˗ˏˋ ♡ ˎˊ˗

Morning comes quickly.

You’re awake before your alarm, staring blankly at the ceiling. 

Well, there wasn’t much sleeping going on anyway. How could you fall asleep knowing your ex boyfriend whom you hadn’t seen in four years was across the hall with your roommate? 

It just didn’t feel right. 

It’s not like you’re pining after him or dying to know what he’s been up to. You’re positive you’ve moved on. 

You just feel… uneasy. What are the chances the two of you end up in the same city again? In such close proximity too. 

Does Chaerin know? Was it on purpose? There’s no way he couldn’t have known, right? If he’s seeing your roommate, you must’ve come up in conversation. 

Not that you mention Chaerin to your dates, so maybe not? 

Gaah. This was driving you a little nuts. 

There’s some light commotion out in the living room that you had managed to tune out. 

And then you hear Yoongi speaking. 

He’s still here?

Oh, you pray you’re being punked right now. 

Why was he here still? 

You check the time on your phone. It’s like nine. Chaerin’s usually gone by this time.  

Just over an hour before you’re supposed to meet your potential students. You grimace. 

You showered last night but you were hoping to wash your hair today. 

There’s no plan. Should you ignore Min Yoongi? Or should you greet him? Does Chaerin know he was your boyfriend once? Does he want her to know? Do you want her to be privy of that info? 

You’re driving yourself a little nuts and it wasn’t early enough for it.

Why did today have to be any different anyway? You could be normal and casual about this. 

You should. 

It’s been years since the break up. Evidently, he’s clearly completely moved on. As have you. Actually... if you left in the next fifteen minutes, you could probably just get a blow-dry at your friend's salon, grab a bite and directly meet your new clients soon after. 

Yes. That sounded like a plan. Ugh. You pat yourself on the back. 

Halfheartedly, you change out of Yoongi's old shirt and into something presentable: you find your cutest yellow sundress and pair it with a pink cardigan. You pop a few too many breath mints, clean your face with makeup wipes and continue with your makeup routine.

Before exiting your room, you hurriedly pull some long socks on. They keep slipping down. 

You needed a new pair but you just can't find these ribbed ones with the lace lining anymore. At least not for cheap.

You smell something delicious. It's most definitely Yoongi's cooking. You could recognise his signature breakfast anytime, any place.

You slow your pace as you approach the living room. 

You curse your past self. You just had to go for an open kitchen. You thought you’d have started cooking by now, maybe host luncheons and dinner parties, you know, working in a restaurant and all. Yeah, none of that happened. Who has the time? Or maybe, you just aren’t good at scheduling. You should really get help for that. Huh.

Maybe if you were quiet enough, you could just grab your bottle and keys and make a run for it. 

The keys and bottle that were on the kitchen island. Damn.

The open-plan living room comes into view.

Chaerin's perched on one of the bar stools, dressed in purple scrubs and scrolling through her phone. A yellow mug sits in front of her. It makes you smile. You’d bought a set of pink and yellow mugs for the two of you. 

Well, it’s not news or anything. You knew she used the mug daily but it still feels good for some reason. 

Your eyes dart to the other figure in your apartment. 

Yoongi. 

He stood by the stove, still dressed in yesterday’s clothes. Black dress pants and a beige button down. 

So, it really is him… 

Somewhere deep inside, you prayed this was just a colossal misunderstanding. Maybe you happened to see a man who happened to be named Yoongi and resemble your Yoongi and maybe that Yoongi had an ex who looked like you and was called _____.  

That would’ve been funny.

But your God doesn’t like to see you smile, so, here you were.

Your stomach begins to grumble. Ugh. Yoongi makes the best cheesy bread. Super garlicy and delicious. 

Looking down at your feet, you notice you were frozen at the spot just before the couch. 

Must walk, you think. 

Then you force your feet to keep moving. Your socks made the floor slippery. 

Chaerin notices you first. “Morning! You look cute today!” She’s so bright so early.

“Hello. Thanks!” You try to match her energy but end up sounding a bit awkward. 

Yoongi’s attention is already on you when you peek at him. 

Goddamn. It really, really is Min Yoongi. 

You reckon he’s a resident (doctor) now. Ohhhhh, that’s probably how Chaerin met him. 

“Hi, _____.” His voice drops an octave. It’s always rougher in the mornings. You remember it well. 

“Hi.” Your voice comes out surprisingly stable. 

