#vmin fluff

Jimin’s parents hadn’t wanted him to move in with Taehyung. Some of Jimin’s friends also questioned what seemed like a hasty decision, though most were supportive.

Jimin finds it all rather ridiculous. Sure, he understands how big of a step moving in with someone is, and he knows that some people consider one year far too early to be taking significant steps in a relationship, but he doesn’t care. 

Anyone with reservations hasn’t spent enough time around Taehyung. If they had, then they wouldn’t have harassed Jimin over if he really wanted to do this.

Jimin was the one who had brought up the conversation about moving in, anyway. It was Taehyung who had been hesitant. Jimin can’t blame Taehyung for it; he knows their relationship is the only serious one Taehyung has ever had.

Although they haven’t spoken extensively of their past relationships, Taehyung being one of the most private people Jimin has ever met, Jimin knows that he has been Taehyung’s first for a lot of things— like saying “I love you" and moving in together — all significant steps that Jimin has taken before with other partners and forgets that not all twenty-eight-year-olds have taken them, too.

Taehyung is anything but hesitant now as he drops a cardboard box onto the bed beside where Jimin sits with his legs crossed and his hands in his lap.

It's impressive how strong Taehyung is despite his lean, unsuspecting figure. He nearly single-handedly carried all of Jimin’s belongings from their rented moving truck up the four flights of stairs to his apartment unit. Jimin had felt silly following behind Taehyung with an occasional plant or lighter box cradled in his arms.

“T-shirts and shorts folded, everything else hung?” Taehyung asks as he refolds one of the t-shirts packed in the cardboard box.

He doesn’t look up from his work, so he misses the affectionate smile that Jimin directs at him.

“Yup! I’m surprised you noticed that,” Jimin says, biting the tip of his tongue between his teeth in a teasing kind of way Taehyung loves.

Jimin’s comment causes Taehyung to look up and roll his eyes. 

“Ah, you act like I don’t pay attention to you.” He grabs a second t-shirt and ignores the tongue Jimin sticks out at him. “You should be nice to me. I’m handling the worst part of moving for you.”

"Oh, really?" Jimin taunts, sitting back with his hands pressed behind him to prop himself up as he watches Taehyung carry the neatly folded t-shirts into the walk-in closet in his—  their  —bedroom. "And what part is that?" he asks.

“Unpacking!” Taehyung’s voice sounds muffled; he’s likely bent over, putting away the t-shirts in the dresser drawers.

Unpacking is the worst, aside from all the manual labor that goes into the literal act of moving. The dark strands of Jimin's hair are gathered into a neat ponytail on top of his head, keeping his face cool after sweating all morning. 

Mornings are supposed to be cooler, but the late-summer heat is relentless at any hour. Jimin is lucky that Taehyung isn’t stingy with his electricity bill and lets Jimin crank up the air conditioning. They’ll be splitting their utility bills from now on, anyway. That little detail is such an adult thing, not even exciting, considering it’s just paying bills, but it makes Jimin giddy because from now on, it’s  Jimin and Taehyung. 

They’ve always fit each other well like they were meant to have found each other despite being tiny, insignificant specks in a grand universe. Their hearts knew, but now that they'll live together, they're ready to show the world it’s them. It’s always going to be them, Jimin hopes.

"You look exhausted, little moon," Taehyung murmurs when he returns from the closet and finds Jimin curled up on his side, embracing a large body pillow. The pillow is shaped like a mandu with a whimsical face, and its smile mirrors Jimin's.

“I’m not,” Jimin says with a yawn that he tries to hide behind the pillow.

He buries the bottom half of his face in the soft fabric and squeezes the plushie against his chest. Taehyung won the pillow for Jimin while playing a game at a local festival. It happened on their cliche first date just over a year ago. 

Jimin will never forget the sparkle of the colorful lights reflecting in Taehyung’s eyes when he shyly admitted that he’d never been to a festival. His confession was both sad and confusing to Jimin. How could Taehyung have missed out on so many experiences that Jimin finds commonplace, even inconsequential? Jimin supposes that these are privileges he never took the time to be grateful for.

“Oh, my little moon, what a sneaky thing he is,” Taehyung playfully chastises Jimin with a boxy smile. “What will I do with him?”

Little moon, my moon, pretty moon  — Taehyung gave Jimin the nickname early in their relationship. Unconventional and romantic, it's somehow just as perfect a reflection of Jimin’s beauty as it is a reflection of Taehyung's quirky personality that drew Jimin to him in the first place.

Jimin shifts to the edge of the bed where Taehyung is standing, both forgetting about the half-unpacked box of clothing and other trinkets that Jimin had hastily thrown into it in a moment of last-minute packing panic.

“Give him kisses, maybe?” Jimin looks up at Taehyung with wide eyes and juts out his plush bottom lip.

“Hmm… kisses, the only universal currency.”

Jimin smiles in response, understanding Taehyung so well but never quite knowing what might come out of his mouth next. His breath hitches when Taehyung runs his fingers through the hair at his temple, gripping the strands gently but firmly.

The way Taehyung treats Jimin is tender. While he refers to Jimin as his moon, he handles him delicately, as if aware of his mortality.

Life is promised to no one, and Jimin feels that's why Taehyung's lips meet his with deliberate slowness. Taehyung's touch sends electricity through Jimin's being, and his lips shock him with an energizing current that galvanizes his soul.

Parting his lips, Jimin flicks his tongue against Taehyung’s top lip. Taehyung always opens up to him without fail, being so obedient and giving. Jimin curls his fingers around the collar of Taehyung’s t-shirt and lets out a quiet moan when Taehyung gives again, following Jimin onto the bed with his hands pressed into the mattress above Jimin’s shoulders and his knees between Jimin’s legs.

It’s good, so good, having Taehyung close, but it’s never enough. Taehyung hovers above Jimin so that no part of his body touches him aside from their lips and the brush of their noses bumping into each other.

It isn’t that Jimin is frustrated. He loves Taehyung and greedily takes whatever he can get from him, but he would be lying if he said he didn’t crave more. It has been a year, and they still haven’t had sex or any physical intimacy beyond making out. Jimin hasn’t even seen Taehyung naked yet.

Hesitantly, Jimin bends his right leg and presses it against Taehyung's side. When Taehyung doesn't react, Jimin goes further by hooking his leg around Taehyung's waist. The pressure he applies to Taehyung's lower back is light enough for Taehyung to resist, but it's clear that Jimin wants to pull him in.

He wants so badly, so badly he needs it. He needs to feel Taehyung’s body on his, to feel Taehyung’s hips spread his legs and press into his thighs. He wants to feel, touch, and taste…

Taehyung’s hand is warm when he cups the back of Jimin’s thigh, bare skin on display from his athletic shorts riding up his legs. Slowly, he unhooks Jimin’s leg from his waist and lowers it onto the bed.

“Tae,” Jimin sighs as the familiar heaviness of disappointment settles on his chest where he wishes Taehyung’s weight could be instead.

Taehyung's smile is small but warm. He kneels between Jimin's legs with one hand still on Jimin's thigh, caressing his soft skin.

“We should order food. Your stomach is grumbling,” Taehyung says as he taps his fingers against Jimin’s thigh. 

Taehyung isn’t a liar, but Jimin never believes him whenever he pulls away like this. There’s always some excuse, something that comes up, something, something, something. Jimin and Taehyung get so close, and then something.

“Fried chicken?” Jimin asks, and he can’t suppress a smile when Taehyung’s eyes light up.

Jimin is Taehyung’s little moon, and Jimin knows that Taehyung is his little star, a smattering of twinkling constellations that remind Jimin that there’s more out there in the world than he can ever fathom.

It still hurts, though, when Taehyung pulls away. Taehyung's attention is drawn to his phone as he searches for their favorite restaurant to order delivery while Jimin flops back onto the bed.

Jimin is all too aware of the strain against the waistband of his shorts that will go unresolved until later when he's alone in the shower with his bottom lip crushed between his teeth and only one man on his mind.

“If I was a constellation, which one would I be?” Jimin asks one Sunday evening.

Jimin and Taehyung are in their living room, surrounded by cardboard boxes. Taehyung is on the couch with a box at his feet, while Jimin sits on the floor in the middle of the room. Taehyung stops mid-motion, his hands gripping the folds of the cardboard box as he opens it. With a furrowed brow, he looks up, his intense eyes meeting Jimin's across the room. His heavy gaze makes Jimin feel like Taehyung is delving into the depths of his soul, searching for the correct answer.

Jimin had assumed he was asking something silly, just a fun thought exercise to explore while they unpack the decorations they plan on putting up in the living room. It's been three months since they moved in, and their apartment is still cluttered with boxes and half-finished efforts to integrate Jimin's influence on Taehyung's space. Many of Jimin’s friends have said it could take a whole year before they finish unpacking. Jimin sincerely hopes that isn’t the case.

A few seconds pass before Taehyung returns to sorting through the canvases in his box and replies, “Cassiopeia.”

Why is Taehyung's extensive knowledge of outer space so attractive? Jimin can feel his face growing warm, and he's sure his cheeks have turned a rosy pink. It might be Taehyung's intellect or the authority with which he speaks. Or it's simply that Taehyung feels like he knows Jimin so well, and being understood feels good, even if Jimin has no idea what it means.

“Who is Cassiopeia?” Jimin clears his throat before asking, hoping his voice doesn't give away his flustered state.

“In Greek mythology, she was a queen who was chained to a throne in the sky by Poseidon for being vain after she claimed that either she or her daughter were more beautiful than the sea nymphs.” Taehyung’s lips quirk as he speaks, struggling to fight off a grin when Jimin releases an appalled gasp.

“Are you accusing me of being vain?”

Losing his battle, Taehyung flashes Jimin a lopsided grin as he stands from the couch. He selects one of the canvases from his box and picks up a hammer and nails from the coffee table.

“No, little moon,” Taehyung ruffles Jimin’s silky hair as he walks past him to the opposite side of the living room. “Inside Cassiopeia is the Heart Nebula, located 7,500 light-years from Earth. It's shaped like a heart and glows red because it’s filled with ionized hydrogen gas.”

Skeptically, Jimin reaches for his phone, which sits on the coffee table beside the little box of nails. Sometimes Taehyung is so intelligent about such random things that Jimin wonders if he’s actually bullshitting him.

A quick Google search proves that Taehyung is a genius and never a liar, and Jimin loses himself in a gallery of high-definition photographs of the Heart Nebula, glowing pink against a black galaxy speckled with other stars and space things Jimin doesn’t understand.

“It’s beautiful,” Jimin says, pointing to his phone to show Taehyung that he looked up the nebula online.

Standing at the far wall, Taehyung smiles over his shoulder. It only takes a few hits of the hammer on the nail to be the appropriate length to hang the first painting.

“You are my moon, but also my heart, Jiminie,” Taehyung says with a wink and a blown kiss that Jimin pretends to shoo away.

“Ahhh, why are you so corny!” Jimin only complains so he can act like Taehyung doesn’t render him breathless.

Taehyung shrugs and crosses the room to pick a new canvas from the box. Most of the paintings are ones that Taehyung created for Jimin as gifts, and a few are matching artworks they created together during painting date nights. Jimin had the paintings scattered across his old apartment. It’s nice to see them have a new home next to Taehyung’s other things, right where they belong.

“Thank you for putting these up,” Jimin says after Taehyung empties the box of paintings. They’ve nearly run out of space on the living room walls, but there are plenty more rooms for overflow if needed.

“Of course, heart,” Taehyung teases the new nickname. It’s cute despite being corny.

Jimin leans back on his palms, legs crossed, and stares up at Taehyung as he breaks down the cardboard box.

“What would I do without you?”

“Continue on living, silly.” Taehyung pretends to tap Jimin on top of the head with the flattened box.

“Would I?” Jimin asks as he stares up at Taehyung. He would be sparkly-eyed if it weren’t for his squinted eyes from how deeply he’s smiling. “Do you think I could handle hammering anything into the wall? Look at me.”

With the hand that isn’t holding the flattened box, Taehyung grabs Jimin’s bicep, which he puts on display to demonstrate that he doesn’t have the muscle for home improvement.

“You look adorable,” Taehyung says with a light squeeze of his arm as he helps Jimin stand up. They both know Taehyung is the brawns and the brains in his relationship, even if he’s occasionally a little strange. Jimin fell in love with his quirks.

“Am I adorable enough to nail into the wall, too?” Jimin asks sweetly.

Sometimes, Jimin worries that he’s being too pushy with Taehyung. It’s a tricky line to balance, being horny as fuck for the love of your life and wanting to be respectful, all while having no idea if intimacy will ever happen. Two normal adults would just talk about it, but Jimin fears Taehyung’s response if he asks outright.

“Do you want me, Tae?” sounds like a terrifying question because there is a 50/50 chance the answer will be “ No. ”

So, instead, Jimin does precisely what he shouldn’t and keeps trying without asking clarifying questions that could save both of them from discomfort and potential heartbreak.

“What do you mean?” Taehyung gives Jimin a boxy smile, head cocked to one side in playful confusion.

With soft laughter, Jimin takes the flattened cardboard box from Taehyung’s hands and tosses it onto the floor. Taehyung’s hands belong on his hips, fingers digging into the warm skin exposed by his sweatpants hanging low on Zhis hips.

“Oh, Taehyung-ah, you know. Nail me,” Jimin repeats gently, with an innocence that sharply contrasts how he uses Taehyung’s hands on his hips to pull them closer, closing the gap until he feels all of Taehyung’s body pressed against his.

Taehyung is firm with muscles but still soft in the spots that matter. It isn’t like Jimin never touches Taehyung; they hug often, and Taehyung likes to be the big spoon at night, but it isn’t the same as a moment like this when Jimin is so pent up with desire that he practically trembles with it.

Then there are those moments when Taehyung gives Jimin hope, like now, when his fingers flex against Jimin’s waist, tightening his grip. The response may be a reflex or a nervous fidget, or it might be that Taehyung wants Jimin. Is that so bad to want? To be wanted?

Jimin doesn’t think so, but sometimes he wonders.

“Nail you?”

“Against the wall.” Jimin leans into Taehyung, squeezing his biceps and lifting up on his toes to whisper in his ear. “You’re strong, babe. I think you could handle me.”

It’s cute how red Taehyung’s ears grow beneath his shaggy, mousy brown hair. There’s a slight flush to his tan cheeks, as well, something rosy and pretty, and Jimin realizes he’s not sure he’s ever seen Taehyung embarrassed before. Usually, he almost immediately backs out of intimacy with precision and finesse. Today, though, he stares at Jimin’s bitten lips and takes deep, shaky breaths.

“Tae,” Jimin murmurs as he brings his lips to the edge of Taehyung’s jaw. Each kiss along his jaw elicits another deep inhale until Taehyung’s breathing hitches and catches in his throat.

“Yes, moon?”

Sliding his hands up Taehyung’s biceps until he can wrap his arms around his shoulders, Jimin pulls Taehyung down slightly, just enough to speak against his lips in an almost kiss.

Taehyung’s eyes are squeezed shut, and his pretty lips are parted. His breathing isn’t quite a pant, but it’s breathy enough to make Jimin’s entire body erupt into goosebumps when he turns his face slightly, and Jimin feels his hot breath on the side of his neck.

“Kiss me, please,” Jimin’s lips brush Taehyung’s cheek, and he asks only half of the request that’s burning his chest, waiting to come out.

Jimin knows exactly what he wants to say but can’t bring himself to do it. It feels too monumental to ask for intimacy when the possibility of Taehyung getting spooked is so high.

Surprisingly, Taehyung doesn’t say another word. Keeping one hand on Jimin’s waist, Taehyung cups the back of Jimin’s head with his other hand, supporting him as he tilts to meet Taehyung’s lips. Like always, Taehyung gives when Jimin wants to take. He opens his mouth at the first nibble of his bottom lip, letting Jimin slip his tongue inside and meet him with the tip of his own. The kiss feels desperate and urgent, as though they’ve been starved of each other. Jimin supposes in a way they have, though he never thought Taehyung cared that their intimacy never went beyond a sensual kiss.

It’s easy to surrender to whatever this is. Jimin doesn’t care why Taehyung is rocking against him, letting Jimin shift so his thigh is between Taehyung’s legs. Maybe he’ll care later when they’re no longer panting into each other’s mouths, and Jimin doesn’t have his hands tangled in Taehyung’s hair. For now, Jimin has a one-track mind that he can’t shake, especially when he realizes something that makes him weak in the knees.

Taehyung is hard. Jimin can feel him through his loose pajama pants where Taehyung’s cock is pressed against Jimin’s thigh. He doesn’t dare look down at what he knows will be a prominent bulge partially masked by the checkered print of Taehyung’s pants.

Jimin would be a liar if he said he hadn’t thought about Taehyung's body, but now that Jimin feels Taehyung's cock pressed against his thigh, warm and thick, he realizes Taehyung is much more than Jimin expected.

Taehyung kisses him like he has been waiting for his whole life, and Jimin considers how possible that may be. They joke that they’re soulmates, but the more Jimin learns about Taehyung, the more he feels connected to him in a way he hasn’t felt with anyone else. It’s cliche, but anything Jimin feels deeply enough to make his heart ache is worth paying attention to.

But when Jimin’s hope for more than just a kiss reaches its peak, Taehyung pulls away.

“Your parents,” Taehyung pauses to clear his throat, “we need to get everything put together before they get here.”

Jimin opens his eyes only to narrow them immediately, eyebrows scrunched together and wrinkles lining his forehead.

“What?” he asks, out of breath. “They’re coming next week. We have plenty of time.”

Taehyung still holds Jimin’s waist, one thumb hooked around the waistband of his well-worn basketball shorts. It isn’t a sexual touch, just a way to keep Jimin close, but Jimin feels Taehyung’s presence against his skin like a hot iron brand.

“Time means very little, almost nothing at all,” Taehyung sounds exasperated, as though he can’t understand why Jimin is making this more complicated than it needs to be.

