LonleyCoffee

You had been the first one to get the texts, but Jungkook and Suga had not been far behind.

‘Descent on hybrid district,’ the text had read. ‘Scorched earth’.

Jungkook’s face had darkened, murderous rage filling his eyes. You hadn’t tried to hold him back after that, even the fear you felt for him not quite managing to seep through the horror you had felt at that statement.

This was a targeted attack. There were numerous innocent families, children, people who were just living their lives in the hybrid district. This was intended purely to hit where it would hurt Jungkook the most.

It had worked as intended.

You had attempted to send Hector home at eleven, since there were still men left in the building, but he had simply shaken his head. He was now sitting on a chair, by the door, in a drowse. He did not even stir when you made a phone call, but you had noticed his eyes lifting whenever there was a noise outside. You supposed you would feel guilty about it if there had been any room left for guilt within you in the last twelve hours.

The flow of information had been non-stop, and what you were putting out was almost as consequent. After that first night, Mr. X had compared you to a computer, able to treat the data in seconds and to figure out the best course of action from there. You had been the one who had been responsible for the plan that had effectively choked the opposing group to death. All exit routes methodically cut, all options taken into account.

None of them had made it out alive.

Tonight, you had done everything in your power to ensure that your side would not be put in the same situation.

“You might wanna head home, ma’am,” Hector suggests from his seat, and you look up at him. Your eyes have been open so long they burn.

“I probably won't be long,” you reply, and even you don't manage to keep the exhaustion out of your voice. “Just a few minutes more.”

You see, in the way that his eyebrows rise, that he does not find your decision to be judicious, but he doesn't say anything and you're thankful for that. If he did, you might have to confront the real reason you’re insisting on staying here, awake, and that is because you're desperate to hear from either Jungkook or Suga. Though you have gotten messages from people surrounding them — few and far between, as you don’t have that many informants around there — and they seemed to still be alive a few hours ago, it’s been a long time and you just—

God. You just want to know that Jungkook’s okay. You just want to know that he’s found somewhere safe and that he’s managed to minimize the damage. You know, realistically, that you would have heard far more about it if that wasn’t the case, and yet there’s this deep, dull throbbing in your chest that has not gone away once since Jungkook walked out the door, prepared for a fight to the death — though you doubted he had feared it would be his death.

And so, even though you should, you cannot find it in yourself to abandon your seat, to allow your eyes leave your phone for even a second.

The call comes long after you’ve stopped expecting it, and you pick up in an instant, index finger sliding on the screen.

“Hello?”

“They’re gone,” Suga’s voice comes through the phone, thick and tired. “We’ve run them out of the district. Gonna stay a bit to ensure no one comes back but—” There are some intelligible words coming from behind him. “By the time we arrived, they had barricaded themselves in a bar,” he sighs after barking an order you don't catch. “It took a while.”

“I see,” you say. “Are there many losses on either side?”

“Lots of wounded on ours, a few dead.” And then, with cold, furious satisfaction: “On their side, everyone.”

“Good,” you reply, and you surprise yourself with how sincerely you mean it. “I will call for an emergency meeting tomorrow. Will you and Mr Jeon be able to attend it, or have you been injured severely? Do you need me to call one of our doctors?”

There’s a moment of silence on the other side of the line.

“We’ll make it,” he finally answers. “But yeah, send someone to Jungkook’s place.”

Your heart jumps painfully in your chest, and you have to steel yourself to stop your voice from wavering.

“Is he alright?”

“He'll be fine,” Suga just says, and though it does nothing to calm your worry, you drop the subject. It should be enough to you, knowing that he’s alive and mostly okay.

It isn’t.

“Good. In that case, I will see you both tomorrow.”

The second the call ends, you’re getting up from your chair, Hector already on his feet.

“There’s a car waiting for you, and I’ve had men check out your apartment, ma’am.”

You nod at him thankfully. For a second, at the door, you think you’re going to falter, that your legs won’t be able to carry you any further. But they do, they always do, taking you one step further even when you feel you cannot, simply because you have to.

And they will carry you tomorrow as well, and the day after that, and the day after that. Never once allowing you to collapse.

The atmosphere is crackling with tension when you walk back into that very same room the next day. In a glance, you verify that every person who you had thought would answer the call yesterday, based on the new developments, is here. A sigh of relief bubbles in your throat, but you keep it contained as you make your way through the room, setting your computer down next to the place where Jungkook would soon be sitting.

The faces around the table are all more or less familiar, but their dark expressions are not. Fred Lucas’s signature smile has been wiped from his face, the corner of his lips pointing downwards. His usually impeccable suit is crinkled, and dark circles seem to have been dug under his eyes. He looks like he’s taken on ten years in the last night. He doesn't even bother nodding at you.

Most of the other humans here are more or less in the same state, but some of the hybrids look significantly worse for wear. They have to be the ones that joined Suga and Jungkook the night before, several of them sporting significant injuries. Your eyes land on Junho, and you instinctively dig your nails into your palm to stop yourself from flinching. You can see a compress on his neck, coming out from underneath a black shirt, but he doesn’t seem to be doing too badly.

You find some comfort in it — not because of him, but because in that sight, you find some hope that Jungkook won’t be doing too bad either.

“You got a problem?” he snarls, baring his teeth at you and you realize in horror that you’ve been staring.

This doesn’t happen to you. This never happens to you and, fuck, this is why you can’t ever let your guard down. Fear sets your veins on fire, and though your mouth opens, you have no idea what to reply.

Shit. Shit.

“I’m sorry you got injured,” your tongue miraculously answers even as your brain remains frozen, and you’re thankful for the years of training you have in this. He growls, pushing himself up on the chair. The movement seems fluid and easy, confirming your impression that he isn’t too severely injured, but this time you don’t let yourself get caught in that thought. Instead you brace for impact, straightening your back. You know that it’s your voice that set him off, that it was too flat and even, that it didn’t carry any concern. You also know that Hector is staring at you, just waiting for a nod from you to intervene, and that Fred Lucas’s hand has come to rest lightly on his belt, near the gun you’ve been informed he’s carrying by security.

The fear doesn’t quite leave you, but you’re not afraid of him anymore.

“Listen to me you—”

“Fucking drop it, Junho,” Jungkook’s tired voice orders as he walks in through the door.

“She just—”

“Welcome back, Mr. Jeon,” you interrupt him, bowing your head in his direction politely.

Your eyes meet his when you look up. Your gazes lock for a second, and your legs almost go weak from the overwhelming relief that washes over you. You only allow yourself a second to take him in fully, to see for yourself that, though he walks with a small limp, one hand over his abdomen, he’s alive, he’s alive, he’s alive.

He’s still staring at you with an undecipherable expression once you’re done with your brief check.

“If you would please take a seat,” you say, and you don't know if your ears are deceiving you or if your voice is indeed softer in that moment, “there is a lot we have to cover today. The sooner we can start, the better.”

“Sure,” he says and, despite his obvious injuries, he makes his way through the room with wide strides, letting himself fall on the chair next to you with a groan. Suga leans against the door, golden eyes watching over everything. He gives you a nod so small you think you might have imagined it. You certainly cannot think of anything you would have done to earn it, but you suppose events like what happened last night would have that kind of effect.

You press a key on your computer, and a slide appears behind you.

“For an overview of what happened last night—”

“What I’m saying is that you don't win a fucking war with fucking Powerpoints—”

“If you had two working fucking braincells, you’d see that we need to know the situation we’re in before we decide on—”

“None of you now what it’s like to actually fight your own fucking—”

“You’ve been in this position for two goddamn—”

You’re not sure why Jungkook is letting the argument unfold, insults shouted from across the room as no one listens to the answer nor seems particularly interested in reaching a productive decision. Mr. X would not have let that slide, you know that, but you also realize that no one would have dared raise their voice in his presence. Mere suggestions were uttered begrudgingly, as even some of the most powerful people in the Organization cowered in front of him. His word was law, and he didn’t hesitate to use that to pit people against each other.

You wonder for a second if that is what Jungkook is doing too, letting the tension build, dividing to conquer, but it doesn't seem to be the case. He doesn’t look amused by the situation, dark eyes attentive to everything going on in the room — for once, certainly more focused than you are. Slumped in his chair, probably to protect his injured side, you notice his fingers tapping on the table at a fast rhythm.

“Will you be taking on more security?” you ask quietly, knowing that it likely won’t be picked up on by the hybrids in the room, considering the degree of agitation.

He throws you a surprised glance, eyebrows scrunching either in confusion or from being torn away from the spectacle, you can’t tell.

“Why would I do that?”

“There will likely be more attempts against your life from now on,” you reply. “Having a couple of guards should deter some and ensure that you remain safe.”

“I can do that myself,” he says, though not quite with anger. “If anyone should take on more security, it’s you.”

You think of the gun that’s in your purse at this very moment, that you checked before leaving your apartment was filled with ammunitions, even though you’ve not once emptied it, and then you glance at Hector, who is surveilling the situation, arms folded over his large torso. You don't think anyone could keep you safer than he can, but that’s not what you tell Jungkook.

“That might be a good idea indeed,” you nod. “I will look into it as soon as we’ll have decided on a course of action here. I can also look for some men for you in the process.”

His frown deepens, a flash of anger in his eyes, and he opens his mouth, obviously ready for a sharp retort, before closing it again to study you. Under the attention, you feel your face growing warm. You have no idea what he’s looking for, but you’re all too aware of the way his eyes search yours, roaming over your expression like there is some sign in there that he cannot find. Finally, he leans back in his seat with an annoyed sigh and closes his eyes.

“You need to stop interfering in my business. I’ll have Yoongi around, and that’ll be more than enough.”

You bite the inside of your cheek. You should drop it.

“Would you consider having at least one additional man until your injuries heal?”

If it were up to you, he wouldn't leave the building without a full escort, but you’re— you’re trying, dammit.

“It’ll be fine in a couple of days, the knife didn’t go that d—”

“The knife?”

His eyes snap open at your tone, and you're not quick enough to school your features back to normal. He catches something on your face this time, though you’re not sure what — could be shock, could be fear, could be sadness or anything else — but again, there’s that spark of satisfaction in his eyes, and you feel yourself retreating immediately.

“Suga didn’t inform me of that,” you say, voice as emotionless as ever. “I suppose it’s—”

“Just— get me the dude. Or dudes. I don't care. I’ll get rid of them when I’m healed.”

It’s your turn to try to find something in his expression and to fail. You just can't seem to understand what he's doing these days, but you bite back the question you desperately want to ask. This is a positive in your book, and it’s probably better not to ask.

“I… will,” you finally say with a slow nod, unsure of what just happened there and unable to make sense of it. His eyes don’t leave yours, but his expression falters.

“Do you—”

“Listen to me you son of a bitch, you don’t get to—”

You both snap back to the room, in which two men have almost come to blows. One of them holds the other by the collar, while that one is reaching for something in his pocket that has to be either a knife or a gun. Just as you open your mouth, Suga appears between the two and they suddenly let go of each other without him having to say a word. He looks small, both in frame and in height, between the two, but you remember the day he took out some of Mr. X’s best men too well to underestimate him based on that.

“Alright,” Jungkook says, “what’ve you got, Yoongi?”

“No one’s expecting us to counter-attack this quickly, so I say we go for it,” Suga shrugs, and some in the room holler in approval while others grimace and shake their heads. “But we should only go against one district for now. After last night, it’d be suicide to do anything else. We have the city pretty well mapped out, so I say we try to eat at them slowly for the time being, then see what happens.”

Jungkook nods, then glances at you.

“What about you?”

One blink, and the surprise you feel at the question is gone.

“The casinos will be under heavy surveillance,” you say, “so they should be avoided for now. Based on the intel we got, it seems last night’s attack came from some of the Families that are mostly involved in the protection business, so it would make sense to go after them first. Some inner reorganization will also need to be done to ensure drugs are still being passed smoothly and ideally to block the supply for the other side. I can start looking into that.”

“Alright. Junho?”

The shark hybrid starts to answer, followed, one by one, by all the people present in the room. You scribble some notes down, watch Jungkook shoot down some ideas, tell people who to work with, and you certainly notice the glances exchanged by the people who, like you, were used to working with Mr. X. Though some seem skeptical, none appear to view it as a sign of weakness, which is a good sign.

The meeting is starting to fizzle out — roles have been attributed for the most part, only a few details remain to be explained — when a security guard walks in.

Immediately, a room full of some of the most dangerous people in the city, if not the country, spin around to glare at him, and he takes a cautious step back.

“Um, ma’am,” he says, looking somewhat relieved once he’s found you, “I have someone downstairs who says they have business with a Mr. Jeon?”

Jungkook sits up straight, and you hold back a curse. You’ll need to tell them to give the information to you in private next time.

“And who’s that person?”

“A lady called… Anna Xanders?”

Great. Great.

As Anna makes her way towards the conference room, the only people left inside waiting are yourself, Suga and Jungkook. You wish he hadn’t allowed her in the building, but you hadn’t made that opinion known, all too aware of the fact that it wouldn’t be well received. He was the one who had asked the two of you to stay, though, and that meant that you had to fight every fiber of your body to stop yourself from fidgeting. Above all, there was the creeping fear that he’d go back to the Circle after meeting with her, when he was in no state to do so.

Suga looked unbothered, but then again, so did you. Jungkook, on the other hand, seemed perfectly relaxed, and you supposed that had to be somewhat close to what he was really feeling.

“You shouldn’t be seeing her,” Suga says flatly. “Unless you want me to kill her.”

If that was the case, she should be taken to a remote location first. You didn't want that happening in the building. It would be a pain to get cleaned up.

“I’m not killing her,” Jungkook replies, rolling his eyes. “Just want to know what she has to say.”

You suppose in any normal situation, that would be good news, but in this case God do you wish he wanted to kill her.

Through the opaque glass, you make out her silhouette, leaving you a few seconds more to prepare yourself. One deep breath, one more attempt at getting rid of the surprisingly strong emotions swirling in your stomach, and then she opens the door.

She’s wearing all black, save for a long, elegant white scarf. She’s still carrying that look of hurt dignity, head held high, blonde hair falling down on her shoulders and behind her back. It must be so easy to fall for it, hook line and sinker, you think. Maybe if you made yourself look hurt, you would benefit from people’s sympathy as well.

Or maybe you would be dead.

“Jungkook,” she says, and then she releases a shaky little breath that makes her look weak under the strength she’s trying to present, and you refrain from rolling your eyes.

She is just as in control of herself as you are.

“Anna,” he replies, and you’re relieved that he at least doesn’t look impressed nor moved by the spectacle. He just looks somewhat— bored. “What do you want?”

There’s a look of hurt on her face at his direct approach, but she conceals it quickly.

“I— I heard about what happened last night,” she says softly. “I just wanted to check on you. I know— I know you haven’t replied to me and you probably don’t want to see me, but I— I just needed to know you were alright.”

You clench your teeth, unusual rage constricting your chest. Surely he’ll know that she didn’t once check on him when he was at the Circle, surely he’ll see through—

“Replied to you?” he asks, rising an eyebrow.

“Oh, I’ve been trying to get in touch with you, haven’t you…?”

You certainly don’t miss the tiniest spark of satisfaction in her eyes, even if she glances down to the floor to hide it. Jungkook glances in your direction with a frown.

“Anything suspect must have been thrown away,” you reply with a shrug. Not a truth, but not a lie either.

“Surely flowers aren’t suspect,” Anna says, and though her voice remains soft, you know that she’s annoyed, probably less because of your interference than because it means you have power over her. You’ve always been beneath her, at her beck and call. Now, she is the one who’s nothing.

“They’re an inconvenience to hybrids if they smell too strongly,” you say.

“But the engraved knife wasn’t,” Anna adds, sounding just a little too triumphant, and you annoyingly miss a beat to answer her, unsure what she’s talking about. A knife…?

“Oh, yeah, we assumed it was probably a threat,” Yoongi drawls from the other side of the table. “Figured there was no reason to bother the boss with it.”

Anna’s quick to mask her defeat, letting a small, soft ‘Oh’, while Jungkook rolls his eyes once more — but you’d swear you saw a grin on his lips.

“Next time, just transfer it,” he says. “I can deal with that shit. What d’you want?”

“Right, sorry, I— I just wish you and I could talk. There’s— so much I never got the chance to tell you, and I— I think I could help you with some of the issues you’ve been having. Many people are quite loyal to me, because of my father, you know. I’m sure I could have some sway over them and ensure that you and— and everyone remains safe. If that’s something you’d like, of course.”

Of course, your first thought is that this offer should be rejected. Anna should not be trusted, not in any scenario. The second one is more… puzzled. You know for a fact that she wasn’t very involved in the Organization, even if she very much enjoyed the money and status her father’s identity offered her. Could she have been approached by people? Was she trying to test the waters, to see who the highest bidder would be?

There was not much loyalty towards Mr. X, just fear — in most circles. Those who were loyal, you should be able to look into fairly easily. Maybe that was something you should get on, when you’d get a second.

“Yeah, that may be a good thing,” Jungkook says, and you jolt back to the present scene just in time to avoid throwing him a horrified look. Instead, you slowly tilt your head in his direction. Nothing. He’s not smiling, doesn’t look particularly annoyed either.

“There are other ways to gain loyalty,” Suga comments, and you know Jungkook also hears the dangerous, warning edge in his voice. Clearly, he wants this as little as you do.

“And we'll look into them as well,” Jungkook says, tone final. “What do you say? Do you want to schedule a meeting?”

A lovely blush colors Anna's cheeks, and she coyly pushes a lock of hair behind her ear.

You could rip her face off.

“How about having dinner together?”

Again, no emotions from Jungkook.

“That works too.” He glances at you. “Think you can find a time?”

“You’re going to be quite busy from now on,” you say, mostly stalling to swallow down anger, worry, and other things you don’t want to dwell on. “But I suppose I could arrange for you to have some time free next week.”

“Oh,” Anna says, softly, “this might be urgent, don’t you think you—”

“Next week it is then,” Jungkook interrupts her, giving a nod of approval in your direction. “We’ll handle the details.” Then he lifts his chin to point at the door. “You know the way.”

She presses her lips in disappointment, but that fades in favor of the victory she’s just gained — and which she knows she’s just gained over two of Jungkook’s closest advisors. Suga is obviously seething, and she knows you well enough to be able to tell. You can only watch as she exits the room.

She’s good enough of an actress not to smile until she’s out of sight.

“You two don’t get to decide that shit for me,” Jungkook’s voice resonates in the silence that follows. You expected anger, but there’s none there.

“We wouldn’t have to if you made good fucking decisions,” Suga hisses. “What the fuck are you doing? We’re not taking her in. She’d have sold her own fucking father to make it that day.”

“I know.”

“Then what—”

“My problem. Not yours.”

There’s a growl, and then Suga’s storming out, leaving you alone with Jungkook. Not a situation you want to be in right now, so you bow politely in his direction.

“If you'll excuse me, Mr. Jeon, I—”

“Why’d you hide the roses from me?”

He’s just asking, you see it in his eyes. The lie, or the half-truth, that you didn’t want him to ally himself with her, comes to you easily, fully formed. But it’s not what ends up making it past your lips.

“Last time you heard from her, you had to be picked up from a bar, where you got into a fight with a customer after hours upon hours of fighting at the Circle. I don’t believe that she is... good for you, Mr. Jeon.”

There’s more, too, but that will have to do for the moment. Even now, your entire body is screaming at you that you shouldn't have revealed that much about yourself, and there’s nothing you can do to calm your thundering heart.

Jungkook stares at you, then speaks slowly, like he’s choosing his words carefully.

“I won’t do it this time.”

“Certainly,” you nod, “I’m sorry I—”

“No, I— I won’t do it this time. Seriously.”

You don't know what to say to that. You haven’t got a clue. What you do know is that Jungkook is looking straight into your eyes, your heart is pounding in your chest, and you’re sure that you're letting things show on your face that shouldn’t be here.

So you don't say anything — don't trust your voice, really, not when the rest of your body is failing you treacherously —, nod.

And then you flee.

If you could avoid it, you don't think you would leave the office at all in the days that follow. You have considered transforming one of the offices into a small bedroom anyway, it’s always good to ensure there is place for people to rest — or to discreetly operate on someone who cannot go to a hospital because the wounds would raise too many questions — and in the current circumstances, anytime someone highly ranked in the Organization takes a step outside, they are putting their lives in danger.

Of course, everyone else is aware of that, and none of them would limit themselves in such a fashion, but the difference is that you hear about everything. Every attack is brought back to you, whether it is threats hurled at someone from across the road, a stabbing in an alleyway, or a car chase on the freeway. If someone switches allegiance, you’re the one who writes it down and updates the relevant people. If there’s a shootout, if a car burns down, if a gun goes missing—

You. It all comes back to you.

You suppose it makes sense, then, that you are the one who wants to take the most precaution to protect your life, though you know others are doing it as well. Fred, you’ve heard, doesn’t stray outside of the area he has full control over. You’ve also been told that even Junho has barely been seen outside of the hybrid district, not even showing up to the Circle. They could afford that, but you still had to leave your apartment every morning to take your car — was anywhere more dangerous than these metal boxes these days — and get to work.

Yet you kept doing it.

It wasn’t that you thought they couldn't get to you, you were nowhere near that naive. You had reinforced your security, were always followed by a second car, and you had men keep an eye on your apartment day and night, but even then you knew issues could arise. Corruption, carefully planned attacks, or even sheer bad luck, everything was possible and there was no way of accounting for it all. It had worked out for you so far, which you took as a sign that you were doing your job well, but it could all change at the drop of a hat.

It wasn’t some stupid, self-sacrificial decision either. You supposed some people in this new version of the Organization might see it that way, those who were loyal to Jungkook to the death. Thinking that there was something ‘noble’ about putting their lives on the line. The idea could almost rip a laugh out of you. There was nothing noble about your job, no matter who you were working for. You were receiving word of enough stabbings, arsons and grand larceny coming from your side not to have any illusions on the topic.

You were also fully aware of how important your role was in the Organization at the moment. You had tried to make yourself indispensable earlier, and now you were, without most of your previous efforts having played much of a role in that. It seemed that you shone through specifically in times of crisis. If something happened to you right now, you would not be replaced easily. And yet, every morning and every evening, you still stepped out of the towering glass building that was the current headquarters, and went back to your apartment.

Because, once more, it all came down to the image you were giving.

If the number three of the Organization didn’t dare to walk outside, if she didn't trust her own men to protect her, if she didn't believe that she was powerful enough to protect at least herself, then what was the rest of them to do? Lie down and await death?

You had even hesitated before taking on additional protection, only allowing yourself to do so because you thought that Jungkook’s presence and his very visible confidence in the people that surrounded him could counteract the fear that that decision would display coming from you.

‘Thought’. Ha.

The right word would be ‘felt’, but you didn’t make decisions based on feelings. You never did.

You weren’t going to start now, were you?

If you felt uneasy going to and then coming back from work, that was nothing compared to way your agitation spiked when you travelled through town with Jungkook. The two of you being together like that, that made you the easiest, most interesting preys, like pheasants’ release on the opening day of the hunting season.

You could explain the decision by pointing to the image it gave once again, but you weren’t sure if that wasn’t crossing the line between confidence and simple stupidity. Maybe you should have fought Jungkook harder on it, but the truth was you had barely brought it up. Because if you were in the car with him, even if that put the both of you at risk, it at least meant that you didn’t have to spend your days in fear of the phone call that would tell you he’d died.

What was wrong with you these days, you couldn’t have explained.

At least, as he’d told you, he had mostly healed from his injuries in less than a week, which allowed him to sit comfortably across from you, back straight, legs spread, as he looked out at the city with the eyes of a man who knew he owned most of it. His long ears were, as always, skillfully hidden underneath a discreet, black hairband. It made you wonder how much of his behavior was a façade. He was, clearly, at least as aware of the importance of the image he gave as you were.

You weren’t faring quite as well as him, though. You knew that, despite your best efforts and your years of work, there was tension vibrating through you that you couldn’t quite hide. It was in the slightly too quick cadence of your voice, in your movements that were just a touch too jerky, in the glances you were constantly throwing around the car — rear-view mirror first, then windshield, then left and right windows.

There had been two attempts against the two of you since the war had begun. Both had been easily thwarted, and none of them involved firearms, but you knew it was a question of when, not if.

“Hey,” Jungkook calls, and you're thankful that you at least don’t jump at that, but you’re still too quick at looking in his direction.

Dammit. You need to get your rhythm under control.

“Yes, Mr. Jeon?”

He rolls his eyes, you think at the name you use rather than at you. You don't know what he wants you to do with that. He’s the one that asked you to call him that.

“I know you don’t do chill, but seriously, you’re going to explode if you keep it up.”

“There’s a war going on, Mr Jeon.” You think you manage not to sound reproachful. You wouldn’t want him to be in the same state you are. You just can’t help yourself.

“I’m aware,” he replies and, where an explosion would have occurred just a couple of months ago, there’s only a frown on his face. “This still isn't helping.”

Before you realize what you’re doing, you’re allowing yourself a deep breath. When you do, when you brain starts screaming at you, asking you what the fuck is going on, you’ve already done it, and all you can do to try and save face is stop yourself from freezing like a deer in headlights.

Jungkook is just looking at you. You see something twitch in his jaw, his fists clenching, and then he’s the one who looks away, tongue pushing against the inside of his cheek.

“You might be right,” you say, dropping the usual ‘Mr. Jeon’ but unable to bring yourself to call him Jungkook, “but this has kept me alive so far. I— have no reason to believe that anything else would do the same.”

He closes his eyes shut for a second, then he looks back at you. His elbow is resting on the window, thumb hovering a few millimeters from his lips. He looks at you — really looks at you, takes you all in — and you feel a now familiar burn spreading over your body. You have no idea if he can tell.

Right now, you're not even quite sure whether you want him to or not.

He opens his mouth.

And that is you catch movement from the corner of your eye, and before you can turn your head, shock explodes through the car and then it's spent spinning.

Your hand shoots for the handle and you hold on to it desperately, eyes tightly shut, pulled back against the seat with bruising force by your seatbelt. You hear the window exploding, feel the tiny cuts the shards of glass leave on your skin, hear Jungkook curse, the smell of burning tires reaches your nose, your stomach lurches in your chest, and then it stops, but there is no time for the ringing silence to settle. By the time you manage to open your eyes, heart pounding so loud you think it might escape from your rib cage, there’s shouting outside, and then Jungkook’s pulling your head down as shots start to ring.