“Sleep well?” Yoongi smirks. 

SLEEP WELL? 

“Like a baby!” You squeak out. 

Chaerin watches the two of you questioningly. “Um… Min Yoongi, this is my roomie, _____.”

Oh. You guess he hasn’t told her. Are you going to tell her?

Chaein continues, “And _____, this is Min Yoongi. He’s one of the resident paediatricians at St. Jude.”

“Paediatrics?” You gleam a little. That’s exactly what he’d aimed for. “That’s lovely, Yoongi.”

You swear you catch the man blush at your comment. “Thank you, _____.” 

His face forms a :].

An awkward silence ensues.

You don’t know if it’s awkward for everyone else too. 

Restlessly, you rub the back of your neck and quietly scurry to your fridge. 

You open it and stare inside, not remembering what you opened it for. 

Painstakingly, you close it. 

Oh, right. Milk and ice for your iced coffee. 

And then you open it again, grabbing the ingredients you needed. 

Yoongi watches you from the corner of his eye. He wants to talk to you so badly but he made a hasty decision and didn’t tell Chaerin about how he knew you. And just a few seconds ago, he expected you to come clean but you didn’t either. 

Yoongi has not been able to get you out of his mind all night. He barely slept. How could he? You were right across the hall. 

In reality, he approached your room at least five different times during the night but shied away before he could knock. 

But then he thought he should let you come to him. 

However, knowing you, he realised that would take a while. But he doesn’t want to wait. 

You hadn’t changed much. You looked the same as you did four years ago. Just as beautiful and avoidant. 

You hover by Yoongi, looking for your high-speed blender. You check the cabinets, the countertops and the shelves. 

Nothing. 

Yoongi was still manning the stove. 

“Are you doing something fun today?” Chaerin broke the somewhat uneasy silence. 

You spin to face her. “Oh, me? Noo, no. I’m going to meet new students.” 

“Oh, that’s nice though! I thought you took the weekend off.” 

“I did, from the other place.” You didn’t want to go into specifics in front of Yoongi. Almost like you were embarrassed of our two jobs. Even though you know there’s absolutely nothing wrong with them. They’re both pretty social jobs that push you out of your comfort zone. If anything, Yoongi would be proud. 

Not that you want to make him proud or anything. God. 

This was too weird. 

“Meeting with students? Are you a teacher, _____?” Yoongi asked.

“No. I just tutor some kids on my days off.” Like you tutored me. “I’m a waitress at, um, the Ivory Room.” It came out sounding like a question more than a piece of information about yourself.

“That’s nice. You must meet so many people daily.” Yoongi nodded. 

“As would you, Doc.” 

That made Yoongi grin, “I sure do, _____.” 

“Also, breakfast’s ready. I made cheese toast.” Yoongi added. 

“Oh, Yoongs, you know I don’t do carbs in the morning.” Chaerin whined. 

“Yeah, well, this isn’t for you.” Yoongi smirks at her. “You get a special green juice and eggs.” He points the spatula at the blender placed on the other side of the stove. 

Oh, mystery solved. Your coffee blender has healthy stuff in it. 

“Yoongi! That’s _____’s blender.” Chaerin reprimands him, kinda. “_____, I’m sorry! Would you like to use mine? I don’t think it’s as good as yours but I’m sure it can crush ice well.” She was already halfway through setting it up for you. 

“How could you miss her name on the blender, Yoongs, seriously,” You hear Chaerin playfully whisper and swat at his ass.

Ok!

Chaerin and Yoongi were weirdly domestic.

You don’t know how to feel about it. 

You’re so out of place. In your own home too! 

They bicker like a married couple. Like how you and Yoongi used to. 

A strange feeling settles in the bottom of your stomach. 

“_____? Cheesy bread?” Yoongi extends a place of his mouthwatering, garlicky cheesy bread toward you. 

Ok, your OG plan was to get your hair done and then get breakfast but hey, shouldn’t you be saving money? Eating at home is way better. And it’s not like it’d cut into your time or anything. 

All you have to worry about is Yoongi. 

But you’ve missed his cooking. You know he made cheesy bread on purpose. You heard him! It wasn’t for Chaerin. Because, somehow, he knows Chaerin prefers protein and fibre for breakfast. 

:/

“I want cheesy bread.” You affirm, mostly to yourself. 

Yoongi smiles at you endearingly, “Attagirl.” 