Except Taehyung is the one not making sense.

“Okay…” Jimin says blankly as Taehyung takes a step back.

Taehyung grabs the flattened cardboard box and a few other recyclables to dispose of, leaving Jimin alone in the living room with a tight smile.

Jimin should be accustomed to this behavior by now, but each time, Taehyung somehow manages to cut a new wound in him that hurts worse than the last. There was a time when Jimin thought he was invincible, that it was him and Taehyung against the world. These days, he feels like he’s on the outside, looking in. If Jimin is Cassiopeia, Taehyung is 7,500 light-years away on Earth, looking at stars that may not actually exist anymore.

Jimin thinks having his parents in his and Taehyung's apartment feels weird. Their apartment is a sacred space where they can escape the world's expectations and judgment. Inviting Jimin's parents into their space is unavoidable and frustrating. Jimin loves his parents, but they are difficult.

Especially his mother.

"So, Taehyung, remind me, what is it that you do for work?"

When Jimin's mother asks the question, Jimin flinches and nearly drops the shot glass in his hand. Luckily, the thick glass only thuds against the kitchen counter. Taehyung and Jimin's parents turn around to look at Jimin, but he waves them off and returns to making their beverages.

As a bartender, Jimin is always volunteered by others to make drinks at parties and family gatherings. Tonight is no different, with his parents visiting his and Taehyung's apartment for the first time and meeting Taehyung.

Jimin realizes they should have gone out to dinner rather than cook at home. It's nearly ten o'clock at night, and his parents are asking for a second drink, looking far too comfortable in their spots at the kitchen table while they hold Taehyung hostage in his own house. 

It would be impolite for Jimin to kick his parents out of his apartment, but he doesn't know if he can survive another four hours with them. At least Taehyung isn't sweating through his dress shirt like Jimin is.

Clearing his throat, Taehyung adjusts his posture in his chair and answers Mrs. Park's question.

"I'm an aerospace engineer for the Korea Aerospace Administration, eomeonim," he is polite, perhaps more than necessary.

"Is that so?"

Jimin stands with his back to the kitchen table, tending to their drinks. He has known his mother for nearly thirty years; he can sense the exact expression on her face merely from the tone of her voice. The familiar scrutinizing look causes her to furrow her brows and purse her lips as if she's caught a whiff of something unpleasant. The look itself doesn't necessarily mean anything. It's her thinking face; the thoughts could be good or bad. It's what she says when wearing the expression that matters.

"Yes, eomeonim," Taehyung responds almost cooly, but Jimin isn't entirely paying attention.

"Looking at this apartment, I wouldn't assume you have such a prestigious career. What is your salary?"

"Eomma!" Jimin nearly drops the three glasses of somaek he's delicately carrying to the table.

Taehyung immediately stands up to help, but Jimin hushes him until he sits down again.

"What? I was merely curious." Mrs. Park's eyes widen with feigned naivety. Only the subtle twitch at the corner of her lips betrays her poorly crafted ruse.

"The apartment is modest," Mr. Park finally speaks up once he has had a sip of his drink. "There is nothing wrong with that. I respect a man who lives within his means and doesn't flaunt his wealth. Or degree, for that matter."

Despite the positivity, Mr. Park's comment feels like a dig at Jimin, who dropped out of college after a year. Unfortunately, Jimin knows he tends to overthink his parents' words and intentions. It isn't much use, but he can't stop himself.

"Taehyung is incredibly intelligent, one of the smartest people I know. But he is very humble," Jimin says as he returns to his seat at the table.

Taehyung and Mrs. Park sit at each end of the small table, with Jimin and Mr. Park across from each other on the sides. When Taehyung doesn't respond to Jimin's compliment, Jimin turns to look at him and frowns at the sight of Taehyung drinking his somaek entirely too quickly.

"Clearly," Mrs. Park agrees, though Jimin doesn't understand what she means, "and what are your future plans, Taehyung? Do you want to remain in Seoul long-term? I assume you aren't from here, considering your satoori."

Jimin bites his bottom lip and avoids Taehyung's gaze, though he realizes Taehyung isn't looking at him anyway. His mother has always been invasive; Jimin supposes most parents are when meeting their child's significant other for the first time. It's just hard to watch, knowing that Taehyung is a very private person.

"I grew up in a small town outside of Daegu," Taehyung says with a smile that doesn't brighten his face the way it usually does. 

He doesn’t answer Mrs. Park’s other questions. 

Mr. Park grunts at Taehyung’s reply, going on a little tangent about a good friend of his from Daegu. Jimin doesn't pay attention, already knowing the friend his father is talking about. Instead, he watches Taehyung, who is unusually quiet and still. Jimin wants to blame Taehyung's standoffish attitude on nerves, but it feels like something more. Despite his polite language and concise answers to even the most probing questions, Taehyung comes across as apathetic, even cold. He isn’t making an effort to lighten the mood, even though Jimin already prepped him for what being around his parents would be like, particularly his mother. Before Jimin’s parents arrived, he and Taehyung had agreed to have each other’s backs and to stay positive. Now, Taehyung won’t even look at Jimin.

The confusing tension Jimin feels strumming between him and Taehyung – tension he isn't even sure Taehyung notices – snaps when Taehyung abruptly stands from the table after Mrs. Park asks him about his past love life.

"Please excuse me," Taehyung mumbles and avoids everyone's gaze as he rushes out of the kitchen without a second look.

With his nostrils flared, Jimin stares his mother down as they hear the bedroom door slam shut. 

“Eomma.” Jimin doesn’t say anything else. If he tries to articulate his thoughts, he may be the most disrespectful he has ever been to his mother. Even though she may deserve it, Jimin was raised too proper for that.

"All I asked was if he had been in a serious relationship before this," Mrs. Park sniffles and pats her cheeks with the corner of her napkin as if there are tears to be dried.

“Eomma,” Jimin repeats with frustration, “you shouldn’t ask someone a question like that.” 

The fake tears are quickly forgotten when Mrs. Park narrows her eyes at Jimin. “Jimin, I just want what's best for you, and I don’t feel confident that Taehyung is. He is not right.”

Jimin takes a deep breath as the room tilts. His mother continues talking and complaining, and his father chimes in to likely lessen the blow of his mother’s words, but everything sounds like Jimin is underwater. He doesn’t think he’s going to pass out, though he never has before. Everything is still in color. There’s no ringing in his ears or spots in his vision. He can’t breathe, though. It’s as if there’s a hole in him, a leak somewhere, and each breath is air that passes straight through his lungs without bringing him any sense of calm.

“Taehyung is just different,” Jimin whispers through the tightness in his chest. “Different isn’t bad. He just… he has a different way of thinking, eomma, and he’s shy. He was nervous to meet you.” 

Mrs. Park scoffs, “How am I supposed to accept him into this family when he can’t even be polite?”

What hurts the most is that there is truth to her words. Jimin thinks back to the tension between him and Taehyung the day before. It’s always the same: Jimin seeks a connection Taehyung won’t give him, and Jimin wonders if it means Taehyung doesn’t want him. Is that what everything comes down to? Is Jimin fighting for a partner who doesn’t even want him? 

“Different isn’t bad,” Jimin repeats as if saying it again might convince her. It sounds more like he’s trying to convince himself. 

Jimin’s parents leave by midnight. At some point, Taehyung returned from the bedroom, quietly apologizing. Only Mr. Park paid the apologies any mind. 

Jimin doesn't speak to Taehyung after his parents leave. Jimin goes through his routine in silence. He deliberately avoids looking at his reflection in the bathroom mirror as he changes into his pajamas and washes and moisturizes his face. The sight of the frustration and self-doubt etched into the lines on his forehead and the deep creases that form around his mouth is too much to bear.

Ignoring Taehyung may seem unnecessarily cruel since the night wasn’t particularly great for either of them. The thing is, Taehyung ignores Jimin, too. Two wrongs don’t make a right, but Jimin doesn’t care. He’s tired of getting his feelings hurt and pretending it doesn’t matter. 

When Jimin and Taehyung first moved in together, Jimin felt like every night was a sleepover with his best friend. Now, Jimin just feels cold as he climbs into bed with Taehyung, who stares silently at the ceiling. 

“Goodnight, Tae,” Jimin mumbles as he reaches over to turn off the bedside lamp. 

If Taehyung responds, Jimin doesn’t hear him.

Jimin wakes up in the morning still pissed. Despite brushing his teeth the night before, he has a bad taste in his mouth, and a god-awful headache throbs in the middle of his forehead. Overall, it's a shitty way to start a Sunday morning.

When he gets out of bed, Jimin can hear the steady thump of music from down the hall. The sound is muffled by the closed door of their guest bedroom, which has recently been transformed into a workout room. Jimin rarely uses it, but when he does, he prefers peaceful yoga routines or guided meditation sessions from his favorite calming app. Taehyung utilizes the room far more often than Jimin and prefers more rigorous activities, such as weightlifting and cardio. 

Based on the beat of the music, it sounds like Taehyung is listening to a hip-hop playlist. Jimin knows that means he's doing cardio and probably woke up pissed off, too. Jimin hopes so; he doesn’t want to be the only one seething. He wants to slide down the hardwood floors of their hallway in his fuzzy socks pulled loose at the toes from being slept in, bust into the room with hell’s fury, and be met with Taehyung’s own fury, ready to combust with his. 

Instead, when Jimin flings the door open, he's greeted by Taehyung casually running on the treadmill as if nothing is wrong, as if the bullshit from the previous night never happened, as if meeting Jimin's parents and fucking everything up means nothing to him. It's as if he doesn't care at all.

Taehyung presses a few buttons on the treadmill, gradually slowing down to a leisurely walking pace. When he runs his fingers through his hair, Jimin is reminded that Taehyung is one of those insufferable people who seem to never sweat. For some reason, it makes Jimin even angrier.

"What is wrong with you?" Jimin raises his voice just enough to be heard over the music playing from the Bluetooth speaker.

Looking over his shoulder, Taehyung furrows his brows as his eyes scan Jimin, probably noticing his crumpled pajamas, unwashed face, disheveled bedhead, and arms folded tightly across his chest.

Taehyung hits the stop button on the treadmill. "What do you mean?"

"Obviously, there's something wrong, Taehyung,” Jimin scoffs and hates that he hears his mother in his own words. “It's either you or it's me. It's probably me. Am I really so repulsive to you? Do you really despise being with me to the point where you won’t touch me, won’t fuck me, barely even kiss me, can't even pretend to like my parents for just one night?" 

Taehyung steps off the treadmill but doesn’t move toward Jimin. They stare at each other from across the room, Jimin hovering in the doorway, Taehyung with one hand wrapped around the arm of the treadmill to steady himself. His face crumples as Jimin speaks, his frown melting into a pained expression Jimin has never seen on him before. 

"Little moon..." Taehyung starts, but Jimin interrupts him. 

"Don't call me that," Jimin snaps, blinking back unshed tears that burn the corners of his eyes. 

It isn’t fair how things have devolved so quickly. It has only been a few months of living together; Jimin thought being together would improve their relationship. He thought the insecurities and confusion would be resolved if they spent more time together. It doesn’t help that Taehyung’s hours at work are chaotic, and Jimin has revolving shifts at the restaurant bar he bartends at. It doesn’t help that Taehyung is so private, not letting Jimin around when he changes or showers. It doesn’t help that Taehyung has no family from which Jimin can learn and gain insight into Taehyung's life before meeting him.

Jimin thought they would be closer, but instead, he feels like he’s losing his mind. 

Taehyung’s expression softens, though he doesn’t look any less upset. It’s the most emotion Jimin has seen from him all weekend. 

"I don't hate being with you, Jimin."

Even though Jimin insisted that Taehyung call him by name, it still stings when he does. 

"So what is it then? You don't hate it; you just dislike it?" Jimin inhales sharply through his nose as he tries not to cry. "Do you even want me, Taehyung? Because I can't do this. I really can't."

Sighing, Taehyung lets go of the treadmill, reaching for his phone to turn off the music. Jimin thinks he will step toward him, but instead, Taehyung wraps his arms around his own torso. He embraces himself tightly as if holding himself together with his arms.

"You have no idea how much I want you," Taehyung says softly. The tender look in his eyes makes Jimin's heart crack even worse than it had when he watched pain twist Taehyung’s face. 

“Then what’s wrong?” Jimin quickly swipes his fingers across the apple of his cheek, gathering the few tears that have managed to escape. 

Taehyung's gaze darts to the floor. “I can’t tell you," he murmurs.

“Taehyung, I want to help you,” Jimin pleads. “I don’t understand what’s going on with you, but I want to help you, okay? Even if it’s me… if you don’t want me to be here, I’ll leave, okay? I just hate how… I just hate this.” 

It isn’t even about sex, not really. If Taehyung told Jimin right now that he never wanted to have sex, Jimin wouldn’t even care. He would hug him, tell him he loves him, and never bother him about it again. But not knowing why  Taehyung pulls away from Jimin and why he won’t even stick around to spend time with Jimin’s parents despite knowing how meaningful those relationships are to Jimin… 

All Jimin ever gets from Taehyung are evasive answers and forced smiles. It’s eating away at him. 

Taehyung lets his arms fall to his sides and gestures for Jimin to come closer. Jimin follows, drawn to Taehyung as always, their strings attached and stars aligned.

“Please don’t be upset with me,” Taehyung whispers. He keeps his eyes on the floor as he talks. “And please don’t be scared.” 

Scared? Jimin frowns so deeply that his head hurts, and it only worsens when Taehyung reaches over his shoulder to grab the back of his shirt and pull it over his head. 

“Why would I be scared of you, Tae?” 

Jimin watches Taehyung fold his t-shirt and hang it over the arm of the treadmill. The only thing scaring him is how strange Taehyung is behaving. 

Taehyung's eyes close for a moment as he takes a deep breath. Whatever he's about to reveal is causing him even more anxiety than the previous night's discomfort. Jimin can sense it; he can see how Taehyung holds his energy in his body, with slumped shoulders and a tight chest.

Rather than respond to Jimin’s question, Taehyung opens his eyes and stares into Jimin’s. He adjusts his posture to stand at his full height. Jimin watches the fear in his eyes and almost misses the movement behind him. 

“Jimin, I’m–” 

“What the f–” 

Jimin's breath catches in his throat as he stumbles backward, bumping into the sharp edge of the doorframe.

Two long tentacles emerge slowly from Taehyung’s back. They’re smooth with a slightly ridged underside and tapered, ending with a flexible, rounded tip. One wraps around Taehyung’s bicep while the other rests on Taehyung’s shoulder, the tip occasionally moving in a way that reminds Jimin of a cat curious about its surroundings. 

Jimin’s eyes flit from the tentacles to Taehyung’s face and the insecurity that etches wary lines in his expression. His heart quickens in his chest, fluttering and forcing his blood to rush into his ears. He hears nothing but his own heartbeat and sees nothing but tunnel vision that darkens everything around him aside from Taehyung with fucking tentacles. 

“What the fuck, Taehyung,” Jimin whispers, tilting his head back to rest against the wall. His legs are on the verge of giving out.

"I'm not from Daegu..." Taehyung admits, his voice barely above a whisper.

"I can fucking see that!"

Jimin's voice is high-pitched and followed by shaky laughter. Taehyung cringes. The tentacle wrapped around his bicep quickly shrinks back, retracting until only one tentacle is left. Jimin has the strange feeling that the tentacle is looking at him. 

"The Korea Aerospace Administration discovered my planet three years ago," Taehyung speaks slowly, never taking his eyes off Jimin's. “In exchange for a peace treaty, a group of scientists came to Earth to be studied.” 

A flicker of pain scrunches Taehyung’s expression, tightening his brow. He lets go of it quickly, but Jimin sees it and understands. Taehyung doesn’t need to explain further; what has happened is clear. Nothing good can possibly come out of being handed over to the government to be studied. Jimin can only imagine what experiments were forced upon these unknown people. Aliens. 

Taehyung is a fucking alien. 

Jimin opens his mouth, but he finds he can’t speak. He can hardly even exhale. His throat feels dry and stuck like it’s closed off. 

“I’m so sorry…” Taehyung breaks eye contact once more as the tips of his ears turn pink. 

The remaining tentacle touches the side of Taehyung’s face, just along the edge of his cheekbone, before pulling away to curl around his forearm. It looks like it’s… comforting him.

“I don’t know what to say,” Jimin confesses, his voice trembling.

Taehyung responds with a forced smile aimed at the floor. 

“I won’t blame you for thinking I’m a monster. I am, at least, on Earth. At home, I’m just a regular guy,” Taehyung says with a dark chuckle. “I have a mother who complains that I haven’t given her offspring yet. My father is a scientist, too. I grew up wanting to be like him.” Taehyung looks up at Jimin again, this time with wide, pleading eyes. “My little sister is still in school. We have school, just like here. She wants to be a teacher of human studies. She finds all of you fascinating.” 

Tears slip down Jimin’s ruddy cheeks, trailing along his cheekbone to travel his jawline. He doesn’t wipe them away; more will come. 

Taehyung has a family. He went to school and became a scientist. He risked his life for the good of his people and ended up here just to argue with his boyfriend about secrets and intimacy. 

Everything strange that Taehyung has ever done flits through Jimin’s mind like rolling credits, one moment after another, clearly laid out. His behavior at dinner with Jimin’s parents, his knowledge of space, his quirky little jokes Jimin rarely understands, and the pet names he gives Jimin, his job as an aerospace engineer. 

“Do you actually go to work?” Jimin chokes out. 

For some reason, Taehyung laughs. His reaction makes Jimin's face burn with embarrassment. 

“I’m sorry,” Taehyung says once he has calmed down his anxious giggling. “I just… That wasn’t what I expected to be your first question after finding out you’re dating a monster.” 

Jimin frowns. "Are you going to eat me?"

"Why would you think that?"

"I don't know. You keep calling yourself a monster."