“Fuck,” he hisses through his teeth, hand still in your hair, as his body forms a shield between you and the direction the shots are coming from — you think, you’re too disoriented to tell at the moment, but he seems not to hesitate. What does hit you in that moment, when you inhale, trying to bring air into your frozen lungs, is the earthy smell coming from him, touches of pine, probably from his soap, and something musky that is definitely him.

If you could slap yourself for losing the precious second that thought takes to formulate, you would, but at least the rush of something that this proximity sends through your body easily blends with everything else happening at the moment, and Jungkook doesn't seem to notice.

“We’re followed by another car,” you manage to say, though the words stumble out of your mouth way too fast, “they should take action—”

“Yeah, but we still need to get out of here,” he growls. “We’re too good of a target. They’ll get brave and get closer any time now.”

You have to take his word for it. You’ve never been in that kind of situation before. Adrenaline is running through your veins almost painfully and you feel your fight or flight reaction kicking in — with one hundred percent of your energy going towards ‘flight’. One glance in the direction of the driver tells you that he’s slumped over the wheel, possibly unconscious, but likely dead.

You should probably feel more at that thought than annoyance at the fact that you’re going to have to replace him, but truth is if you felt sadness over every death that happened in this city, you would have crumpled a long time ago.

The loud screeching of tires on concrete outside tells you that the reinforcements have arrived.

“Alright,” Jungkook says. “That should buy us some time.”

For the first time, he looks down at you. Your heart flutters inappropriately — oh my God, just shut the fuck up — when you meet his eyes, but all it solidifies is the fact that he, unlike you, knows exactly what he's doing. In that moment, you don’t doubt for a second that, if you make it out alive, it will be thanks to him.

He kicks open the door behind him, the one facing away from all the turmoil. One of his hands holds a vice-like grip on your wrist, pulling with him in that direction. You stumble after him, your heels wholly unadapted for the situation, and crouch behind the car as he glances over it to surveil what’s happening.

The shots, briefly interrupted by the arrival of the second car, are picking up again, and with them your heart rate. You manage to take in the surroundings, but there isn’t much to be gained from it. It’s a quiet area by the river, long stretches of concrete and not a soul in sight.

You’ll have to do a better job at keeping to more populated areas.

“I think they only have one car,” Jungkook tells you, crouching back down next to you.

“So do we, for now,” you say with a frown. You have enough safety protocols in place to think that the men that are here must have called for help the second they saw something was wrong, but for now the forces are pretty much in equal number.

Which means that you’re stranded next to wrecked car, on a road on which nothing can move at the moment. The two of you might as well be sitting ducks.

Your phone buzzes and you fish it out of the purse that you have somehow kept in your clenched fist this whole time. As you open your hand, you grimace slightly at the traces your fingernails have left inside your palm. Shit. You didn’t even notice that.

Right next to your phone, you feel your gun. You've never used it in this kind of situation, and your fingers hesitate, hovering above the grip for a second before you decide against it. You'll still have it, should you need it, but it just feels so small and useless out here in the open, with shots and shouts ringing behind you, that you don’t want to give yourself some false comfort by holding on to it.

Your phone, on the other hand, is your life line in any situation, this one included, because on the screen, you see displayed four names and telephone numbers.

Someone is getting a raise this month.

Jungkook frowns, nose scrunching, when you type a reply, and even more when you press the dial button and bring the phone to your ear.

“There’s more important—”

“Who is this?” a voice groans on the other side. Even if it's hard to tell with all the noise, you think you're hearing the shots echoed through the speaker.

“Mr. Lee,” you say, “I recommend you stop shooting at us.”

There’s a silence, during which you glance at Jungkook, who now looks at least somewhat impressed.

“That’s— Wha— How d’you— How d’you know—”

As the man tries to find his words — and you don't doubt that he must be feeling sheer terror at the idea that you even know his name — you see Jungkook lifting up his head suddenly, one of his long ears, which slipped out of the bandana in the turmoil, twitching. You try to catch a glance of what’s happening, but you see nothing. He’s either smelling or hearing something you can’t, but it makes him nod decisively before leaning towards you.

“Keep him talking, and don't move from here,” he whispers in your ear, breath warm against your skin. You tell yourself that everything is just heightened in that moment, that every sensations are stronger, and that that is the only reason why your skin tingles where his hair brushes against it. Even then, you're thankful he leaves immediately after, quietly getting around the car, so he doesn't see the slow way you swallow after that, or the slow breath you let out.

It almost pained you, to have him so close to you, and even if you don't have time to think about it, even you are starting to realize what is happening within yourself.

“Mr. Lee,” you keep going nonetheless, compartmentalizing like it’s second nature — because it is —, pulling up the additional informations you’ve just been sent, “please think about what your sister would think about what you're doing right now.”

“Don’t you fucking dare—”

“She’s a school teacher,” you continue. “She sounds like a good person. So does Mr. Kang’s wife— a nurse, isn’t she?”

You think you should feel disgusted with yourself, right about now, but there’s only place for cold determination within you. You know that you would never go after anyone for their familial relationships, and that is enough for you. They don’t seem to know. Probably would, if they’d done their research, it’s something that’s been whispered about for quite some time in the Organization, but they’ve either been sent without any information, or foolishly saw this opportunity as a way to climb up in the ranks.

Either way, what a waste.

“And Mr. Min has two young children, isn't that sweet.”

A curse, and then he shouts a name.

“I’ll make you eat your fucking heart if you hurt them, you fucking bitch,” another voice yells in the phone, and you just stare into the dark, cold waters that stretch in front of you. None of these men will be getting back to their family alive. Even if they manage to kill you, you doubt they'll escape this place. “You’re just scared,” he adds, and you blink. You should be scared, he’s right, but you mostly feel empty. “You didn't even have to be in there. Could have just picked the right fucking side instead of being a hybrid’s whore. I swear to God, if you touch my kids, we’ll—”

“Mr. Min, I already have men on their way to your house,” you interrupt him. “The sooner you surrender, the sooner I can call off my orders.”

On the other side, a number of muffled ‘fuck’, and then a brief exchange between the group. You don't think the others will back up, and it's only a matter of time before they get desperate, but for now you get a second to try to see what’s happening — and, ideally, spot your boss.

It’s when you do that you see Suga, crouched on top of the car. Based on the way the men are talking amongst themselves, they have no clue he's here.

“I’ll get your head on a fucking spi—”

Things don’t last very long once Suga springs into action. The first kill is quick and messy, knife slicing into one of the men's throat, twice, back and forth. Blood splatters all over the floor and you wince in disgust. By the time he falls to his knees, Suga's already moved on to the next one. He gets a little more time to protect himself, but the killer’s movements are too fast. His hands wrap around his neck and he squeezes with inhuman strength.

As he struggles, the other two seem to regain their focus and start to take aim at him.

It only lasts a second before Jungkook is on them. He’s slower than Suga, but there’s also more power in his movements. His fist catches the first man’s jaw as the other hand rips the machine gun — where the fuck did they get that from — out of his hands. By the time the fourth man has spun around, he’s balancing on one leg, his foot coming up to kicking him in the chest and sending him reeling for several steps.

The gun spins in his hands, and then he's using the grip to hit the man he punched, still standing. It only takes three strikes before he falls, you think, but Jungkook lands a few more before he hits the ground. When he turns around, there’s no amusement on his face, unlike what you were used to see when he was at the Circle. There's just determination and anger, maybe, if you’re reading him correctly — an ability you’ve been doubting lately.

The only man left doesn’t stand a chance, but even then, Jungkook doesn’t drag the fight on any longer than he needs to. There are, you suspect, some unnecessary punches, done more to inflict pain than anything else — these ones get the man in the stomach, have him keeling over and spitting out blood — but really, it’s all over in a few minutes.

The guy Yoongi had been strangling is also down for the count.

Jungkook and him are the only ones left standing.

There’s a brief exchange of glances between them, then a nod, and Jungkook gestures at the men on your side, who are slowly coming out of the second car. You suspect that this was a baptism of fire for them, used to blades and fists, but much less so to the kind of guns these guys had been operating; one of them remains in the car, likely wounded and you see Suga walking over to them.

You get on your feet as well. Your brain seems to have a hard time registering the fact that the threat is gone, your muscles feel too tight to move. As you take your first step, you feel pain shooting up your leg.

Shit. You hadn’t noticed you’d hurt your ankle.

But that doesn't stop you from making your way over to the group. You’ll have it checked out later, you don’t think you’ll have a choice, but for now you’d rather people not know about it.

“Why did it take you so long to intervene?” Jungkook’s snarling by the time you arrive.

“We had to turn around,” one of the men, a tall, lean cat-hybrid replies. “They knew which car you were in.”

“And how the fuck would they—”

“We have moles on their side,” you offer as you come to stand next to him, “it’s no wonder they would too.” You don’t add that, while it could have been someone at HQ, it could just as easily be one of these men. If it is the case, you don't want the mole to do something desperate right now.

Jungkook’s eyes scan you briefly. Aside from your ankle, you think you only have minor injuries. He gives a sigh of relief, or maybe he’s just breathless from the fight.

“For now,” you continue, “we need to get out of here. The police will want to interrogate us, I’ll let you know what story we’ll be going for later, but we can't be caught—”

“Watch out!”

From the way the men rush out of the way, you have to assume the threat comes behind you, but your reflexes aren’t anywhere near as fast as the hybrid’s, and as you turn your head, catching sight of the car, the thought occurs to you, clear as day, as while it rushes towards you.

This is how it ends.

Honestly, you’d feared worst.

Much to your surprise, your body forces you to lunge forward, survival instinct kicking in where you thought you had none left. Your bad ankle just does not have the strength you need to make it completely out of the way, though, and you make yourself no illusions. At least, though, you go out trying to survive.

You hadn’t thought you would.

And then arms close around you and you’re pulled forward, barely hearing the scream of effort it takes over the roaring of the engine.

You blink at the car that goes past you, see it crashing one last time in the low concrete wall that runs alongside the river. The driver collapses on the wheel, and then Yoongi’s running past you, no doubt ensuring that he doesn’t move again. He makes it quick.

In your world, that is no small mercy.

But you don't get to think about that, not when the heat coming from Jungkook’s body is spreading through yours and when his hands grab your shoulders tightly as wide, panicked eyes search yours.

“Fuck, are you okay?”

You can’t do anything but nod.

He’s gripping you tightly, fingers digging into your skin, and he looks— he looks terrified. You don't know what to do with that.

So you lower your gaze, clear your throat. One of you has to keep their head on their shoulders.

“I’m alright.”

Still no ‘Mr. Jeon’.

“We need to leave this place.”

As you say that, you raise an arm, brush your fingers over the back of his hand. He jumps at the feeling, glances down at you even as you let your arm fall back down again, then back to your face. His gaze drops to your lips — you think — and then he takes a step back.

“Yeah. You're right, I just— fuck. I thought he was out for the count. I’m sorry.”

“You've saved my life twice today,” you say — softly, you think, but it’s hard to tell. “You don’t have to apologize to me.”

“Still, I—”

“Jungkook. Thank you.”

He looks conflicted, but then he sighs and gestures for you to get in the car.

In the crowded vehicle, you allow yourself a second to close your eyes. His arm, tense as bowstring, is brushing against you, and for a second, there’s just static in your brain, just exhaustion and his warmth that’s transferring to you.

Soon, of course, you go back to the planning, to the things you’ll need to change to ensure this doesn’t happen again, to everything that is to come and everything that needs to be done, the never ending list unfolding neatly in your mind.

But there is a second of quiet first. A second where, for once, you don’t try to fight the complicated feelings that have been going through you lately and where you almost — almost, but not quite — let yourself melt against the man who’s saved your life twice today.

Everything won’t be ready by then, even you can only manage so much, but arranging for people to greet him and for his office to be in order should be feasible. You know he won’t be all that impressed by it, can picture his expression of annoyance and vague disgust. Still, it should make it clear that you have everything under wraps and that he wasn’t wrong in giving you free reign in handling the building. As you were taking the steps to do that, you had been able to tell that he wasn’t happy about all of your choices. He’d held back saying anything on that, though.

That was ultimately a good thing, of course, but you weren't sure what to make of it. Before, at least, you knew what you were dealing with. You’d tried to fight back all the paranoid thoughts you’d been having ever since the shift in Jungkook’s demeanor, tried to just trust, for once. That had been— easier said than done. Maybe you just weren't wired that way, maybe you just didn’t have it in yourself.

Knowing, from the looks you sometimes caught him giving you, that the feeling was mutual had brought a surprising sense of comfort.

The elevator doors ding as they open, and you step out on the busy floor. People are rushing in every direction, carrying boxes, chairs, computers, papers, and the occasional plant. Behind a circular desk, directly facing you, a woman is setting up a computer and doesn’t notice you. In fact, no one so much as glances in your direction, and it takes you a few long seconds to find one of the security guards that you’ve hired.

That simply won’t do.

“Who is in charge of watching the elevator?” you ask the man without bothering to greet him.

You see him blink as he tries to figure out who you are. Finally, he seems to recognize Hector and, though he clearly still hasn’t placed you, he must decide that you’re important.

“Sorry, ma’am, we’re pretty busy here, I—”

“One person needs to have eyes on it at all times,” you order. There’s no inflection to your tone, no anger, and yet it leaves no place for discussion. “That is the only thing that is needed of you. Anything, and I mean anything that happens in here must be white noise to you. Is that clear?”

He swallows.

“Yes, ma’am. Understood.”

But you don’t think he does. No matter. You’ll fix it soon enough. Perhaps it would be smart to put one of Jungkook’s men at this spot. You doubt this man truly realizes what is happening here, what this company even is, and, frankly, what he risks, being here. You suppose you’ll find somewhere else for him, and you mentally file the task before briskly turning away from him.

“Mr. Jeon’s office is that way, Hector?”

You barely need to ask. You’ve studied the plans, you've chosen the emplacement for the office, to the point that you already know this place like the back of your hand, even if it’s your first time actually stepping foot in it.

Hector hums in affirmation, following after you as you make your way through the corridor. You don’t miss anything happening around you. You glance at the wide room where half of the desks have already been set up, and at the people who are already there. They’re here to act as the legal front of the business, which really is mostly just a way to launder money. None of them are actually of value, and you haven’t bothered remembering their names or faces, but they’ll come in handy as a group.

You do recognize, in a corner, two accountants that you managed to hire again. You’ll need some more, but these two are capable of actual magic with numbers, and it’s a relief to you that that’s one less thing you’ll have to worry about. One of them looks up, meeting your eyes, and you give her a polite nod, which she returns. The quiet respect of the interaction is one more thing that helps grounding you.

You wish everything could be this simple.

When you walk into Jungkook’s office, you know exactly what you’re going to find. Except what catches your eye isn’t the elegant wooden desk, the leather chair, or the impressive view on the city you have through the picture window. No, it’s the floral arrangement that sits proudly on the desk, and the rich perfume that’s emanating from it.

You don’t know much about the language of flowers. You’ve never had to give it much thought. You do know that you don’t like these colors. Lots of red, dark greens, some unpleasant touches of purple. It’s too intense, jarring, almost tacky. When you take the card that’s planted in the middle, you know exactly what to expect.

‘Jungkook,’ the card reads in elegant calligraphy, ‘I see you keep walking in my father’s footsteps. There are things that we need to discuss. You know where to find me. —A.’

Even though your back is turned to Hector, you only stop yourself from rolling your eyes at the last second, and you want to scold yourself in response to it. If you start letting emotions slip through, you’re not sure you’ll be able to hold them in next time it really matters. You know that. You need to— you need to stop slipping.

The card goes into your wallet. New filing. You’ll have to remember to burn that later.

“Throw these out,” you order Hector. “Take the stairs to avoid running into Mr Jeon, and go out the back. Then try to find out if anyone saw them getting delivered.”

“Are you sure, ma’am? If he finds out—”

“That’s a risk I’m willing to take.”

At the finality of your words, Hector just nods stiffly and takes the basket the flowers came in. Not long ago, you would have thought he had an excellent point, would have taken pains to ensure Jungkook wouldn’t find out. It was true that he still wouldn’t be happy about you hiding things from him, but it was— things had changed, too. You didn’t think he would mind that much. He’d probably understand.

Shit. Since when did you work on probably’s when it came to your safety? You needed— you weren’t sure what you needed. To get a grip or to trust him on this?

Anna trying to contact him was undoubtedly bad news, though. Your mind latches to the obvious distraction, all too happy to move away from the dilemma. Thinking of Jungkook's possible reaction to her is enough to make your stomach twist at the thought of what happened last time. You don’t want to have to go find him, all bruised and battered, after spending the night at the Circle. You don’t want to have to see him in that state again. And most of all, you don’t want to think about what he must have felt like, to inflict that upon himself.

You breathe in, slowly. As unreasonable as it is, that is probably your main reason for not letting Jungkook see the flowers and the note. You just, desperately, irrationally, want to protect him. It’s something you did a pretty shitty job at all those years ago, no matter how hard you tried, and it’s something you’d like to do better now, since you have the chance.

That isn’t the only reason, though. You’re also not sure Jungkook can be trusted around Anna. She’s been playing the manipulation game for a long time, possibly as long as she’s been alive, and it’s clear that she still has some form of influence on him. You don’t want to give her a chance at figuring that out — figuring him out. You’re certain that it would jeopardize the Organization, and, again, you don't think that would be good for Jungkook. Falling back into Anna’s arms is the last thing he needs.

Maybe you should put more faith in him, but you’ve been doing a lot of that already, lately. It looks like this is where you find your limits.

You straighten your shoulders, glancing around the room. You cannot stay here immobile, waiting for Jungkook to arrive. Without a doubt, the potent smell hanging in the air is one he will notice. There’s even a strong possibility that that consideration impacted Anna’s choice of flowers.

It certainly would have impacted yours.

You don’t linger on that thought.

In just a few steps, you’re at the window. It takes you a second to get it opened, and when you do, the harsh, cold wind of November comes rushing in. You suppress a shiver, dig your teeth into your cheek to keep them for chattering. To finish the job, you retrieve an air freshener from a nearby closet. You made sure there would be some on hand, considering the fact that a number of hybrids would be working there. While they are not fond of the artificial smell, it’s still better than most of the unpleasant, natural ones that humans don’t necessarily notice.

And, apparently, it can be used when your bitch of an ex-boss keeps trying to sink her teeth in your new one. Like she hasn’t done him enough damage, like she hasn’t hurt him enough, like he won’t forever bare the scars she’s inflicted on him—

You still your movements, mind racing.

You’re used to the gnawing of irritation, the bite of the desire for revenge, the cold feeling of injustice. This white-hot anger is— new. It’s unlike you, frankly, and that fills you with fear. But what you find truly terrifying is the fact that you don’t find completely unpleasant. You should know better. You usually do.

Yet, for some reason, you cling on to this specific emotion.

Why?

“Why the fuck does it smell like that in here?”

Turning around to face Jungkook, the question is yet one more thing that you file away in the complex system that is your brain, making a mental note to come back to it later.

Or not.

“You’re here early, Mr. Jeon,” you say with a polite nod of your head. He’s standing in the doorway, nose scrunched in disgust, black hair falling in soft curls to frame his face and underline that perfect jaw of his. A scowl twists his mouth, no doubt due to the smell he was mentioning. “There was a strange smell in here,” you say flatly, without batting an eye. Not lying but not quite telling the truth either. “I assumed you would rather avoid that in your office.”

He doesn’t question what you say — why would he? — and just lets out an annoyed groan. You’re starting to suspect that it’s just your voice that gets on his nerves. He walks inside the room and looks around critically.

“I suppose this doesn’t look too bad,” he admits after a few second.

“This should only be temporary,” you tell him. “If everything goes well, you should be able to have your own floor.”

‘If everything goes well’ sure carries a lot of weight here.

If he makes it through the next day.

If he’s not horrifically murdered in the next few months.

If you don’t fuck up.

“I don’t know if I like this,” Jungkook comments, and there’s something in his tone that makes you look at him. He’s not really saying this to you, expecting you to react to this information. He’s just— saying it. Sharing his thoughts with you. It throws you off more than you would like to admit. “I’m not going to be running things from behind a desk.”

You bite your tongue, force yourself to think about what you want to say.

“Then think of this as being about your image, Mr. Jeon,” you say. “Ideally, I would prefer if you worked from here, at least until things settle down but,” you keep going, expecting his anger, “I would understand if you didn’t. Still, this place should be safe.” And you add, somewhat self-consciously. “I upped the security.”

He seems puzzled, and then an amused — somewhat mocking, but mostly amused — grin forms on his face.

“As long as you have some hybrids on the team, no one should be able to do what we did.”

You nod politely. You’d thought something along those lines.

“We will ensure that we do.”

“Frankly, even we didn’t think it would be that easy to take you on,” Jungkook adds, burying his hands in his pockets and taking a step towards you. The grin’s still dancing on his lips, and you stare. Is he trying to get a rise out of you?

You realize you’re taking too long to answer, and you look away, though you can tell that he's still looking at you, still smiling. You have no idea what to make of that or what you should reply. So, instead of going down that route, you clear your throat and pull out your phone, looking at it to read the schedule you know by heart.

“There is still work to be done up here,” you say, voice coming back to you now that you’re going down a familiar script, “so most of the appointments you have for today are outside. In the future, we’ll ideally hold most meetings here or in restaurants nearby.” You don’t add that you want to make sure people come to him, in a place where you can be in control, rather than the opposite. You know he wouldn’t like that, and you know he’ll likely keep his habits or going all around town. That is just something you’ll have to compose with.

“Right,” he says, tone just a little too sharp, and you hear all that he doesn’t say loud and clear. You could take issue with it, but you know that he’s making the same kind of effort you are.

You glance up at him and your eyes meet. In that moment, you both choose not to add anything that could get your defenses back up.

“Let’s get it done,” he says, and you nod.

This is something you think you could get used to. Actually, this is— nice, almost.

Almost.

While Jungkook has given you more freedom lately, not forcing you to be on his heels at all time, you are still in his presence more often than not. You are not entirely sure of how much of that is necessary. Since he now actually listens to you, it certainly makes more sense than it used to, but you can’t help but think that there has to be a better use of your time. You did mention, once, the possibility of having someone else filling in for you — someone who would be able to explain the inner workings of the Organization shouldn’t be that hard to find — but Jungkook just let out a dismissive scoff, and you didn’t bring it up again.

You did not want to push your luck, not for something that was ultimately harmless, when it was clear that you had finally reached a fragile truce. You still managed to get things done on your phone while Jungkook did— did his thing, more or less. It involved a lot of talking to people, a lot of handshakes, and many meetings in small offices that you were not always allowed into.

You were familiar with such interactions; Mr. X made sure to meet with the higher-ups at least once a month, and had frequent dinners with them individually. The difference was that Jungkook didn’t limit himself to the higher-ups. They were on the list, certainly, but it wasn’t all that rare for you to have to spend your afternoons in a freezing warehouse while Jungkook was talking with people who were only in command of a small group — sometimes, the meeting involved the whole group.

You did not say a word about it. At this point, you suspected that he knew what your feelings on the matter were, but he didn’t comment on it either. Those were differences that you could accept, especially because you could somewhat see the use in what he was doing.

Mr. X had never done anything to ensure the loyalty of those people and, though you sometimes met with one of your informants in person, neither had you. Usually, fear was enough to keep them in line. But with someone as charismatic and as confident as Jungkook… It was no wonder that that they felt they had a shot.

And, of course, a large number of the people Jungkook met with were hybrids. Some hid their attributes underneath hoodies and gloves; others flaunted them threateningly. You spotted lots of sharp teeth and claws, split tongues, scales, and, on one occasion, additional eyes on the temples of a spider-hybrid, usually hidden behind glasses.

Jungkook fit right in. The way he spoke, the way he held himself, it was obvious that he was seen as one of their own.

The same thing could not be said about you. Your mere presence could offset the balance in the whole room. On the few occasions when you interfered to talk to Jungkook, you were met with glares and even a couple of growls.

While there was no way Jungkook wouldn’t have noticed, he didn’t say anything about it. You weren’t sure what that meant. It seemed unlikely that he was putting you in these situations to make you fear for your life, not when he’d made it clear that you were not to be harmed by his men. That, however, did not help you figure out what his true reasoning was.

You were starting to wonder whether or not there was a reasoning. That was hard to wrap your head around, so unlike anything you had experienced in the years since you had joined the Organization. But then again, Jungkook was unlike anything you had experience since then.

And maybe that was not a bad thing.

During that time, you had started to send Hector do some of your less sensitive work. He’d recoiled at first at the idea of leaving you alone but, for once, he had not seemed too upset when you had insisted. You couldn’t say for sure if that was because he was mad at you or because he believed you when you told him you would be safe. He had simply nodded, and then he’d gotten to work. As it turned out, his heightened sense of hearing was an invaluable ability when he met with people or inspected places. You were always cautious not to send him anywhere too dangerous, of course, and you suspected that he knew that.

Trust might have been growing here, too, now that you thought about it.

Huh.

“This group is in charge of weapons entering the country,” you tell Jungkook in the car. “The government pays close attention to that, so they lay low when there’s no shipment coming in. The recent change in the group’s direction seems to have been well-received, even among the human members.”

Jungkook snorts at that.

“Yeah, ‘cause you would be the first to know if that wasn’t the case.”

“I actually keep a close eye on that group, considering their importance,” you reply, not even blinking at his derisive tone. “I would have heard about it.”

That makes him glance in your direction, raising an eyebrow.

“You have eyes everywhere, don’t you?” This time, he’s not mocking you.

“There seems to have been some movement within the group,” you continue, unwilling to reveal your secrets any more than you need to, “but most of the humans who were there kept their place. If anything, the new arrangement ensures more stability within the group, because the hybrids face less danger.”

You notice a muscle in Jungkook’s jaw contracting at your words, and you know exactly what he's thinking about. While weapons are strictly regulated in the country, humans caught carrying them can essentially get away with jail time, a fine if they’re lucky — or able to corrupt the police. For hybrids, however, punishment could go up to the death penalty. It says a lot about the Organization’s views that the team charged with handling the weapons was mostly hybrids.

