did he just think out loud?

Jeongguk looks from Jimin to the ground, particularly when he feels the stares of the others on him. He tries to play down his inner panic with a snort, standing up and folding his arms. "I can teach you drums as well."

Silly only that the courage he'd just built up, confident that Jimin would say yes, crumbles within seconds by said person himself, smiling teasingly as their eyes meet. "But I don't want to learn how to play drums."

A flush creeps up Jeongguk's face. "Why not? Drums are cool."

Jimin shrugs indifferently and goes back to playing the guitar. The tone of his voice is no longer teasing nor sweet and if it weren't for the crack in the corner of his mouth, Jeongguk has no idea Jimin is still being silly. "Because I want to learn how to play the guitar, and I'm having fun doing it."

Jeongguk huffs. Though Jimin may not be deadly serious, he doesn't understand why he doesn't want to try the drums. Watching Minsu stand behind Jimin to show him the individual chords, his blood runs faster through his veins and his fingers itch to punch a wall. So what if he feels possessive and wants to be the one to show Jimin how to play an instrument? Seeing them chuckle, he feels his stomach churn at being left out, and bitterness forms in his mouth.

"Fine, suit yourself." Jeongguk's shoulders slump, and he blows his cheeks, feeling disappointment simmering in his stomach. He sighs and turns back to the drums, sitting down and keeping his eyes glued to the instrument. It's not like he doesn't want to be supportive but seeing them so close makes it difficult to stay positive.