Taehyung laughs again, and this time, the joy reaches his eyes. "Little moon, I'm not going to eat you," he says, tentatively stepping closer. "I'm in love with you."

Taehyung has said it a million times, but hearing his love confession always makes Jimin’s stomach flutter. 

"Why didn’t you tell me?" 

Jimin peers over Taehyung's shoulder at the tentacles extended from his back. Since their conversation calmed down, two more tentacles have emerged, all of them peeking around Taehyung's body as if they're cautiously watching Jimin.

"I never told you because I didn't know how. I'd been on Earth for barely a year when I encountered the most captivating creature I've ever seen," Taehyung says, looking at Jimin with a soft smile. "Was I supposed to walk up to you and say, 'Hi, I'm Taehyung, the alien! My tentacles and I would love to get to know you!'?"

Jimin struggles to look Taehyung in the eyes. 

“You could have said that,” he mumbles as he watches two of Taehyung’s tentacles bat at each other.

Taehyung snorts. “I could not have.” The playful tentacles seem to annoy Taehyung because he swats at them, and they shrink back slightly, separating themselves so one is on either of his shoulders. “Aliens aren’t real.” 

The statement sounds silly coming from a man with tentacles, but Jimin thinks he understands. If their roles were reversed, Jimin doesn’t think he would ever share his secret with Taehyung. 

“Well,” Jimin takes slow steps until he meets Taehyung in the middle of the room, “I’m not afraid of you. And I don’t think you’re a monster.” 

Up close, Jimin can see that Taehyung has been crying, too. His eyes are red and puffy, and his cheeks are tear-stained. He’s still gorgeous, though, a pretty crier. He could be nothing else in Jimin’s eyes. Tentacles and all. 

“Thank you,” Taehyung reaches for Jimin’s hands and grins with Jimin, offering both for Taehyung to hold. 

Jimin keeps waiting for something to happen, something horrible that will have him packing his bags and getting the fuck out of there. But it's the same two hands holding his, with the same rough calluses from lifting weights and the same warm skin that always bring Jimin comfort. Taehyung is still the same, with soft brown eyes that stare into Jimin's with the intensity of the desire to know and understand. Taehyung is just Taehyung. 

“You don’t need to hide them. They’re cool,” Jimin says, smiling when Taehyung laughs again. He could listen to those giggles for the rest of his life – plans to, actually. 

One of Taehyung’s tentacles sneaks out further, hovering near Jimin’s forearm. It doesn’t touch him, but something about how it moves makes Jimin think it wants to. 

“Are they sentient?” Jimin asks, looking back and forth between the tentacles and Taehyung. 

Taehyung furrows his eyebrows, deep in thought.

"It's hard to put into words for a human to understand... It's like my tentacles are an extension of myself. I can control them, but sometimes, they act on my emotions and instincts without me telling them to. Sort of like your subconscious. They have their own little personalities, but I think it’s because each one is a concentrated piece of my personality. When I let them free, they know what my mind and heart want without me having to tell them. Does that make sense?"

It doesn’t, but Jimin nods anyway.

“I guess the most important thing to understand is that they’re a part of me, and they won’t harm you,” Taehyung’s tone is gentle but firm. "My people, we use them to communicate and understand each other's emotions." He squeezes Jimin’s hands when he talks, drawing Jimin’s eyes up to his. “Okay, moon?”

“Yes,” Jimin nods again, “I never assumed you would hurt me, Tae.” 

Seemingly satisfied with that answer, Taehyung raises his eyebrows as he takes one of Jimin’s hands and directs it toward the tentacle still hovering near his arm. 

"What?" Jimin squawks, but he doesn't stop Taehyung from guiding his hand.

The tentacle first pokes at Jimin’s outstretched fingers. After testing the waters, it slides against Jimin’s palm, though he doesn’t dare try to grab it. As the tentacle glides along the inside of his wrist, Jimin feels the line of tiny bumps on the underside that send tingles through his skin. 

“They’re really soft,” Jimin notes in surprise. He shivers as the tentacle climbs his arm and slips underneath his t-shirt sleeve.

"You're the first human to touch them who’s not doing it to study them," Taehyung admits shyly.

It’s shocking how quickly anger creeps up Jimin's neck and flushes his face. Just the thought of someone poking and prodding Taehyung makes him feel sick to his stomach. 

“It’s okay, little moon.” Taehyung reaches up with his hand to run his fingers through Jimin’s hair. “I’m okay now. I don’t have to go through that any longer.” 

“Okay.” 

Jimin doesn’t see the point in bothering Taehyung about it. Maybe one day he’ll ask, but today has been a considerable step for Taehyung. Jimin doesn’t want to push him even further than he already has. There’s just one more question he’ll allow himself to ask. It seems within the boundaries of what has already been uncovered. Still, Jimin has to take a deep breath to dispel his nerves.

"Can I see the rest of you?"

Taehyung finally breaks out into a full smile, all crooked and boxy. 

"This is all of me," Taehyung says with a laugh. "What more did you expect? Antennae? Green skin?"

"Leave me alone!" Jimin swats at Taehyung, embarrassed by his own curiosity. It’s the damn movies! Jimin doesn’t even like watching alien movies. 

"My people aren't too different from yours," Taehyung says with a knowing smile.

Maybe for some humans, learning that one’s boyfriend is an alien would be devastating. For Jimin, as he opens his arms to wrap around Taehyung, careful not to crush his tentacles, learning this vital information about his boyfriend only helps him understand Taehyung even more. Gone are his concerns about being enough or Taehyung’s happiness. Knowing the secret of who Taehyung is is a gift. It’s a guarantee that Jimin will be able to care for Taehyung better and nurture their relationship with a better understanding of what Taehyung needs.

And right now, Jimin knows that Taehyung needs reassurance — something Jimin is more than eager to provide him with.

“I love you so much, my pretty moon,” Taehyung murmurs into Jimin’s silky hair. He cups the back of Jimin’s head, keeping him close as if he thinks Jimin might pull away.

“I love you, too. Always.”

Always is a bold statement, and Jimin means it with all his heart.

“Tae.”

“Hmm?”

Taehyung lifts his chin to look at Jimin. They’re in their living room, taking advantage of a stormy Saturday evening, the thunderstorm outside competing with the TV playing softly in the background. Jimin sits on the couch with his back against the arm and his legs sprawled out. Between Jimin’s legs, Taehyung lies on his stomach, his arms wrapped around Jimin’s waist and his head resting on Jimin’s abdomen.

An educational docuseries about sharks plays on the TV, but Jimin is busy reading a book he recently borrowed from the library. He put on the docuseries for Taehyung, anyway, since Taehyung has decided that sharks are his favorite Earth animal species.

When Jimin mentioned assuming Taehyung would have picked the octopus, Taehyung almost threw him onto the floor.

“What did you like to do for fun back home?” Jimin asks, closing his book and carefully setting it on the coffee table without jostling Taehyung too much.

Two of Taehyung’s tentacles are playing in Jimin’s hair at the back of his head. When Jimin reaches up to touch them, he realizes the tentacles have been braiding his hair — and rather well, all things considered. Sometimes, Jimin wonders if Taehyung even notices when he does these little affectionate gestures with his tentacles or if they simply come naturally to him.

“I liked to read, too,” Taehyung speaks slowly while he thinks, his words weaving through the air like his tentacles weave through Jimin’s hair. “Mysteries, mostly. And I enjoyed athletics.”

“Sports like ours?”

Taehyung grins when he uses another tentacle to flick the underside of Jimin’s chin.

“Do you think humans are the most interesting creatures in the universe, little moon? Because, unfortunately, I have news for you.”

“Ahh, Taehyung, quit it,” Jimin groans and tries to shoo away the tentacle at his chin. Instead, he ends up tickling it back with his fingers when the tentacle curls against his collarbone. “I don’t know anything about all that.”

Jimin waves his hand at the ceiling as if gesturing to the universe above, and Taehyung laughs.

“We have our own games but adopted some human customs, too. And I am fantastic at playing basketball,” Taehyung is smug, and it makes Jimin smile.

“That’s just because you have more limbs than a normal person.”

“I have the same number of limbs as the rest of my people,” Taehyung points out.

Thinking about a world where tentacles are a regular part of life is fascinating. Jimin wonders what he would look like if he had them. Would they be as troublesome as Taehyung’s? Jimin has yet to understand Taehyung’s relationship with his tentacles. He can tell when Taehyung is controlling them, but he hasn’t figured out why they behave the way they do when Taehyung lets them “roam” — as he calls it. Taehyung is a very composed person, even when he’s being cheeky. His tentacles must be the parts of his personality he has to be more intentional about controlling.

“I wish I had tentacles,” Jimin confesses with a sigh.

One of Taehyung’s tentacles wiggles out from the collar of his t-shirt. He uses it to boop Jimin on the nose. That action was definitely intentional from Taehyung, not just “roaming” behavior. Such a little shit.

Taehyung grins, boxy and bright. It seems that all Jimin and Taehyung do these days is smile, laugh, and look at each other with so much love that it’s sickening.

“You would look cute with them.”

“Really?” Jimin asks shyly. He tries ducking his head to look away from Taehyung, but the tentacle that had booped him in the nose grabs his chin and pulls him back to face Taehyung again.

“Little moon,” Taehyung adjusts his position to be level with Jimin so he can get closer, “I bet they would be small and sneaky, just like you.”

“Oh, whatever.” Jimin rolls his eyes, but his stomach flutters at the thought. Magically growing tentacles could never happen; that doesn’t mean he can’t dream about it.

Based on what Taehyung has said about his tentacles in the past, Jimin infers that he is Taehyung’s first relationship with a human. He wonders if that is meaningful in any way. There seem to be so many similarities between humans and Taehyung’s people that Jimin wonders if relationships and physical intimacy are the same, too. He certainly hopes so. Jimin doesn’t want to think about the possibility that he can’t give Taehyung everything he wants, needs, and deserves, all because Jimin is a human.

“You’ve become so pensive,” Taehyung murmurs. He brushes the tip of his nose against Jimin’s, forcing out a huff of playful irritation from Jimin’s parted lips.

“Are you saying I normally don’t think?”

Taehyung raises his eyebrows — a silent response that rings loud and clear.

“Watch your show!” Jimin scolds Taehyung’s snarky behavior and snatches his book from the coffee table.

Although they got through one intense conversation about their relationship, Jimin isn’t quite ready to start addressing all of them. He’s still a bit of a coward, so he lets Taehyung settle back down to learn about sharks and tells himself he doesn’t need to worry and rush so much anymore.

Unfortunately, Jimin doesn’t overcome his insecurities about his humanity as quickly as Taehyung overcomes his insecurities about his extraterrestrial status.

There are undoubtedly many downsides to being human, now that Jimin knows there is an alternative species to have been born into. Taehyung greatly enjoys pointing out such downsides. Apparently, these thoughts were hidden away in the past, and Taehyung is taking full advantage of Jimin’s new knowledge of extraterrestrial life to tease the fuck out of him. 

For one, grocery shopping has become a whole production, with Taehyung playing a little game of risk and reward. He lets Jimin wobble on his tiptoes as he tries to reach a jar of gochujang on a grocery shelf just high enough that his little fingers slip against the edge. 

“Shut up,” Jimin huffs over his shoulder at Taehyung’s giggling.  

“You look so cute!” 

Jimin gives Taehyung his middle finger.

“Grumpy little moon, aren’t you?” Taehyung murmurs more of the same questions he always asks Jimin, pondering what he should do with such a troublesome creature – as though Jimin is the only one causing trouble in their household! 

Jimin can count five other things that cause worse trouble than he does. One of those things slips out from the hem of Taehyung’s t-shirt. He watches the tentacle extend long enough to curl around the jar and bring it down to place it into the grocery cart. 

“It’s not fair,” Jimin huffs again and grabs the handle of the grocery cart to push it down the narrow aisle. “You’re lucky no one is around to see that.” 

Taehyung trails behind him, with his tentacle put away and more giggles on his lips. Jimin swears his heart swells with affection, knowing Taehyung is comfortable, even when his confidence could get him into trouble.

Over time, their comfort with each other deepens, moving beyond just Taehyung’s playful antics during grocery shopping and his love for intergalactic sports. The changes come slowly. After Jimin and Taehyung's intense conversation, it takes Taehyung nearly a week before he finally lets his tentacles free when he’s at home. Even though Jimin said they were cool, he understood why Taehyung was still insecure.

Taehyung’s confidence in being himself around Jimin is growing now. It started off subtle, mostly evident in the little details of their domesticity — the light press of Taehyung’s fingers against Jimin’s waist as he steps past him in the kitchen, hugs from behind while Jimin brushes his teeth in the bathroom, and the gentle kiss against the side of his neck that comes with them, the casualness of Taehyung’s demeanor when Jimin video calls his parents.

Taehyung has always made Jimin feel loved and adored, but being loved by Taehyung when Taehyung is in a headspace where he is also giving himself love is an entirely different experience. Love like that reaches deeper. It means something more because it goes beyond just Jimin.

Watching Taehyung learn to love himself in an environment where he can’t even be himself without fear of getting caught by the government or being hurt by a human is enough to make Jimin cry. Even though they’d be mostly happy tears, he keeps them at bay so he doesn’t worry Taehyung.

They’d always been drawn to each other in a way Jimin had never experienced with anyone else, but this new chapter in their relationship goes far beyond what they had once shared. 

Ever since the big reveal, Jimin feels like he’s having a sleepover with his best friend every night again.

At night, Taehyung stands beside Jimin in the bathroom. Through the mirror, Jimin watches Taehyung’s eyes crinkle in a smile as he tries not to laugh while brushing his teeth. Whereas Taehyung brushes his teeth with his hand holding his toothbrush, Jimin grins as one of Taehyung’s smaller tentacles holds Jimin’s toothbrush and brushes his teeth for him. It’s messier than Jimin would like, Taehyung’s tentacle far more uncoordinated than a human hand for a task like this.

The toothpaste foam dribbles down Jimin’s chin, making him step back with his hands under his face to prevent any from getting on the floor while Taehyung giggles so hard he almost chokes. 

Looking back, it seems impossible that Taehyung could have imagined that Jimin wouldn’t still adore him once he learned the truth. Jimin loves Taehyung, and he loves his tentacles, too. They’re fun! Jimin insists that they are, though Taehyung is still working on trusting the adoration Jimin gives him. 

They have all the time in the world to figure things out. Considering how far they’ve come in just a little over a year, Jimin isn’t worried.

“I forgot to tell you about Soomin’s party,” Jimin calls out to Taehyung once they brush their teeth. He gets settled in bed and waits for Taehyung to finish changing into his pajamas in the bathroom. 

Taehyung still won’t get naked in front of Jimin. It has only been a few weeks since Taehyung shared his secret; Jimin understands if Taehyung still isn’t ready to cross that boundary. Although Taehyung said his tentacles are the only visible difference between himself and humans, Jimin wonders if there’s more to it than that. 

Either way, he won’t rush Taehyung. Trust takes time, especially in a relationship like theirs. 

“Did you guys dare each other to kiss?” Taehyung waggles his eyebrows once he emerges from the bathroom. He's shirtless to let his tentacles freely move around, and he's wearing loose plaid pajama pants.

Jimin does appreciate at least admiring the top half of Taehyung, and he has found the swell of Taehyung’s muscular pecs to be a lovely pair of pillows.

“What?!” Jimin looks up from his phone to narrow his eyes at Taehyung as he slips under the covers beside him. 

“Isn’t that what humans do at parties? Play sexual dare games?” 

Jimin snorts. He puts his phone away to charge on his nightstand and wonders where in the hell Taehyung got such an idea. Really, where are aliens getting their information?

“Maybe teenagers, but we’re too old for that. Unless we were, I don’t know, swingers or something.” 

Taehyung snuggles against his pillow with wide, curious eyes and gazes up at Jimin.

"I've never heard of swingers," Taehyung says.

“They’re usually a married couple that likes to have sex with other married couples, sometimes together but sometimes… like, swapping each other’s spouses out.” 

Jimin must visibly cringe because Taehyung bursts into laughter and flops onto his back. His tentacles slither out of the way to avoid being crushed underneath him.

“That would never happen in my culture.” Taehyung wipes tears from his eyes, and Jimin complains that it wasn’t that funny. “We are strictly monogamous.” 

One of Taehyung’s tentacles flicks the underside of Jimin’s chin, and Jimin knows it’s Taehyung trying to be cheeky. His suspicion is confirmed when Taehyung turns his head to the side and winks.

“Good to know,” Jimin says with another snort to mask how flustered Taehyung makes him.

“The unity between couples is important to us,” Taehyung says thoughtfully after a moment of comfortable silence. “I suppose it’s because it goes beyond merely… saying I love you and living together or getting married. We connect on a spiritual level.” 

Jimin closes his eyes as one of Taehyung’s tentacles gently brushes his hair away from his face. It lingers for a moment before ruffling his hair.

“What do you mean?” Jimin asks, barely getting the words out. There’s a reason why he hasn’t asked Taehyung about relationship dynamics on his home planet. 

“When we mate, we create a bond. It’s hard to explain, but in a way, we can understand each other’s thoughts and sense each other’s feelings. There is no greater connection, no relationship as deep, even between family – it just isn’t the same.”

Taehyung speaks as though he knows what it feels like. 

Jimin inhales slowly and opens his eyes. He doesn’t look at Taehyung, afraid of what his expression may be. Instead, he sinks deeper into the bed, lying on his back, with his eyes fixated on the ceiling.

“Do you have a mate? Back home?” Jimin whispers despite the unease churning in the pit of his stomach. 

If monogamy is so important, Taehyung shouldn’t be with Jimin if he has a mate. But maybe Jimin doesn’t count—maybe humans are just throwaways, little things to play with before returning home. They haven’t discussed that either—whether Taehyung plans to go home. There are so many things they haven’t talked about.

Another tentacle wraps around Jimin's wrist and lightly tugs on it to stop him from chewing on a hangnail.