So disposable that their lives could be lost to avoid jail time for humans.

“Most humans within the group seem to take no issue with the new arrangements,” you conclude. You’re not sure why you add that; it is an unnecessary assessment. It could be an attempt to ensure that the meeting you’re about to enter will be productive and that Jungkook won’t be out for blood. It could be you trying to stop the situation from worsening.

Or it could be a clumsy way of trying to bring him some comfort.

If that is what you are doing — and you refuse to look into it, refuse to analyze the way you’re feeling right now over something that insignificant — God are you bad at it.

“They better not,” Jungkook just growls.

There is more that you could say. According to your informant, something akin to friendship — comradeship at the very least — has developed within the group. These people look out for each other. Considering what happened in other factions once authority changed hands, you believe this to be significant. But none of this is objective, nor does it actually matter. Factions have been run without any of that for far longer than you've been involved with the Organization.

So you don’t say anything, merely lean back into your seat, and look out the window. The car is smoothly following along the bay, dwarfed by the massive cargo ships entering and leaving the harbor. Despite yourself, you feel your shoulders tensing. You’re always careful when you’re around here — would never set foot in here unless you absolutely had to. It’s too crowded, full of too many people from different factions. The ones that don’t belong to the Organization despise the ones that do. In the best of times, you’re not welcome there.

This is far from being the best of times.

Still, when you get out of the car alongside Jungkook, no one would be able to tell that the atmosphere here makes your skin crawl. Now that you frequently work with hybrids, your control over your breathing has become constant. One less thing for others to pick up on and to use against you; one more thing for you to constantly be mindful of.

You wonder if this should have been harder for you to implement, but the truth is that it only took a few days of effort. The control you have over your body at this point is— absurd, probably.

But even that doesn’t stop your heart from dropping in your chest and your blood from turning into ice in your veins when you spot a familiar face among the small group that is already gathered in the warehouse.

It’s been a while since you’ve last seen him. He’s aged considerably since the last time, grey streaks in his hair, circles under his eyes, and you wonder if anything happened and how he got affected to this job. The last time you had been in contact with him, he was still at the quiet position you had ensured he had, supervising the bouncers in a club that was not so secretly a brothel as well.

You remember the look on Mr. X’s face when you had asked him for the favor, the pleasure he’d taken in seeing you squirm.

You were almost— you were certain that this part of the business had not been affected by Jungkook’s reorganization of things. There was no reason for him to be here.

So then why are you suddenly staring at your father’s face, standing in the middle of a shady warehouse?

Had something happened? Was there an issue with money? Why wouldn’t your family have contacted you and why, why hadn’t you kept better fucking track of his whereabouts, why hadn’t you known—

Your thoughts are interrupted by Jungkook’s voice as he greets the group’s leader, and you immediately try to correct yourself. You can tell that your jaw is clenched too tightly, know that there is probably a tension in your shoulders that looks unnatural. You can only hope that people will blame it on you being a stuck-up bitch; anything that they already believe to be true about you. Anything but the truth.

You barely lay eyes on the man who brings Jungkook in a brief embrace. Hoseok, you’d learned when checking your intel. There are doubts as to what type of hybrid he is. The unnerving smoothness with which he moves makes you suspect snake, but it could just as easily be something else. He shoots you a quick smile, which would have caught you by surprise if you weren’t hyper focused on the situation at hand, wringing your brain in an attempt at understanding it.

The brief speech Jungkook gives is completely lost on you, though, even in that state, you don’t miss how easily he manages to captivate and rile up his audience. Charisma rolls off of him in waves, and no one seems to be immune to it — well, no one but you and your father. His eyes remain bored and he keeps on staring at the ground.

He does not look at you once.

It is not until Jungkook starts talking with people individually that he steps towards you.

“Fred Lucas asked me to relay a message to you, ma’am,” he says.

It’s, objectively, a good lie. He used to work for Fred Lucas, and you’re the only one who deals with him. From the corner of your eye, you see Jungkook glancing at you, looking annoyed. You doubt he’ll look into it very much.

The word “ma’am” still feels like a slap in the face, coming from him.

You tilt your head towards a corner further away in the warehouse. There is wind blowing through the gate, and with the loud noises of the harbor, you’re hoping it will be enough to cover your voices.

“What is it?” you ask, voice quiet, when you get there. “What are you doing there?”

He clicks his tongue like he’s annoyed at your questioning.

“Don’t you think you switched sides a little too quickly?” he asks you in return. “Nothing’s done just yet, and it’s not looking good for you. Some people might think it was an inside job.”

“Then they’ll think that,” you reply without batting an eye. “The choice was between this and death. What are you doing here?”

You see disapproval flash in his eyes.

“You've only delayed things,” he hisses. “You should lie low until the storm passes. Not everyone will find you indispensable.”

You discreetly flex your hand. His chastising tone brings to the surface parts of you that should remain buried at all times.

“I know you got this opportunity handed to you on a silver platter twice now,” he keeps going, shaking his head, “but you won’t always be so lucky.”

You know this should get a rise out of you. You should get angry. You should have something to reply to his words. Instead, you just feel yourself growing emptier and emptier.

Lucky.

He built the altar on which he sacrificed you, and he’s calling you lucky for it.

He’s jealous, a distant part of you supplies. It’s probably true.

“What are you doing here?” you ask for the third time. You bite back any other question, any offer of moving him, should he need your help. You know he would find it humiliating.

You’re not sure why you feel the need to shield him from that feeling, but you still do.

“It’s an important job,” your father replies dismissively. “Might as well take the opportunity to make a good impression.”

You can’t tell if he means that he wants to preserve his life or if he wants to try to climb the ranks of the Organization. You refuse to let yourself think about it, because if it’s the second option you’ll—

You can't think about that either.

“I see,” you nod. “In that case, you know where to reach me should anything be needed.”

For a second, you consider asking him about the rest of your family.

You think better of it before you act on that. You always do.

“Lie low,” he tells you again as the two of you are parting. “It’ll be better off that way.”

It’s only when you reach Jungkook that you consider the possibility that he might have been trying to look out for you. That is a thought that you could take comfort in, and yet you can’t even do that because, no matter how much you look at it, you just cannot find yourself to believe that.

“What did he want?” Jungkook asks you in the car as you drive away from the warehouse, away from the harbor, away from your father, and back to a place where you have control.

It takes a second for things to click into place.

“An update on the Heaven’s Doors situation,” you respond, though his eyes on you feel heavy in that moment. “Or rather, a lack of update.” A vague shrug. “Fred’s usual antics.”

“Is that it?”

You look up at him, meet his gaze. He’s just staring at you and you're not— You can’t read him. You can’t let yourself think that there's something akin to concern in his eyes. Not right now.

So you just nod.

“I will make sure to let you know if there is any actual development, Mr. Jeon.”

He openly rolls his eyes and, thankfully, the moment passes.

If this keeps up, you will definitely need to find a technique to keep that heart of yours in check.

Though you don’t mind being out and about with Jungkook nearly as much as used to, and though you still regularly have to be in the field yourself, you find immense relief in knowing that you have an office to come back to. As the preparations that you’ve made for the floor you’re renting come together, it becomes more and more of a place you can work from.

Of course, that means that every now and again, you cross paths with people you would rather not see. Some mostly harmless, like Fred Lucas, who you’ve learned how to handle, others clearly trying to determine the importance of your role in the Organization. And then there's Junho, the shark hybrid who you thought was going to be your end, who gives you a bright grin that reveals all of his teeth as you walk past the front desk where he's talking with Jungkook.

There is not an ounce of kindness in it.

You walk by with a mere, polite nod towards the two of them. You’d like to think that you haven’t let anything show — you know you’ve suppressed the shiver, you're pretty sure you kept your lips tightly pressed together — but the truth is you know cracks have formed in what used to be a perfect mask. You’ve caught it a few times now, a twitch of your lips, fingers tapping on your thigh. It’s not much. Most people wouldn’t notice it or care.

Yet it worries you, bubbles in your throat sometimes. If you let yourself slip in front of the wrong people, you could reveal too much about yourself. The thought is terrifying to you; not too long ago, it would have meant certain death. The thought that things might have changed and you might not need this anymore to your survival is perhaps just as scary.

What if you crumble? What if all those things buried deep inside your soul wreck everything you've built as they come back up to the surface?

Worse, what if they don’t?

“I’m out of here,” Jungkook announces loudly, though you’re the only one with him in his office. “Are you staying caged up in here?”

You glance up at him to find him already staring at you, jacket slung over his shoulder, and you feel your breath catching in your throat. You can only pray that your poker face holds up as you do, because all of your self-control is needed not to look away immediately. Once more, while you still can, you bury everything that comes with it, and you reply with a perfectly smooth expression.

“There is much left to be done, Mr. Jeon.”

That is not untrue, but if you were honest with him or with yourself, you would admit that the main reason for your decision is that overexerting yourself and coming home to your apartment only to collapse into a dreamless sleep actually sounds like the best way of spending your time these days.

Jungkook’s lips twist in a displeased expression, but he doesn’t seem angry, just annoyed. You can’t help the curiosity that fills you as you examine him. He seems more relaxed around you than he’s ever been. There’s still tension in his whole body, but it is not vibrating with anger and distrust anymore. In his eyes, you also cannot find the hatred you used to see. There’s a lot swirling inside them, it is true, things that you think you could spend hours deciphering, but—

“Suit yourself,” Jungkook shrugs, “but you won’t be able to stay hidden in here all the time.”

You snap back into focus, in time to press your lips together and nod at him.

“If there is anything you would like me to handle outside, make sure to let me know.”

He scoffs and rolls his eyes, but seems to think better of it before snapping at you.

“I’ll see you tomorrow,” he says, turning around and vaguely waving a hand at you, though you cannot tell for sure if it is a salute or if he is merely dismissing you.

“Certainly, Mr. Jeon.”

The glass door closes softly behind him, and your eyes go back to the spreadsheet in front of you. You’ve stared at the numbers for far too long now, but you want to ensure that they are right before forwarding them to one of your trusted accountants. You could handle it all yourself; you’re fairly good with numbers. If there is one thing you’ve learned over the years, though, it’s that you should delegate whenever possible. The hard part, of course, was finding people that you could trust.

As a result, few people in the company, outside from the bosses, are paid as well as the accountants — and are under as much surveillance.

That is how they got Capone, after all, and you have no intention of seeing Jungkook or yourself go down the same way.

Your phone dings while you’re still staring at the numbers and you check it immediately, having effectively trained yourself to do that over years of juggling the informations given by your numerous informants.

The text is brief, three words to be exact, but it makes your blood run cold.

‘All out war’.

You’re on your feet before you can process it completely. Jungkook has left less than two minutes ago, your brain supplies while you rush to the door and then through the corridors. You should still be able to get to him — but the elevators are both taken. You feel more than you notice people throwing you surprised glances. You don’t have time to think about it, nor do you have time to listen to the voice in the back of your brain that comments on the fact that you’ll need to ensure that an elevator is available at all time for the higher-ups.

You’re running down the stairs before you know it. Hector, you realize at some point, though you can’t tell when exactly, would have been faster than you, but he’s probably getting his coffee somewhere on the floor and it’s too late to go get him. On your phone, you try to get a hold of Jungkook, but he doesn't reply, likely because he’s still in the goddamn building and has no way of knowing how swiftly the situation just changed and— Fuck, you need to get to him.

Based on the text you received, you have to assume your informant texted you in the middle of the meeting. Depending on where they are in the chain of command, the decision could have been made hours, maybe a day earlier. Which would leave ample time for them to plant—

You burst through the door of the lobby, earning yourself surprised looks from the people in there — among which you don’t find Jungkook. Normally you would worry of appearances, but you don’t have time for such considerations, and so you run through the lobby, wincing when your ankle twists unpleasantly, and then, finally, through the glass windows, you see him about to get in his car. He seems to be making small talk with the driver, thank God, and then gives you just enough time to walk through the door and call out to him.

“Mr Jeon!”

He turns around to look at you, surprised, while you wince at the way your voice just cracked.

“Changed your mind?” he asks, and you think you see the hint of a smirk on his lips.

You shake your head. All you can think about is that you have to get him away from the car. You gesture at him to approach, but he either doesn’t understand or chooses to ignore it.

“Mr Jeon,” you repeat, “there is something I need you to take a look at.”

Even from where you’re standing, you know he’s rolling his eyes at you.

“Then show it to me,” he replies. “I’m not getting back in there.”

You swallow painfully, eyes going back to the car. No. You’re not getting close to that thing with Jungkook. The two of you are probably at the very top of the kill list, and even if the blast might not kill you if you’re not inside, you know that is a risk the enemy faction would be willing to take, because it is a risk you would be willing to take.

“Mr Jeon,” you say, once more. “Please.” You try to convey everything you need to say into the intonation, but even to your ears, your voice barely varies. This is not an exercise you are used to — far from it, in fact.

You think Jungkook frowns, takes one step in your direction, before stopping himself. He turns to say something at his chauffeur, which you don’t quite manage to catch. He’s not showing sign of moving, and with each second in the open with minimal protection, you feel yourself growing more desperate. This is supposedly a safe part of town — but realistically, with an open war in the Organization, there will be no safe parts of town for the next few months.

“Jungkook!” you finally hear yourself shouting, and his head immediately whips in your direction, eyes wide. This time, finally, he walks in your direction, and the relief you feel is so overwhelming that you can feel your legs grow weak under you.

“What the fuck?” he growls in a low voice when he reaches you. Normally, you’d try to figure out exactly what is going through his mind then — if he’s angry, if he’s surprised, if you’ve made a mistake — but right now, all you can do is exhale in relief.

“It’s war,” you say simply, voice low. “You need to get inside, and we need to call reinforcements for this place.”

You shouldn’t be surprised when Jungkook doesn’t budge and simply looks at you like you've just grown a second head, but it does take you aback. This kind of information would have been enough for you to formulate a dozen instructions — it was enough for you — and you curse yourself quietly for not realizing you needed to express it differently for him. Letting your emotions get the best of you like that… There was a reason why you didn't do that.

“What do you mean, it’s war? I thought you said they were lying low since you started hunting them—”

Your eyes keep darting between him and the street, trying to figure out where the threat is going to come from — because you don't doubt there is going to be a threat. Any second now.

“I was wrong,” you interrupt him. “You need to get inside, Mr. Jeon, please, until we figure out—”

“Don’t bullshit me, if it’s war I won’t be doing it from here, I’ll be—”

You tune him out when you hear a honk. A car arrived behind Jungkook’s. You see the drivers shouting at each other, before Jungkook’s driver gets in his. Quietly, you pray that you were wrong.

The car has moved less than a meter when it blows up.

Then it's chaos. People shouting and running, a burst of flames shooting up in the sky, the smell of burning gasoline.

Jungkook turns around slowly, shouts a name that you don't recognize but that you have to assume refers to the driver. He starts moving in the car's direction, but you regain enough control over your body to catch him at the last second. Your fingers wrap around his arm, and that makes him pause. He looks lost when his eyes find yours.

“Jungkook,” you say, barely more than a whisper, and he likely wouldn’t hear you if he wasn’t a hybrid, “you need to get inside.” Then your voice gets quicker as urgency replaces fear in your veins. You start saying out loud what your brain is processing in the moment, both because you need him to understand the severity of the situation and because you likely won't have time to fill him in later. “They just blew up a car in one of the richest areas of the city. Either they don't care about repercussions by the police, or they’ve already bought the police. Even if you weren’t in there,” thank God he wasn't in there, “they've sent a clear message. They won't stop at anything now. Either they will die in this fight, or—” You swallow, throat suddenly dry. “Or we will.”

Jungkook just stares at you for a few seconds longer. His jaw tightens as he clenches his teeth, and then, slowly, his face hardens. His fingers close around yours, just a second, before he takes your hand off of him.

You hadn’t noticed you were still holding him.

You do, however, notice that the very tip of his fingers linger on your skin, and the gentleness of the gesture.

You choose to make nothing of it.

Once more, he looks at the car, before he looks at you again. He doesn’t look lost this time. He looks resolute.

“He’s dead already,” he tells you. “Let’s get inside and do— whatever it is you said to do. Call— whoever you need to call.” You nod, having to rush to follow his long strides back inside the building. “Let’s show those bastards.”

As the elevator doors close on the two of you, you find yourself staring at the burning car. It is a strong blow, to be struck in front of your headquarters. But Jungkook is alive, standing next to you, and filled with such determination that you want to believe in him against all hopes. So, instead of keeping your thoughts to yourself, you nod decisively.

“Certainly, Mr. Jeon.”

standard author's note: i'm sorry it took me so long, i hope you still enjoyed seeing oc and jungkook after all this time, i hope you'd missed them a little bit and you enjoyed their dynamic, and i hope you liked the chapter :) if you did, it would mean the world to me if you would reblog, comment, or shoot me an ask, everything is welcome! i wish you all a great day and i'll see you in the next one.

lengthy author's note: sooooo, it's been a while. if you've followed my blog you know i've been struggling with various stuff — first finishing my master's thesis, and then just. life in general and writer's block in particular. on top of that, with this story there's such a slow burn that everytime i step away from it, i'm afraid i'll pick things up 'wrong'. you know, if i make them too close/if i make them a step back, if i repeat myself too much (repetition of oc's thought-process is intended but only to a certain degree), etc. i hope this stil works. i'm also... idk, i guess i'm afraid of disappointing people after all this time. it's scary to think that people have waited for so long and might go 'oh, i waited all that time for this'.

and most people have been very sweet about the time i was taking to write the chapter and i'm not saying this to be all 'woe is me' or to get sympathy!! please know you don't have to read this and feel bad for me or comfort me lol, and vice versa if you didn't like the chapter it's all good lol. it's just... that's the kind of things that can make writing harder.

~*~

You’ve taken the subway thousands of times since moving to New York.

Morning rides, squeezed nearly to death between commuters in suits blinking back sleep and school-uniformed kids scream-laughing and paper coffee cups gripped tight by winter-numb fingers.

Long trips with your sketchbook on your lap, riding the line all the way to Pelham Bay Park and back, to surface above ground out where there’s a little more space to breathe, until the setting sun floods orange glow between the buildings just before you descend again.

Late nights coming home, Namjoon’s head thudding back against the train window behind him as he dozes off, one arm thrown around your shoulder to ward off any drunk creeps, his free hand interlaced with Yoongi’s on his other side.

It’s always been the three of you, first in friendship, and now that the two of them have figured out they’re something more, you don’t mind it. But when it’s late and you’ve had enough drinks to feel warm all the way through, to melt something open inside of you, and you glance over to see a loving flicker of eyelashes exchanged as Namjoon leans down and presses a kiss to Yoongi’s temple, you can’t help it.

There’s a little bit of an ache there, right behind your ribs. Sometimes.

But mostly, when it comes to the train, you take the 6 to school. You go through the motions this morning the same as you always do: headphones around your neck, bag slung over your shoulder, immediately dropping into the first empty seat you see as the train doors shudder closed and the car starts to move. Six stops down, 51st street to Astor Place, five days a week, you know it like a heartbeat.

You just wish you knew him, too.

Subway Boy, as Yoongi affectionately labeled him the time you got two pitchers of margaritas deep and made the mistake of confessing to your roommates about your crush— if it can even be called that. Can you truly have a crush on someone you know nothing about, not even their name?

Well, you know a few things.

He must live further north than you, because on the days you see him, he’s already on the train when you board at 51st.

He must like music, because he always has a set of fancy bluetooth earbuds in.

You’re pretty sure he’s an athlete of some sort, because he’s usually carrying a gym bag—and because during this summer’s heat wave, the one and only time you’ve seen him wear shorts, you nearly fainted at the thick, defined muscles of his thighs.

He has an affinity for jewelry, delicate silver always glinting through the multiple piercings in his ears. At odds with this, he seems to prefer to dress comfortably, and you’ve seen him in enough branded school t-shirts and sweats to figure he must also be an NYU student, though you can’t say for sure if he’s undergrad or graduate.

You deeply hope you’re not crushing on someone who still needs a fake ID to drink, but there’s no way to be certain.

Most importantly, you know that he is absolutely stunning. Elegantly handsome, with expressive deep brown eyes, skin like glass, and round cheeks and full lips that flush frozen pink on particularly frigid New York days. His hair has changed colors a few times over the months that have passed since you first took notice of him, but it’s currently a honey blonde, and long enough that he often reaches up to card a hand through it. He does it now, pushing loose strands back to expose his forehead as he frowns down at his phone.

On days where you share the same car, you notice very little else that happens on the ride, thoroughly entranced in Subway Boy’s beauty and his mystery. The train could probably catch fire and you’d miss it entirely.

Today happens to be one of those days, and excitement glitters in your bloodstream as you realize he’s seated across from you. The rush of seeing him always feels like its own reward, some kind of cosmic sign that the day is going to be a good one.

Unfortunately, any hope of sudden amnesia on his part vanished the second you entered the lecture hall today on this lovely Thursday morning and headed straight for your usual seat in the back row, only to be unceremoniously ambushed from behind and forced into a tight embrace. 

“Back row, huh? All the more room for funny business, if you know what I mean. Unfortunately, I have already told my friends about us, and I’d love it if we could sit with them. Would that be okay, babygirl?”

Irritated and overwhelmed with everything around you, you immediately snap at him as you forcefully pull his arm from your shoulders, anxiously looking around while reminding him that you had told him to stop calling you this ridiculous name. 

But him being Jimin, he doesn't even care.

“What’s the matter? You’re my girlfriend, Boo. We actually want people to see us be cozy together,” Jimin sneakily wraps one arm around your waist to pull you more into him as he leans down to whisper in your ear while leading the two of you in the direction where his friends are already seated, only to be pushed away once again. 

You simply try to ignore the questioning look on his face when you finally turn around to face him, adjusting the strap of your bag on your shoulder. 

“Can you at least give me a minute to get into character? I just came here.”

“This ain’t drama school, ___,” a peal of slight laughter comes over his lips as he musters you. “What, is it really that hard for you to act as if you’re into me?”

“Yes. It is hard for me, Jimin. I don't know about you, but I have never before pretended to be into someone I barely even know,” you seethe keeping your voice down enough so no one can overhear you.

“You say that now but just wait until we have to break up again, and you'll cry a river because you actually managed to fall for me.”

Your bickering luckily doesn't go on any longer because Jimin takes the initiative and drags you along to your seats, meanwhile ignoring every protest leaving your mouth.

As already expected, you are not particularly warmly welcomed and received by any of his friends. Instead, the best you get is an inconsequential nod before they pay no further attention to you, nor do they include you in any of their subsequent conversations for the rest of the lecture.

That's perfectly fine with you, though. You aren't particularly interested in talking anyway and prefer to focus on your class instead. At this point, you really don't want to drag out your student life more than you have to.

Jimin doesn't seem to be very interested in the reaction of his friends for the time being either.

He continues to joke around with them the whole time but remains steadily in his role. And that means you don't have a moment of peace without his annoying arm wrapped around your shoulders or his hand on your thigh.

One thing at least is certain: he definitely doesn't do things by halves. And that makes you all the more nervous about what may come in the future.

After the day started rather badly, you apparently also have to attend a party tonight which is why you’re currently in the process of making yourself look decent enough so that you’ll “perfectly blend in with the crowd”. At least that's what Jimin said.

You know you most likely won't do that,, and all eyes will be on you and Jimin, but you can at least try and make the best of it. 

It’s been a long time since you’ve gone to a party, and as much as you’re nervous, you’re also excited to go out tonight. 

What can you say? It’s been a while and it’d be a lie to say you aren’t happy to dress up and actually have somewhere to go. 

So you went all in, dressed up pretty nicely, and did your make-up the way you usually like to when you go out. 

You hope you haven't overdone it but in the end, this is the only thing you can do to counteract your nervousness. Even if it's just a little bit.

You feel sexy, you feel confident, and now you’re ready to go have some flippin' fun, alright?!

Well, at least until Jimin comes knocking at your door and decides to ruin your mood with one little glimpse at his face.

“This is the look you’re going with?” He asks, sounding like he’s actually wishing for you to tell him this is all a joke. 

Now accommodated with a little pout on your lips, you’re looking down on yourself and then take a quick look into the mirror, not seeing anything wrong with how you look. 

“What’s wrong with it? I think I look good,” you shrug, trying to sound barely affected by his words, even if you gotta admit they put you off track. It doesn’t make you doubt your appearance, though. You do think you look fine, and if he was hoping for something else, he should have told you in advance. 

“You do look good, but you don’t look like my girlfriend if you know what I mean.”

You only scoff, already taking your purse in your hand to finally leave. 

“What did you expect? I live off of chips and peanut butter sandwiches. If you want me to be covered in diamonds and gold, then I'm afraid you'll have to reach into your own pockets,” you joke, actually making him laugh at your slight remark. 

“Fair point,” he grins, putting his hand on the small of your back as he leads you out of your apartment and down the corridor. “Maybe I will.”

“Don’t you dare. You’re not my sugar daddy.” 

“Yet,” he snarkily adds, making you snort through your nose and himself giggle. 

And it’s the little jokes like these that easily let you forget how insufferable he actually is. Even if it’s just for a little while. 

It’s been exactly 23 minutes since you managed to escape and hid somewhere in the backyard - and Jimin has yet to find you. 

Or you know... maybe you’re wrong, and he isn’t even looking for you. That could be the case too. 

How it came to this? 

Well, not long after you arrived and stood your ground through all the death glares and judging stares Jimin’s so-called “friends” gave you, he kinda just left you alone because he had to “take care of something real quick”. 

He took way too long for your liking and you eventually grew tired of everyone either ignoring you or throwing nasty remarks your way so you ended up here. Between these two people dry humping each other only a couple feet next to you. 

Fun.

“Cough two times if you need me to safe you.”

Irritated by a voice that doesn’t belong to Jimin suddenly ringing up from behind you, you turn around, instantly relaxing when you see who it belongs to. 

“What?” you chuckle, making room for him to sit down, and he doesn’t even take another moment before he complies, plopping down in the spot right next to yours. The one Jimin should be sitting in right now if he hadn’t just rudely left you alone at a party you only attended because he wanted you to. 

Okay, maybe it does bother you more than you originally wanted to admit.