You shuffle over to the other end where Chaerin plugged the blender in for you, prepare your sugary drink and retreat to the dining area.

When you turn, you see Yoongi plating Chaerin’s eggs for her as she watches on dreamily. 

It almost feels too intimate of a scene for someone else to witness. 

The weird feeling in your belly returns. 

No, it’s not what you’re thinking. You’re not still in love with your ex, or hung up on him. 

The situation is just… weird.

You’ve never seen Yoongi with another partner before. And he’s just suddenly all in your space, sharing his space with another girl. You just aren’t used to not holding 99% of his attention. 

A smile tugs at Yoongi’s mouth as he listens to something Chaerin says. 

And a familiar feeling takes over you. It spreads through your epidermis. (Just some doctor-y jargon for ya.)

Because there it was. His gummy little smile. The exact one from four years ago. 

You think Yoongi’s changed so much. His hair’s indeed longer, and he’s actually kinda buff and lean at the same time. He’s definitely hotter somehow. But some things never change. 

As if they felt the weight of your eyes, Yoongi and Chaerin both look at you. You almost stumble.

“Come on over, _____!” Chaerin giggles. 

Five minutes later, you’re down two out of three slices of cheesy bread. 

Despite Yoongi’s numerous warnings about slowing down, you gobble the final piece down in record time. 

Yoongi’s mildly amused. 

A sadistic part of him enjoyed watching you panic in front of him. 

At least he knew he had just as much of an effect on you as you did him; even after all these years.

The whole time, your participation in the conversations between the couple was minimal. 

Not wanting to torture you any longer, Yoongi tells you about the leftover bread and gives you a thorough run-down of how to reheat it in the oven for the best results.

He also knew you weren’t about to follow through with any of it. He just wanted to talk with you a bit longer. 

Chaerin glances at the clock mounted above the microwave. Her eyes widen, “We’re late!” 

Yoongi has to tear his eyes off you to follow Chaerin’s gaze. His expression immediately sours, “Aish, we’re not late late.”  

“We’re late by our standards.” Chaerin taps her wrist. “C’mon, chop chop.” She hurriedly dumps all the dirty utensils in the sink. 

“_____, do not lift a finger. I’ll clean everything up when I’m back!” 

“Ok.” That’s easy. You do not have to be told twice. 

Chaerin runs to her room to pack her handbag. 

Across the room, Yoongi shrugs into his jacket. The one from last night. 

Sigh. Last night. 

Yoongi clears his throat, “Hey. How are you getting to your thing?” 

You pretend not to know what he means, “Hm?” 

“The tutoring thing. Let me drop you off.” Yoongi insists.

“Ohh, no, that’s okay. I take the bus.” And you’re off to a salon first. “Thanks though.”

“You sure?” Yoongi remembers how much you loved being his passenger princess. 

“I’m okay.” You give him a small smile. 

Yoongi grabs his car keys from the bowl. You don’t miss the keychain on it. A worn out, cat plushie. Handmade by you. 

Well, isn’t that sweet. 

You feel better about the shirt thing now.  

Yoongi lingers by the threshold. You assume he’s waiting for Chaerin. Or checking for his phone or literally anything else. 

Then he turns to you. 

The look on Yoongi’s face catches you off guard. 

His expression had softened and displayed a hint of a smile, but not an actual smile. 

Before you decipher what it all means, he’s stepping closer. 

And then you step closer.

“Yoon-” You inhale, feeling his strong arms wrap around you. 

You freeze.

The hug lasts barely three seconds. Maybe four. 

It was long enough to register his warmth, to take in his natural scent, to feel the weight of his chest on you. It was long enough to toss your mind for a spin. You place your arms around his waist.

Then he’s pulling away gently. You almost whine at the loss of closeness. 

Yoongi’s gigantic palm covers the top of your head, pushing it back ever so slightly to make you lock eyes with him. He caresses your head. 

And before you can react, he presses a quick kiss to your forehead. 

Your mouth falls open just a little, arms dropping by your side. 

“I’m glad to see you, _____.” 

Then he steps backwards. “Good luck with your thing today.” 

And just like that, he's gone. 

The front door shuts.

You don’t have long till Chaerin comes out to find you in a trance in the middle of the doorway like this. 

Shaking it off, literally, you clear your throat. Your heart’s doing something deeply unhelpful in your chest.

Okay…

You’re not about to overthink it. 

Yeah.

next installment: love hangover (myg) #3