“Of course, I don’t,” Taehyung's tone is soft, but Jimin knows he's reprimanding him in his own gentle way.

“Just asking.” 

“That was a silly thing to ask.” 

Jimin glares at the ceiling, suddenly irritated. “I don’t know, Taehyung. There are a lot of things I feel like I need to ask you.” 

The tentacle around Jimin’s wrist lets go and slides along his arm to eventually rest on his shoulder. It curls against his collarbone, warm and not too heavy, a comforting weight that grounds him.

“My lovely moon may ask me anything he wants.” Taehyung always knows how to speak gently to Jimin.

Sometimes, Jimin wonders if some kind of cosmic magic gives Taehyung's voice the power to calm him down. His brain tells him he’s just in love. With a sigh, he reaches for Taehyung’s hand under the covers. Taehyung's tentacles are definitely cool, but Jimin likes his hands the most. They feel nice engulfing Jimin’s. 

“Let’s play twenty questions in the morning,” Jimin offers with a yawn. “I’m tired.” 

“You didn’t even tell me about the party!” 

Jimin closes his eyes and waves his free hand at Taehyung as though to shoo him away.

“Sleep.” 

He thinks maybe, for once, Taehyung will listen to him. But then the tentacle at his collarbone lightly brushes against the side of Jimin’s neck. 

Twitching his shoulder, Jimin brings it to his ear to block the tentacle from accessing his neck, but the sneaky thing slips over to the other side and tickles him there. 

“Taehyung,” Jimin hisses, but the only response he gets is the sound of muffled giggles. 

He tries to scrunch both shoulders. He’s like a little turtle retreating into his shell, neck shrinking into itself. Yet the tentacle slithers its way in. 

Fed up with Taehyung’s too many limbs, Jimin grabs the tentacle, still tickling his neck, and pulls it off. When he does, he slides his fist from the tapered tip down to the thicker part of the tentacle, making it easier to get a good grip on it as it wiggles. It’s a quick movement, and he doesn’t think much of it until Taehyung lets out a low moan.

The sound makes Jimin’s entire body shiver as a spike of heat shoots through him. His eyes fly open, and he immediately turns his head to look at Taehyung. More heat stirs within him when he sees the expression on Taehyung’s face.

Taehyung lies on his back with his fingers gripping the strands of his hair at the back of his head, elbow bent and resting against his pillow. His eyes are squeezed shut, and his other tentacles are wrapped around his bicep and slipped beneath the covers — Jimin assumes to wrap around his waist or legs.

Biting his bottom lip, Jimin slowly drags his hand up the tentacle he’s still holding. He watches Taehyung inhale; the sound is soft and easy to miss.

When Jimin keeps his fist around the tentacle and slides it down again, Taehyung’s mouth falls open with another quiet moan that goes straight to the heat growing in Jimin’s shorts.

“Moon.” Taehyung opens his eyes and slowly turns to look at Jimin. “What are you doing?”

The tentacle pulses in Jimin’s hand. He lets go of it and watches in awe as it quickly shrinks back until it’s practically hiding against Taehyung’s body, though it doesn’t completely retract.

“I… don’t know.”

“They’re really sensitive,” Taehyung explains quietly. He holds out his hand and lets the tentacle Jimin had touched wrap around his wrist. “Especially this one.”

“Why that one?” Jimin doesn’t see anything different about this tentacle aside from it being slightly thicker than the others.

For only the second time since Jimin has known him, Taehyung's ears and cheeks flush pink with embarrassment. It makes Jimin perk up, shifting on the bed and turning onto his side to prop himself up on his forearm, eager to get a better look at Taehyung.

“Why that one, Tae?” Jimin’s eyes sparkle in the white light of the bedside lamp.

Taehyung closes his eyes when Jimin reaches out to touch the tentacle again. Rather than shrink back even further, the tentacle seeks out Jimin’s touch, wrapping around his wrist to press against the inside. Almost immediately, the tentacle begins to pulse, mimicking Jimin’s heartbeat, even as it quickens.

“That’s the one for mating,” Taehyung’s whisper is shaky.

“Oh!” Jimin quickly pulls back his arm, forcing the tentacle to let go. “Taehyung, I’m so sorry.”

Opening his eyes, Taehyung gives Jimin a small smile.

“You didn’t know; it’s okay. It’s not that big of a deal, I promise.”

Jimin eyes Taehyung skeptically. He wants to say that Taehyung moaning kind of made it seem like a big deal, but he keeps quiet. It might be that Taehyung wants to brush off the situation to ease his embarrassment. Jimin decides to be merciful tonight despite his desire to tease Taehyung further.

Well, maybe. 

“Does that mean you don’t have a…” Jimin makes it obvious that he’s looking down at what’s between Taehyung’s legs under the covers. “But, I have definitely felt something down there before…”

“Jimin-ah,” Taehyung whines, rolling over so his back faces Jimin. By now, his tentacles have all disappeared. 

“I’m just asking! If the one tentacle is for mating, I mean, in humans, it’s… well, you know!” 

Taehyung lets out an exaggerated sigh. “I have a penis, Jimin, that looks pretty much like yours. Its purpose is solely for pleasure, not reproduction.” 

“Ew, don’t call it that.” 

“That’s what it’s called,” Taehyung looks over his shoulder to narrow his eyes at Jimin. 

“It’s not sexy.” 

“It’s anatomy, Jimin. It isn’t meant to be sexy.” 

“Hmph.” 

Taehyung laughs, and Jimin knows he has no other choice because Jimin has given him the poutiest expression he has ever contorted his face into. 

“Go to bed, little moon. We can talk about penises in the morning.” 

It’s strange how flat and smooth Taehyung’s back is when Jimin shoves it with his hands splayed out against his warm skin. It’s as if there were never any tentacles at all. Alien biology is too much for Jimin to wrap his head around, though it makes sense that he wouldn’t understand. Taehyung isn’t of this world; why should his body have to conform to its rules?

“Goodnight,” Jimin huffs. 

He falls asleep to Taehyung still giggling, and that’s just fine by him.

Free to be himself, Taehyung no longer hides his tentacles when he sleeps. Initially, Jimin worried the tentacles would get in the way. There are four of them, plus Taehyung’s regular limbs, that he throws over Jimin’s body and wraps around him, pulling Jimin against his chest and practically sleeping on top of him. It’s like sleeping with an octopus; Taehyung resents that comparison, but Jimin makes it anyway because it’s true. More often than not, he pushes Taehyung away in the middle of the night, half-awake and grumbling about not wanting Taehyung to flatten him into hotteok.

Taehyung’s tentacles often move independently, similar to humans who toss and turn or sleepwalk. Once, Jimin woke up to find two tentacles braiding his hair again, and later, Taehyung told him he’d been dreaming about playing with Jimin’s hair while they lounged on a beach. The thought that Taehyung dreams of him so vividly makes Jimin smile. 

It’s all love. Ultimately, Jimin always lets Taehyung cuddle him because he knows it helps him sleep better. And maybe Jimin enjoys being held. 

Maybe. 

Definitely. 

But even if Jimin didn’t like it, he would still let Taehyung cuddle him. Taehyung often talks in his sleep. His people speak a soft language, murmuring at a frequency almost too low for Jimin to hear. It’s pretty, but it makes Jimin’s heart ache. He wonders if Taehyung speaks because he’s homesick, dreaming of returning to where people understand him and can speak to him in the way he is meant to be spoken to. He can’t give Taehyung that. 

Guilt claws at Jimin, even though none of this is his fault. 

Like every other night, Taehyung sleeps pressed against Jimin’s back with his arms and tentacles wrapped around him in a gentle hug. Taehyung has his face ducked in the crook of Jimin’s neck, his breath hot against Jimin’s skin. Even with his thin t-shirt and shorts, he still sweats from Taehyung’s unnaturally warm body heat. It isn’t fair that Taehyung doesn’t sweat. 

By the time Taehyung wakes up in the morning, Jimin has already drained his first cup of coffee. Jimin resists the urge to pour another and washes his coffee mug in the sink to kill the temptation. The warm water splashes against his hands as he scrubs the mug clean, the dish soap’s citrus scent making his nose tingle. With one hip against the kitchen counter, he dries the inside of his clean mug using a hand towel. Humming a tune to himself, he doesn’t hear Taehyung shuffle into the kitchen.

“Good morning, my pretty moon,” Taehyung says, his voice husky. He nuzzles his face into the curve of Jimin’s neck and embraces him from behind. Skirting across his skin, Taehyung’s breath creates goosebumps in its wake. 

“Hi,” Jimin says. He laughs as Taehyung cages him in by grabbing the edge of the kitchen counter on either side of his hips. “You’re cuddly this morning.” 

Taehyung’s heart thumps against Jimin’s back in a staccato rhythm that would send any human doctor into a panic. Internal anatomy is another part of alien life that Taehyung has yet to teach him. There’s so much he doesn’t know. It has only been a week since he discovered Taehyung’s blood is purple.

“Am I?” Taehyung’s lips drag along Jimin’s skin when he speaks. 

“Obviously,” Jimin says. He wiggles in Taehyung’s embrace, but Taehyung keeps him trapped against the counter.

Taehyung lets out a soft hum against Jimin’s neck before lifting his head to murmur in his ear, “Ready to talk about penises now?” 

Jimin almost chokes. “Taehyung, it’s seven in the morning.”

“What?” Taehyung asks, his eyes widening with a feigned innocence that Jimin sees right through. 

“What?” Jimin repeats. 

Ignoring his scandalized expression, Taehyung wraps one of his tentacles around Jimin’s chin. A small smile spreads across Jimin’s face as he tilts his head back under Taehyung’s touch. It takes so little to woo him, Jimin thinks about himself while he licks his lips in anticipation. It must be the lack of sexual intimacy in his relationship with Taehyung that makes even the smallest interactions feel monumental. Still, this interaction is infinitely more brazen than Taehyung has ever been.

Jimin’s heart races in his chest as Taehyung’s lips press against his own, forcing the pace of their kiss. Each bite of Jimin’s lips is gentle but firm, each tug pulling his head further back and forcing him to twist his shoulders to gain better access to Taehyung’s soft mouth. It’s an awkward position, but he finds it so hot being pressed up against the counter with Taehyung looming over him. Taehyung’s body is firm against his own, something solid for him to lean back on when he grows lightheaded. 

Jimin has yet to ask Taehyung if kissing is exclusively human or if aliens bond in the same way. Do other aliens kiss as well as Taehyung? Has Taehyung had practice? He must’ve. How else would Taehyung know how to consume him like this? Three years on Earth doesn’t seem long enough to know how to give and take the way Taehyung does. Taehyung kisses as if he knows Jimin needs it.

As their noses bump together, Jimin seizes the moment Taehyung pulls back for them to breathe to twist around in his arms. He needs to see Taehyung, to take in the elegant dip of his cupid’s bow and the reddened tips of his ears. 

“Are you feeling okay? No fever or anything?” He wants to tease Taehyung, but the joke doesn’t land. Taehyung cocks his head to the side with a confused smile. 

“I’m not sick,” Taehyung says, endeared by Jimin even though he clearly doesn’t know why. 

“I know, I know. Just kiss me again.” Jimin’s shirt hikes up when he wraps his arms around Taehyung’s shoulders, crashing their lips together once again because it’s true, he needs this. 

One of Taehyung’s tentacles slips beneath the hem of Jimin’s t-shirt, its smooth, cool surface sliding across his chest and trailing down his abdomen. His body responds involuntarily, his breath hitching in his throat. The ridges on its underside leave a tingling path in their wake, and Jimin’s breath catches in his throat. When the tip of the tentacle playfully nudges his belly button, Jimin jolts back, a burst of laughter threatening to escape as he quickly slaps his hand over his mouth.

Taehyung, still grinning in confusion, tilts his head. “Why is my moon so jumpy this morning?” Amusement threads through his voice, but his eyes search Jimin’s face for an answer.

Jimin can’t hold back his laughter, his shoulders shaking as he muffles it behind his hand. Taehyung ducks his head to kiss him again, but his lips meet the back of Jimin’s hand instead, brushing against his knuckles.

“Tae—” Jimin tries to protest, his voice muffled by his palm, “it tickles.”

Taehyung’s grin widens, his tentacle curling against Jimin’s side, drawing another suppressed giggle from him.

“Tickles?” Taehyung repeats, feigning innocence, his eyes sparkling with mischief. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

Jimin snickers, squirming slightly under the light, teasing touch. “Liar,” he says through his laughter, finally lowering his hand from his mouth. “You’re doing it on purpose.”

Taehyung’s grin turns playful as he presses a quick kiss to Jimin’s lips. “Maybe,” he admits, his voice low and teasing. “But I enjoy hearing you laugh.”

Grabbing Jimin’s hand, Taehyung kisses up the back, his soft lips grazing Jimin’s knuckles and placing quick, noisy pecks along each of his fingers. They’re innocent, closed-mouth kisses, but the heat of Taehyung’s touch sparks a fire inside him. He shifts in Taehyung’s embrace, and a wave of pleasure makes him shudder as their bodies press together, Taehyung’s hard cock brushing against him.  

Something makes Jimin brave. Perhaps it’s the example Taehyung has set—baring his deepest secret to Jimin, despite the pain it caused him, not just in keeping it but in dreading Jimin’s reaction. If Taehyung can face the fear and pain of being so vulnerable and trusting Jimin enough to risk rejection, then surely Jimin can find the strength to push past his own shame and embarrassment to share his truth, too.

 “Taehyung,” Jimin whispers in a shaky, ragged breath, “I want you so bad.” 

Pulling back, Taehyung’s eyes catch the glimmer of the early morning sunlight streaming through the small kitchen window. The tentacle under Jimin’s shirt caresses his lower stomach, skirting along the edge of his shorts.

“Really?” Taehyung asks. 

Taehyung tenses against Jimin. Jimin has to fight the urge to grab him by the shoulders and shake him. There’s so much that goes unsaid between them still. The question breaks Jimin’s bandaged heart into little jagged pieces that cut. No matter how confident Taehyung has become since sharing his secret with Jimin, there are still insecurities lurking in his shadows. 

Drawing his hand out of Taehyung’s hold, Jimin hangs his arms at his sides, slack. He bows his head. With little space in between them, his forehead presses against Taehyung’s chest, right below his collarbones. 

“Yes, really,” he says, voice muffled. “I’ve been thinking all this time that you didn’t want to have sex with me because you thought I was ugly and annoying.”

A sense of calm washes over Jimin’s quivering frame the moment Taehyung caresses the back of his head. His fingers run through his hair, the silky strands slipping through his hold. The methodical, gentle touches, along with Taehyung’s steady breathing, soothe him. 

“Jimin-ah,” Taehyung rubs Jimin’s back with his other hand, “I want you, too. For so long, my little moon. I have craved you, if only to feel as close to you as is physically possible for humans to be.”

Jimin lifts his head at the confession, warmth spreading across his cheeks. “You always brush me off when I try to initiate anything.” He hopes he doesn’t sound accusatory; he needs Taehyung to understand. “I’ve wanted you to fuck me for over a year, Taehyung.”

The tips of Taehyung’s ears grow deep red, but his expression remains steady as he stares into Jimin’s eyes. “I would like to.” 

A breathy laugh slips through Jimin’s nostrils, mostly silent except for the closed-mouth hum he makes when he exhales. In past relationships, Jimin was the timid one. He let the other lead when it came to sex, perfectly willing to go where told, to react and respond rather than take charge. It was all just surface-level, with no hidden meanings. If anything, it was merely a product of the type of men Jimin is attracted to—or attracts, depending on how one looks at the situation. Taehyung is unlike anyone Jimin has ever been with. 

“Tae…” A realization dawns on Jimin, one that makes him press his hand against Taehyung’s chest in a comforting hold. “Are you… a virgin?” 

Now, it’s Taehyung’s turn to laugh. He does so with a boxy grin that creases his eyes. Jimin wonders if aliens develop wrinkles, if they age like humans do. How long will he have with Taehyung? He hopes forever means the same in space as it does on Earth. 

“No, I’m not a virgin.” Taehyung licks his lips as his posture relaxes under Jimin’s palm. “But I’ve never been with a human before, if that falls under your definition of virginity.” 

Jimin can’t believe he and Taehyung are actually having this conversation. Jimin isn’t shy about sex, even though he’s rarely the one taking the lead, but alien sex… He’s sure that’s something even the most adventurous person would blush over. Hell, no one even knows that aliens exist.

“I guess that depends. How different is… your type of sex from human sex?” Jimin asks.

One of Taehyung’s tentacles curls around Jimin’s wrist, bringing his arm up to rest over Taehyung’s shoulder. The soft tip slides down his bare forearm, and each small bump along the ridged underside tickles him. Taehyung’s tongue darts out to glide over his bottom lip again. When it reaches the corner of his mouth, he bites his lip.

Jimin subconsciously mirrors the action. He can’t drag his eyes away from Taehyung’s mouth, reddened from kissing Jimin’s lips and hands. Even as Taehyung leans in, Jimin listens to him speak as he watches his mouth shape words that strike a fire in his core.

“I could show you,” Taehyung says, deepening his voice.

Gasping, Jimin lifts the hand pressed to Taehyung’s chest and smacks it. “Taehyung!”

“What?” A mischievous grin, ears still bright against his mousy brown hair. “Is this not what my little moon wanted?”

Properly scandalized, Jimin surges forward to capture Taehyung’s lips with his own. He moves like he wants to prove Taehyung of something, of what, he isn’t sure. Perhaps he wants to prove his bravery for finally doing this or his desire to have Taehyung. Or maybe he’s horny and Taehyung is finally giving him everything he has wanted—everything and more, so much more than he could have imagined. Hearing such words out of Taehyung’s mouth is enough to make his cock jump.

“I can’t believe you,” he says against Taehyung’s lips, raspy and low.