“I heard you were involved with Park Jimin, and I would have bet my right arm for it to be just another rumor,” he starts as you already feel his eyes burn into the side of your head. “But now I see you here, getting comfortable with no other than the campus golden boy. So tell me, ___, is he holding you captive, or is he blackmailing you because there is no way in this world that you are unironically dating Jimin.”

You gulp as you keep your head stubbornly straight ahead, taking a bit too long to answer his simple question. 

If you've learned one thing from this whole fake dating situation so far, it's that you're not even remotely as quick-witted as you always thought you were. And if this continues, you will very quickly get a lot of problems.

Clearing your throat, you sit a little straighter while nervously fumbling with your hands. “I know it's a little sudden, but he’s actually really amazing,” you say, looking at your new-found companion while trying to suppress the urge to cringe at your own words.

“Bullshit!” He laughs loudly, barely keeping himself from falling backward with his whole chair. “God, that was awful, ___.” Still giggling, while he’s trying to calm down again, he looks at you and brushes his mop of hair out of his eyes in a quick movement.

“It’s the truth, though. We have a lot in common,” you shrug, not even smiling when those words leave your lips. This time your attempt in trying to say something nice about your alleged boyfriend sounds a little less forced and tortured,, but it’s still not enough to be convincing it seems. 

“Alright just say the words, and I’ll get us out of here. Depending on what he's threatening you with, I might even tell him a word or two, so he'll leave you alone forever. Of course, only if you want me to.”

“What words exactly are we talking about?” You grin, not even getting into the other nonsense.

“Jeon, I’m being held captive by Jimin and his rich people cult. Please save me before they sacrifice me on the next full moon,” he says in a high-pitched voice, trying to sound like you. 

You only roll your eyes, but can hardly suppress a smile. “Wouldn’t they usually need a virgin for that?” you joke, casually playing along. 

Jungkook brightly grins, showing off his front teeth in the process. He sees your willingness to jump on his joke as a small advance in your conversation since you usually aren’t that talkative. 

Usually, you're the type to only mutter a one-word answer before you're on your way again, too scared someone could see you and spread another rumor. 

Jungkook has always felt bad about that, trying to convince you he doesn't care about that, but you never listen. So this is a surprise he welcomes.

“Guess I just outed myself as a non-expert in ritual procedures. I hope you will keep this embarrassment to yourself and not judge me too hard for that.”

“It was still very creative. I’ll give you points for that,” you grin, finally feeling a little less tense now that you get to have a normal, real conversation with someone who you know isn’t secretly stabbing you in their head.

“Thank you. Now, tell me what’s really going on,” he insists, coming a little closer. 

And there goes your just-earned ease again due to his noisy nature.

A defeated sigh comes over your lips. You are pretty sure that there is nothing you could tell him that would make him believe you’re actually dating Jimin, so where’s the point in lying? 

You can’t imagine Jungkook going around and snitching on you anyway. There’s nothing he could get out of that, and even if you aren't close, you know Jungkook is not the type of guy to gossip. If he were, you'd know by now.

“I may or may not have agreed to a deal with Jimin that… includes me pretending to be his girlfriend,” you eventually admit, carefully looking around to check that no one overheard your little confession.

Trying to process what you just told him, Jungkook clears his throat, as he slowly nods his head. “Well, that… sounds about right.” 

You look at Jungkook, raising a brow since you didn’t think he’d react so… barely?

“Huh? You’re not surprised?” You ask, gaping at him. 

“Surprised you’re not actually dating him? Not at all. Surprised that you agreed to something so stupid? Completely baffled,” he explains, grinning at you when he sees you pouting. “You thought this was a good idea?”

“No. I thought it was a bad idea, actually. But he somehow still managed to talk me into it. I don’t even know how he did it. He’s really good at guilt-tripping, I guess.”

You turn your attention back to your feet, too embarrassed to look directly at Jungkook and the long, much too exaggerated sigh that suddenly comes from him only lets you guess the disappointed look in his eyes.

You don't need to hear from him how stupid it is of you to accept this deal. You already know that yourself. And yet - maybe it is exactly what you need. Someone who isn’t you saying how big of a mistake you’re making right now could be the wake-up call you need.

But then again, you’re already in too deep to just quit now anyway. At this point, quitting wouldn’t change anything. It would probably just make things worse, and you’d have Jimin on your bad side as well, which does not sound like something you would want.

“Look, this is none of my business,” Jungkook starts, leaving you waiting on what’s going to follow because usually, it’s nothing good that comes after. 

He clears his throat, gradually playing with the holes in his jeans. “But I’m not sure if getting involved in this is exactly what you need. No offense, ___, really. It's just that a lot of people already have an opinion about it and... it is not exactly positive in your sense.”

Well, it’s not like this comes as a surprise since it is what you told Jimin would happen, but it still sucks to get the confirmation. It’s embarrassing, really - and the worst part is, that you put this on yourself this time. 

“They don’t believe this is real, they just think—”

“—He’s using me. I know,” you finish, carelessly shifting your gaze on a couple that’s making out not that far from you. It’s not the most pleasant sight but it’s better than having to look at Jungkook’s pitiful eyes, or the people already whispering about you sitting here with him while your “boyfriend” isn’t around. 

“Well… that too, yes,“ he says, implying that there’s more, which makes you look at him again. “Some do think that, but some also interpret it as if you were taking advantage of him and his “fragile, broken heart”, he explains, making you scoff in dismay. 

“Are you shitting me right now?”

“No, I heard people say you’re probably using him for his money.”

“Yes, of course, they think that,“ you scoff again, frustration clearly visible on your face. “You know what? I wish I would have been smart enough to make him pay me for this bullshit.”

Pressing your elbows into your thighs, you let your head fall into your hands to hide your face, wishing for the ground to swallow you whole and end your misery once and for all.

“I can’t even feel sorry for you, what were you thinking?”

“I don’t have an answer for that, Jeon. Truth is, my life is shitty, and I’m attempting to at least make some memories before I leave this place.” You sigh, gradually sipping from the cup you put next to you on the ground after coming here.

It’s pure vodka and exactly what you want and need right now. 

You figured if you have to be here and get dumped by your “boyfriend” soon after arriving here, you can at least get shit-faced. It’s really good to ease the nerves and lose the awkwardness, and it helps to not notice the stares you get from everyone.

You hear Jungkook exhale from his nose as a laugh before he holds his own cup in front of you waiting for you to copy him. “A toast to that.”

You only roll your eyes, not amused whatsoever, but end up toasting with him anyway. 

“Who knows, maybe you’ll end up falling for him,” he then adds after a moment of silence, making the both of you burst into laughter. 

“If that happens, please just kill me right on the spot.”

“Don’t worry, I got you. I’m not letting you go down like this.”

Unfortunately, your little heart to heart with Jungkook gets suddenly interrupted when you hear someone call out your name. And it’s not a very happy tone, immediately making you cringe before you turn around at the same time Jungkook turns around as well.

You both stare at a very annoyed-looking Jimin, stomping towards the both of you.

“What the fuck are you doing here?” Jimin seethes, as soon as he reaches you, completely ignoring Jungkook, who’s currently taking a big gulp from his beer as he tries to hide his gloating grin from you. 

“Uh… mingling and trying to enjoy myself just how you asked me to before you just went off and left me alone,” you sarcastically quip, still pretty annoyed at him for leaving you like that when he knows how much you already don’t want to be here. 

That was a dick move, and you stand by that. 

“What I meant was try to get to know my friends while I leave for a quick bathroom break. Not run away and hide in a suspicious corner with fucking Jeon,” he argues, still not looking at him at all. 

“Hey,” Jungkook speaks up, frowning a little while Jimin for the first time since coming here, fixes his eyes on him. “I can hear you, you know?”

Jimin snaps at him with a quick, “and who gives a fuck?”, making the younger boy shut up right after since he decides to not get involved in your whole fake couple drama. Nope, this is not what he had in mind when he came around to have a good time tonight. 

“What exactly is your problem? He’s the only one who actually wants to talk to me,” you argue, not really seeing his point whatsoever. 

Jungkook rather quickly notices that no one actually pays attention to him, seeing both you and Jimin continue arguing so he just escapes the scene as fast as he can.

“I can’t believe you’re being this irresponsible,” Jimin, says lowering his voice when he sees the looks everyone is giving the two of you. “Do you even know what people will say when they see you getting close to Jeon?” 

You scoff, softly pushing him further away since he’s gotten a little too close for your liking. “In case you didn’t notice, you are the one currently making a scene here, Jimin,” you advise him, plastering a smile on your lips so the people around will stop thinking you’re fighting. “Now stop looking at me like you’re about to kill me and smile a little. Everyone is watching us.” 

Jimin raises a brow, quickly looking around before he chuckles a little awkwardly, throws his arm around your shoulders, and plasters a kiss on your cheek which barely lets you keep in a protesting grunt. 

“Just so you know, I’m still pissed at you for ditching me for this fucking low life,” he whispers as you’re both walking back inside where the actual party takes place. 

“I ditched you? You were the one who left and didn’t come back. Do you even know how awkward I felt standing there with your friends who treated me like air?” You hiss back at him. 

“Look, I’m sorry. I really didn’t mean to leave you alone for so long.” He sighs, and to your surprise, he actually does sound regretful. “I was held up with something. But I promise I tried to get back as soon as I could.”

Still not convinced by his half-hearted apology, you stay stubborn, only rolling your eyes at him. “Just don’t do it again, please. I know everyone here is your friend, but they sure as hell aren’t mine. And they really try hard to make sure I know about it.”

“Was someone mean to you?” 

You’re surprised by the sudden seriousness in his voice as he also stops walking for a moment to look at you, but you simply brush it off, telling him it doesn’t matter since it’s nothing the both of you hadn’t expected in the first place. 

It’s no lie that you don’t fit into Jimin’s usual type, and only judging by your reputation, it was to be expected that his friends wouldn't invite you with open arms. Yet, it still feels even more awkward to be around them than you initially thought. 

And like speaking of the devil, you are interrupted by yet another one of Jimin’s friends before he can ask any more questions.

This time it’s Yuna, a girl you don’t share any classes with, but you think you’ve seen her around Nayeon before. 

You never noticed her much since she always seemed like someone to get lost in a crowd. At least, that’s what you always thought. 

Tonight, however, you noticed that she isn’t like that at all. 

No, Kim Yuna is a little snake, and you needed no more than twenty minutes around her to figure that out. 

It wouldn’t actually bother you as much if you weren't one hundred percent sure that she directly saw through yours and Jimin's lie without the slightest doubt and there is nothing that could convince her otherwise.

So far you don't think too much about it, but you can't get rid of the feeling that she could eventually become a problem.

“There you are! We were looking everywhere for you!” She giggles as she approaches you and Jimin, smiling brightly at you in particular. “Good thing Jimin finally found you.”

Plastering an equally as fake smile on your lips, you nod. “I mean, it’s just a house, not a maze or something. There weren’t very many options, huh?” You feign a laugh, making her laugh way too obnoxiously in exchange. 

“Well, there are a lot of bedrooms, after all. You never know…” she says in the most innocent voice you’ve ever heard, but obviously implying something very specific. 

You’re so caught off guard, that you can’t help but gape at her before looking at Jimin, who - unsurprisingly - doesn’t even seem to have caught on to what she just said. 

“Anyway, we want to play truth or dare, are you guys in?” She changes the topic, now looking more towards Jimin, who does seem interested, whereas you cannot help but mock that suggestion.

“Truth or dare, really? That’s the lamest shit you could come up with—” You’re interrupted by Jimin’s hand grabbing yours a little too harshly. You swallow the rest of what you wanted to say, even though you had a couple more well-fitting insults in store. 

Oh well, your time will come.

How come he immediately shuts you down, but when someone clearly insults you, he doesn’t even notice? 

“Yea, we’re coming, right babe?” 

It takes you a second to react since you don’t feel addressed by that name, but reality comes crashing down at you when he squeezes your hand once again, making you nod your head in forced agreement. 

There’s really nothing worse you could think of right now. Not only could this game expose you real quick, but it could also make for a lot of embarrassing and uncomfortable moments.

And the first one comes soon after you and Jimin join the group of people playing, and the bottle finally lands on you. 

“Truth,” you sigh, already annoyed to no extent. 

As soon as you mumbled the word, a round of boos roars around you - loudest of all Yuna herself. 

“Come on, no one takes truth. I thought you were against lame shitty games, so why not make this one fun when you can?” She challenges you, making your blood boil in your veins. 

Maybe the cup of pure vodka wasn’t the best idea, since it seems to rile you up more than you need right now.

Nonetheless, you actually let yourself be provoked this time.

“Okay, whatever then. I take dare,” you hear yourself say, crossing your arms over your chest while never breaking eye contact with her. After all, you don't want her to think she's intimidating you or that you have something to hide. 

She does intimidate you, and you do have something to hide, but no one needs to know that.

She looks rather unaffected though, simply smirking at you before she purses her lips for a sheer moment while thinking about something to make you do, grinning almost in an evil way when she obviously seems to have something in mind.

“Make Jimin moan.” 

Your eyes grow wide as you try not to let them see how uncomfortable you are. 

Now it is more than obvious that she is onto something and clearly wants to see if you’re going through with it. 

The problem is, you don’t know if you can.

A look to the side quickly tells you Jimin isn’t going to save you either since he looks pretty unbothered by all of this, just shrugging his shoulder as he looks back at you, waiting for you to do something. 

“What is it ___?” Yuna sneers, looking rather pleased with herself when her plan seems to work. “Shouldn’t be a problem, since you’re dating him, hm?”

“Doesn't mean we’re comfortable sharing everything with all of you, does it?”

“We’re all friends here, there is nothing to be ashamed of,” she coos, not hiding her smirk even one bit. You can already hear other people start to giggle the more time you’re letting pass, but you cannot help it - this is not an easy decision for you. 

No matter how you cannot and will not let her win this round. This one is for sure. 

But right when you're on the verge of despair, a sudden idea comes into your head, making you abruptly grin back at her. 

“Cool. Nothing easier than that,” you declare before you give Jimin one hard punch onto his arm, instantly making him moan in pain.

It is more than obvious this wasn’t what she was hoping for, and she makes it very known soon after with a deep scowl on her face. 

“That’s not what I meant, and you know it! You cheated!” She complains, making a bigger thing out of this than it has to be. 

“You never said he has to moan in pleasure,” you shrug, feigning innocence while hiding the happiness of having found a little loophole.

“It was more than obvious that that was what I meant. This is a college party!” she continues to complain, making you roll your eyes at her dramatic behavior. “You cheated. Probably because you can't pull it off anyway—”

“— Shut up already, Yuna.“ Jimin’s annoyed voice suddenly can be heard, reminding you of his presence. “Specify your dares next time. We’re done playing anyway.“ And with that being said, he grabs your hand and pulls you away. 

You unwillingly follow him for a little while until you're in a more quiet room with only a couple people, and you get the courage to speak up.

“Sorry for punching you,” you mutter, feeling bad about what happened but Jimin just playfully glares at you. 

“Are you really?” He asks, already starting to smile as you join in. “Thought so,” he grins mischievously when he doesn’t get an answer.

“Usually, I’m not the violent type, I promise. I just panicked. And since you didn’t seem to want to help me out of this, I needed to be creative,” you explain. “By the way, why didn’t you help me? Wasn’t it obvious that I wanted you to do something?”

“Honestly, I just wanted to see what you will do,” Jimin admits, chuckling quietly. “Wanted to see if you’d actually do it.” 

You’re just about to say something snarky back to that when you notice him focusing on something behind you all of a sudden, making you curious about what’s there to see, and you’re surprised when you see that it’s no other than Taehyung and Yeji who seem to have just arrived, happily greeting everyone around them.

“Are you okay?” You ask, noticing how he seems to have zoned out. It's a little unnerving for you to see him like this because you fear he could make a scene. More attention is the last thing you two need. 

But it's not only that. It must be hard for him to see them here, and you do feel bad he has to go through this right now. You aren't friends, and he isn't the nicest, but you still have a heart, okay?

“Of course I am. Why wouldn’t I be? Don't treat me like a baby.”

His answer comes directly after, making him sound careless, but you clearly see the way his jaw clenches when he tries to move his head away from the scene in front of you.

You’re trying to not let his sudden change in mood get to you, but you can’t help but get a little irritated with the tone he uses while speaking to you. You can understand this is an unpleasant situation for him, but you are not to blame for any of this.

“I don’t know, maybe because you look like someone pissed in your breakfast.”

Jimin’s eyes land back on you, and for a quick second, you watch him clench his jaw before he grabs your hand again and pulls you with him, mumbling something about needing a drink. 

Now, this is a thought you can relate to, and you're happy to finally get your hands on more alcohol. This whole day just screams for a way to calm your nerves and let your frustration out.

“I can’t believe they have the audacity to come here,” he boils as he sips from his drink. “I specifically asked Hyunjin to not let them in tonight, and yet, here they are. What the fuck. You really can't trust anyone anymore.”

You do feel for him because having to see them here - together over all must suck a lot and you have no idea how his relations to everyone around here differ from Taehyung's and Yeji's, but you know it's a bit too much to expect that just because he has problems with them, everyone else has to turn their backs on them, too. You don’t want to be the reason to annoy him even further, though, so you decide to just stay silent, nod your head in agreement, and play your part. 

Sometimes, it's better to just listen and support than be the voice of reason. Maybe you two will have to have that talk someday, but surely not tonight.

You’re here for a reason, and it’s not to pick a fight with him.

“Should we dance?” you unexpectedly hear yourself ask after you both decided to calm yourselves with a few rounds of shots. 

Admittedly, you should take it slow, considering it’s been a minute since you drank this much, but hey, anything to ease your nerves and make you a little less uncomfortable. 

The problem, however, is that a side effect of alcohol is that you tend to get a little too carried away, and Jimin is probably the worst person to have around in that state because it's clear he's not going to stop you from making a fool of yourself. 

Unlike you, he's already a bit too confident even without alcohol, which is why he instantly jumps at your suggestion, grabbing your hand and pulling you with him in no time. And before you know it, you're on the dance floor, dancing with none other than Park Jimin. 

And it’s not the worst. 

Not only do you desperately need to prove your "relationship" to everyone around you (which... doesn't seem to work very well so far) it also can't hurt to switch off and relax for a while. After all, you haven't had the chance to do that since you came here. 

You’re finally letting loose, swaying your hips to the beat with your eyes closed as you feel the alcohol running through your system. It has been so long since you just had fun - let alone at a party - but it feels so good you don’t even care about the couple hundred eyes that have to be watching you right now. 

No, they should be watching. Maybe seeing you and Jimin act comfortable around each other will do the trick. 

You decide to turn everything off and live in the moment for once, not even caring about the fact that you’re literally grinding on Jimin right now while he's practically doing the same, keeping his grip firmly on your hips. You barely even notice. 

All of this is entirely overshadowed by you simply enjoying yourself. Finally. 

But the state of pure peace and bliss you are currently in does not last long when you feel Jimin’s hot breath brush against your cheek as he whispers something in your ear. 

“Are you trying to make me hard or something?” 

Your eyes immediately shot open, and you turn around to push him away from you while he’s laughing hard enough to make his eyes disappear. 

“You’re such a dick! I was finally having fun,” you complain, but can barely hide the grin at the sight of him laughing so damn hard until you fall into a fit of amused giggles as well. 

“I didn’t ask you to stop. Sorry if you misunderstood,” he defends himself holding his hands up in surrender. 

You throw your head back in laughter, and yes, you entirely blame this on your drunken state because Park Jimin’s sexual innuendos wouldn’t make you laugh this much if you were sober. 

You watch him purely grin at you in amusement for a while until you raise a brow, silently asking him what he’s looking at, but he just shrugs, coming closer as you're now dancing a little less daringly.

“Nothing, it’s just that I’ve never seen you like this before. Didn’t know you could actually be fun.”

His answer doesn’t surprise you since you must admit you almost forgot this side of yours as well. Also, it’s not like Jimin has known you for long enough to know the person you were before you turned into a loner. 

But you can be fun, and have a lot more in store than just that. You don't plan on showing Jimin all of you, though. It's not like you're friends, and he doesn't need to know you more than he has to for the sake of making your relationship believable. 

A little later that same night, you have once again decided to ditch the party and find a secluded place where you can just… not socialize for a while. 

The only difference is that this time you have Jimin as your companion, sitting next to you on the roof of the frat house after bragging about showing you the coolest place here.

And here you are, looking down at all the people partying below you, while you're just enjoying the view, both with a beer in your hand, talking about some stuff and getting to know each other.

Weirdly, this is really comforting. 

It’s not that bad getting to know the guy behind all that “golden boy” facade, and in a way, it’s the first time you realize that besides being super popular and rich, Jimin is also just a guy in his twenties, trying to survive and find his own way in life. 

By now, you both sobered up a little and even if it’s not exactly enough for you to be safely sitting on a rooftop, you at least stopped giggling about everything which you’re very thankful for. 

Right now, he’s telling you a little about his family. You don’t even remember how you came to that, but you find yourself being interested in what he tells you about them. Just from what he told you til now, you feel like he’s grown up in a very loving family who he also seems to be close with. 

He especially seems to care a lot about his younger sister, or at least that’s what you assume because, for the last hour or so, he always comes back to telling you about her. 

“It’s just… she is dating this giant dick-face, okay?” Jimin explains, staring ahead with a sigh.

“Jimin,” you admonish him, already rolling your eyes, but can’t completely hide the smile slowly spreading on your face.

“No, I mean it! Really!” He exclaims, turning his head to stare at you with big, serious eyes. “His face is literally formed like a giant ball sack, and his hair is—”

He doesn’t get any further before you smack his arm, laughing at his stupidity. “Stop, you’re being ridiculous,” you giggle, shaking your head as you see him trying to suppress his own grin.

The quiet waves of laughter from both of you are followed by a comfortable silence as you just sit there on a damn roof, while a couple hundred people are partying. 

You catch yourself feeling comfortable in his company, even enjoying it for once without getting irritated by him. It’s something new and strange, but you welcome the change. 

“He’s not good enough for her,” Jimin then breaks the silence again after a while, staring thoughtfully into the night sky. “No one is, but least of all him. I try to tell her all the time, but she just never listens.” 

He doesn’t notice you watching him right after, studying how his brows are furrowed together in deep thought and the way his hands fumble with the fabric of his jeans as he probably thinks about his sister’s well-being.

And you don’t notice how the corners of your lips subconsciously perk up into a small smile.

It’s unusual for you to see him like this. Thoughtful, caring. It’s the first time you see a glimpse of the person underneath all the snooty, self-absorbed posturing. 

Sure, he has shown a little compassion for your situation but that's the most he's done so far. With his sister, however, you can see how caring he can actually be, and at this moment, even if it doesn’t stay for long, you decide that you don’t despise this Jimin as much as the other one. 

“You probably don’t want to hear what I’m about to tell you,” you start, seeing him turn his head back at you.

“Then it’s better when you keep it to yourself,” he interrupts, grinning as to let you know he isn’t being serious.

You snort, shaking your head. “She will not listen to anyone. And the more you tell her what a mistake she is making, the more she will want to do it,” you say, closely watching his reaction to your little advice - if you can even call it that. 

To your surprise, he seems to listen, and you admire him nodding his head understandingly. 

“What else can I do then?”

“I’m afraid there isn’t anything you can do at this point,” you shrug, looking at him apologetically when you see the little hopeful look in his eyes slowly disappear. 

“If she won’t listen to the people closest to her, she will have to make her own decisions and face the consequences. Even if she’ll end up being hurt.”

“I don’t want that to happen,” he sighs. “She always wants to act like an adult and tries to be mature and stuff, but she’s just seventeen. And she’s sensitive, even if she never shows it to anyone.“

It’s clear he loves his sister very much, and it warms your heart to see how she can make a whole different Jimin appear than the one you got to know recently.

“I know. Sorry,” you quietly breathe out. “But I don’t think there’s anything you can do about it. It’s part of growing up.”

“Maybe you could try and talk to her sometime?” He suddenly suggests, looking at you with big eyes that make him look so much younger.

“Why? Because I have a history with dick-faced douchebags?” You joke, expecting him to laugh along at your joke.

No idea why you expected that because Jimin immediately agrees, shrugging his shoulders while he looks at you completely serious with a simple “yeah”.

“Wow, gotta love your honesty,” you mumble, turning your head straight ahead again. “I don’t think I’m the right person for that, though. I’m sorry. And no offense, but I refuse to meet your family,” you state. “It’s already bad enough that we have to lie to everyone around here. I really don’t want us to lie to the people closest to us. They shouldn't be a part of this.”

He doesn’t say anything to that, but just by the way he slightly nods with his beer bottle tightly pressed to his lips, you guess that he agrees. 

“Why don’t you ask Nayeon instead?” you propose, just thinking out loud. “She’s way better with people than I am, and I'm sure your sister would rather listen to her anyway. They already know each other.” You explain, still trying to help him out. Even if you refuse to get involved with his family, for good reasons, you can still try to be helpful in different ways if it really burdens him this much.

“Nayeon…” you immediately catch Jimin’s face falter again as soon as you bring up her name, and you wonder what this could be about. 

“Nayeon isn’t… she’s not really in the right state of mind to give advice to others, I guess,“ he beats around the bush, making you even more curious about what’s going on with her. 

What is he hinting at?

Now that you come to think of it, you haven’t seen her for quite some time now, and you haven’t heard about her either, which is not common for her. 

She's the life of every party, everybody loves her so... what is going on?

“She isn't doing well at all. I’m honestly worried about her.” 

You see a look, similar to what he looked like earlier on his face when talking about his sister’s well-being. But this time, it's even more severe. 

You’re still mad at Nayeon and don’t want to ask about her for that reason, but you cannot help but worry about her too. Especially since Jimin looks so serious.

“Why? What’s wrong with her?”

“Above all, she's very heartbroken, of course. She genuinely loved Taehyung, and she always thought of Yeji as a close friend. What happened really gnaws at her,” he explains, confirming your guess as you nod and focus your gaze on your clapped-together hands.

“But what really gets to her is… what happened between her and you,” he then admits, making your ears perk up immediately though you try to look unbothered and just don’t say anything to that, nor do you look at him.

“She hates herself for what happened, ___.” 

“She should,” you shrug, acting entirely cold even though you don’t mean it. “After all, she did get off better than me.”