Taehyung doesn’t respond, just kisses him back even harder. His kiss grows demanding, teeth grazing Jimin’s lower lip as he sucks it into his mouth. When Taehyung moans into the kiss, Jimin thinks his knees might give out. They buckle slightly, but one of Taehyung’s tentacles wraps around his waist and holds him upright. The pressure around his body is comforting, especially as it draws him closer to Taehyung. If that’s even possible.

When Taehyung breaks away to let them breathe, the smile he gives Jimin is too soft for how intensely they’ve been making out. 

“I was still afraid. Where I come from, when we have sex, we use all of us.” Taehyung’s eyes scan Jimin’s, shifting between his eyes and his mouth, like he’s waiting for tears or an angry shout.

Jimin feels the tentacle around his waist pulse once, twice. Goosebumps shiver along his arms. “I figured.”

“We don’t have to do that. I know humans find that disgusting. And there are other things, too.” Taehyung’s tentacles unwind themselves from Jimin, shrinking back as if in fear. “I would never force you to do anything you don’t want to do.”

“Tae, please shut up.” Jimin grabs Taehyung’s face, squishing his cheeks until his lips pucker and he can’t continue speaking. He looks silly, all wide-eyed and expectant as he waits for Jimin to continue. A little puppy.

Jimin feels oddly powerful with such a sweet boy literally in the palms of his hands.

“There’s a whole consumer market for tentacle porn, Tae.”

“But—” Jimin squishes Taehyung’s cheeks again.

“No, listen, I’m saying not everyone thinks it’s disgusting. I haven’t actually watched it or used any tentacle dildos or anything like that. But I love you, Tae. All of you; I told you that. If you want to keep them out or use them on me, that’s totally okay.”

More than once, Jimin has considered what it would be like to feel Taehyung’s tentacles on other parts of his body, sensitive spots, spots he has craved for Taehyung to touch. And he certainly has fantasized about it. He can’t help it. Ever since he successfully convinced that Taehyung he doesn’t find his tentacles disgusting, he has been far more affectionate and intimate than before. Sometimes, it wears on his sanity because he wonders if Taehyung means to be as alluring as he is or if he’s purely innocent. Jimin doesn’t even know Taehyung’s relationship history, and his mother conveniently ruined his opportunity to ask outright. 

“Honestly,” Jimin says in a quieter tone, “I think I would like it… a lot.”

Taehyung whines softly, his tentacles returning to tighten around Jimin’s body. He leans in to kiss Jimin, first on the lips, then trailing along the edge of his jaw until he reaches the sensitive spot just under his ear. Hovering there, he lets out a shuddery breath.

“Please let me make love to you,” Taehyung whispers against Jimin’s throat, his lips having lowered to kiss his neck. “I’ll be so careful, little moon. I’ll take care of you.” 

Jimin closes his eyes and takes a deep breath as Taehyung trails kisses down his throat. He tilts his head back, giving Taehyung more access to his smooth skin. Starting off chaste, Taehyung’s kisses turn warm and open-mouthed the lower he travels. Jimin curls his fingers in Taehyung’s hair and tugs when his lips latch onto the sensitive skin. Taehyung sucks gently at his pulse point before pulling away.

“I trust you.” The words slip off the tip of Jimin’s tongue, and Taehyung runs with them. He steps back and interlinks their fingers to pull Jimin away from the kitchen counter, undoubtedly to lead him to their bedroom. Although their bedroom has been the setting for many of Jimin’s fantasies, there’s another fantasy lurking in his mind that begs to be realized.

“Remember what I said before?” Jimin asks, trailing off when Taehyung looks at him with wide, confused eyes. They’re standing in the middle of the kitchen, cocks hard and lips swollen, and Taehyung somehow looks sweet. “I said I wanted you to nail me against the wall...”

Taehyung’s sweetness dissipates, leaving behind a smoldering, unfamiliar look in his eyes that prickles Jimin’s skin. Jimin wonders if this is the Taehyung he has been missing out on for over a year. A less appealing thought follows, one that wonders if this is the Taehyung the lucky people on his home planet got to experience. Was Taehyung promiscuous back home? Did the others desire him as strongly as Jimin does? They’re all questions he shouldn’t mull over, especially not when Taehyung grabs his hips with a firm grip and walks him backward against the nearest wall.

“I’ll give my moon whatever he desires,” Taehyung says. It’s a loving sentiment for a promise that’s downright filthy.

With his back pressed against the wall, Jimin yelps and snatches Taehyung, twisting the fabric of his t-shirt at the shoulders with both fists as Taehyung’s tentacles lift him off the ground. Two tentacles wrap around his thighs, lifting him and spreading his legs so he can wrap them around Taehyung’s waist without having to strain to hold himself up. Taehyung shifts his weight, pressing him even tighter against the wall. Their bodies fit together perfectly, giving Taehyung the opportunity to grind against Jimin in a slow, hard roll of his hips.

Taehyung gives Jimin a lopsided grin as he steadies him, his hands finding their way to Jimin’s waist to secure him in place.

“Tell me, little moon,” Taehyung murmurs, his voice rough. “Did you imagine this? Us, together like this?”

Jimin’s heart climbs up his throat, making his breathing catch. Biting his bottom lip, he stalls, unsure of the whiplash Taehyung is giving him. Sometimes sweet, with red-tipped ears and boyish grins—sometimes alluring, with a husky tone and dirty words curling around his tongue.

“I thought about us being together all the time,” Jimin says, and his voice trembles.

Taehyung leans in, brushing his lips over Jimin’s jaw. He trails down to his neck, where he pauses, letting his hot breath fan over Jimin’s skin. 

“You’ll tell me if you don’t like something, right?”

Jimin nods, eyes fluttering shut as Taehyung’s remaining two tentacles slide around him, assisting Taehyung’s hands as he helps Jimin out of his clothes. It’s impressive how Taehyung’s tentacles keep Jimin pressed against the wall. 

There’s something else Taehyung wants to tell him, but it’s lost in the shuffle of clothing, no more important than the warm glide of Taehyung’s tentacles over his exposed skin. With Taehyung’s hands still gripping his waist, Taehyung uses his tentacles to explore Jimin’s body. He shivers under the touch, the ridges along the underside of the tentacles tickling his skin as they slither up his bare chest. They circle his nipples, rubbing and flicking them until they grow hard. 

“Taehyung,” Jimin moans, arching his back to thrust his chest on display. 

When Taehyung leans forward to replace one of his tentacles with his lips, swirling his tongue around a perky nipple, Jimin digs his fingers in Taehyung’s hair. His cock leaks precum all over Taehyung’s shirt, leaving wet spots on the fabric where his cock is trapped between their stomachs. 

Too much fabric separates them. Jimin pulls at the hem of Taehyung’s shirt with one hand and tugs the waistband of his pants with the other. 

“Take these off.” 

“Okay,” Taehyung says with a shy smile as he lowers Jimin until his bare toes reach the floor. His tentacles retract so he can properly pull off his shirt, tossing it onto the floor with Jimin’s clothes. Hooking his thumbs in his waistband, Taehyung pauses. “Don’t… don’t make fun of me, okay?” 

“Oh my god, Tae, why would I do that?” 

Taehyung stares at the floor. “I don’t know.”

Would it be embarrassing to say that Jimin is vibrating with excitement over seeing his boyfriend’s dick? While some people may fear whatever Taehyung has in his pants, Jimin is encouraged. He feels greedy, his hands replacing Taehyung’s to yank his pants down. 

Laughter bubbles in Jimin’s chest, but he forces it back down, not wanting to worry Taehyung with the very thing he seems most afraid of. He wants to shake Taehyung by the shoulders, tell him he’s being ridiculous. His cock is beautiful. Long and thick, it has a slight curve that makes Jimin’s mouth water. The head glistens with precum that looks almost iridescent, each bead dribbling from his slit like sparkling opals. When Jimin reaches for it, the precum leaves his palm glittering in the morning light. 

“Wow,” he says, tone hushed. 

Taehyung grabs Jimin’s wrist with his hand as if to pull him away. But he doesn’t move. When they lock eyes, Jimin gives him a grin that crinkles his eyes into pretty half-moons.

“What? Why wow ?” Taehyung’s questions end in a low moan when Jimin squeezes his cock. It’s hot and hard, but velvety smooth. 

“I don’t understand what you were so worried about,” Jimin murmurs, stroking Taehyung’s cock from the base to the tip and back again. His thumb brushes over the slit, smearing more precum around the head. When he pulls away, his fingers sparkle.  

“I don’t know… It was, ah, shit,” Taehyung clears his throat and avoids Jimin’s gaze. “They said our bodies were strange.” He doesn’t need to explain who. 

Jimin’s heart flutters in his chest. He has to fight the fury that lives there, batting it away to deal with later. Taehyung is safe with him, no longer a subject to be evaluated. Taehyung gets to be touched with love and admiration, not for experimentation. 

Neither of them are virgins, but they’re each other’s firsts in a completely different way—maybe in an even more significant way.

“I think your body is beautiful.” Jimin presses a kiss to the corner of Taehyung’s mouth, hoping to kiss away the slight frown on his lips. 

“Thank you, little moon,” Taehyung says. He cups Jimin’s face as his tentacles return to exploring Jimin’s body, hooking around his thighs to hoist him against the wall again, and playing with his nipples. “I find your body exquisite. Poseidon would have definitely chained you to a throne in the sky for being more beautiful than the sea nymphs.”  

Taehyung is being cheeky, literally, with his tongue prodding the inside of his cheek as he gazes at Jimin with all the adoration in the world. Normally flustered by Taehyung’s intensity, Jimin is too distracted to react. Taehyung’s third tentacle curling around his cock. The tentacle pulses at the same rate as Jimin’s heart. It becomes slippery as it begins jerking him, easily gliding the length of his cock with quick, full strokes. 

“Oh, fuck,” Jimin moans, throwing his head back. It thuds against the wall, but he doesn’t notice the dull pain that follows. The pleasure from the bumpy texture and slickness of Taehyung’s tentacle has him squirming in his embrace. 

When Jimin looks down, he sees the same iridescent liquid from Taehyung’s cock coating his own. 

“Your tentacles get… wet?” he asks. 

Taehyung nods, his head ducked in embarrassment. “I know it’s weird.” 

Locking eyes with Taehyung, Jimin reaches down to run his fingers along the tentacle that’s stroking his cock, gathering the thick, warm precum on his fingers. As he brings them to his mouth, he intentionally smears them on his lips. He wishes he could see himself, plump lips glittery with intergalactic precum, body suspended by the gentle hold of his otherworldly lover. 

When he shoves his fingers in his mouth, Taehyung moans. “Jimin.” 

“You’re sweet,” he says with a smack of his lips, tongue lapping up the glittery mess on his fingers. He’s not sure what he loves more: the candy-sugar taste of Taehyung or the desperate look on his face. 

The tentacle around Jimin’s cock tightens, jerking him off faster. Jimin digs his nails into Taehyung’s biceps and squirms even more as he tries to buck his hips to meet the tentacle’s pace. But Taehyung keeps his hands on his hips, forcing Jimin into the wall and holding him there. 

“Tae, please,” Jimin grits his teeth and whines. “I wanna come with you inside me.” 

“With my…” Taehyung looks between their bodies as his fourth tentacle slithers between Jimin’s legs and between his ass cheeks. The tip flicks against his hole, tracing the rim and coating it with the tentacle’s slick. 

Jimin wraps his arms around Taehyung’s shoulders and pulls him into a kiss. He gets lost in his soft mouth, slipping his tongue inside and flicking his tongue against Taehyung’s like how the tentacle plays with his hole. The wet sensation feels nice, almost reminiscent of getting eaten out. 

“Put it in,” Jimin breathes against Taehyung’s mouth, “I trust you.”

“Yeah, yes, okay,” Taehyung is just as breathless, panting, perhaps with the effort of holding Jimin up while jerking him off and playing with his hole. The sensations are already more than Jimin can handle, even before the tentacle at his ass presses into his hole. Its tapered tip helps it ease in, gradually stretching him out. The opal-like slick squelches as the tentacle pushes in deeper. 

“Oh god,” Jimin says with an exhale. He closes his eyes and tries to relax as the thickest part of the tentacle stretches him more than any human cock ever has. “It’s so deep.” 

The tentacle inside Jimin wiggles, slicking up his inner walls to make the slide smoother as it pushes further inside him. 

“Does it hurt?” Taehyung presses his forehead against Jimin’s, his pretty eyes fluttering closed like he’s concentrating on the feeling of Jimin’s ass engulfing his tentacle in its warm, wet heat. 

“No, no. It’s, fuck.” 

The stretch is intense, the fullness something Jimin has never experienced before. If he doesn’t relax, he may panic, but it doesn’t hurt. He knows Taehyung will take care of him. 

Taehyung pulls back slightly so he can look down at where one tentacle continues jerking Jimin off and the other disappears up his ass. “You look perfect like this. My perfect moon.” 

Taehyung’s mouth muffles Jimin’s moans as he kisses him. The kiss is hard and fast, Taehyung’s teeth biting Jimin’s lips just for his tongue to tease over the swollen skin. Jimin can barely keep up. Jimin’s lips move slowly, each movement half a second behind Taehyung’s, because he’s too focused on how the tentacle in his ass fucks him. 

It’s all too much. With his cock slicked up and pumped with precision, his ass full of Taehyung’s tentacle, Jimin knows he won’t last much longer. He’s close, so fucking close, but he doesn’t want to come like this. Taehyung said that he uses all of himself during sex. Jimin doesn’t want to deny him that. 

His mouth hangs open as the pleasure builds, making his entire body fall slack in Taehyung’s hold. Useless, except to be used. Taehyung abandons Jimin’s mouth once he realizes all he’s doing is moaning and can’t kiss him back. He shivers as Taehyung trails kisses down his neck. 

“I can take more,” Jimin moans as he moves his hips as much as he can, trying to take Taehyung’s tentacle even deeper.

“Are you sure?” Taehyung asks, his voice strained with passion. He looks gorgeous with a red mouth, disheveled hair, and indents in his forearms from Jimin’s blunt nails. Jimin has never seen someone so gentle yet so ravenous. 

He nods frantically, his breaths coming in ragged gasps. He isn’t sure at all, but Taehyung doesn’t need to know that. 

Taehyung lets go of Jimin’s waist with one hand, using it to grab the base of his cock. “It will be tight, Jimin.” 

Taehyung’s use of his full first name makes his body tingle. “I know.” 

“It might hurt.” 

Jimin grabs Taehyung’s shoulders and tries to angle himself so he can more easily line Taehyung’s cock with his hole. “Give it to me, Tae. Come on, baby,” he moans against Taehyung’s ear, “I’ve been waiting so long.”

In his native language that Jimin doesn’t understand, Taehyung mutters something under his breath, the low syllables turning into a long hiss. Taehyung presses his cock against Jimin’s hole. It takes a few seconds for the thick head of Taehyung’s cock to push in alongside his tentacle. More precum and slick leak from Taehyung, helping the slide until he bottoms out, his cock and tentacle snug inside Jimin. 

“Oh, fuck, Tae, oh fuck,” Jimin pants through the mix of pleasure and pain. He hears the slick dripping onto the floor and feels it dribble down the backs of his thighs as Taehyung fucks him with slow, shallow thrusts at first. 

Taehyung holds Jimin’s face in his hands, presses his lips to his forehead. “Heart, tell me if it’s too much.”

“Just don’t stop.” Jimin gasps, his eyes squeezing shut as he tries to focus on speaking between moans. 

Taehyung’s cock and tentacle move in tandem, his tentacle wiggling deep inside Jimin while his cock hits his prostate with each thrust. 

“Fuck, Tae,” Jimin whispers, his nails digging into Taehyung’s shoulders. Taehyung’s eyes are bright and his breathing heavy as he watches him. 

“You’re so tight. So warm.” Taehyung groans, his hips moving faster. “Does it feel good?”

Jimin nods, his breath coming in short bursts. 

Encouraged, Taehyung thrusts into Jimin faster. It’s wet and sloppy, precum and slick from Taehyung’s tentacle leaking all over Jimin’s stretched-out hole. Taehyung is ruining him, but he doesn’t care. It’s Jimin and Taehyung, now and forever. Jimin wants to be ruined by Taehyung over and over again, for as long as Taehyung will have him.

Forever, if that means anything to Taehyung. To Jimin, it does. He thinks so, too, of Taehyung. 

Perhaps he needs to build a tolerance, though, before he gets too cocky about his ability to take a dick and a tentacle at once. 

“There, right there, keep going,” Jimin cries out. “I’m already gonna come.” 

Jimin thinks Taehyung curses in his native language. The aggressiveness of his tone is unlike anything Taehyung has ever uttered. 

Still, like always, Taehyung gives up everything Jimin wants to take. He moves where Jimin wants, letting Jimin’s hands fisting his hair guide him as they claim each other’s mouths. He fucks him harder when Jimin asks for it but still holds him so tenderly that it makes Jimin want to cry. 

Eventually, he does cry, but it’s a weak moan of Taehyung’s name when the pleasure building up inside of him finally snaps, painting the tentacle wrapped around his cock with cum. He spasms and contracts around Taehyung’s tentacle and cock, hard enough that even Taehyung trembles as he does his best to hold Jimin up. 

He must be exhausted, but neither of them gets a moment to breathe. 

“It’ll be a lot,” Taehyung grunts, and it doesn’t take long for Jimin to understand. 

Pulling his cock out, Taehyung watches with his head hanging low as he pumps his cock, hard and fast, until his glittery cum spurts across Jimin’s stomach and thighs. It shimmers as it oozes down his sweaty skin, creating rivers of liquid stardust to decorate the curves and crevices of Jimin’s body. 

What’s strange is how much he feels it inside himself, too. The sound Taehyung’s tentacle makes as it slithers out of Jimin’s hole is obscene. With it comes a flood of shimmery cum, slick spilling onto the floor and soaking their bodies. 

“Holy fuck, Taehyung,” Jimin closes his eyes and leans the back of his head against the wall. 