“Nayeon is not a bad person, ___. She was just very hurt and—”

“I was hurt too,” you interrupt him, eventually turning your head to throw him a stern look. “I know, no one ever cares about my feelings, but I was hurt too, Jimin. I don’t give a fuck about Taehyung or Yeji or anyone else. But Nayeon – I really expected more from her,” you rant, glad you managed to not let your voice break.

“Trust me, she did too,” Jimin says, looking straight into your eyes. “I’m not taking her side. Not at all,” he makes sure to let you know, keeping his voice solid. “What she did was very wrong, and there is no excuse for it.”

“But?” 

“But,” he sucks in some air, keeping his gaze on you the whole time. “We both know that Nayeon is not that person,” he states.

You know he’s right. But you can’t just forget about what she said to you and what she did. Not just like that. Especially not when it happened in front of so many people.

Would she have done it differently, asked you to meet her somewhere private and talk it out, you would still have been disappointed in her for believing this lie, but you could have forgiven her. 

The way she did it, however, showed you a side of her you never knew existed, and you’re not sure you can see past that. At last not so soon and not that easy. 

“She used to always talk to me about you, and she always took your side whenever someone said anything mean,” he says after a while. “I'm the last person to expect anything from you right away, but I think it would do you both good to talk to each other. Not until you’re ready, of course. It may just be something to think about. Just… try and be the bigger person.”

You can’t help but scoff. He has no idea how many times you've recited that stupid line to yourself as if it were a mantra. 

Don’t say anything, ___. Just leave. Be the bigger person.

“I’m tired of having to be the bigger person, Jimin,” you state. “Look, I’m sorry she’s not doing well, I really am. I would never wish anything bad on her or anyone else for that matter, but it doesn’t always have to be me who has to be the bigger person. I didn’t do anything wrong, and it is not my responsibility to approach her and smooth things over.”

That you took him by surprise is clearly written on his face, but you don’t let him say anything to that anymore before you start to get up, ready to go home. 

This night is over. You did what he asked of you, and now you want to leave. It's not like there's any purpose for you to still be here, and it's late anyway.

It takes him a moment before he realizes you’re actually leaving, and he hastily gets up as well, almost falling off the roof in the process. 

“Wait, where are you going?”

“Home. It’s getting late, and I’m starting to get cold,” you say, sounding nonchalant. 

“Why didn’t you say anything?” He asks, slowly stumbling over to you. 

It really is a wonder you both managed to not fall off the damn roof by now.

“What for? Would you have given me your jacket?” You try to joke, going back to your earlier mood.

You don’t want to pick a fight with him tonight. You already spend the whole day being annoyed by him so you decide to just stuff the whole Nayeon-story into the back of your head and carry on to where you left off before that.  

Because you would rather shove a cactus down your throat than admit it when you’re sober, but Park Jimin can be fun to hang around when he makes an effort. 

It’s like two sides of the same coin, but both sides are rusty, but one just a little less. 

Yeah. That sounds like a decent enough description. 

Still, as you're walking up to your apartment, followed by Jimin who was nice enough to help you up. It must have looked funny to a bystander watching two tipsy people stumble up the stairs, but you're thankful nonetheless. It shows that he does have manners after all. 

“This night was a disaster and I feel like it's mostly my fault,” you decide to speak up about the elephant in the room, knowing pretty well it was on both of your minds because you two haven't really shared more than two words since leaving the party. Now that the effect of the alcohol is slowly wearing off, you're starting to feel bad about it. 

“What do you mean?” Jimin asks, making you turn around to face him. 

“You wanted to really get started with the plan today. You wanted to convince everyone, I was supposed to get to know everyone and get involved, blah blah blah. Instead, I hid somewhere or just bitched at people half the time - which was completely justified, by the way, but I'm still sorry that we couldn't achieve what you had in mind,” you ramble. 

Jimin smiles, shrugging his shoulders as to show you it's not a big deal. "I'm sorry for ditching you at the start and not defending you as much as I should have,” he apologizes as well, stuffing his hands in his pockets. 

Ah, so he did notice then. 

“I already broke my promise to you, and I'm sorry for that. I hope you're still in, though and if you are, I promise this won't happen again. The truth is, I had met Yeji when I was on my way back to you, and it kinda put me off. I was in a bad mood the whole time after that. And then I came back, and you were gone, and everyone was making rude remarks,” he groans. “And then I find you with Jeon of all people.” 

Well, it's not the greatest apology, but it's more than you expected, and you're glad he at least made an effort. So you just smile and nod. 

“It was the first try,” you say, already turning around to open your door. “Let's do better next time. It's not like the entire night was a flop. You're bearable when you shut up, Park.”

At this, Jimin laughs. “I can only return that compliment, babygirl. You should be drunk more often. It makes you so much more likable.”

You don't return anything to that, just simply throw him the middle finger as you walk inside your home and close the door behind your back. 

Truth is, tonight really wasn't a total flop, and you know if you both put in a little more effort, this could actually work. 

Unfortunately, any hope of sudden amnesia on his part vanished the second you entered the lecture hall today on this lovely Thursday morning and headed straight for your usual seat in the back row, only to be unceremoniously ambushed from behind and forced into a tight embrace. 

“Back row, huh? All the more room for funny business, if you know what I mean. Unfortunately, I have already told my friends about us, and I’d love it if we could sit with them. Would that be okay, babygirl?”

Irritated and overwhelmed with everything around you, you immediately snap at him as you forcefully pull his arm from your shoulders, anxiously looking around while reminding him that you had told him to stop calling you this ridiculous name. 

But him being Jimin, he doesn't even care.

“What’s the matter? You’re my girlfriend, Boo. We actually want people to see us be cozy together,” Jimin sneakily wraps one arm around your waist to pull you more into him as he leans down to whisper in your ear while leading the two of you in the direction where his friends are already seated, only to be pushed away once again. 

You simply try to ignore the questioning look on his face when you finally turn around to face him, adjusting the strap of your bag on your shoulder. 

“Can you at least give me a minute to get into character? I just came here.”

“This ain’t drama school, ___,” a peal of slight laughter comes over his lips as he musters you. “What, is it really that hard for you to act as if you’re into me?”

“Yes. It is hard for me, Jimin. I don't know about you, but I have never before pretended to be into someone I barely even know,” you seethe keeping your voice down enough so no one can overhear you.

“You say that now but just wait until we have to break up again, and you'll cry a river because you actually managed to fall for me.”

Your bickering luckily doesn't go on any longer because Jimin takes the initiative and drags you along to your seats, meanwhile ignoring every protest leaving your mouth.

As already expected, you are not particularly warmly welcomed and received by any of his friends. Instead, the best you get is an inconsequential nod before they pay no further attention to you, nor do they include you in any of their subsequent conversations for the rest of the lecture.

That's perfectly fine with you, though. You aren't particularly interested in talking anyway and prefer to focus on your class instead. At this point, you really don't want to drag out your student life more than you have to.

Jimin doesn't seem to be very interested in the reaction of his friends for the time being either.

He continues to joke around with them the whole time but remains steadily in his role. And that means you don't have a moment of peace without his annoying arm wrapped around your shoulders or his hand on your thigh.

One thing at least is certain: he definitely doesn't do things by halves. And that makes you all the more nervous about what may come in the future.

After the day started rather badly, you apparently also have to attend a party tonight which is why you’re currently in the process of making yourself look decent enough so that you’ll “perfectly blend in with the crowd”. At least that's what Jimin said.

You know you most likely won't do that,, and all eyes will be on you and Jimin, but you can at least try and make the best of it. 

It’s been a long time since you’ve gone to a party, and as much as you’re nervous, you’re also excited to go out tonight. 

What can you say? It’s been a while and it’d be a lie to say you aren’t happy to dress up and actually have somewhere to go. 

So you went all in, dressed up pretty nicely, and did your make-up the way you usually like to when you go out. 

You hope you haven't overdone it but in the end, this is the only thing you can do to counteract your nervousness. Even if it's just a little bit.

You feel sexy, you feel confident, and now you’re ready to go have some flippin' fun, alright?!

Well, at least until Jimin comes knocking at your door and decides to ruin your mood with one little glimpse at his face.

“This is the look you’re going with?” He asks, sounding like he’s actually wishing for you to tell him this is all a joke. 

Now accommodated with a little pout on your lips, you’re looking down on yourself and then take a quick look into the mirror, not seeing anything wrong with how you look. 

“What’s wrong with it? I think I look good,” you shrug, trying to sound barely affected by his words, even if you gotta admit they put you off track. It doesn’t make you doubt your appearance, though. You do think you look fine, and if he was hoping for something else, he should have told you in advance. 

“You do look good, but you don’t look like my girlfriend if you know what I mean.”

You only scoff, already taking your purse in your hand to finally leave. 

“What did you expect? I live off of chips and peanut butter sandwiches. If you want me to be covered in diamonds and gold, then I'm afraid you'll have to reach into your own pockets,” you joke, actually making him laugh at your slight remark. 

“Fair point,” he grins, putting his hand on the small of your back as he leads you out of your apartment and down the corridor. “Maybe I will.”

“Don’t you dare. You’re not my sugar daddy.” 

“Yet,” he snarkily adds, making you snort through your nose and himself giggle. 

And it’s the little jokes like these that easily let you forget how insufferable he actually is. Even if it’s just for a little while. 

It’s been exactly 23 minutes since you managed to escape and hid somewhere in the backyard - and Jimin has yet to find you. 

Or you know... maybe you’re wrong, and he isn’t even looking for you. That could be the case too. 

How it came to this? 

Well, not long after you arrived and stood your ground through all the death glares and judging stares Jimin’s so-called “friends” gave you, he kinda just left you alone because he had to “take care of something real quick”. 

He took way too long for your liking and you eventually grew tired of everyone either ignoring you or throwing nasty remarks your way so you ended up here. Between these two people dry humping each other only a couple feet next to you. 

Fun.

“Cough two times if you need me to safe you.”

Irritated by a voice that doesn’t belong to Jimin suddenly ringing up from behind you, you turn around, instantly relaxing when you see who it belongs to. 

“What?” you chuckle, making room for him to sit down, and he doesn’t even take another moment before he complies, plopping down in the spot right next to yours. The one Jimin should be sitting in right now if he hadn’t just rudely left you alone at a party you only attended because he wanted you to. 

Okay, maybe it does bother you more than you originally wanted to admit.

“I heard you were involved with Park Jimin, and I would have bet my right arm for it to be just another rumor,” he starts as you already feel his eyes burn into the side of your head. “But now I see you here, getting comfortable with no other than the campus golden boy. So tell me, ___, is he holding you captive, or is he blackmailing you because there is no way in this world that you are unironically dating Jimin.”

You gulp as you keep your head stubbornly straight ahead, taking a bit too long to answer his simple question. 

If you've learned one thing from this whole fake dating situation so far, it's that you're not even remotely as quick-witted as you always thought you were. And if this continues, you will very quickly get a lot of problems.

Clearing your throat, you sit a little straighter while nervously fumbling with your hands. “I know it's a little sudden, but he’s actually really amazing,” you say, looking at your new-found companion while trying to suppress the urge to cringe at your own words.

“Bullshit!” He laughs loudly, barely keeping himself from falling backward with his whole chair. “God, that was awful, ___.” Still giggling, while he’s trying to calm down again, he looks at you and brushes his mop of hair out of his eyes in a quick movement.

“It’s the truth, though. We have a lot in common,” you shrug, not even smiling when those words leave your lips. This time your attempt in trying to say something nice about your alleged boyfriend sounds a little less forced and tortured,, but it’s still not enough to be convincing it seems. 

“Alright just say the words, and I’ll get us out of here. Depending on what he's threatening you with, I might even tell him a word or two, so he'll leave you alone forever. Of course, only if you want me to.”

“What words exactly are we talking about?” You grin, not even getting into the other nonsense.

“Jeon, I’m being held captive by Jimin and his rich people cult. Please save me before they sacrifice me on the next full moon,” he says in a high-pitched voice, trying to sound like you. 

You only roll your eyes, but can hardly suppress a smile. “Wouldn’t they usually need a virgin for that?” you joke, casually playing along. 

Jungkook brightly grins, showing off his front teeth in the process. He sees your willingness to jump on his joke as a small advance in your conversation since you usually aren’t that talkative. 

Usually, you're the type to only mutter a one-word answer before you're on your way again, too scared someone could see you and spread another rumor. 

Jungkook has always felt bad about that, trying to convince you he doesn't care about that, but you never listen. So this is a surprise he welcomes.

“Guess I just outed myself as a non-expert in ritual procedures. I hope you will keep this embarrassment to yourself and not judge me too hard for that.”

“It was still very creative. I’ll give you points for that,” you grin, finally feeling a little less tense now that you get to have a normal, real conversation with someone who you know isn’t secretly stabbing you in their head.

“Thank you. Now, tell me what’s really going on,” he insists, coming a little closer. 

And there goes your just-earned ease again due to his noisy nature.

A defeated sigh comes over your lips. You are pretty sure that there is nothing you could tell him that would make him believe you’re actually dating Jimin, so where’s the point in lying? 

You can’t imagine Jungkook going around and snitching on you anyway. There’s nothing he could get out of that, and even if you aren't close, you know Jungkook is not the type of guy to gossip. If he were, you'd know by now.

“I may or may not have agreed to a deal with Jimin that… includes me pretending to be his girlfriend,” you eventually admit, carefully looking around to check that no one overheard your little confession.

Trying to process what you just told him, Jungkook clears his throat, as he slowly nods his head. “Well, that… sounds about right.” 

You look at Jungkook, raising a brow since you didn’t think he’d react so… barely?

“Huh? You’re not surprised?” You ask, gaping at him. 

“Surprised you’re not actually dating him? Not at all. Surprised that you agreed to something so stupid? Completely baffled,” he explains, grinning at you when he sees you pouting. “You thought this was a good idea?”

“No. I thought it was a bad idea, actually. But he somehow still managed to talk me into it. I don’t even know how he did it. He’s really good at guilt-tripping, I guess.”

You turn your attention back to your feet, too embarrassed to look directly at Jungkook and the long, much too exaggerated sigh that suddenly comes from him only lets you guess the disappointed look in his eyes.

You don't need to hear from him how stupid it is of you to accept this deal. You already know that yourself. And yet - maybe it is exactly what you need. Someone who isn’t you saying how big of a mistake you’re making right now could be the wake-up call you need.

But then again, you’re already in too deep to just quit now anyway. At this point, quitting wouldn’t change anything. It would probably just make things worse, and you’d have Jimin on your bad side as well, which does not sound like something you would want.

“Look, this is none of my business,” Jungkook starts, leaving you waiting on what’s going to follow because usually, it’s nothing good that comes after. 

He clears his throat, gradually playing with the holes in his jeans. “But I’m not sure if getting involved in this is exactly what you need. No offense, ___, really. It's just that a lot of people already have an opinion about it and... it is not exactly positive in your sense.”

Well, it’s not like this comes as a surprise since it is what you told Jimin would happen, but it still sucks to get the confirmation. It’s embarrassing, really - and the worst part is, that you put this on yourself this time. 

“They don’t believe this is real, they just think—”

“—He’s using me. I know,” you finish, carelessly shifting your gaze on a couple that’s making out not that far from you. It’s not the most pleasant sight but it’s better than having to look at Jungkook’s pitiful eyes, or the people already whispering about you sitting here with him while your “boyfriend” isn’t around. 

“Well… that too, yes,“ he says, implying that there’s more, which makes you look at him again. “Some do think that, but some also interpret it as if you were taking advantage of him and his “fragile, broken heart”, he explains, making you scoff in dismay. 

“Are you shitting me right now?”

“No, I heard people say you’re probably using him for his money.”

“Yes, of course, they think that,“ you scoff again, frustration clearly visible on your face. “You know what? I wish I would have been smart enough to make him pay me for this bullshit.”

Pressing your elbows into your thighs, you let your head fall into your hands to hide your face, wishing for the ground to swallow you whole and end your misery once and for all.

“I can’t even feel sorry for you, what were you thinking?”

“I don’t have an answer for that, Jeon. Truth is, my life is shitty, and I’m attempting to at least make some memories before I leave this place.” You sigh, gradually sipping from the cup you put next to you on the ground after coming here.

It’s pure vodka and exactly what you want and need right now. 

You figured if you have to be here and get dumped by your “boyfriend” soon after arriving here, you can at least get shit-faced. It’s really good to ease the nerves and lose the awkwardness, and it helps to not notice the stares you get from everyone.

You hear Jungkook exhale from his nose as a laugh before he holds his own cup in front of you waiting for you to copy him. “A toast to that.”

You only roll your eyes, not amused whatsoever, but end up toasting with him anyway. 

“Who knows, maybe you’ll end up falling for him,” he then adds after a moment of silence, making the both of you burst into laughter. 

“If that happens, please just kill me right on the spot.”

“Don’t worry, I got you. I’m not letting you go down like this.”

Unfortunately, your little heart to heart with Jungkook gets suddenly interrupted when you hear someone call out your name. And it’s not a very happy tone, immediately making you cringe before you turn around at the same time Jungkook turns around as well.

You both stare at a very annoyed-looking Jimin, stomping towards the both of you.

“What the fuck are you doing here?” Jimin seethes, as soon as he reaches you, completely ignoring Jungkook, who’s currently taking a big gulp from his beer as he tries to hide his gloating grin from you. 

“Uh… mingling and trying to enjoy myself just how you asked me to before you just went off and left me alone,” you sarcastically quip, still pretty annoyed at him for leaving you like that when he knows how much you already don’t want to be here. 

That was a dick move, and you stand by that. 

“What I meant was try to get to know my friends while I leave for a quick bathroom break. Not run away and hide in a suspicious corner with fucking Jeon,” he argues, still not looking at him at all. 

“Hey,” Jungkook speaks up, frowning a little while Jimin for the first time since coming here, fixes his eyes on him. “I can hear you, you know?”

Jimin snaps at him with a quick, “and who gives a fuck?”, making the younger boy shut up right after since he decides to not get involved in your whole fake couple drama. Nope, this is not what he had in mind when he came around to have a good time tonight. 

“What exactly is your problem? He’s the only one who actually wants to talk to me,” you argue, not really seeing his point whatsoever. 

Jungkook rather quickly notices that no one actually pays attention to him, seeing both you and Jimin continue arguing so he just escapes the scene as fast as he can.

“I can’t believe you’re being this irresponsible,” Jimin, says lowering his voice when he sees the looks everyone is giving the two of you. “Do you even know what people will say when they see you getting close to Jeon?” 

You scoff, softly pushing him further away since he’s gotten a little too close for your liking. “In case you didn’t notice, you are the one currently making a scene here, Jimin,” you advise him, plastering a smile on your lips so the people around will stop thinking you’re fighting. “Now stop looking at me like you’re about to kill me and smile a little. Everyone is watching us.” 

Jimin raises a brow, quickly looking around before he chuckles a little awkwardly, throws his arm around your shoulders, and plasters a kiss on your cheek which barely lets you keep in a protesting grunt. 

“Just so you know, I’m still pissed at you for ditching me for this fucking low life,” he whispers as you’re both walking back inside where the actual party takes place. 

“I ditched you? You were the one who left and didn’t come back. Do you even know how awkward I felt standing there with your friends who treated me like air?” You hiss back at him. 

“Look, I’m sorry. I really didn’t mean to leave you alone for so long.” He sighs, and to your surprise, he actually does sound regretful. “I was held up with something. But I promise I tried to get back as soon as I could.”

Still not convinced by his half-hearted apology, you stay stubborn, only rolling your eyes at him. “Just don’t do it again, please. I know everyone here is your friend, but they sure as hell aren’t mine. And they really try hard to make sure I know about it.”

“Was someone mean to you?” 

You’re surprised by the sudden seriousness in his voice as he also stops walking for a moment to look at you, but you simply brush it off, telling him it doesn’t matter since it’s nothing the both of you hadn’t expected in the first place. 

It’s no lie that you don’t fit into Jimin’s usual type, and only judging by your reputation, it was to be expected that his friends wouldn't invite you with open arms. Yet, it still feels even more awkward to be around them than you initially thought. 

And like speaking of the devil, you are interrupted by yet another one of Jimin’s friends before he can ask any more questions.

This time it’s Yuna, a girl you don’t share any classes with, but you think you’ve seen her around Nayeon before. 

You never noticed her much since she always seemed like someone to get lost in a crowd. At least, that’s what you always thought. 

Tonight, however, you noticed that she isn’t like that at all. 

No, Kim Yuna is a little snake, and you needed no more than twenty minutes around her to figure that out. 

It wouldn’t actually bother you as much if you weren't one hundred percent sure that she directly saw through yours and Jimin's lie without the slightest doubt and there is nothing that could convince her otherwise.

So far you don't think too much about it, but you can't get rid of the feeling that she could eventually become a problem.

“There you are! We were looking everywhere for you!” She giggles as she approaches you and Jimin, smiling brightly at you in particular. “Good thing Jimin finally found you.”

Plastering an equally as fake smile on your lips, you nod. “I mean, it’s just a house, not a maze or something. There weren’t very many options, huh?” You feign a laugh, making her laugh way too obnoxiously in exchange. 

“Well, there are a lot of bedrooms, after all. You never know…” she says in the most innocent voice you’ve ever heard, but obviously implying something very specific. 

You’re so caught off guard, that you can’t help but gape at her before looking at Jimin, who - unsurprisingly - doesn’t even seem to have caught on to what she just said. 

“Anyway, we want to play truth or dare, are you guys in?” She changes the topic, now looking more towards Jimin, who does seem interested, whereas you cannot help but mock that suggestion.

“Truth or dare, really? That’s the lamest shit you could come up with—” You’re interrupted by Jimin’s hand grabbing yours a little too harshly. You swallow the rest of what you wanted to say, even though you had a couple more well-fitting insults in store. 

Oh well, your time will come.

How come he immediately shuts you down, but when someone clearly insults you, he doesn’t even notice? 

“Yea, we’re coming, right babe?” 

It takes you a second to react since you don’t feel addressed by that name, but reality comes crashing down at you when he squeezes your hand once again, making you nod your head in forced agreement. 

There’s really nothing worse you could think of right now. Not only could this game expose you real quick, but it could also make for a lot of embarrassing and uncomfortable moments.

And the first one comes soon after you and Jimin join the group of people playing, and the bottle finally lands on you. 

“Truth,” you sigh, already annoyed to no extent. 

As soon as you mumbled the word, a round of boos roars around you - loudest of all Yuna herself. 

“Come on, no one takes truth. I thought you were against lame shitty games, so why not make this one fun when you can?” She challenges you, making your blood boil in your veins. 

Maybe the cup of pure vodka wasn’t the best idea, since it seems to rile you up more than you need right now.

Nonetheless, you actually let yourself be provoked this time.

“Okay, whatever then. I take dare,” you hear yourself say, crossing your arms over your chest while never breaking eye contact with her. After all, you don't want her to think she's intimidating you or that you have something to hide. 

She does intimidate you, and you do have something to hide, but no one needs to know that.

She looks rather unaffected though, simply smirking at you before she purses her lips for a sheer moment while thinking about something to make you do, grinning almost in an evil way when she obviously seems to have something in mind.

“Make Jimin moan.” 

Your eyes grow wide as you try not to let them see how uncomfortable you are. 

Now it is more than obvious that she is onto something and clearly wants to see if you’re going through with it. 

The problem is, you don’t know if you can.

A look to the side quickly tells you Jimin isn’t going to save you either since he looks pretty unbothered by all of this, just shrugging his shoulder as he looks back at you, waiting for you to do something. 

“What is it ___?” Yuna sneers, looking rather pleased with herself when her plan seems to work. “Shouldn’t be a problem, since you’re dating him, hm?”

“Doesn't mean we’re comfortable sharing everything with all of you, does it?”

“We’re all friends here, there is nothing to be ashamed of,” she coos, not hiding her smirk even one bit. You can already hear other people start to giggle the more time you’re letting pass, but you cannot help it - this is not an easy decision for you. 

No matter how you cannot and will not let her win this round. This one is for sure. 

But right when you're on the verge of despair, a sudden idea comes into your head, making you abruptly grin back at her. 

“Cool. Nothing easier than that,” you declare before you give Jimin one hard punch onto his arm, instantly making him moan in pain.

It is more than obvious this wasn’t what she was hoping for, and she makes it very known soon after with a deep scowl on her face. 

“That’s not what I meant, and you know it! You cheated!” She complains, making a bigger thing out of this than it has to be. 

“You never said he has to moan in pleasure,” you shrug, feigning innocence while hiding the happiness of having found a little loophole.

“It was more than obvious that that was what I meant. This is a college party!” she continues to complain, making you roll your eyes at her dramatic behavior. “You cheated. Probably because you can't pull it off anyway—”

“— Shut up already, Yuna.“ Jimin’s annoyed voice suddenly can be heard, reminding you of his presence. “Specify your dares next time. We’re done playing anyway.“ And with that being said, he grabs your hand and pulls you away. 

You unwillingly follow him for a little while until you're in a more quiet room with only a couple people, and you get the courage to speak up.

“Sorry for punching you,” you mutter, feeling bad about what happened but Jimin just playfully glares at you. 

“Are you really?” He asks, already starting to smile as you join in. “Thought so,” he grins mischievously when he doesn’t get an answer.

“Usually, I’m not the violent type, I promise. I just panicked. And since you didn’t seem to want to help me out of this, I needed to be creative,” you explain. “By the way, why didn’t you help me? Wasn’t it obvious that I wanted you to do something?”

“Honestly, I just wanted to see what you will do,” Jimin admits, chuckling quietly. “Wanted to see if you’d actually do it.” 

You’re just about to say something snarky back to that when you notice him focusing on something behind you all of a sudden, making you curious about what’s there to see, and you’re surprised when you see that it’s no other than Taehyung and Yeji who seem to have just arrived, happily greeting everyone around them.

“Are you okay?” You ask, noticing how he seems to have zoned out. It's a little unnerving for you to see him like this because you fear he could make a scene. More attention is the last thing you two need. 

But it's not only that. It must be hard for him to see them here, and you do feel bad he has to go through this right now. You aren't friends, and he isn't the nicest, but you still have a heart, okay?

“Of course I am. Why wouldn’t I be? Don't treat me like a baby.”

His answer comes directly after, making him sound careless, but you clearly see the way his jaw clenches when he tries to move his head away from the scene in front of you.