Taehyung’s tentacles gently ease Jimin back onto the floor. He keeps an arm wrapped around Jimin’s waist to hold him steady when he wobbles, but it’s clear his tentacles are tapped out. They curl around his arms, as though resting. 

“I told you it’s a lot,” Taehyung says, shy again now that they’re standing in front of each other, naked and dirty, the remnants of each other’s love painted across their skin. 

Like constellations, maybe. Jimin keeps that thought to himself. 

“Yes, well, you didn’t say your cum was going to come out of your tentacle.” 

Taehyung’s mouth falls open. “Moon, it was the mating one! You knew that.” 

“I didn’t know that specifically was going to happen!”

Jimin shoves Taehyung’s shoulder and nearly slips from the mess they’ve made on the floor. Taehyung catches him, with his hands on his waist, and he considers how much he loves how good that feels. 

“So, you didn’t like it?” It’s obvious Taehyung is watching for a shift in his expression, searching for an answer before he gives it. Taehyung is the most beautiful person Jimin has ever met, but insecurity has never looked good on him. 

With his fingers curled in Taehyung’s hair, Jimin pulls him into a kiss that tells him more than enough. Still, he has to say it. 

“I loved it,” he confesses against Taehyung’s lips. “And I love you, all of you.”

Jimin wouldn’t mind being a vainglorious queen, chained to the stars for eternity, if it meant being where Taehyung was. He's just happy they’re no longer 7,500 light-years away. 

Taehyung: You truly have no faith in me, Jiminah. ☹️ Trust me! The guy you're meeting with is super sweet *and* he's also from Busan!

Jimin: And the guy you're meeting with...does he happen to be super weird *and* also from Daegu.

Taehyung: How did you know?

Jimin: Wait, really?

Taehyung: Tomorrow! 4 PM! The arcade near your apartment! We'll eat and drink and then play some games.

Jimin: Fine. I'll be there.

Taehyung: yayayayay! 😁

Jimin feels nervous as he gives his reflection one more scrutinizing look before deciding he's as ready as he'll ever be. His pastel pink hair is parted nicely, falling over his forehead in perfect swoops, and he wears silver hoop earrings, a plain black tee tucked into tight black jeans, and black chelsea boots. 

The arcade is only a ten-minute walk from Jimin's place, and he leaves with just enough time to get there and not be so late that he seems rude. It's not that he is inconsiderate of other people's time; it has just been a while since Jimin has gone on a date, and he spent too long fussing with various outfits and raising his level of anxiety before settling on something simple yet flattering. 

As much as Jimin enjoys meeting others and going out with friends, there is always a level of presentation to dating that makes him spiral. What if he talks too much about himself? Or not enough? Or what if he is into the other person, but they're not into him—or the other way around? There is always a lot at stake and too much guesswork. It's stressful. 

Jimin makes it to the arcade at 4:02. Taehyung had put a table on reserve for the four of them, so Jimin approaches the apathetic-looking teen behind the front counter and gives her Taehyung's name. She points to a corner table in the back of the adjoined restaurant area, and he finds two men sitting side by side. One has short dark brown hair, and the other has longer dark brown hair, neatly tucked behind his ears. They're looking at the short-haired man's phone discussing something when Jimin arrives, and he feels awkward interrupting them. 

As soon as Jimin approaches and gently sets his hands on the back of an empty chair, both men look up expectantly. Jimin opens his mouth to introduce himself, feeling heat rise to his cheeks when an arm is slung around his shoulder, making him jump. 

"Hey, guys!" Taehyung says from beside Jimin. "Sorry I'm late; I couldn't decide what to wear. Have you all been introduced?"

Jimin turns to the right and finds Taehyung with freshly colored bright blue hair, dressed head to toe in white. He turns and flashes Jimin a bright, rectangular smile that calms some of Jimin's nerves, making him smile back.

"Uh, n-no," Jimin says, turning to the men at the table. "Sorry, I was also late. I—um—couldn't decide what to wear either."

The one with the longer hair grins and says, in a deep, raspy voice, "You two look like cotton candy. How cute."

Taehyung gives Jimin's shoulder a squeeze and says, "I didn't even think of that! Look at us!"

Jimin chuckles, but it is more of an uneasy sound than a fun one. He's not sure why he feels so strange about the comment but reasons that he is just struggling to ease into the whole date situation and that it's probably just his nerves. That, and his unrequited crush on Taehyung is still in the forefront of his mind, even in the presence of a date, which he certainly feels nervous about. Taehyung drops his arm from around Jimin and motions to the one with shorter hair.

"Jeongguk, right?" 

The man nods and stands, holding his hand out to Jimin. "I'm Jeongguk, your date."

"Oh, h-hi, Jeongguk," Jimin mutters, reaching for Jeongguk's hand. He has tattoos that start on his fingers, cover his arm from wrist to bicep, and disappear beneath his sleeve, and Jimin does his best not to stare. He has a few tattoos of his own and is thankful to have something to possibly talk about. 

"I'm Jimin. It's nice to meet you."

Jimin switches places with Taehyung and stands in front of Jeongguk. To his left, Taehyung and the other man introduce themselves, and he learns that the man is named Yoongi. Jimin notices that Jeongguk and Taehyung are about the same height and build, whereas he and Yoongi are similar in height and build. For the risk of making things awkward, he keeps his findings to himself and has a seat. 

"So you're from Busan," Jeongguk says as they settle in. 

Jimin nods and cracks a smile. "Yeah. I moved here when I was sixteen."

"Ah, yeah, I was fourteen," Jeongguk says. "Do you go back often?"

Jimin shrugs. "Not really. I visit family sometimes, but I've been so busy with school and work that I don't make time to go back. How about you?"

"Yeah, same," Jeongguk says. "I would like to visit more, but I don't have much time for it."

Silence falls between them, and already Jimin laments using up that subject to relate on. He supposes he could ask about the area Jeongguk grew up in, but he wonders if it would be weird to discuss someplace he hasn't been to for so long. Luckily, a server comes around and takes their drink order, providing some distraction. 

Jimin only asks for water out of nervousness, but Taehyung and Yoongi ask for a pitcher of beer and two bottles of soju for the table. Jimin isn't opposed to drinking, and he hopes that alcohol will at least aid in calming his nerves some, but he hadn't discussed ahead of time what Jeongguk might want. Luckily, Jeongguk seems to go along with it and nods his head, smiling sweetly. 

Now that Jimin has settled in, he finally gets a good look at his date. Jeongguk's short dark brown hair falls over his forehead, and he has big, curious round dark brown eyes, a nice nose that is prominent without being large, and pretty full lips with a sharp cupid's bow. 

He wears a short-sleeve button-up with a black and multi-colored shirt pattern that looks like tie-dye tiger stripes, unbuttoned with a plain black tee beneath, and he has a small silver hoop in his lip and several silver earrings in his ears. In short, Jeongguk is beautiful and has a pretty cool sense of style.

Beside him, Yoongi is dressed in a simple navy blue sweater with dark hair grown out just below his ears. He wears four small silver hoop earrings and a thin silver chain that disappears beneath his sweater, and he has a beautiful mix of sharp and soft features, with feline eyes, a button nose and nice full lips. Jimin wonders if Taehyung will enjoy kissing those lips and immediately cringes inwardly, wondering why the hell he suddenly thought of that. 

"So, how do you two know each other?" Yoongi asks, looking between Taehyung and Jimin. Jimin turns to Taehyung, who turns to him, and they both stare at one another for a while. Explaining this one might be a bit awkward, but Jimin eases into it.

"We go to the same school," Jimin finally says, turning back to Yoongi and Jeongguk. 

"Are you classmates?" Jeongguk asks.

Jimin shakes his head. "No, I'm a dance student, and he's a fine arts major. We, uh, we met because I was—"

"Nude!" Taehyung blurts out.

Jimin drops his face into his hands, muttering, "Why did you have to say it like that," into his palms.

"Nude?" Yoongi asks with a mirth-lilt to his tone.

Jimin doesn't lift his face from his hands, allowing Taehyung to continue. "Jimin came into my class as a still life model, and he posed nude a few times. I thought he seemed cool so I asked him for his number, and we became friends."

The sound of Yoongi chuckling pulls Jimin's attention. Jimin knows that when he looks at Yoongi, he must be scowling at the poor guy, and Yoongi holds up a hand and shakes his head. 

"I'm sorry, I don't mean to laugh. I think it's really neat that you feel confident posing nude. I just...I'm surprised you two set yourselves up with us and not each other. You seem to have a lot in common."

Jimin and Taehyung scoff in tandem and turn to each other with looks of disbelief. The idea of dating Taehyung is ridiculous, Jimin thinks. Sure, he may be handsome, with angular features, a sharp jaw and a friendly rectangular smile. 

And yes, Jimin may think his various moles are really cute—especially the one in the tear line of his right eye. But Taehyung is...Taehyung. Jimin may have a burning crush, but Taehyung has never shown any indication of liking Jimin like that, and so he keeps it to himself.

Taehyung hopes his cheeks aren't as red as they are warm. He cannot believe he blurted out the word nude like that, putting Jimin on the spot, but his brain went back to Jimin's lithe, muscular body and pink pouty lips, and Taehyung's brain short-circuited. Thankfully, the server returns, providing a distraction.

As the server doles out their drinks and begins taking their orders, Taehyung wonders what he was thinking wearing white. He was so caught up in imagining how angelic the outfit may look, contrasting with his tanned skin and bright blue hair, that he failed to consider what a hazard it may be to eat a greasy burger. 

To make matters more awkward, Yoongi's comment about him and Jimin looking like cotton candy still swims in Taehyung's mind, only made worse by his comment about the two of them having enough in common to date each other. He hadn't thought about that possibility while he was getting his hair done, only that being friends with someone who has a pretty hair color inspired him to have a pretty hair color too. 

Perhaps part of Taehyung wanted to impress Jimin, and yes, maybe a small part of him is disappointed that Jimin hasn't said anything about it. But there is still time, and Taehyung can tell Jimin is pretty nervous, so he thinks maybe he will bring it up later once they've been loosened up by booze, and he can shamelessly fish for compliments.

"Wait," Jimin says, pulling Taehyung out of his thoughts and back into the conversation, "so how do you know these two?"

Taehyung turns to find Jimin looking at him and gets lost for a moment in his soft, dark eyes, then clears his throat and pulls his gaze between the other two men instead. 

"I don't," Taehyung says with a chuckle. "After we were drinking and whining about being single, I sent a text to a couple friends asking if they knew anyone they could set us up with. Namjoon-hyung suggested Yoongi-hyung, and Hoseok-hyung mentioned Jeongguk. There was also some guy Seokjin-hyung suggested, but he seemed...weird."

"Wow," Yoongi says. "And how do you two feel about their choices?"

Taehyung can't help but smile at Yoongi's candor. Though he seems shy at times and a bit reserved, he is also blunt, which is a quality that Taehyung appreciates. Not to mention, he is also very pretty and seems really interesting. Taehyung thinks he could like someone like Yoongi, and he hopes that, for Jimin’s sake, he feels the same about Jeongguk. 

"So far, so good," Taehyung responds with a smile, enjoying the way Yoongi's eyes light up.

"I agree," Jimin says, and Taehyung turns to catch him smiling at Jeongguk. "No complaints, yet."

This makes all of them chuckle, and Taehyung takes the opportunity to grab a bottle of soju in hopes of providing a bit of liquid courage—he can't stop noticing how reserved Jimin is. Jimin is ordinarily a lot more outgoing, even when it comes to meeting new people, and Taehyung is beginning to worry he may have put Jimin in a situation he is not comfortable with. 

Despite becoming fast friends with Jimin, there is still a lot about him that Taehyung hasn't quite figured out. A small part of him had hoped that Jimin would want him to be the one to take him on a date, but when Jimin drunkenly whined, "We need to find someone," Taehyung took the hint and didn't suggest it. 

Taehyung puts on a show of grabbing onto the soju bottle at the base and lid, twisting it around so the lid is upside down, and shaking the bottle. In one swift movement, he cracks the lid open, reorientates his arms so the bottle is right-side up, and removes the cap. 

Everyone oohs, and aahs as Taehyung smugly pours four cups, and then, after they all raise their glasses in a toast, Taehyung promptly brings his glass to his lips and spills the soju on himself, causing everyone at the table to laugh. Jimin slaps the top of the table, falling forward into it, and Yoongi and Jeongguk seem to make failed attempts at holding back their amusement, squeezing their mouths shut while their shoulders bounce. 

"I meant to do that," Taehyung says with a confident grin, causing everyone to laugh even harder, and he gets to work collecting and pouring the next four cups—this time without the fanfare, and everyone settles back into their chairs. 

"What games do you guys want to play after we eat?" Jimin asks.

Taehyung slides a cup of soju to everyone and says, "I like racing games the most. And the fighting games."

"I like those too!" Jimin responds, taking his cup. 

Warmth blooms in Taehyung's chest from Jimin's enthusiastic response, and he can't help but smile at him. Jimin returns the smile, then turns to the others in anticipation of their responses. 

"I like more physical games," Jeongguk says, "like the basketball hoops, or Dance Dance Revolution."

"I'll take you in basketball," Yoongi says smugly, and Jeongguk fist bumps him, solidifying it as a deal. 

The four of them tap their soju cups together and shoot them back, and Taehyung is grateful for Jimin's small burst of initiating conversation. Meanwhile, Yoongi pours everyone a glass of beer. 

"Jiminah, aren't you good at DDR?" Taehyung asks with a grin. "I bet you could take on Jeongguk!"

Jimin chuckles, and an adorable blush rises to his cheeks. "You would think so, but I've actually never been great at rhythm games."

"But you're a dance major," Yoongi teases, passing Jimin a mug of beer while sliding another toward Taehyung. Taehyung takes the cold mug by the handle and lifts it toward Yoongi as a silent thank you, and Yoongi nods to Taehyung as he pours the third glass. 

"Yeah," Jimin chuckles, "and before you ask, yes, I do have rhythm! But standing in place and stomping is quite a bit different from ballet."

"You do ballet?" Jeongguk asks, and Taehyung doesn't miss the way his eyes light up like tiny galaxies. Jimin doesn't miss it either, judging by how much deeper his blush becomes. 

"Ballet and contemporary," Jimin responds somewhat shyly. "Sometimes it's a little more structured, and at other times it's more of a freeform dance style."

Taehyung takes a sip of his beer. It's bitter on his tongue and uncomfortably cold, but he didn't want to be the odd man out with a different drink and agreed to the pitcher, hoping to swallow some of his pride along with the nasty beverage. After one sour sip, he sets it aside.

"Just think of DDR as a contemporary dance," Jeongguk suggests with a smirk.

"Yeah, okay," Jimin says with a fake enthusiastic nod and everyone laughs. 

Burgers come, and the group focuses their attention on their food, only speaking occasionally to groan about how good everything is. For a spot that is known for their games first and food second, they have pretty good burgers, and this tends to be a hotspot for dates on the weekend. Their drink specials definitely help with their popularity. 

Taehyung takes another bitter sip of beer and tries to hold in his scowl as he reaches for the second bottle of soju and gets to work pouring everyone another cup. Beside him, Jimin and Jeongguk begin talking about something while leaning a bit over the table, past half-eaten food, and Taehyung tries his best not to listen in on their conversation. 

"Shouldn't we be on a team against them?" Jimin asks behind a quiet chuckle. 

Jeongguk shakes his head. "Nothing says building a connection with a stranger like healthy competition."

Jimin cannot believe what he's hearing, but he plays along, raising his eyebrows and nodding enthusiastically. If he is being honest, he's not very confident in his arcade game skill, and going up against someone competitive might frustrate him, but he doesn't want to admit that. 

"Wouldn't it make more sense if we were on a team, though?" Jimin presses. "Think about it, Taehyung and I like the same kinds of games, so we'll probably compete with each other. And you and Yoongi-hyung like the same ones, so you'll probably play those together."

"Just admit you're worried I'll beat you and go, Jimin-hyung," Jeongguk teases.

"Maybe a little," Jimin mutters, sitting back with a playful huff. 

Jimin likes Jeongguk. He's pretty, he's soft-spoken, and he seems really easy-going and interested in whatever conversation is happening. There is a puppy dog quality to him that makes Jimin want to reach across the table and scratch behind his ears. 

But he's not sure there is a connection between them. Of course, these things could take time, and Jimin isn't in any rush. He reminds himself to ease into it and be open-minded. If nothing comes from it, at least he tried, and maybe Jeongguk will want to remain friends. 

With the plates empty and the mugs half full, the men decide to chug their drinks and head to the games. Taehyung abandons most of his beer, grumbling that it got warm, and Jimin makes a mental note to get him a whiskey and cola next time he gets something for himself to drink. 

The sights and sounds of the arcade floor hit Jimin the moment he steps from the brightly lit restaurant to the dimly lit game room. Blinking lights and a chorus of chiptune tracks on top of the hazy beginnings of intoxication make walking into the space a bit disorienting at first, and Jimin finds himself crowding Taehyung's personal bubble as the four of them gravitate to a machine that exchanges notes for coins. 

Jimin had thought about this ahead of time and pulls out some money from his wallet to feed into the machine. What he hadn't thought about, however, was storing the handfuls of coins, which he begins unceremoniously shoving into his pockets. At least he is not alone and catches a glimpse of the others doing the same. Without considering who his date is for the evening, he hops back over to Taehyung. 

"What should we do first?" Jimin asks.

"Well, I am going to kick Jeongguk's ass at basketball," Yoongi announces from behind them, "so if you want to get whooped by Taehyung in Mortal Kombat or something, we can tally our scores and figure out what's next?"

“And what are we fighting for anyway, hyung?” Taehyung asks.

Yoongi tugs his lips into a devious smirk and says, “Honor,” making everyone laugh. Then, he adds, “So watch yourselves, Busan boys.”

Jimin doesn't mind the friendly competition or the way Yoongi treats him as if he is on the losing team, but he looks over his shoulder with a glare and sticks his tongue out anyway. Yoongi giggles, baring his teeth and gums in a wide, pretty smile, and Jimin turns back to scope out the machines. 

"Ooh, how about Mario Kart?" Jimin suggests, feeling excitement bubble in his chest. 

"Sure!" Taehyung responds, and they head toward the game.

Jimin takes the left seat and Taehyung takes the right, and they dig into their pockets for coins to insert. In this particular game, a camera takes a picture of the player’s face to stick onto their character, and Jimin pouts cutely and waits for his photo to pop up onto the screen. Beside him, Taehyung laughs, and Jimin looks to his screen to find that Taehyung also made a pouting face with his bottom lip jutting out. 

"You copied me," Jimin chides, which is met by Taehyung muttering, "You wish."

They move to the character selection screen, and Jimin picks Rosalina and begins to customize his cart to have the perfect balance of speed and stability. He glances to the screen beside his to find Taehyung outfitting a car for Tanooki Mario. 

"Rosalina is too heavy," Taehyung teases.

"You're too heavy," Jimin bites back, selecting a cart with a slightly higher handling stat. 

Taehyung suggests the Mario Cup, and Jimin agrees with a hum and a nod. Then, Jimin sits forward in his hard plastic chair, grips onto his steering wheel, and lets out a deep breath as the camera pans across the Splash Circuit. 

And then they are off. Taehyung takes the lead quickly, and Jimin huffs as characters barrel into him and throws him off course. But then Jimin adjusts to the controls and eases into the game, picking up items and throwing them with enough conviction to get ahead. 

It's not long before Jimin is in third place, teasing Taehyung that he is about to catch up. They alternate between first and second, and it looks as if Jimin is going to win, but then Taehyung hits a coin and accelerates through the finish line, throwing his hands in the air with a pleasant shout.

Jimin is all smiles, and although he wishes he had won, he thought it was a fair fight and that he did well, all things considered. Taehyung does not rub his win in Jimin's face, and as the camera pans over Tropical Coast, Jimin grips his steering wheel and readies himself for more. 

This time, Jimin takes the lead quickly and leaves Taehyung in the dust. A blue shell threatens to ruin everything, and Jimin feels his frustration rise at the computer players, but he quickly recovers and shoots back as many bananas as possible, reveling in the occasional groan of Taehyung when he barrels into one. There is no back and forth this time. Instead, Taehyung gets set back and comes in at fifth place. Overall, Jimin receives more points and is crowned the winner.

Despite not being a sore loser in round one, Jimin is a smug winner, and he turns to stick his tongue out and tease Taehyung. A pretty red blush tints Taehyung's neck and cheeks and he pouts, emulating his photo on the screen.

"Again?" Taehyung suggests.

Jimin does want to play again, but he would also like to be a bit more intoxicated and loosened up, so he nods and says, "Want a drink first? I can get us something."

"Sure," Taehyung responds. "I'll see how the boys are doing and we'll meet back here?"

Warmth fills Jimin's chest as he says, "Sounds good."

Taehyung leaves the hard plastic seat and glances around before finding the other two in the far corner, tossing basketballs into hoops. The arcade is fairly empty, with a few people playing games here and there, and Yoongi's voice carries across the space as two pale fists fly into the air. 

"Told you nobody can beat me," Yoongi rasps with a cocky smirk as Taehyung approaches.

Jeongguk digs into his pocket for more coins and immediately begins the next round, pausing for Yoongi to follow suit. With a chuckle and a shake of his head, Yoongi begins to insert coins on his side. 

"I guess it's one and one," Taehyung mutters, making the others turn to look at him while the basketballs are released from the top of the cabinet and fall into reach.

"I take it you lost?" Jeongguk responds with a satisfied grin.

"Psh, barely," Taehyung responds, feeling his cheeks warm. "We were neck and neck the whole time; Jimin got lucky."

"Ah huh," Jeongguk responds, "sure he did."

Taehyung watches as Yoongi and Jeongguk toss balls into and around their baskets but quickly grows bored. The scores are nearly identical the entire time, and although it could be exciting to wait around and see who pulls forward, Taehyung is more interested in getting back to another game with Jimin. 

And, speak of the devil, a pink tuft of hair bobs just above some cabinets near where they were playing before. Taehyung gives Yoongi a light pat on the shoulder and mutters, "You got this, Daegu!" before heading back toward the Mario Kart games.

"It appears our teams are...tied..." Taehyung begins, trailing off as he notices two glasses of brown liquid in Jimin's hands. He cocks his head at his friend and swallows a lump that rises to his throat as Jimin smiles. Without having to ask, Taehyung knows it's a whiskey and cola. 

"They might not know that you hate beer, but I do," Jimin says with a grin, handing Taehyung a cold glass. "And besides, if we're going to be drinking all those calories, it may as well taste good, right?"

The gesture of getting something that Taehyung likes, for both of them, is small, but it makes Taehyung giddy—Jimin is always so thoughtful. Taehyung takes a sip, and the initial shock of how sweet yet boozy the drink tastes settles, both cooling Taehyung's tongue and warming his chest. 

Jimin shifts on his feet, nibbling on the small paper straw in his drink, and with a smile that seems nervous, asks, "Do you want to play again?"

Unsure how to translate Jimin's sudden change in demeanor, Taehyung shrugs. "I do if you want to, but we don't have to. We can see what else there is."

Jimin shakes his head, and a small smile blooms on his lips. "I would like to play again," he says softly and takes his seat.

Taehyung follows suit and sits in the same chair as before, takes a sip of his drink, and places his glass into a drink holder to the right of the steering wheel. The game hasn't reset, so rather than take another photo and set up their characters again, they select the Don-chan cup with their same pouty characters and begin their race.

Playing with Jimin is a breeze. He seems competitive without taking it too seriously, though he does pout adorably when he loses and gives a cute, arrogant jut of his chin when he wins. Taehyung is torn between wanting to make Jimin lose and wanting to let him win, unsure which expression he likes more. 

They play several intense games, and, in the end, Taehyung wins. He lucks out by Jimin falling enough behind in one round that he was able to make up for lost points from his fifth-place loss earlier. 

Both Taehyung and Jimin loudly slurp the last of their drinks from their glasses and stand with haphazard giggles out of the chairs. Taehyung does not feel drunk—far from it. But he feels light and giddy and excited to get another drink and find out what Jimin wants to play next.

At the bar, Taehyung gets a whiskey and cola, and Jimin asks for water, muttering, "You know I'm a lightweight," and Taehyung gives him a teasing poke in the ribs but doesn't chide him further. 

A glance around the arcade shows Yoongi and Jeongguk still at the basketball hoops, so Taehyung suggests they make their way to a fighting game. He does not anticipate playing with the others soon.

Taehyung could have anticipated it, however, because as soon as they put their coins into a game and select their characters, Yoongi and Jeongguk arrive, panting and covered in sweat. Yoongi leans onto the game cabinet with his elbow against it, and a sharp but pleasant musk comes from him. 

"You winning, son?" Yoongi mutters playfully.

Taehyung resists the urge to respond, "Yes, daddy," in part because he is losing but also because he is not sure he is ready to call Yoongi any nicknames with sexual undertones, despite feeling tipsy enough to be in a flirty headspace. He is also a little surprised that someone like Yoongi is quoting a meme at him.

Taehyung likes Yoongi. There is a calm nature about him that puts Taehyung at ease, and he is very easy on the eyes. But he is not sure he feels any sort of connection with him. Which is fine, Taehyung tells himself. These things can take time, and at the very least, maybe Yoongi will want to remain friends. 

Lost in thought, Taehyung forgets Yoongi ever said anything to him and continues to play. Then, moments later, it occurs to him that Yoongi asked him a question, and he glances quickly, humming in question. 

"Never mind," Yoongi responds with a chuckle. 

To his right, Jeongguk is muttering in quick succession the buttons Jimin should be hitting in order to beat Taehyung. The gesture is nice in theory, but it messes him up, and in the end, he just mashes buttons, hoping for the best. As far as Jimin is concerned, most games are based on luck, not skill, and those who claim to understand them are just lying to themselves and everyone else around them.

Luck must be on Jimin's side, however, because he's wiping the floor with Taehyung. With a few more random mashes of the multi-colored buttons under his fingers, Jimin gets a fatality, and his character rips the spine clear out of Taehyung's character while pixelated blood flies at the screen. 

"Ah, better luck next time, Daegu," Yoongi mutters, and Jimin turns to find Yoongi rubbing a soothing circle on Taehyung's shoulder. 

Jimin feels a tinge of something hit him in the gut and looks away. To his right, Jeongguk is wiggling around in a happy dance, which Jimin thinks is cute. 

Jeongguk's pants are tight, accentuating nice muscular thighs and calves, and he wears chunky black sneakers, further elongating his legs. A good choice, Jimin thinks. So maybe he doesn't feel an emotional attraction to Jeongguk; his physical appearance more than makes up for it, Jimin thinks. And the night is still young. 

"Team vs team DDR?" Jeongguk suggests with a glimmer in his eye. "Yoongi-hyung and I will get more drinks if you want to whoop him once more to even out our scores."

Jimin chuckles and turns to find Taehyung pouting petulantly, before responding, "Sounds good, we'll meet you over there!"

"What are you two drinking?" Yoongi asks. 

"Whiskey and cola," Taehyung mutters, followed by a drawl of "Thank you, hyung," that's laced with so much sweetness, it nearly makes Jimin feel sick. 

Luck is on Taehyung's side for the next round of fighting, but Jimin comes close. He thinks he may have even figured out a decent pattern for mashing his buttons to execute combo moves, but he also does not want to play another round despite the others taking longer at the bar, so he leans against the cabinet and runs a hand through his hair.

"What do you think?" Taehyung asks. 

Jimin turns to find Taehyung leaning against the game cabinet with a glassy look to his eyes. He is so pretty and Jimin wants to tangle his fingers in his freshly dyed blue hair. 

"About what?" Jimin asks, distracted by Taehyung's beauty.

Taehyung chuckles and says, "Jeongguk," with raised eyebrows. 

Ah, right. Jeongguk. Jimin feels himself flush and finds he has to look away from Taehyung's face. "He's nice. I don't know."

"You don't know?" Taehyung asks, voice low and suggestive, making a chill run down Jimin's spine.

Jimin shakes his head. "I don't know."

Nervousness shivers through Jimin and makes his hands feel clammy. It's not as if he is uncomfortable talking about Jeongguk; he just doesn't want to talk about him with Taehyung. Jimin looks back at Taehyung to find him gazing at him as if lost in thought, and he considers smacking him on the chest and scolding him for staring, but Jeongguk's voice breaks him from his thoughts. 

"You guys ready?"

Jimin spins quickly on his heels and makes his way toward Jeongguk, accepting a whiskey and cola that Jeongguk is holding for him, and follows him to the Dance Dance Revolution machine. Behind him, Taehyung mutters something to Yoongi, and Jimin does his best not to eavesdrop. He is definitely not ready to play this stupid game, especially with all the alcohol in his system that is suddenly beginning to hit him, but anything is better than standing defenselessly and letting Taehyung stare at him the way he had been. 

As Yoongi hands Taehyung his drink, he notices that Yoongi's beverage differs from the other three. Rather than a whiskey and cola, it appears to be straight whiskey. 

"Too fancy for cola?" Taehyung teases. 

"I don't care for the sugar," Yoongi responds. "I already get hungover from the alcohol, and the sugar makes it worse."

Taehyung hums and nods. He supposes sugar could make the headache worse in the morning, but he is also not entirely sure how it all works, and he doesn't care enough to ask for more information on the subject. If Yoongi is comfortable with drinking whiskey straight like an uncle, Taehyung thinks that it's his own business. 

"Alright," Jeongguk announces, and Taehyung's vision snaps up to find Jeongguk standing with his arm around Jimin's waist. Jeongguk's hand fits nicely above Jimin's hip, and Taehyung tears his eyes away, feeling nausea rise. 

Jeongguk continues, "Are we ready to play? Jimin-hyung versus Taehyung-hyung on one machine and myself versus Yoongi-hyung on the other. The battle of Busan and Daegu."

Jeongguk's eyes shimmer and he smiles widely, and Taehyung feels ashamed of himself for his momentary lapse in judgment. He is the one who set Jimin and Jeongguk up, after all; he has no reason to find the two of them together nauseating. Perhaps all the alcohol mixed with soda is to blame, Taehyung reasons, suddenly convinced that sugar is the cause for all of his problems. Maybe he just needs some water next time.

Yoongi wraps his arm around Taehyung's shoulders, and Taehyung startles but leans into the touch, afraid to make Yoongi think his affection is unwanted. In fact, his touch is comforting and warm, and Taehyung wishes he could keep Yoongi's arm slung around him rather than having to play this silly rhythm game.

With an encouraging squeeze to Taehyung's upper arm, Yoongi grumbles, "We got this! Let's kick their asses!" Then he drops his hand away, and they approach the machines. 

They get into place, Yoongi and Jeongguk together on the left and Taehyung and Jimin together on the right. Then they insert coins and begin to select their songs. Now that Jimin is by his side, Taehyung begins to feel a little more excited about the game as he looks through the songs. 

"To make this fair, should we all do the same song?" Jeongguk suggests, and they all shrug and hum in agreement. 

Yoongi challenges Jeongguk to a game of scissors, rock, paper and wins, and then he chooses some techno rendition of a familiar classical song. Everyone takes one last swig of their drink and sets their glasses into cup holders near the screens, then get into position on the big floor pad to shake out their limbs and hands. 

The whole thing is a disaster. Jeongguk is the only one of the four of them who seems to be remotely good at this game, holding onto the bar behind him as his feet stomp across each arrow. Meanwhile, Taehyung and Jimin simply flail around and shout. Taehyung can't see how Yoongi is doing, but judging from the yelling and swearing, he assumes he's not doing much better.

The moment the song concludes, Jimin flings himself against Taehyung's side, and Taehyung stumbles to catch him, wrapping an arm around his shoulders. 

"This is terrible!" Jimin shouts as he buries his face against Taehyung's bicep. Then, suddenly, Jimin looks up with a surprised expression and straightens out. 

"S-sorry," Jimin mutters, and Taehyung shakes his head, still hovering his arm around Jimin's back and gently touching him. He feels light and happy and gives Jimin a soft smile.

"No sweat," Taehyung responds. "That was a pretty harrowing experience."

"You guys will get it," Jeongguk says encouragingly as he stomps through the list of songs, looking for one to choose. He decides on some techno Ariana Grande mix, causing everyone in the group to groan, and they follow suit and select the song. 

The second round is just as bad, and Yoongi winds up stomping away from his machine while shouting before it's over. Taehyung gets distracted by the outburst and begins to laugh, which pulls Jimin's attention and causes him to mess up and begin to shout with frustration. Jeongguk is, once again, the only one who seems to be able to play the game.

Once the song ends, Jimin spins toward Taehyung with his face in his hands, groaning something unintelligible. Taehyung holds his arms out in case Jimin flings himself against him once more, but to Taehyung's disappointment, he never does. 

Yoongi shakes his head and downs the rest of his drink—a move that, admittedly, Taehyung finds very attractive—and then makes his way toward the bar, muttering that he needs another. Taehyung decides he would like to spend some alone time with Yoongi and grabs his glass, drinks a fair amount of its contents through the small paper straw and follows him.

"Hyung," Taehyung calls as he picks up his pace. Yoongi stops in his tracks and turns with a smile that makes Taehyung's tummy swoop, and he waits for Taehyung to catch up.

As he approaches, Yoongi reaches an arm toward Taehyung, and Taehyung does the same, wrapping his around Yoongi's shoulders while Yoongi's goes around his ribs. Being in close proximity to Yoongi is nice, and Taehyung thinks about how it would probably feel the same if he were in this position with Jimin.

"Some alone time with my date," Yoongi mutters. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"

Taehyung chuckles. "Yeah, I suppose we haven't seen each other much. Maybe an arcade wasn't the best idea."

Yoongi shrugs and drops his arm from around Taehyung. They approach the bar, and Taehyung slowly lets his arm fall away as they sit on stools and slightly rotate toward each other. Taehyung slurps the rest of his drink and sets his glass down, then turns to find Yoongi watching him. 

"Can I ask you something?" Yoongi prompts, and Taehyung nods and hums. Yoongi continues with a cock of his head. "You and Jimin seem really close. Are you sure there's nothing there?"

Taehyung scoffs but hesitates. He shakes his head, swallowing down a myriad of emotions that he does not have the energy to sort. 

"Jimin..." Taehyung begins, then swallows a lump and continues. "I don't know; he just never seemed interested. I m-mean, not that I'm—I don't know. We're just not—"

Yoongi chuckles and raises a hand to Taehyung's shoulder, rubbing him in soothing circles. "Are you sure? It's okay, man; no hard feelings or anything. I'm having fun being here and getting to know all of you, regardless."

Yoongi's words are nice, and they are appreciated, but it is not what Taehyung wants to hear. Regardless of Yoongi's blessing, Taehyung has unrequited feelings. And now that Yoongi has a glimpse of Taehyung's heart, he imagines he will just call the date a wash and leave Taehyung empty-handed. 

What a joke, Taehyung thinks. 

Out of curiosity, Taehyung spares a glance in the direction of the Dance Dance Revolution machines and finds Jimin playing what appears to be a much easier level while Jeongguk stands to the side, coaching him with his big, pretty smile and round, attentive eyes. 

Jimin must do well because he jumps around in joy and falls into Jeongguk's chest, wrapping his arms around his neck. Taehyung turns and swallows down more nausea, deciding that he has seen enough. 

"Something tells me you could use a shot," Yoongi grumbles, and Taehyung nods emphatically.

Yoongi orders them a shot of whiskey that nearly knocks Taehyung clear out of his shoes. How Yoongi drinks something like that straight is completely beyond him. 