You’re trying to not let his sudden change in mood get to you, but you can’t help but get a little irritated with the tone he uses while speaking to you. You can understand this is an unpleasant situation for him, but you are not to blame for any of this.

“I don’t know, maybe because you look like someone pissed in your breakfast.”

Jimin’s eyes land back on you, and for a quick second, you watch him clench his jaw before he grabs your hand again and pulls you with him, mumbling something about needing a drink. 

Now, this is a thought you can relate to, and you're happy to finally get your hands on more alcohol. This whole day just screams for a way to calm your nerves and let your frustration out.

“I can’t believe they have the audacity to come here,” he boils as he sips from his drink. “I specifically asked Hyunjin to not let them in tonight, and yet, here they are. What the fuck. You really can't trust anyone anymore.”

You do feel for him because having to see them here - together over all must suck a lot and you have no idea how his relations to everyone around here differ from Taehyung's and Yeji's, but you know it's a bit too much to expect that just because he has problems with them, everyone else has to turn their backs on them, too. You don’t want to be the reason to annoy him even further, though, so you decide to just stay silent, nod your head in agreement, and play your part. 

Sometimes, it's better to just listen and support than be the voice of reason. Maybe you two will have to have that talk someday, but surely not tonight.

You’re here for a reason, and it’s not to pick a fight with him.

“Should we dance?” you unexpectedly hear yourself ask after you both decided to calm yourselves with a few rounds of shots. 

Admittedly, you should take it slow, considering it’s been a minute since you drank this much, but hey, anything to ease your nerves and make you a little less uncomfortable. 

The problem, however, is that a side effect of alcohol is that you tend to get a little too carried away, and Jimin is probably the worst person to have around in that state because it's clear he's not going to stop you from making a fool of yourself. 

Unlike you, he's already a bit too confident even without alcohol, which is why he instantly jumps at your suggestion, grabbing your hand and pulling you with him in no time. And before you know it, you're on the dance floor, dancing with none other than Park Jimin. 

And it’s not the worst. 

Not only do you desperately need to prove your "relationship" to everyone around you (which... doesn't seem to work very well so far) it also can't hurt to switch off and relax for a while. After all, you haven't had the chance to do that since you came here. 

You’re finally letting loose, swaying your hips to the beat with your eyes closed as you feel the alcohol running through your system. It has been so long since you just had fun - let alone at a party - but it feels so good you don’t even care about the couple hundred eyes that have to be watching you right now. 

No, they should be watching. Maybe seeing you and Jimin act comfortable around each other will do the trick. 

You decide to turn everything off and live in the moment for once, not even caring about the fact that you’re literally grinding on Jimin right now while he's practically doing the same, keeping his grip firmly on your hips. You barely even notice. 

All of this is entirely overshadowed by you simply enjoying yourself. Finally. 

But the state of pure peace and bliss you are currently in does not last long when you feel Jimin’s hot breath brush against your cheek as he whispers something in your ear. 

“Are you trying to make me hard or something?” 

Your eyes immediately shot open, and you turn around to push him away from you while he’s laughing hard enough to make his eyes disappear. 

“You’re such a dick! I was finally having fun,” you complain, but can barely hide the grin at the sight of him laughing so damn hard until you fall into a fit of amused giggles as well. 

“I didn’t ask you to stop. Sorry if you misunderstood,” he defends himself holding his hands up in surrender. 

You throw your head back in laughter, and yes, you entirely blame this on your drunken state because Park Jimin’s sexual innuendos wouldn’t make you laugh this much if you were sober. 

You watch him purely grin at you in amusement for a while until you raise a brow, silently asking him what he’s looking at, but he just shrugs, coming closer as you're now dancing a little less daringly.

“Nothing, it’s just that I’ve never seen you like this before. Didn’t know you could actually be fun.”

His answer doesn’t surprise you since you must admit you almost forgot this side of yours as well. Also, it’s not like Jimin has known you for long enough to know the person you were before you turned into a loner. 

But you can be fun, and have a lot more in store than just that. You don't plan on showing Jimin all of you, though. It's not like you're friends, and he doesn't need to know you more than he has to for the sake of making your relationship believable. 

A little later that same night, you have once again decided to ditch the party and find a secluded place where you can just… not socialize for a while. 

The only difference is that this time you have Jimin as your companion, sitting next to you on the roof of the frat house after bragging about showing you the coolest place here.

And here you are, looking down at all the people partying below you, while you're just enjoying the view, both with a beer in your hand, talking about some stuff and getting to know each other.

Weirdly, this is really comforting. 

It’s not that bad getting to know the guy behind all that “golden boy” facade, and in a way, it’s the first time you realize that besides being super popular and rich, Jimin is also just a guy in his twenties, trying to survive and find his own way in life. 

By now, you both sobered up a little and even if it’s not exactly enough for you to be safely sitting on a rooftop, you at least stopped giggling about everything which you’re very thankful for. 

Right now, he’s telling you a little about his family. You don’t even remember how you came to that, but you find yourself being interested in what he tells you about them. Just from what he told you til now, you feel like he’s grown up in a very loving family who he also seems to be close with. 

He especially seems to care a lot about his younger sister, or at least that’s what you assume because, for the last hour or so, he always comes back to telling you about her. 

“It’s just… she is dating this giant dick-face, okay?” Jimin explains, staring ahead with a sigh.

“Jimin,” you admonish him, already rolling your eyes, but can’t completely hide the smile slowly spreading on your face.

“No, I mean it! Really!” He exclaims, turning his head to stare at you with big, serious eyes. “His face is literally formed like a giant ball sack, and his hair is—”

He doesn’t get any further before you smack his arm, laughing at his stupidity. “Stop, you’re being ridiculous,” you giggle, shaking your head as you see him trying to suppress his own grin.

The quiet waves of laughter from both of you are followed by a comfortable silence as you just sit there on a damn roof, while a couple hundred people are partying. 

You catch yourself feeling comfortable in his company, even enjoying it for once without getting irritated by him. It’s something new and strange, but you welcome the change. 

“He’s not good enough for her,” Jimin then breaks the silence again after a while, staring thoughtfully into the night sky. “No one is, but least of all him. I try to tell her all the time, but she just never listens.” 

He doesn’t notice you watching him right after, studying how his brows are furrowed together in deep thought and the way his hands fumble with the fabric of his jeans as he probably thinks about his sister’s well-being.

And you don’t notice how the corners of your lips subconsciously perk up into a small smile.

It’s unusual for you to see him like this. Thoughtful, caring. It’s the first time you see a glimpse of the person underneath all the snooty, self-absorbed posturing. 

Sure, he has shown a little compassion for your situation but that's the most he's done so far. With his sister, however, you can see how caring he can actually be, and at this moment, even if it doesn’t stay for long, you decide that you don’t despise this Jimin as much as the other one. 

“You probably don’t want to hear what I’m about to tell you,” you start, seeing him turn his head back at you.

“Then it’s better when you keep it to yourself,” he interrupts, grinning as to let you know he isn’t being serious.

You snort, shaking your head. “She will not listen to anyone. And the more you tell her what a mistake she is making, the more she will want to do it,” you say, closely watching his reaction to your little advice - if you can even call it that. 

To your surprise, he seems to listen, and you admire him nodding his head understandingly. 

“What else can I do then?”

“I’m afraid there isn’t anything you can do at this point,” you shrug, looking at him apologetically when you see the little hopeful look in his eyes slowly disappear. 

“If she won’t listen to the people closest to her, she will have to make her own decisions and face the consequences. Even if she’ll end up being hurt.”

“I don’t want that to happen,” he sighs. “She always wants to act like an adult and tries to be mature and stuff, but she’s just seventeen. And she’s sensitive, even if she never shows it to anyone.“

It’s clear he loves his sister very much, and it warms your heart to see how she can make a whole different Jimin appear than the one you got to know recently.

“I know. Sorry,” you quietly breathe out. “But I don’t think there’s anything you can do about it. It’s part of growing up.”

“Maybe you could try and talk to her sometime?” He suddenly suggests, looking at you with big eyes that make him look so much younger.

“Why? Because I have a history with dick-faced douchebags?” You joke, expecting him to laugh along at your joke.

No idea why you expected that because Jimin immediately agrees, shrugging his shoulders while he looks at you completely serious with a simple “yeah”.

“Wow, gotta love your honesty,” you mumble, turning your head straight ahead again. “I don’t think I’m the right person for that, though. I’m sorry. And no offense, but I refuse to meet your family,” you state. “It’s already bad enough that we have to lie to everyone around here. I really don’t want us to lie to the people closest to us. They shouldn't be a part of this.”

He doesn’t say anything to that, but just by the way he slightly nods with his beer bottle tightly pressed to his lips, you guess that he agrees. 

“Why don’t you ask Nayeon instead?” you propose, just thinking out loud. “She’s way better with people than I am, and I'm sure your sister would rather listen to her anyway. They already know each other.” You explain, still trying to help him out. Even if you refuse to get involved with his family, for good reasons, you can still try to be helpful in different ways if it really burdens him this much.

“Nayeon…” you immediately catch Jimin’s face falter again as soon as you bring up her name, and you wonder what this could be about. 

“Nayeon isn’t… she’s not really in the right state of mind to give advice to others, I guess,“ he beats around the bush, making you even more curious about what’s going on with her. 

What is he hinting at?

Now that you come to think of it, you haven’t seen her for quite some time now, and you haven’t heard about her either, which is not common for her. 

She's the life of every party, everybody loves her so... what is going on?

“She isn't doing well at all. I’m honestly worried about her.” 

You see a look, similar to what he looked like earlier on his face when talking about his sister’s well-being. But this time, it's even more severe. 

You’re still mad at Nayeon and don’t want to ask about her for that reason, but you cannot help but worry about her too. Especially since Jimin looks so serious.

“Why? What’s wrong with her?”

“Above all, she's very heartbroken, of course. She genuinely loved Taehyung, and she always thought of Yeji as a close friend. What happened really gnaws at her,” he explains, confirming your guess as you nod and focus your gaze on your clapped-together hands.

“But what really gets to her is… what happened between her and you,” he then admits, making your ears perk up immediately though you try to look unbothered and just don’t say anything to that, nor do you look at him.

“She hates herself for what happened, ___.” 

“She should,” you shrug, acting entirely cold even though you don’t mean it. “After all, she did get off better than me.”

“Nayeon is not a bad person, ___. She was just very hurt and—”

“I was hurt too,” you interrupt him, eventually turning your head to throw him a stern look. “I know, no one ever cares about my feelings, but I was hurt too, Jimin. I don’t give a fuck about Taehyung or Yeji or anyone else. But Nayeon – I really expected more from her,” you rant, glad you managed to not let your voice break.

“Trust me, she did too,” Jimin says, looking straight into your eyes. “I’m not taking her side. Not at all,” he makes sure to let you know, keeping his voice solid. “What she did was very wrong, and there is no excuse for it.”

“But?” 

“But,” he sucks in some air, keeping his gaze on you the whole time. “We both know that Nayeon is not that person,” he states.

You know he’s right. But you can’t just forget about what she said to you and what she did. Not just like that. Especially not when it happened in front of so many people.

Would she have done it differently, asked you to meet her somewhere private and talk it out, you would still have been disappointed in her for believing this lie, but you could have forgiven her. 

The way she did it, however, showed you a side of her you never knew existed, and you’re not sure you can see past that. At last not so soon and not that easy. 

“She used to always talk to me about you, and she always took your side whenever someone said anything mean,” he says after a while. “I'm the last person to expect anything from you right away, but I think it would do you both good to talk to each other. Not until you’re ready, of course. It may just be something to think about. Just… try and be the bigger person.”

You can’t help but scoff. He has no idea how many times you've recited that stupid line to yourself as if it were a mantra. 

Don’t say anything, ___. Just leave. Be the bigger person.

“I’m tired of having to be the bigger person, Jimin,” you state. “Look, I’m sorry she’s not doing well, I really am. I would never wish anything bad on her or anyone else for that matter, but it doesn’t always have to be me who has to be the bigger person. I didn’t do anything wrong, and it is not my responsibility to approach her and smooth things over.”

That you took him by surprise is clearly written on his face, but you don’t let him say anything to that anymore before you start to get up, ready to go home. 

This night is over. You did what he asked of you, and now you want to leave. It's not like there's any purpose for you to still be here, and it's late anyway.

It takes him a moment before he realizes you’re actually leaving, and he hastily gets up as well, almost falling off the roof in the process. 

“Wait, where are you going?”

“Home. It’s getting late, and I’m starting to get cold,” you say, sounding nonchalant. 

“Why didn’t you say anything?” He asks, slowly stumbling over to you. 

It really is a wonder you both managed to not fall off the damn roof by now.

“What for? Would you have given me your jacket?” You try to joke, going back to your earlier mood.

You don’t want to pick a fight with him tonight. You already spend the whole day being annoyed by him so you decide to just stuff the whole Nayeon-story into the back of your head and carry on to where you left off before that.  

Because you would rather shove a cactus down your throat than admit it when you’re sober, but Park Jimin can be fun to hang around when he makes an effort. 

It’s like two sides of the same coin, but both sides are rusty, but one just a little less. 

Yeah. That sounds like a decent enough description. 

Still, as you're walking up to your apartment, followed by Jimin who was nice enough to help you up. It must have looked funny to a bystander watching two tipsy people stumble up the stairs, but you're thankful nonetheless. It shows that he does have manners after all. 

“This night was a disaster and I feel like it's mostly my fault,” you decide to speak up about the elephant in the room, knowing pretty well it was on both of your minds because you two haven't really shared more than two words since leaving the party. Now that the effect of the alcohol is slowly wearing off, you're starting to feel bad about it. 

“What do you mean?” Jimin asks, making you turn around to face him. 

“You wanted to really get started with the plan today. You wanted to convince everyone, I was supposed to get to know everyone and get involved, blah blah blah. Instead, I hid somewhere or just bitched at people half the time - which was completely justified, by the way, but I'm still sorry that we couldn't achieve what you had in mind,” you ramble. 

Jimin smiles, shrugging his shoulders as to show you it's not a big deal. "I'm sorry for ditching you at the start and not defending you as much as I should have,” he apologizes as well, stuffing his hands in his pockets. 

Ah, so he did notice then. 

“I already broke my promise to you, and I'm sorry for that. I hope you're still in, though and if you are, I promise this won't happen again. The truth is, I had met Yeji when I was on my way back to you, and it kinda put me off. I was in a bad mood the whole time after that. And then I came back, and you were gone, and everyone was making rude remarks,” he groans. “And then I find you with Jeon of all people.” 

Well, it's not the greatest apology, but it's more than you expected, and you're glad he at least made an effort. So you just smile and nod. 

“It was the first try,” you say, already turning around to open your door. “Let's do better next time. It's not like the entire night was a flop. You're bearable when you shut up, Park.”

At this, Jimin laughs. “I can only return that compliment, babygirl. You should be drunk more often. It makes you so much more likable.”

You don't return anything to that, just simply throw him the middle finger as you walk inside your home and close the door behind your back. 

Truth is, tonight really wasn't a total flop, and you know if you both put in a little more effort, this could actually work. 

Unfortunately, any hope of sudden amnesia on his part vanished the second you entered the lecture hall today on this lovely Thursday morning and headed straight for your usual seat in the back row, only to be unceremoniously ambushed from behind and forced into a tight embrace. 

“Back row, huh? All the more room for funny business, if you know what I mean. Unfortunately, I have already told my friends about us, and I’d love it if we could sit with them. Would that be okay, babygirl?”

Irritated and overwhelmed with everything around you, you immediately snap at him as you forcefully pull his arm from your shoulders, anxiously looking around while reminding him that you had told him to stop calling you this ridiculous name. 

But him being Jimin, he doesn't even care.

“What’s the matter? You’re my girlfriend, Boo. We actually want people to see us be cozy together,” Jimin sneakily wraps one arm around your waist to pull you more into him as he leans down to whisper in your ear while leading the two of you in the direction where his friends are already seated, only to be pushed away once again. 

You simply try to ignore the questioning look on his face when you finally turn around to face him, adjusting the strap of your bag on your shoulder. 

“Can you at least give me a minute to get into character? I just came here.”

“This ain’t drama school, ___,” a peal of slight laughter comes over his lips as he musters you. “What, is it really that hard for you to act as if you’re into me?”

“Yes. It is hard for me, Jimin. I don't know about you, but I have never before pretended to be into someone I barely even know,” you seethe keeping your voice down enough so no one can overhear you.

“You say that now but just wait until we have to break up again, and you'll cry a river because you actually managed to fall for me.”

Your bickering luckily doesn't go on any longer because Jimin takes the initiative and drags you along to your seats, meanwhile ignoring every protest leaving your mouth.

As already expected, you are not particularly warmly welcomed and received by any of his friends. Instead, the best you get is an inconsequential nod before they pay no further attention to you, nor do they include you in any of their subsequent conversations for the rest of the lecture.

That's perfectly fine with you, though. You aren't particularly interested in talking anyway and prefer to focus on your class instead. At this point, you really don't want to drag out your student life more than you have to.

Jimin doesn't seem to be very interested in the reaction of his friends for the time being either.

He continues to joke around with them the whole time but remains steadily in his role. And that means you don't have a moment of peace without his annoying arm wrapped around your shoulders or his hand on your thigh.

One thing at least is certain: he definitely doesn't do things by halves. And that makes you all the more nervous about what may come in the future.

After the day started rather badly, you apparently also have to attend a party tonight which is why you’re currently in the process of making yourself look decent enough so that you’ll “perfectly blend in with the crowd”. At least that's what Jimin said.

You know you most likely won't do that,, and all eyes will be on you and Jimin, but you can at least try and make the best of it. 

It’s been a long time since you’ve gone to a party, and as much as you’re nervous, you’re also excited to go out tonight. 

What can you say? It’s been a while and it’d be a lie to say you aren’t happy to dress up and actually have somewhere to go. 

So you went all in, dressed up pretty nicely, and did your make-up the way you usually like to when you go out. 

You hope you haven't overdone it but in the end, this is the only thing you can do to counteract your nervousness. Even if it's just a little bit.

You feel sexy, you feel confident, and now you’re ready to go have some flippin' fun, alright?!

Well, at least until Jimin comes knocking at your door and decides to ruin your mood with one little glimpse at his face.

“This is the look you’re going with?” He asks, sounding like he’s actually wishing for you to tell him this is all a joke. 

Now accommodated with a little pout on your lips, you’re looking down on yourself and then take a quick look into the mirror, not seeing anything wrong with how you look. 

“What’s wrong with it? I think I look good,” you shrug, trying to sound barely affected by his words, even if you gotta admit they put you off track. It doesn’t make you doubt your appearance, though. You do think you look fine, and if he was hoping for something else, he should have told you in advance. 

“You do look good, but you don’t look like my girlfriend if you know what I mean.”

You only scoff, already taking your purse in your hand to finally leave. 

“What did you expect? I live off of chips and peanut butter sandwiches. If you want me to be covered in diamonds and gold, then I'm afraid you'll have to reach into your own pockets,” you joke, actually making him laugh at your slight remark. 

“Fair point,” he grins, putting his hand on the small of your back as he leads you out of your apartment and down the corridor. “Maybe I will.”

“Don’t you dare. You’re not my sugar daddy.” 

“Yet,” he snarkily adds, making you snort through your nose and himself giggle. 

And it’s the little jokes like these that easily let you forget how insufferable he actually is. Even if it’s just for a little while. 

It’s been exactly 23 minutes since you managed to escape and hid somewhere in the backyard - and Jimin has yet to find you. 

Or you know... maybe you’re wrong, and he isn’t even looking for you. That could be the case too. 

How it came to this? 

Well, not long after you arrived and stood your ground through all the death glares and judging stares Jimin’s so-called “friends” gave you, he kinda just left you alone because he had to “take care of something real quick”. 

He took way too long for your liking and you eventually grew tired of everyone either ignoring you or throwing nasty remarks your way so you ended up here. Between these two people dry humping each other only a couple feet next to you. 

Fun.

“Cough two times if you need me to safe you.”

Irritated by a voice that doesn’t belong to Jimin suddenly ringing up from behind you, you turn around, instantly relaxing when you see who it belongs to. 

“What?” you chuckle, making room for him to sit down, and he doesn’t even take another moment before he complies, plopping down in the spot right next to yours. The one Jimin should be sitting in right now if he hadn’t just rudely left you alone at a party you only attended because he wanted you to. 

Okay, maybe it does bother you more than you originally wanted to admit.

“I heard you were involved with Park Jimin, and I would have bet my right arm for it to be just another rumor,” he starts as you already feel his eyes burn into the side of your head. “But now I see you here, getting comfortable with no other than the campus golden boy. So tell me, ___, is he holding you captive, or is he blackmailing you because there is no way in this world that you are unironically dating Jimin.”

You gulp as you keep your head stubbornly straight ahead, taking a bit too long to answer his simple question. 

If you've learned one thing from this whole fake dating situation so far, it's that you're not even remotely as quick-witted as you always thought you were. And if this continues, you will very quickly get a lot of problems.

Clearing your throat, you sit a little straighter while nervously fumbling with your hands. “I know it's a little sudden, but he’s actually really amazing,” you say, looking at your new-found companion while trying to suppress the urge to cringe at your own words.

“Bullshit!” He laughs loudly, barely keeping himself from falling backward with his whole chair. “God, that was awful, ___.” Still giggling, while he’s trying to calm down again, he looks at you and brushes his mop of hair out of his eyes in a quick movement.

“It’s the truth, though. We have a lot in common,” you shrug, not even smiling when those words leave your lips. This time your attempt in trying to say something nice about your alleged boyfriend sounds a little less forced and tortured,, but it’s still not enough to be convincing it seems. 

“Alright just say the words, and I’ll get us out of here. Depending on what he's threatening you with, I might even tell him a word or two, so he'll leave you alone forever. Of course, only if you want me to.”

“What words exactly are we talking about?” You grin, not even getting into the other nonsense.

“Jeon, I’m being held captive by Jimin and his rich people cult. Please save me before they sacrifice me on the next full moon,” he says in a high-pitched voice, trying to sound like you. 

You only roll your eyes, but can hardly suppress a smile. “Wouldn’t they usually need a virgin for that?” you joke, casually playing along. 

Jungkook brightly grins, showing off his front teeth in the process. He sees your willingness to jump on his joke as a small advance in your conversation since you usually aren’t that talkative. 

Usually, you're the type to only mutter a one-word answer before you're on your way again, too scared someone could see you and spread another rumor. 

Jungkook has always felt bad about that, trying to convince you he doesn't care about that, but you never listen. So this is a surprise he welcomes.

“Guess I just outed myself as a non-expert in ritual procedures. I hope you will keep this embarrassment to yourself and not judge me too hard for that.”

“It was still very creative. I’ll give you points for that,” you grin, finally feeling a little less tense now that you get to have a normal, real conversation with someone who you know isn’t secretly stabbing you in their head.

“Thank you. Now, tell me what’s really going on,” he insists, coming a little closer. 

And there goes your just-earned ease again due to his noisy nature.

A defeated sigh comes over your lips. You are pretty sure that there is nothing you could tell him that would make him believe you’re actually dating Jimin, so where’s the point in lying? 

You can’t imagine Jungkook going around and snitching on you anyway. There’s nothing he could get out of that, and even if you aren't close, you know Jungkook is not the type of guy to gossip. If he were, you'd know by now.

“I may or may not have agreed to a deal with Jimin that… includes me pretending to be his girlfriend,” you eventually admit, carefully looking around to check that no one overheard your little confession.

Trying to process what you just told him, Jungkook clears his throat, as he slowly nods his head. “Well, that… sounds about right.” 

You look at Jungkook, raising a brow since you didn’t think he’d react so… barely?

“Huh? You’re not surprised?” You ask, gaping at him. 

“Surprised you’re not actually dating him? Not at all. Surprised that you agreed to something so stupid? Completely baffled,” he explains, grinning at you when he sees you pouting. “You thought this was a good idea?”

“No. I thought it was a bad idea, actually. But he somehow still managed to talk me into it. I don’t even know how he did it. He’s really good at guilt-tripping, I guess.”

You turn your attention back to your feet, too embarrassed to look directly at Jungkook and the long, much too exaggerated sigh that suddenly comes from him only lets you guess the disappointed look in his eyes.

You don't need to hear from him how stupid it is of you to accept this deal. You already know that yourself. And yet - maybe it is exactly what you need. Someone who isn’t you saying how big of a mistake you’re making right now could be the wake-up call you need.

But then again, you’re already in too deep to just quit now anyway. At this point, quitting wouldn’t change anything. It would probably just make things worse, and you’d have Jimin on your bad side as well, which does not sound like something you would want.

“Look, this is none of my business,” Jungkook starts, leaving you waiting on what’s going to follow because usually, it’s nothing good that comes after. 

He clears his throat, gradually playing with the holes in his jeans. “But I’m not sure if getting involved in this is exactly what you need. No offense, ___, really. It's just that a lot of people already have an opinion about it and... it is not exactly positive in your sense.”

Well, it’s not like this comes as a surprise since it is what you told Jimin would happen, but it still sucks to get the confirmation. It’s embarrassing, really - and the worst part is, that you put this on yourself this time. 

“They don’t believe this is real, they just think—”

“—He’s using me. I know,” you finish, carelessly shifting your gaze on a couple that’s making out not that far from you. It’s not the most pleasant sight but it’s better than having to look at Jungkook’s pitiful eyes, or the people already whispering about you sitting here with him while your “boyfriend” isn’t around. 

“Well… that too, yes,“ he says, implying that there’s more, which makes you look at him again. “Some do think that, but some also interpret it as if you were taking advantage of him and his “fragile, broken heart”, he explains, making you scoff in dismay. 

“Are you shitting me right now?”

“No, I heard people say you’re probably using him for his money.”

“Yes, of course, they think that,“ you scoff again, frustration clearly visible on your face. “You know what? I wish I would have been smart enough to make him pay me for this bullshit.”

Pressing your elbows into your thighs, you let your head fall into your hands to hide your face, wishing for the ground to swallow you whole and end your misery once and for all.

“I can’t even feel sorry for you, what were you thinking?”

“I don’t have an answer for that, Jeon. Truth is, my life is shitty, and I’m attempting to at least make some memories before I leave this place.” You sigh, gradually sipping from the cup you put next to you on the ground after coming here.

It’s pure vodka and exactly what you want and need right now. 

You figured if you have to be here and get dumped by your “boyfriend” soon after arriving here, you can at least get shit-faced. It’s really good to ease the nerves and lose the awkwardness, and it helps to not notice the stares you get from everyone.

You hear Jungkook exhale from his nose as a laugh before he holds his own cup in front of you waiting for you to copy him. “A toast to that.”

You only roll your eyes, not amused whatsoever, but end up toasting with him anyway. 

“Who knows, maybe you’ll end up falling for him,” he then adds after a moment of silence, making the both of you burst into laughter. 

“If that happens, please just kill me right on the spot.”

“Don’t worry, I got you. I’m not letting you go down like this.”

Unfortunately, your little heart to heart with Jungkook gets suddenly interrupted when you hear someone call out your name. And it’s not a very happy tone, immediately making you cringe before you turn around at the same time Jungkook turns around as well.

You both stare at a very annoyed-looking Jimin, stomping towards the both of you.

“What the fuck are you doing here?” Jimin seethes, as soon as he reaches you, completely ignoring Jungkook, who’s currently taking a big gulp from his beer as he tries to hide his gloating grin from you. 

“Uh… mingling and trying to enjoy myself just how you asked me to before you just went off and left me alone,” you sarcastically quip, still pretty annoyed at him for leaving you like that when he knows how much you already don’t want to be here. 

That was a dick move, and you stand by that. 

“What I meant was try to get to know my friends while I leave for a quick bathroom break. Not run away and hide in a suspicious corner with fucking Jeon,” he argues, still not looking at him at all. 

“Hey,” Jungkook speaks up, frowning a little while Jimin for the first time since coming here, fixes his eyes on him. “I can hear you, you know?”

Jimin snaps at him with a quick, “and who gives a fuck?”, making the younger boy shut up right after since he decides to not get involved in your whole fake couple drama. Nope, this is not what he had in mind when he came around to have a good time tonight. 

“What exactly is your problem? He’s the only one who actually wants to talk to me,” you argue, not really seeing his point whatsoever. 

Jungkook rather quickly notices that no one actually pays attention to him, seeing both you and Jimin continue arguing so he just escapes the scene as fast as he can.

“I can’t believe you’re being this irresponsible,” Jimin, says lowering his voice when he sees the looks everyone is giving the two of you. “Do you even know what people will say when they see you getting close to Jeon?” 

You scoff, softly pushing him further away since he’s gotten a little too close for your liking. “In case you didn’t notice, you are the one currently making a scene here, Jimin,” you advise him, plastering a smile on your lips so the people around will stop thinking you’re fighting. “Now stop looking at me like you’re about to kill me and smile a little. Everyone is watching us.” 

Jimin raises a brow, quickly looking around before he chuckles a little awkwardly, throws his arm around your shoulders, and plasters a kiss on your cheek which barely lets you keep in a protesting grunt. 

“Just so you know, I’m still pissed at you for ditching me for this fucking low life,” he whispers as you’re both walking back inside where the actual party takes place. 

“I ditched you? You were the one who left and didn’t come back. Do you even know how awkward I felt standing there with your friends who treated me like air?” You hiss back at him. 

“Look, I’m sorry. I really didn’t mean to leave you alone for so long.” He sighs, and to your surprise, he actually does sound regretful. “I was held up with something. But I promise I tried to get back as soon as I could.”

Still not convinced by his half-hearted apology, you stay stubborn, only rolling your eyes at him. “Just don’t do it again, please. I know everyone here is your friend, but they sure as hell aren’t mine. And they really try hard to make sure I know about it.”

“Was someone mean to you?” 

You’re surprised by the sudden seriousness in his voice as he also stops walking for a moment to look at you, but you simply brush it off, telling him it doesn’t matter since it’s nothing the both of you hadn’t expected in the first place. 

It’s no lie that you don’t fit into Jimin’s usual type, and only judging by your reputation, it was to be expected that his friends wouldn't invite you with open arms. Yet, it still feels even more awkward to be around them than you initially thought. 

And like speaking of the devil, you are interrupted by yet another one of Jimin’s friends before he can ask any more questions.

This time it’s Yuna, a girl you don’t share any classes with, but you think you’ve seen her around Nayeon before. 

You never noticed her much since she always seemed like someone to get lost in a crowd. At least, that’s what you always thought. 

Tonight, however, you noticed that she isn’t like that at all. 

No, Kim Yuna is a little snake, and you needed no more than twenty minutes around her to figure that out. 

It wouldn’t actually bother you as much if you weren't one hundred percent sure that she directly saw through yours and Jimin's lie without the slightest doubt and there is nothing that could convince her otherwise.

So far you don't think too much about it, but you can't get rid of the feeling that she could eventually become a problem.

“There you are! We were looking everywhere for you!” She giggles as she approaches you and Jimin, smiling brightly at you in particular. “Good thing Jimin finally found you.”

Plastering an equally as fake smile on your lips, you nod. “I mean, it’s just a house, not a maze or something. There weren’t very many options, huh?” You feign a laugh, making her laugh way too obnoxiously in exchange. 

“Well, there are a lot of bedrooms, after all. You never know…” she says in the most innocent voice you’ve ever heard, but obviously implying something very specific. 

You’re so caught off guard, that you can’t help but gape at her before looking at Jimin, who - unsurprisingly - doesn’t even seem to have caught on to what she just said. 

“Anyway, we want to play truth or dare, are you guys in?” She changes the topic, now looking more towards Jimin, who does seem interested, whereas you cannot help but mock that suggestion.

“Truth or dare, really? That’s the lamest shit you could come up with—” You’re interrupted by Jimin’s hand grabbing yours a little too harshly. You swallow the rest of what you wanted to say, even though you had a couple more well-fitting insults in store. 

Oh well, your time will come.

How come he immediately shuts you down, but when someone clearly insults you, he doesn’t even notice? 

“Yea, we’re coming, right babe?” 

It takes you a second to react since you don’t feel addressed by that name, but reality comes crashing down at you when he squeezes your hand once again, making you nod your head in forced agreement. 

There’s really nothing worse you could think of right now. Not only could this game expose you real quick, but it could also make for a lot of embarrassing and uncomfortable moments.

And the first one comes soon after you and Jimin join the group of people playing, and the bottle finally lands on you. 

“Truth,” you sigh, already annoyed to no extent. 

As soon as you mumbled the word, a round of boos roars around you - loudest of all Yuna herself. 

“Come on, no one takes truth. I thought you were against lame shitty games, so why not make this one fun when you can?” She challenges you, making your blood boil in your veins. 

Maybe the cup of pure vodka wasn’t the best idea, since it seems to rile you up more than you need right now.

Nonetheless, you actually let yourself be provoked this time.

“Okay, whatever then. I take dare,” you hear yourself say, crossing your arms over your chest while never breaking eye contact with her. After all, you don't want her to think she's intimidating you or that you have something to hide. 

She does intimidate you, and you do have something to hide, but no one needs to know that.

She looks rather unaffected though, simply smirking at you before she purses her lips for a sheer moment while thinking about something to make you do, grinning almost in an evil way when she obviously seems to have something in mind.

“Make Jimin moan.” 

Your eyes grow wide as you try not to let them see how uncomfortable you are. 

Now it is more than obvious that she is onto something and clearly wants to see if you’re going through with it. 

The problem is, you don’t know if you can.

A look to the side quickly tells you Jimin isn’t going to save you either since he looks pretty unbothered by all of this, just shrugging his shoulder as he looks back at you, waiting for you to do something. 

“What is it ___?” Yuna sneers, looking rather pleased with herself when her plan seems to work. “Shouldn’t be a problem, since you’re dating him, hm?”

“Doesn't mean we’re comfortable sharing everything with all of you, does it?”

“We’re all friends here, there is nothing to be ashamed of,” she coos, not hiding her smirk even one bit. You can already hear other people start to giggle the more time you’re letting pass, but you cannot help it - this is not an easy decision for you. 

No matter how you cannot and will not let her win this round. This one is for sure. 

But right when you're on the verge of despair, a sudden idea comes into your head, making you abruptly grin back at her. 

“Cool. Nothing easier than that,” you declare before you give Jimin one hard punch onto his arm, instantly making him moan in pain.

It is more than obvious this wasn’t what she was hoping for, and she makes it very known soon after with a deep scowl on her face. 

“That’s not what I meant, and you know it! You cheated!” She complains, making a bigger thing out of this than it has to be. 

“You never said he has to moan in pleasure,” you shrug, feigning innocence while hiding the happiness of having found a little loophole.

“It was more than obvious that that was what I meant. This is a college party!” she continues to complain, making you roll your eyes at her dramatic behavior. “You cheated. Probably because you can't pull it off anyway—”

“— Shut up already, Yuna.“ Jimin’s annoyed voice suddenly can be heard, reminding you of his presence. “Specify your dares next time. We’re done playing anyway.“ And with that being said, he grabs your hand and pulls you away. 

You unwillingly follow him for a little while until you're in a more quiet room with only a couple people, and you get the courage to speak up.

“Sorry for punching you,” you mutter, feeling bad about what happened but Jimin just playfully glares at you. 

“Are you really?” He asks, already starting to smile as you join in. “Thought so,” he grins mischievously when he doesn’t get an answer.

“Usually, I’m not the violent type, I promise. I just panicked. And since you didn’t seem to want to help me out of this, I needed to be creative,” you explain. “By the way, why didn’t you help me? Wasn’t it obvious that I wanted you to do something?”

“Honestly, I just wanted to see what you will do,” Jimin admits, chuckling quietly. “Wanted to see if you’d actually do it.” 

You’re just about to say something snarky back to that when you notice him focusing on something behind you all of a sudden, making you curious about what’s there to see, and you’re surprised when you see that it’s no other than Taehyung and Yeji who seem to have just arrived, happily greeting everyone around them.

“Are you okay?” You ask, noticing how he seems to have zoned out. It's a little unnerving for you to see him like this because you fear he could make a scene. More attention is the last thing you two need. 

But it's not only that. It must be hard for him to see them here, and you do feel bad he has to go through this right now. You aren't friends, and he isn't the nicest, but you still have a heart, okay?

“Of course I am. Why wouldn’t I be? Don't treat me like a baby.”

His answer comes directly after, making him sound careless, but you clearly see the way his jaw clenches when he tries to move his head away from the scene in front of you.

You’re trying to not let his sudden change in mood get to you, but you can’t help but get a little irritated with the tone he uses while speaking to you. You can understand this is an unpleasant situation for him, but you are not to blame for any of this.

“I don’t know, maybe because you look like someone pissed in your breakfast.”

Jimin’s eyes land back on you, and for a quick second, you watch him clench his jaw before he grabs your hand again and pulls you with him, mumbling something about needing a drink. 

Now, this is a thought you can relate to, and you're happy to finally get your hands on more alcohol. This whole day just screams for a way to calm your nerves and let your frustration out.

“I can’t believe they have the audacity to come here,” he boils as he sips from his drink. “I specifically asked Hyunjin to not let them in tonight, and yet, here they are. What the fuck. You really can't trust anyone anymore.”

You do feel for him because having to see them here - together over all must suck a lot and you have no idea how his relations to everyone around here differ from Taehyung's and Yeji's, but you know it's a bit too much to expect that just because he has problems with them, everyone else has to turn their backs on them, too. You don’t want to be the reason to annoy him even further, though, so you decide to just stay silent, nod your head in agreement, and play your part. 

Sometimes, it's better to just listen and support than be the voice of reason. Maybe you two will have to have that talk someday, but surely not tonight.

You’re here for a reason, and it’s not to pick a fight with him.

“Should we dance?” you unexpectedly hear yourself ask after you both decided to calm yourselves with a few rounds of shots. 

Admittedly, you should take it slow, considering it’s been a minute since you drank this much, but hey, anything to ease your nerves and make you a little less uncomfortable. 

The problem, however, is that a side effect of alcohol is that you tend to get a little too carried away, and Jimin is probably the worst person to have around in that state because it's clear he's not going to stop you from making a fool of yourself. 

Unlike you, he's already a bit too confident even without alcohol, which is why he instantly jumps at your suggestion, grabbing your hand and pulling you with him in no time. And before you know it, you're on the dance floor, dancing with none other than Park Jimin. 

And it’s not the worst. 

Not only do you desperately need to prove your "relationship" to everyone around you (which... doesn't seem to work very well so far) it also can't hurt to switch off and relax for a while. After all, you haven't had the chance to do that since you came here. 

You’re finally letting loose, swaying your hips to the beat with your eyes closed as you feel the alcohol running through your system. It has been so long since you just had fun - let alone at a party - but it feels so good you don’t even care about the couple hundred eyes that have to be watching you right now. 

No, they should be watching. Maybe seeing you and Jimin act comfortable around each other will do the trick. 

You decide to turn everything off and live in the moment for once, not even caring about the fact that you’re literally grinding on Jimin right now while he's practically doing the same, keeping his grip firmly on your hips. You barely even notice. 

All of this is entirely overshadowed by you simply enjoying yourself. Finally. 

But the state of pure peace and bliss you are currently in does not last long when you feel Jimin’s hot breath brush against your cheek as he whispers something in your ear. 

“Are you trying to make me hard or something?” 

Your eyes immediately shot open, and you turn around to push him away from you while he’s laughing hard enough to make his eyes disappear. 

“You’re such a dick! I was finally having fun,” you complain, but can barely hide the grin at the sight of him laughing so damn hard until you fall into a fit of amused giggles as well. 

“I didn’t ask you to stop. Sorry if you misunderstood,” he defends himself holding his hands up in surrender. 

You throw your head back in laughter, and yes, you entirely blame this on your drunken state because Park Jimin’s sexual innuendos wouldn’t make you laugh this much if you were sober. 

You watch him purely grin at you in amusement for a while until you raise a brow, silently asking him what he’s looking at, but he just shrugs, coming closer as you're now dancing a little less daringly.

“Nothing, it’s just that I’ve never seen you like this before. Didn’t know you could actually be fun.”

His answer doesn’t surprise you since you must admit you almost forgot this side of yours as well. Also, it’s not like Jimin has known you for long enough to know the person you were before you turned into a loner. 

But you can be fun, and have a lot more in store than just that. You don't plan on showing Jimin all of you, though. It's not like you're friends, and he doesn't need to know you more than he has to for the sake of making your relationship believable. 

A little later that same night, you have once again decided to ditch the party and find a secluded place where you can just… not socialize for a while. 

The only difference is that this time you have Jimin as your companion, sitting next to you on the roof of the frat house after bragging about showing you the coolest place here.

And here you are, looking down at all the people partying below you, while you're just enjoying the view, both with a beer in your hand, talking about some stuff and getting to know each other.

Weirdly, this is really comforting. 

It’s not that bad getting to know the guy behind all that “golden boy” facade, and in a way, it’s the first time you realize that besides being super popular and rich, Jimin is also just a guy in his twenties, trying to survive and find his own way in life. 

By now, you both sobered up a little and even if it’s not exactly enough for you to be safely sitting on a rooftop, you at least stopped giggling about everything which you’re very thankful for. 

Right now, he’s telling you a little about his family. You don’t even remember how you came to that, but you find yourself being interested in what he tells you about them. Just from what he told you til now, you feel like he’s grown up in a very loving family who he also seems to be close with. 

He especially seems to care a lot about his younger sister, or at least that’s what you assume because, for the last hour or so, he always comes back to telling you about her. 

“It’s just… she is dating this giant dick-face, okay?” Jimin explains, staring ahead with a sigh.

“Jimin,” you admonish him, already rolling your eyes, but can’t completely hide the smile slowly spreading on your face.

“No, I mean it! Really!” He exclaims, turning his head to stare at you with big, serious eyes. “His face is literally formed like a giant ball sack, and his hair is—”

He doesn’t get any further before you smack his arm, laughing at his stupidity. “Stop, you’re being ridiculous,” you giggle, shaking your head as you see him trying to suppress his own grin.

The quiet waves of laughter from both of you are followed by a comfortable silence as you just sit there on a damn roof, while a couple hundred people are partying. 

You catch yourself feeling comfortable in his company, even enjoying it for once without getting irritated by him. It’s something new and strange, but you welcome the change. 

“He’s not good enough for her,” Jimin then breaks the silence again after a while, staring thoughtfully into the night sky. “No one is, but least of all him. I try to tell her all the time, but she just never listens.” 

He doesn’t notice you watching him right after, studying how his brows are furrowed together in deep thought and the way his hands fumble with the fabric of his jeans as he probably thinks about his sister’s well-being.

And you don’t notice how the corners of your lips subconsciously perk up into a small smile.

It’s unusual for you to see him like this. Thoughtful, caring. It’s the first time you see a glimpse of the person underneath all the snooty, self-absorbed posturing. 

Sure, he has shown a little compassion for your situation but that's the most he's done so far. With his sister, however, you can see how caring he can actually be, and at this moment, even if it doesn’t stay for long, you decide that you don’t despise this Jimin as much as the other one. 

“You probably don’t want to hear what I’m about to tell you,” you start, seeing him turn his head back at you.

“Then it’s better when you keep it to yourself,” he interrupts, grinning as to let you know he isn’t being serious.

You snort, shaking your head. “She will not listen to anyone. And the more you tell her what a mistake she is making, the more she will want to do it,” you say, closely watching his reaction to your little advice - if you can even call it that. 

To your surprise, he seems to listen, and you admire him nodding his head understandingly. 

“What else can I do then?”

“I’m afraid there isn’t anything you can do at this point,” you shrug, looking at him apologetically when you see the little hopeful look in his eyes slowly disappear. 

“If she won’t listen to the people closest to her, she will have to make her own decisions and face the consequences. Even if she’ll end up being hurt.”

“I don’t want that to happen,” he sighs. “She always wants to act like an adult and tries to be mature and stuff, but she’s just seventeen. And she’s sensitive, even if she never shows it to anyone.“

It’s clear he loves his sister very much, and it warms your heart to see how she can make a whole different Jimin appear than the one you got to know recently.

“I know. Sorry,” you quietly breathe out. “But I don’t think there’s anything you can do about it. It’s part of growing up.”

“Maybe you could try and talk to her sometime?” He suddenly suggests, looking at you with big eyes that make him look so much younger.

“Why? Because I have a history with dick-faced douchebags?” You joke, expecting him to laugh along at your joke.

No idea why you expected that because Jimin immediately agrees, shrugging his shoulders while he looks at you completely serious with a simple “yeah”.

“Wow, gotta love your honesty,” you mumble, turning your head straight ahead again. “I don’t think I’m the right person for that, though. I’m sorry. And no offense, but I refuse to meet your family,” you state. “It’s already bad enough that we have to lie to everyone around here. I really don’t want us to lie to the people closest to us. They shouldn't be a part of this.”

He doesn’t say anything to that, but just by the way he slightly nods with his beer bottle tightly pressed to his lips, you guess that he agrees. 

“Why don’t you ask Nayeon instead?” you propose, just thinking out loud. “She’s way better with people than I am, and I'm sure your sister would rather listen to her anyway. They already know each other.” You explain, still trying to help him out. Even if you refuse to get involved with his family, for good reasons, you can still try to be helpful in different ways if it really burdens him this much.

“Nayeon…” you immediately catch Jimin’s face falter again as soon as you bring up her name, and you wonder what this could be about. 

“Nayeon isn’t… she’s not really in the right state of mind to give advice to others, I guess,“ he beats around the bush, making you even more curious about what’s going on with her. 

What is he hinting at?

Now that you come to think of it, you haven’t seen her for quite some time now, and you haven’t heard about her either, which is not common for her. 

She's the life of every party, everybody loves her so... what is going on?

“She isn't doing well at all. I’m honestly worried about her.” 

You see a look, similar to what he looked like earlier on his face when talking about his sister’s well-being. But this time, it's even more severe. 

You’re still mad at Nayeon and don’t want to ask about her for that reason, but you cannot help but worry about her too. Especially since Jimin looks so serious.

“Why? What’s wrong with her?”

“Above all, she's very heartbroken, of course. She genuinely loved Taehyung, and she always thought of Yeji as a close friend. What happened really gnaws at her,” he explains, confirming your guess as you nod and focus your gaze on your clapped-together hands.

“But what really gets to her is… what happened between her and you,” he then admits, making your ears perk up immediately though you try to look unbothered and just don’t say anything to that, nor do you look at him.

“She hates herself for what happened, ___.” 

“She should,” you shrug, acting entirely cold even though you don’t mean it. “After all, she did get off better than me.”

“Nayeon is not a bad person, ___. She was just very hurt and—”

“I was hurt too,” you interrupt him, eventually turning your head to throw him a stern look. “I know, no one ever cares about my feelings, but I was hurt too, Jimin. I don’t give a fuck about Taehyung or Yeji or anyone else. But Nayeon – I really expected more from her,” you rant, glad you managed to not let your voice break.

“Trust me, she did too,” Jimin says, looking straight into your eyes. “I’m not taking her side. Not at all,” he makes sure to let you know, keeping his voice solid. “What she did was very wrong, and there is no excuse for it.”

“But?” 

“But,” he sucks in some air, keeping his gaze on you the whole time. “We both know that Nayeon is not that person,” he states.

You know he’s right. But you can’t just forget about what she said to you and what she did. Not just like that. Especially not when it happened in front of so many people.

Would she have done it differently, asked you to meet her somewhere private and talk it out, you would still have been disappointed in her for believing this lie, but you could have forgiven her. 

The way she did it, however, showed you a side of her you never knew existed, and you’re not sure you can see past that. At last not so soon and not that easy. 

“She used to always talk to me about you, and she always took your side whenever someone said anything mean,” he says after a while. “I'm the last person to expect anything from you right away, but I think it would do you both good to talk to each other. Not until you’re ready, of course. It may just be something to think about. Just… try and be the bigger person.”

You can’t help but scoff. He has no idea how many times you've recited that stupid line to yourself as if it were a mantra. 

Don’t say anything, ___. Just leave. Be the bigger person.

“I’m tired of having to be the bigger person, Jimin,” you state. “Look, I’m sorry she’s not doing well, I really am. I would never wish anything bad on her or anyone else for that matter, but it doesn’t always have to be me who has to be the bigger person. I didn’t do anything wrong, and it is not my responsibility to approach her and smooth things over.”

That you took him by surprise is clearly written on his face, but you don’t let him say anything to that anymore before you start to get up, ready to go home. 

This night is over. You did what he asked of you, and now you want to leave. It's not like there's any purpose for you to still be here, and it's late anyway.

It takes him a moment before he realizes you’re actually leaving, and he hastily gets up as well, almost falling off the roof in the process. 

“Wait, where are you going?”

“Home. It’s getting late, and I’m starting to get cold,” you say, sounding nonchalant. 

“Why didn’t you say anything?” He asks, slowly stumbling over to you. 

It really is a wonder you both managed to not fall off the damn roof by now.

“What for? Would you have given me your jacket?” You try to joke, going back to your earlier mood.

You don’t want to pick a fight with him tonight. You already spend the whole day being annoyed by him so you decide to just stuff the whole Nayeon-story into the back of your head and carry on to where you left off before that.  

Because you would rather shove a cactus down your throat than admit it when you’re sober, but Park Jimin can be fun to hang around when he makes an effort. 

It’s like two sides of the same coin, but both sides are rusty, but one just a little less. 

Yeah. That sounds like a decent enough description. 

Still, as you're walking up to your apartment, followed by Jimin who was nice enough to help you up. It must have looked funny to a bystander watching two tipsy people stumble up the stairs, but you're thankful nonetheless. It shows that he does have manners after all. 

“This night was a disaster and I feel like it's mostly my fault,” you decide to speak up about the elephant in the room, knowing pretty well it was on both of your minds because you two haven't really shared more than two words since leaving the party. Now that the effect of the alcohol is slowly wearing off, you're starting to feel bad about it. 

“What do you mean?” Jimin asks, making you turn around to face him. 

“You wanted to really get started with the plan today. You wanted to convince everyone, I was supposed to get to know everyone and get involved, blah blah blah. Instead, I hid somewhere or just bitched at people half the time - which was completely justified, by the way, but I'm still sorry that we couldn't achieve what you had in mind,” you ramble. 

Jimin smiles, shrugging his shoulders as to show you it's not a big deal. "I'm sorry for ditching you at the start and not defending you as much as I should have,” he apologizes as well, stuffing his hands in his pockets. 

Ah, so he did notice then. 

“I already broke my promise to you, and I'm sorry for that. I hope you're still in, though and if you are, I promise this won't happen again. The truth is, I had met Yeji when I was on my way back to you, and it kinda put me off. I was in a bad mood the whole time after that. And then I came back, and you were gone, and everyone was making rude remarks,” he groans. “And then I find you with Jeon of all people.” 

Well, it's not the greatest apology, but it's more than you expected, and you're glad he at least made an effort. So you just smile and nod. 

“It was the first try,” you say, already turning around to open your door. “Let's do better next time. It's not like the entire night was a flop. You're bearable when you shut up, Park.”

At this, Jimin laughs. “I can only return that compliment, babygirl. You should be drunk more often. It makes you so much more likable.”

You don't return anything to that, just simply throw him the middle finger as you walk inside your home and close the door behind your back. 

Truth is, tonight really wasn't a total flop, and you know if you both put in a little more effort, this could actually work. 

He looks so out of place here, and you cannot help but be ashamed of everything you own and are when you see how awkward he looks sitting on your old sofa, under which you sneakily shoved a pile of dirty laundry a couple minutes ago when he wasn’t looking. 

He hasn't told you why he's here yet. Ever since your awkward greeting at the door when you told him he probably had the wrong address, he's been oddly quiet. He only shook his head and assured you that it was indeed you who he wanted to see. 

So here you are now, sitting next to each other, an untouched glass of water standing in front of each of you. 

You clear your throat again for the hundredth time ever since he arrived, wiping your sweaty hands on your pants as you wait for him to finally say something, although he seems too occupied with scanning your apartment.

“Nice place you got here,” his voice suddenly rings out, sounding much quieter than you would have expected. 

As far as you know, he's usually someone who stands out as soon as he enters a room. 

Loud, confident, prominent, and handsome. That's how people describe Park Jimin.

Now, however, he seems different. Don’t misunderstand; he still radiates a certain amount of confidence (if not arrogance), and he still seems to spend more money on his appearance than your entire closet is worth, but there’s something else now. There' a certain indifference in his demeanor that you never noticed before.

You wonder if he has always been like this or if getting screwed over by his best friend and girlfriend actually did throw him off track. 

“Thank you.”

He lied of course. Someone like Park Jimin does not think of your apartment as a “nice place” for sure. Not even you would call it that, but what's the point of debunking his obvious lie in the spirit of civility, huh?

“It’s small, but it’s better than living in the dorms, I guess. At least for me.”

Jimin only nods, offering you a smile that looks somewhat friendly but also a little forced. 

“Uhm, so… I came here for a reason,” he finally starts, as he looks at you insistently.

“Well, yea. I figured,” you chuckle awkwardly, nervous for what’s about to come. 

You have no idea what to expect from him because it’s not like there’s any reason you could think of that would make sense for him to be here. You’ve never held a conversation with him before, and you don’t even think he’s ever really noticed you, so what could he want now that he’d even make the effort to find out where you live and come visit you in your apartment?

“There is something I would like to ask you for,” he says, leaning a bit forward in his seat. “Well, not exactly that - we would both benefit from it, I’m sure.” 

This, and the little smirk that’s starting to form on his lips, are enough for you to see what he’s getting at, and it’s not like you expected anything really, but you’re still disappointed. 

Standing up with one quick movement, you frown down on him in annoyance. 

“I’m sorry, but I’m afraid I’m not the right one for that matter,” you snap. “If you’re this desperate, I suggest you attend a frat party or whatever.” 

Jimin looks confused for a moment, big eyes staring into yours. “I haven’t even said anything yet.”

“You don’t need to. You think you're the first person to make me an offer like that?” You scoff. “It's bad enough that I can't even go to college in peace, but to come to my home and harass me here too? Fucking ridiculous.” 

Jimin finally seems to understand, immediately standing up as well while holdings his hands up in surrender. “No, no, no, I think you misunderstood!” He exclaims, gaping at you. “I didn’t come here for a booty call, Jesus Christ. Do you really think I need it that much?” He starts to laugh arrogantly, immediately going from looking like an innocent boy to a huge douchebag, whereas you slowly feel the embarrassment rise up inside you. 

“Darling, sorry to break it to you, but I really don’t need you for that. Or do you think you’re that exclusive?” 

You have to admit that he did make you feel exceptionally stupid just now because, of course, that’s not what he wanted. It is very obvious that he doesn’t need you for that, given how he allegedly hasn’t spent very many nights alone ever since he broke up with Yeji.

And anyway, you’re sure you don’t even come close to his usual taste.

“Of course not. I’m sorry,” you apologize, trying to cover your embarrassment with an uneasy smile. “It’s just that I don’t even know you, and now you’re randomly knocking on my door with flowers in your hand and a very awkward way of explaining,” you cut yourself off, noticing that you’re about to ramble. 

You’re surprised to see, that Jimin does not look mad or offended. Instead, he’s sporting a wide smile as he looks at you with his arm crossed in front of his chest, probably amused by your incompetence when it comes to talking to other people. 

It’s not your fault, okay? This is what being secluded does with someone. You’re the perfect proof of that.  

“People don’t usually talk to me unless it’s about that,” you state, tearing your eyes from his. 

“Right.” Jimin clears his throat, uneasiness overcoming him now as well. “That’s actually part of my plan,” he then says. “You know, the one I was going to tell you about before you so rudely interrupted me.”

He’s joking, making the atmosphere a little less awkward for once, and you’re grateful for that. Jimin only makes a small gesture with his hand to silently tell you to sit down again, and you oblige, patiently waiting for him to say whatever it is that’s on his mind. 

“I won't beat around the bush for long. I have an issue, and I need your help with it,” he repeats, folding his hands over his knee as if he’s having a business meeting right now. You think it looks funny, but don’t comment on it since he seems so serious right now. 

“I need you to be my girlfriend for a while.” 

You have been sitting here, just staring at him while he talks and talks and talks.

You don't know what he's telling you because you stopped listening after he said he needed you to be his girlfriend. The only way you can tell that he’s talking is because his lips are moving, but your ears are completely closed off at this point. 

You’re being pranked. 

It’s so obvious by now. Spreading rumors has started to become too boring, so now they’re taking it to another level which is making you participate in things that will subsequently humiliate you. 

That has to be it, right? 

You cracked the code.

But man, he’s looking so damn serious. 

Is he serious?!

“Park Jimin, are you on drugs?” 

It leaves your mouth like a gunshot, interrupting his well-prepared speech without any care as you muster him, one brow cocked while you’re keen on trying to figure him out.

He ogles at you with his big eyes, looking like a deer caught in a headlight for just a second before his expression turns into a deep frown. “Wha— No!”

“Well, neither am I.” you display. “So you can absolutely trust me when I tell you, that I, with utmost respect, will definitely not pretend to be your girlfriend,” you state, not finding this whole act funny in the slightest. 

“What good would that even do? I mean, what are you trying to accomplish with that? Because I can promise you, it would end up in a disaster for sure.”

Jimin sighs, running his fingers through his former perfectly styled blonde hair as he takes a moment to think. About what, you don’t know, but he’s definitely conflicted. 

“If this is you, pulling a prank on me, this is really not funny,” you say, noticing he hasn't said anything for a while. “And if this is you being serious, well… then I guess you’re crazy.”

“I am,” he voices, looking up at you again. “It’s one of my weaker points. I don’t have many, but that’s probably the one I really can’t deny.” 

And suddenly, he’s back, smirking at you with that cocky look in his eyes that shows you he knows exactly what he’s doing. He probably thought about it for a very long time, planned everything, and will not accept a simple no from you. 

You know guys like him. The ones who think they always get what they want and they usually do, but this time he won’t. Not today, pal. The last thing you need right now is to get involved in yet another drama that originally was none of your business.

“Is this some type of joke to you? Some weird, toxic way to try and get your girlfriend back?” You find yourself asking, wondering about what this is actually about.

He doesn’t directly give you an answer. Instead, he decides to bypass the question with a stoic look on his handsome face. “I just need a girlfriend,” he says. “Listen, you will not understand, but I cannot stay single while they are dating each other now without a fucking care in the world. As if it were completely legitimate!” He suddenly goes off, banging his fist on the small coffee table when the frustration comes through. 

“So it’s an image thing then? That’s what you’re doing this for?” You can’t help but snort, even if you know it’s not the right time. Not when he’s so obviously mad. “I’m sorry, but I’m probably the worst option in that case,” you say, leaning back in your seat as you still look at him comically. 

“Being seen with me is something people usually try to avoid when they care about their image.” Involuntarily, your voice softens towards the end as you realize that this is indeed your reality now.

You can play the tough girl all you want and tell yourself that you don't need anyone but yourself, but in the end, this is anything but the life you pictured for yourself. This is not what you were excited about when you couldn't wait to start college.

Jimin doesn't seem to notice your brief moment of melancholy any further, as he groans and shakes his head, clearly not sharing your opinion on the matter (nor interested in your little sob story).

“Don’t worry about me, darling. I can surely take it,” he says, still giving you this unnerving smile you’d like to slap off his stupid face. “I’m the most popular guy on campus. It takes more than dating you to change that.”

You’re baffled by how careless he seems. You didn’t expect him to pity you - God no, you’d hate that actually, but you would at least expect him to take your concerns into account and not just brush them off like that. 

You don’t even think he noticed anything you just said that didn't involve him.

Sighing, you take a moment to think about where to go from this. It really looks like he has an answer for everything, and he seems very determined to go through with this.... plan of his. 

“Why me?” You then ask, wanting to know the reason he chose you for this crazy idea. 

You don’t know each other, you don’t like each other it seems, and in general, you have absolutely nothing to do with each other, except for this drama you were unwillingly dragged into. 

“You could find someone better than me in less than a minute, and you wouldn’t even have to convince them, I’m sure. Someone in your league, with a better reputation who won’t damage your image,” you reason, trying to make him leave you alone once and for all. “It doesn't have to be me.”

“It does, though.” Jimin’s throwback comes immediately as his eyes almost burn a hole into your skull from their intense look. “It has to be you for those exact reasons.”

Noticing you don’t understand a thing, Jimin leans forward again with his knee almost touching yours at this point. 

“I can’t just take a random girl because the risk of someone finding out is way too high. But that’s just one of many reasons, actually. Yeji knows so many people, and Taehyung knows another huge portion. I need someone who doesn’t know anyone they know and someone who wouldn’t spill the beans just for some gossip. Someone who’s in it just as much as I am and who I can trust to keep it a secret,” he explains. “You think they wouldn’t figure it out in an instant if I'd just take anyone?” He grins, looking kinda mischievous now. “But if it’s you—”

“—no one will ask questions,” you quietly conclude, having experienced it way too many times by now. “They will just think you were looking for an easy distraction.”

It hurts, having to admit that he’s right, but you quickly try to brush it off when you look up from your hands on your lap and mask a smile onto your face. “Smart.”

This is the first time Jimin notices that the whole thing does not simply pass you by; that this is your life you’re talking about, and he suddenly starts to feel bad. He hasn’t even thought about that before. The way you just worded that… makes him feel like a total douche. He didn’t think about it that way before, but now that you spoke it out loud, he realizes this is exactly what people will think.

“Look,” he sighs, clearing his throat. “You will benefit from this too. Getting involved with me will be good for you.”

“How exactly?” You scoff, not believing a word he says. 

“Well, for starters, no one talks shit about Park Jimin’s girlfriend. That’s for sure.” 

You roll your eyes, shaking your head in disbelief. How can someone actually be this pretentious? You do feel bad about having to leave him hanging since he really seems to want this, but having to look out for yourself comes first. 

“You don’t get it, do you?” You scoff. “You really think they will stop talking shit about me just because you’re so amazing and loved by everyone? Well, I have news for you, they won’t. If anything, I’ll just be a giant laughingstock for the whole college once again, because I was stupid enough to be Park Jimin’s rebound. I would look so stupid.” 

Staying persistent, Jimin shakes his head again as he deeply stares at you. “You underestimate me there. I have far more influence than you think. And I will make them see that you’re more than just my rebound. That you’re someone I actually wanna be with, someone I care about.”

Tearing your eyes from his intense gaze, you shake your head again. “You might be the most popular guy on campus, Jimin, but as of now, I am the most hated.” The realization once again hits you. It’s not like you weren’t aware of all of this before, but speaking it out loud hits a little differently. And it adds a good additional portion of reality to this whole chaos you call your life. 

Most hated person. Damn…

“These two extremes don’t go together. It will not end up the way you want it to, whatever that may be. Trust me,” you finally sigh, looking apologetically when his face instantly falls. “That’s like a potion for disaster.”

With a sigh, Jimin scratches the back of his head, clearly thinking about ways to persuade you into giving in because it doesn’t look like you’re going to.  

He knew it would be hard to convince you, but you’re even more persistent than he thought. 

“___, you have my word on this. I will help you if you help me. I promise,” he says, looking at you with a little pout starting to form on his lips. 

Oh no. He’s not trying this now, is he? Who does he think you are?

“All of this trouble to save your face in front of people who treated you like an idiot? To save your ego? To win back the girl who broke your heart in the most awful way possible?” You ask again, not sure whether to find him ridiculous or pitiful. 

You do know the feeling of wanting to get back at people but in his case, it will only make things worse by a dozen. 

“No, that's not it. That's not— Ugh, whatever you wouldn’t get it,” he snaps again, getting defensive real fast. “It’s fine, though, you clearly don’t wanna do it.” He suddenly gets up from his seat, appearing to have had enough with you. 

You look after him, feeling dumbfounded and wondering why he’s suddenly getting so defensive. 

Jimin turns around one last time to look at you, still sitting at the same spot he left you. His eyes show something besides anger this time. Something he's obviously trying to hide, but you still clearly see it. 

Desperation.

“I just think it’s a shame, really. I offer you a chance to finally defend yourself against all the accusations that are constantly thrown your way. With me by your side, you at least have a voice that will be heard. You can show them that you aren’t the person they make you out to be, and you wouldn’t be alone. But hey, if you prefer to hole up in here instead and stay by yourself, I won't stop you.”

Here’s the thing: His words shouldn’t fathom you. They shouldn’t. 

You don’t owe him, you don’t even know him, and at the end of the day, he’s only in it for his own good, even if he tries to make you think you could profit from this too - it’s not his priority. 

He doesn’t care about you or your reputation or whatever this could do to you. It's so obvious he's trying everything right now to make you agree. Even if it means sinking so low and making you feel like all of this is your fault just because you're not trying hard enough to change it.

This is the only truth, and there is no doubt about that.

I mean, he literally just confessed he only needs you to do the job because you’re already the campus slut in everyone’s eyes, hence making it easier for him to make them believe his lie without regard for you or what it might do to you.

But for some reason, you still don’t want to leave him hanging. He really seems to want this, need this almost, and it makes you want to at least think about it a little more.

And if he really is right…

If there is actually a chance to show yourself in a different light, to show everyone who you really are -

Shouldn't you at least try?

You like to imagine that it cannot get worse than this anyway.

“What are the rules?” You sigh, keeping your head straight forward, but you still hear him halt immediately. 

“What?”

“The rules, Park,“ you groan, finally turning around in your seat to look at him with an annoyed expression on your face. “If we’re going to pull this off, we’ll need some guidelines, don’t you think?”

You try to ignore how his face lights up, making his eyes almost disappear, but you can barely suppress a smile from the sight. He may be obnoxious and annoying, but that was a little cute. 

“So you’re willing to do it?”

“I’m willing to think about it,“ you correct him, watching his every move as he sits back down next to you. 

“Okay!” He exclaims. “Okay, that’s great! That’s— I can work with that,” he beams. “What do you need to be specified?”

“Well, first of all, I need to know what kind of relationship are we having? I mean, what kind of couple do you imagine us to be? Are you the overly affectionate type, or is it okay if we just… say we’re a couple and go to places together?” You ask, regretting your words the second you notice the smirk that's starting to form on his lips. 

“I see. You want to know if you’re allowed to make out with me.” Leaning back in his seat, he rests one arm on the back of the sofa and uses his other to rake through his hair.

You don’t know what he’s trying to do. Is he trying to look sexy? ‘Cause excuse me Sir, but it's hard not to cringe…

“You can have me all you want, babygirl. Once this deal is sealed, I’m all yours. In every way, if you want.” He winks, remaining in this position.

You’re trying not to gag, already regretting even thinking about doing it, but honestly, your life started to be the epitome of loneliness and boredom, and that would at least bring you together with other people for a bit. Maybe it would allow you to live a somewhat normal college life with parties and activities and… dates. 

Even if it’d all be a lie in the end. 

“See, this is exactly why we need those rules because I never ever want you to call me that horrible pet name ever again.” You say, cringing just from imagining someone calling you that. 

Jimin laughs loudly, making his eyes turn into two little half-moons. “You don’t like it?”

“No,” you immediately decline while you keep a straight face. “Who actually does? Makes me feel like I’m part of a soft porn that was shot some time in the eighties.” You mutter. 

Sporting a grin, Jimin bites his lips as he taps his finger on his leg, thinking about something it seems. “What about honey?”

“Ew.”

“Darling?”

“We’re not faking a marriage, Park.”

“Babe?”

“So original.”

Sighing loudly, Jimin leans forward again, resting his head on his balled-up fists as he pouts, making him look more like a young boy than the college boy he actually is.

“What else am I supposed to call you then?” He sighs. 

“Just call me ___. It’s my name. It suits me,” you shrug, ready to check this topic off to get to the more important one. Like the original one, he still hasn’t answered. Ignoring his unpleased frown and the pout on his lips, you repeat your earlier question, wanting to finish this off as soon as possible. 

Jimin, however, makes it hard for you, refusing to just simply answer straightforwardly. 

“Why do we have to plan this? It’ll look forced if we plan everything beforehand. I want us to be natural like a real couple would b so nobody will get suspicious,” he expresses his irritation with a slight groan. “I’m sure we will have to kiss at some point. I don’t usually shy away from PDA, so my friends will think it’s weird if we’re being unnecessarily distant with each other.”

Great, just what you feared. 

Not that Park Jimin is someone you wouldn’t want to kiss at all - no. Even if you’re not actually attracted to him mostly caused by his personality and his stuck-up behavior, Jimin is easily one of the most handsome guys in your college and there’s no denying that. 

Still, you’re not keen on making out with him, especially in front of all his friends who will most definitely take a close look at you and analyze your every move. How embarrassing. 

Noticing your skeptical expression, Jimin just silently grins to himself. “You don’t have to act this way. You know you’re going to love it.” 

“Hey, I haven’t agreed to anything yet, and it's out of pure decency that I'm giving you the chance to somehow convince me that by doing this, I am not destroying my life even further. If I were you, I would stop pushing my luck.” 

Jimin only chuckles, probably regaining his confidence just from sensing that you are not as dismissive as you were in the beginning. 

“Hm, I don’t know. I feel like you’re suddenly not so against it,” he sneers, confirming your guess.  

You can feel your blood rushing to your face, but you try to at least not let him see that he’s making you flustered. It doesn’t happen for the reason he thinks anyway, but rather because he makes you uncomfortable with his constant sexual innuendos. 

“Trust me, it’s not for the things you have in mind,“ you scoff. “You don't seem to have realized it yet, but you're not every girl's wet dream, Jimin. At least you aren’t mine.” 

Looking unfazed by your comment, he raises his brows, still smirking at you in a testing manner. 

“No? So what you’re saying is, if you could date any guy you wanted, it wouldn’t be me?” He asks, obviously already expecting a certain answer. 

Now, this is the moment when all the embarrassment suddenly evaporates, and you burst into laughter for the first time ever since Jimin arrived at your door. And it immediately wipes his stupid cocky grin off his face. 

“One-tenth of your self-esteem, Park Jimin. That’s all I’d need, and it would be over for all those bitches who are treating me like shit,” you laugh, even going as far as wiping a tear from the corner of your eye.

Jimin looks baffled for a moment but quickly regains his composure, this time with a frown appearing between his eyes. “Go on then. Who would it be if not me?”

You calm down again, clearing your throat a few times to get your voice under control before you give him an answer. “Well, unfortunately, I gave up on the concept of dating a long time ago,” you say. “But if you really want an answer, I’d unquestionably take Jeon Jungkook,” you voice, not having to think about your answer in the slightest. 

This time, Jimin is the one who laughs, mixing it with an offensive scoff and a way too exaggerated eye-roll. “Of course. Fucking Jeon.”

“You have something against him?” 

“No, but I should have guessed it. It's the most basic answer, and don’t you guys have this on/off thing going on anyway?” He scoffs, not even looking at you anymore. 

“No,“ you sigh, you haven't thought about what your comment could trigger, but now you’re feeling bad for Jungkook. “We never had. That’s just another stupid rumor.” 

Jimin gives you a testing look, arching a brow while nibbling on his bottom lip. “Are you sure? Apparently, you’re always hanging out together, and you just said you want to date him.”

“I did not say I want to date him!“ You claim, gaping at him. “I said that if I had to date someone, I would choose him. But that does not mean I want to. Trust me, I have lost all interest in wanting to date. And Jeon and I don’t hang out. He just happens to be the only living creature on campus that doesn’t treat me like crap or air.”

It’s true. Jungkook and you can in no way be considered even friends, but he is the only person that hasn’t abandoned you yet and does still talk to you from time to time, not caring at all about the rumors he, unfortunately, started being a part of. 

You always admired him for that. 

The sheer confidence he carries. Just doing what he likes, looking the way he wants, and talking to people he wants to talk to, without giving a fuck about what anybody could say about that or think about him. 

He just does whatever he wants, and you think that alone makes him the coolest person you ever met. 

But that’s all you have for him. Admiration. 

Admiration and... maybe a little bit of envy.

Because Jungkook can do whatever he wants, say whatever he wants, and sleep with whoever he wants and nobody cares. Everyone still likes him at the end of the day because he admittedly is a very likable person. 

And yet, he doesn’t even care. 

He has all that without even wanting it. He still prefers to spend his time by himself, not caring if someone keeps him company or not. 

Whenever you see him, he is usually alone, and yet he always looks content. Always sporting a smile on his attractive face.

More than once have you looked at him and wished you could be like that. So carefree and content, alone, but not lonely. 

“He’s not perfect either,” Jimin’s unfazed voice pulls you out of your thoughts. “He has fucked half the campus already.” 

“Who cares about who he has or hasn’t slept with?” You snap, feeling your hands ball into fists. “He’s a good person. That’s all that matters, isn’t it? And anyway, just because people proclaim these things about him doesn’t mean it has to be the truth.”

You realize you’re only getting this protective because you’re starting to relate to yourself. You transfer what Jimin says about Jungkook to what everyone says about you. But you don’t care. 

Rumors are shit. And Jimin should know better than that.

An expression of realization crosses his face for a split second before he clears his throat and nods his head once, looking guilty. “Right. I’m sorry, I didn’t mean it like that. I don’t care about him anyway...”

“Good. Then we can come to the next point,“ you decide, happily skipping the topic of Jungkook as soon as possible. “What exactly is it that I would have to do?”

“Well, I guess we will go to a couple of parties together. You know, some birthdays, go on dates, hang out with friends, I’ll spam my Instagram with photos of you… just the usual stuff, you know? Everything that comes with having a partner.” Jimin simply explains.

You nod. That’s more or less what you expected, but it still sounds like a lot. Like… a lot. 

It's definitely going to be a transition from spending days at a time on your sofa with Netflix, to constantly hanging out with Jimin and his friends, doing God knows what.

“So… Is it settled then? Are we doing it?” 

You don’t answer right away, though you have to admit that you are at least a little interested in giving in. There’s just something very exciting about the idea of fake-dating someone, even if you can’t deny the little voice in the back of your head telling you there’s only one between the two of you who will benefit from it. And it won’t be you - that’s for sure.

“___,” 

Jimin’s voice sounds soft when he calls your name, making you look at him.

His eyes are solely fixed on you, and you actually feel like this is the first time he’s genuinely looking at you instead of looking through you. 

“Do you trust me?”

You scoff. “Of course not, no!” you instantly shake your head while frowning at him. “I don’t even know you,” you quickly add, raising your voice just a little. “How can you ask me that?”

With a frown knitted between his brows, Jimin still has his eyes fixed on you. “Fair, I guess, but I hope that will change soon. And I promise you, you will not regret it if you trust me now. I will always make sure that you are fine, and if all hell really should break loose, you can stop at any time, and I won't be mad. Just please... please let us do this together. ” 

He shoots you a little smile (an actual smile this time, not a smirk), and you sigh defeatedly. 

That’s the thing with people like him. 

They do always get what they want.

“Alright, whatever. Let’s do this.” Your voice is quiet, unsure, but it still holds some kind of determination to it. 

Maybe he’s right. 

Maybe you can pull it off. 

Maybe it won’t end up in a disaster. Just… maybe.

Maybe you can change something.

Jimin looks insanely relieved the moment your answer reaches his ears. Sighing in relief, he lowers his head for a brief moment, only to raise it again with full force and give you the widest smile you've ever seen on anyone.

“Thank you so much, ___. Really. You won’t regret it.” 

You swear if he says that one more time, he’s definitely going to jinx it. If it hasn’t happened already.

“Uhm… so, should I walk you to class, maybe?” Jimin then asks, standing up and reaching his hand out to help you up as well, already getting into his role, it seems.

“Oh no,” you halt for a moment, thinking about a way to explain your situation. “I’m— Uh… I’m not really going to class,” you chuckle uncomfortably, noticing how he looks at you in confusion. “I’m taking mostly online classes this semester. Things just are a little… overwhelming right now.” 

You desperately hope he won’t dig any further. And the chances are practically high, considering he only ever really seems to care about himself.

This time, you aren’t so lucky, though, when a look of realization crosses his face for just a moment before he frowns down to his feet.

“Are people still giving you that much of a hard time?”

You swallow hard and clear your throat. You didn’t expect him to ask you that, and even if you somewhat appreciate the effort, you don’t want to discuss this with him.

“It has calmed down a bit, but…” you just shrug, still embarrassed, not knowing what to say that will make this moment pass sooner. 

“I’m sorry he did that to you, ___.” Jimin unexpectedly sounds very regretful when these words come over his lips, eyes staring into yours. 

“He had no right to do that to you. You shouldn’t have been pulled into his mess. Really, I’m ashamed on his behalf.” 

It takes a moment for you to grasp what he just said because, for you, it came very surprisingly. Honestly, you wouldn't have given Park Jimin that much credit. 

But that is also a reason why you are happy to hear that from him. It's the first time anyone has ever apologized to you and although it's not him who should be asking for your forgiveness, it's good to hear that someone is on your side for a change.

“Oh, it’s okay,” you breathe, suddenly feeling very overwhelmed with how different he seems. “I wasn’t well liked before that anyway, so… it’s whatever.”

You try to smile, but it doesn’t look real at all. And it isn’t. It’s not okay, of course, but what can you do really? Playing the victim and drowning in self-pity won’t help your case either.

It is what it is.

“He’s not the first person who did that to me, and he certainly won’t be the last,” you shrug. “The only thing that makes him different from all the others is that he’s way more known,” you explain.

“It’s really not okay.” Jimin disagrees, sounding more serious than he has the whole time he’s been here. “And trust me, he will be the last. I’ll make sure of it. I promise you that.”

“Ah well… people just like to trash talk. It’s what brings them joy when their own lives are too boring,” you say, simply repeating what Nayeon always used to tell you… before she started being one of those people. 

Trying to shake the thought of her from your mind, you try to plaster another fake smile on your lips before you look up at him again. “I’m used to it by now. It’s okay, really.”

Jimin doesn’t look satisfied with your answer, but to your luck, he doesn’t dwell on it any longer. Instead, he just takes a look at his watch (that looks like it costs more than your laptop) and starts to cuss under his breath, mumbling something about being late. 

“Alright, I gotta go now. You’re still coming to our Thursday class, right?” He quickly makes sure, waiting for you to approve. “Great, we will start with our a little game then,“ he smirks, already turning around. “Take care until then. I can’t wait!” 

And with that, he’s gone. 

Which finally leaves you to be alone. 

Alone with your thoughts.

Holy shit, you’re actually doing this.