But Taehyung does a second shot for good measure, and all at once, the whiskey hits him fast. It's as if everything he had been drinking until this point has finally caught up to him, and all he can do is hold on tight and enjoy the ride. 

Taehyung considers demanding a third shot, throwing caution and misery to the wind, when Jeongguk appears beside them, alone. He worries his bottom lip, and Taehyung glances around, looking for Jimin. 

"I think…" Jeongguk trails off, scratching the back of his head. "I don't know. I may have said something to offend Jimin, and he went running off to the bathroom."

Jeongguk's words take a moment to settle over Taehyung, and then he springs into action and slides off his barstool. The room spins around him, and he stands still a moment to get his bearings, wondering once more how in the hell Yoongi can drink like this.

"I got him," Taehyung mutters, sounding far more sober than he feels, and Jeongguk nods gratefully. 

Taehyung glances around the space slowly, orienting himself and trying to figure out where the damned bathroom is hiding. Then he spots the signs with the stick people on them and heads in that direction. 

Putting one foot in front of the other is a task at first, but Taehyung adjusts to his intoxicated state quickly and takes measured steps. He doesn't have time to sort out which door to go through before Jimin is barreling out with his hair somewhat mussed as if he had just been tugging at it. 

"Oh, good!" Jimin says as he wraps his arm around Taehyung's bicep and tugs him away, toward the arcade. "I want to talk to you."

Jimin glances over to the bar to find Yoongi and Jeongguk talking and sighs with relief but feels terrible about the whole thing. Jeongguk is so sweet and kind, and Jimin freaked out the second he got too close, and he ran away. To make matters worse, Jimin can't stop thinking about it. 

"How did I get so lucky to be matched with someone as pretty and sweet as you are?" Jeongguk told him right before he ran off, beside the loud arcade machines, with stars in his eyes. 

He looked as if he wanted to kiss Jimin and then slowly brought his hand up to gently caress his cheek with the backs of his fingers, and rather than stop Jeongguk gently and apologize for not reciprocating his feelings, Jimin had simply blurted, "Sorry, excuse me!" and ran off to the restroom like a child. 

And now here he is, dragging a very intoxicated Taehyung into a photo booth along the wall of the arcade. Jimin groans as Taehyung stumbles, and he wonders what the hell happened in the short time they were separated. 

"In here," Jimin grumbles as he pulls the red faux velvet curtain aside and pushes against Taehyung's hips. 

Taehyung sits a little too hard on the white plastic bench, exhaling a deep, "Oomph!" and Jimin fights the urge to laugh. 

"Go!" Jimin exclaims, shoving at Taehyung's shoulders. "Scoot!"

"Patience, my adorable friend," Taehyung mutters as he places his palms onto the seat and slides in, leaning against the wall. "You're always in such a rush; just enjoy your surroundings."

"Yeah, okay," Jimin responds under his breath, deciding not to try to figure out what on earth Taehyung is talking about. 

Silence settles over them, save for a high-pitched tune that plays from the booth encouraging patrons to insert coins and pose for the camera. Jimin attempts to gather his thoughts, but he is on the outskirts of feeling drunk, and Taehyung seems absolutely gone. 

"Y-you wanted to talk?" Taehyung grumbles as he slings his arm roughly over Jimin's shoulder. 

"Nah," Jimin says, feeling sadness bubble in his throat. "Just wanted to take some photos with my new best friend."

Taehyung lets out an exaggerated "Pfft!" and sits up as if he is reluctantly getting ready to take photos purely for Jimin's sake. Jimin digs into his pocket for a handful of coins and begins to insert them. 

The machine prompts them to hold up peace signs, and Taehyung half-heartedly obliges. Jimin grins widely, showing his teeth, and as the camera flashes, he hopes his eyes don't look as sad as he feels. This whole evening feels like a bust, especially with Taehyung getting so drunk that Jimin once again doesn't feel comfortable with confessing his feelings. 

The chipper machine voice directs them to make finger hearts, and Jimin does so, tilting his head toward Taehyung. Jimin is about to scold him for not paying attention when Taehyung mutters, "That's not what I want."

Jimin looks into the camera and smiles in time for it to flash, then turns to Taehyung with a confused hum. Taehyung sighs and rests his head against the wall, worrying his lip between his teeth. 

"What don't you want?" Jimin asks softly, afraid for Taehyung's response. 

"I don't want to be your friend," Taehyung whines softly, scrunching up his face as if he anticipates something painful to follow his words. He lifts his head and looks at Jimin with all the conviction of a man who is willing himself to become sober again, but he doesn't say anything more. 

"What do you m—" the camera flashes again, ripping Jimin from his thoughts and leaving him feeling conflicted as he blinks away white and black spots that cloud his vision. Taehyung apparently no longer wants to be his friend, and Jimin's head spins as he attempts to sort out why. 

The urge to cry overwhelms Jimin, but Taehyung's warm, comforting hand softly grips onto his knee, and Jimin returns from his spiral to find Taehyung smiling so sweetly at him. 

"I want to be more than that," Taehyung says softly. "I love you, Jimin."

Jimin's mouth falls open, tears blur his vision, and another bright flash of the camera fills the space, capturing a moment that Jimin struggles to comprehend. 

Taehyung grins, a crooked, mischievous expression and groans, "I confessed to you; are you gonna kiss me or what?"

A chuckle rocks through Jimin, and he shakes his head and wipes away the tears that managed to escape. 

"No, you dummy," Jimin responds with soft laughter. "You're too drunk for me to kiss." 

Taehyung drops his face into his hands and lets out a strained whine. "You're right," he mutters. 

"We should get you home," Jimin suggests softly, forcing another whine from Taehyung's throat. 

Taehyung wraps his arms around Jimin, leaning against him suddenly, and Jimin struggles to accommodate, lifting his arms in the small space and doing his best to reciprocate whatever is going on. 

"Don't want to leave you," Taehyung mutters.

"Can you walk?"

Taehyung groans and nods his head slowly.

"Alright," Jimin says, attempting to push Taehyung back into a seated position. "I'll walk you back to mine and put you to bed. But no funny business!"

"Okay," comes out meekly, and Jimin swoons for a split moment before deciding he is tired of sitting in the photo booth and shoving Taehyung up and away. He is suddenly exhausted, and he wants to end this chaotic date, get Taehyung settled, and put this day behind him. 

Jimin manages to get Taehyung's arm off his shoulders, and he slides out of the photo booth, nearly getting tangled in the curtain as he shoves it open. He stands and has to pause a moment to get his bearings, then he remembers the pictures they took and grabs the photo slips out of the retrieval slot, glancing just long enough to verify that they are his before sliding them into his back pocket. 

With a cacophony of grunts and groans, Taehyung makes his way out of the booth and stumbles into a standing position. Jimin is about to take Taehyung by the arm and lead him to the exit when he remembers there were two other men with them. 

Guilt pools in Jimin's tummy as he turns to find Yoongi and Jeongguk, who still sit at the bar, facing one another with fresh drinks beside them. He takes a deep, calming breath and does his best to deliver a silent but confident pep talk to himself. 

Jimin hates having to turn anyone down but especially laments having to let down someone as kind and handsome as Jeongguk. He doesn't want to think of the way Jeongguk's pretty, wide eyes will downturn in disappointment along with the edges of his perfect lips, but alas, Jimin needs to do what he needs to do—finally ready to admit that his foolish little heart belongs to another. 

The chorus of chiptune songs does nothing to calm Jimin as he attempts to steel himself. He takes one more reassuring inhale, and in that moment, Yoongi reaches a slow, gentle hand and caresses Jeongguk's thigh, giving it a soft squeeze before resting it there. Jeongguk smiles softly, scrunching his nose and lips, and the gaze the two of them share is nothing short of infatuating. 

Jimin's breath huffs out in surprise, and he cannot hold back his smile. Perhaps nobody will be disappointed tonight, after all, he thinks.

"Let's go let the others know we're leaving," Jimin says, turning his head toward Taehyung, who seems to be holding himself up well.

Jimin takes Taehyung by the hand, lacing their fingers together, and leads him toward the bar. They get a few feet away when Yoongi notices them, and first, his hand lifts quickly from Jeongguk's knee, but then his eyes fall to Jimin holding Taehyung's hand, and with a smirk, Yoongi places his hand back down.

"I see tonight isn't turning out how anyone anticipated," Yoongi mutters, looking between Jimin and Taehyung. 

"I guess not," Jimin responds, dramatically wiggling his eyes between Yoongi and Jeongguk as he chuckles. Then he turns his attention to Jeongguk. "What a relief. I was so scared of having to turn you down. Hence running away, god, that was so childish; I'm so sorry, Jeongguk."

Jeongguk shakes his head and smiles. "I was disappointed at first, but only because I thought I said something that upset you. But Yoongi-hyung mentioned Taehyung more or less confessed his feelings for you, and we put two and two together when you disappeared for a while." 

"I can't believe you made us third-wheels on our own date," Yoongi chides, and Jimin cringes. 

"So you two..." Taehyung says, trailing off. 

Blush rises to Jeongguk's cheeks, and Yoongi gives him an assuring glance before responding. "Yeah, we got to chatting and decided that if you two weren't coming back, we'd make the most of it. We actually have quite a bit in common."

Jimin laughs and squeezes Taehyung's hand. "I'm glad. And we'll remain friends, yeah? You guys were so much fun! Next time we'll have a proper double date with the correct pairs."

Yoongi and Jeongguk laugh, and Jimin delights in how their shoulders rise and fall similarly. "Sure thing," Jeongguk says at the same time Yoongi rasps, "Sounds like a plan."

"Alright," Jimin announces, shifting tiredly in place. "I'm going to get this one a tall glass of water and some cozy pajamas. Get home safe, you two!"

Yoongi and Jeongguk stand, and everyone exchanges hugs, then Jimin tugs Taehyung toward the exit. The cool night air hits him, but not uncomfortably. In fact, the light breeze in his hair feels nice. Most of the ten-minute walk back to Jimin's place is silent, with mindless grumbles about interesting storefronts and restaurants that smell good. 

Once they get to Jimin's apartment, Taehyung becomes especially clingy, draping himself over Jimin as he struggles to retrieve the key to his building. In the hallway, Jimin stumbles with Taehyung's arms cloaked over his shoulder, and he grumbles with annoyance despite doing absolutely nothing to move him because Taehyung smells fresh like a spring day, and a little like home. 

"I'll find you a toothbrush and pajamas," Jimin mutters as he punches in his door code. 

Jimin keeps the living room light off and forces Taehyung to stand on his own as he kicks out of his shoes and pads through the living room and into his hallway to flip on a dimmer, much more inviting light. He watches with amusement as Taehyung struggles to kick out of his white sneakers and nearly topples into the back of Jimin's couch but sorts himself out and leans back against the wall. 

Then, Jimin goes into the bathroom to find his pack of fresh toothbrushes and sets one on the counter before opening his above-sink cabinet and grabbing his own. It doesn't take long for Taehyung to join him, and Jimin takes a step to the right to give him space. He tries his best to ignore the rush of emotions over how domestic the moment in front of the small bathroom mirror is, and he takes handfuls of tap water to swish around his mouth and spit into the sink before replacing his toothbrush in the cabinet.

"I'll get you some water," Jimin offers, attempting to walk around Taehyung, but Taehyung twists, standing in the way. 

With the toothbrush lodged in his cheek and spit-filled white paste running down his lip, Taehyung sputters, "After this, will you kiss me? I smell good."

Jimin's pulse quickens, and he chuckles, shaking his head. "You're still too drunk, silly."

With a sigh, Taehyung turns back to the sink and spits out the toothpaste. "Unfair," he mutters. 

"You did this to yourself," Jimin teases as he leaves the room.

On his way toward the kitchen, Jimin hears Taehyung whine, "Yoongi-hyung got me this drunk."

"Conveniently blaming someone who isn't here, hmm?" Jimin calls as he fetches a clean glass from his sink-side rack and fills it with water.

Jimin returns to find the bathroom empty, and he makes his way down the short hallway to his bedroom. Taehyung is seated on the edge of Jimin's bed, looking like an apparition in the dark, and Jimin laughs to himself as he crosses his bedroom, flips on his bedside lamp and sets down the glass of water.

"I'll grab you something to wear," Jimin says as he turns to walk to his dresser, but strong arms wrap around his torso and tug him back, causing him to stumble and fall haphazardly against Taehyung's lap. 

"You didn't compliment my hair," Taehyung pouts pathetically, and Jimin chuckles, turning his head in an attempt to face him. 

"You're right, and I'm sorry,” Jimin responds sweetly. “Your hair looks beautiful, Tae. It suits you."

Taehyung's eyes sparkle as he asks, "Really?" making Jimin laugh a little harder. 

"Yes, really. Of course, really. Anything would look pretty on you, Tae; you're breathtaking. Now let's get ready for bed."

"Just wanna hold you," Taehyung grumbles. "I confessed and now all I want to do is love you and hear you call me pretty."

Jimin's cheeks burn red hot as he makes a feeble attempt to pull away. "Let me get us pajamas, and you can hold me while we fall asleep."

Taehyung lets out a long, contemplative hum, then squeezes Jimin tight before opening his arms wide as if releasing a pet into the wild to be free. Jimin fumbles back to his feet, still feeling somewhat intoxicated—both by the alcohol and by the sudden turn of events—then makes his way to his dresser to find two matching sets of pajamas. One is blue with little white clouds, and the other is pink and white stripes, and Jimin giggles at the coincidence and chucks the pink pair at Taehyung. 

Jimin strips where he is, pulling his shirt over his head and discarding it to the side. Taehyung has seen him model nude, after all, so what does he have to hide? He does, however, turn to give Taehyung privacy as he shrugs into the top and begins to button it, noticing the rustling of fabric that indicates Taehyung is changing. 

"Let me know when you're done," Jimin says as he pulls the photo strips from his pocket and sets them on his dresser. He undoes his pants, wiggles them to the floor and steps out of the denim and into the flannel. 

"I, uh...it doesn't fit," Taehyung grumbles. "You're too small."

Jimin rolls his eyes and turns with a sneer, ready to give Taehyung a piece of his mind. "Maybe you're t-too b-big—"

The temperature of the air rises rapidly as Jimin takes in golden skin, muscular arms and chest, and a somewhat toned, soft tummy. He drops his gaze to the floor as his cheeks flush with warmth and notices the pink and white striped pants stopping above Taehyung's ankles. 

"Sorry, Jiminah," Taehyung says in a tone dripping with anything but apologetic undertones as his feet step closer. "Guess I have to sleep topless."

Jimin spins quickly on the balls of his feet, muttering, "I have a tee shirt you can wear!" but Taehyung stops him by grabbing onto one of his wrists and pulling him close. Jimin fumbles against Taehyung and turns to look at him, feeling shocked by his behavior and finds Taehyung looking back with a pointed gaze. 

"Come to bed," Taehyung says softly, voice dropped so low it gives Jimin a chill. Taehyung tugs him towards his bed and says, "I'll drink the water you brought me, and in the morning when I'm sober, I'll ask for that kiss again."

"Okay," Jimin all but whispers, feeling dizzy from the pounding of his heart. 

Taehyung continues to hold onto Jimin as he sits on the edge of the bed, only letting go to scoot toward the middle and wiggle under the cover. Jimin stands, suddenly finding it hard to comprehend that Taehyung, of all people, is in his bed, getting cozy in his baby blue sheets. And that he confessed. Taehyung gets onto his side, anchors himself with his bent arm against the bed, and pats the empty space in front of him.

The neurons in Jimin's brain seem slow to fire as he stares at the scene before him, struggling to process it. Taehyung cocks his head, knits his eyebrows, and hums a questioning tone, and Jimin snaps out of it and approaches the bed. He sits on the edge, grabs the water, and twists to hand it to Taehyung, who sits up behind him.

"Almost forgot," Taehyung mutters.

Jimin hums. "Only sober Taehyung gets a first kiss."

A quiet moment passes before Taehyung reaches past Jimin to set a nearly empty glass on the bedside table. Jimin grabs it, drinks the rest of the water, and then switches the lamp off. As he twists to get into bed, Taehyung pulls him close, tangling his arms and legs around him in a firm but comfortable hold, and Jimin falls asleep quickly with Taehyung's steady breath warming the nape of his neck.

Light dances behind Taehyung's eyelids, soft and warm, and he slowly feels his limbs tingle and stretch to life. As his arm and leg hit a body to his left, everything comes flooding back to Taehyung, and he turns with a gasp to find tousled pink hair and round, cherubic cheeks against the pillow beside him. 

Jimin. Soft, sweet, beautiful Jimin in his pale blue pajamas covered in little white clouds. Taehyung confessed to him while drunk on far more whiskey than one man should ever consume at once, and now that he feels sober, he is determined to prove to Jimin that he means it. 

A pink wave hangs over Jimin's closed eyes, and Taehyung gently pushes it away, high enough to get stuck on a bunch of hair and off his face. He gently rubs the back of his pointer finger over Jimin's cheek, and Jimin's bottom lip juts out into a pout as he groans and shifts, gradually getting pulled from sleep. 

Taehyung resists the urge to suck Jimin's plush lip between his teeth and rouse him with a moan; it's probably too uncouth for a first kiss. Instead, Taehyung continues to caress Jimin's cheek delicately until the other stirs and begins to stretch and tremble awake. Jimin's groans become louder and more frustrated, and Taehyung grins. 

With a scrunch of his brow, Jimin cracks one eye open. Then, suddenly, both eyes open, blinking quickly, and Taehyung watches Jimin remember all at once everything that happened the night before. 

"Hey, beautiful," Taehyung mutters, voice raspy and deep from disuse. 

"I guess it wasn't a dream, hmm?" Jimin groans as he rolls onto his back and stretches his arms over his head. 

"Depends," Taehyung responds playfully, "how good was your dream?"

The apples of Jimin's cheeks blush a pretty azalea rouge, and Taehyung delights in how easily he can fluster him. Jimin turns again, eyes searching Taehyung's naked shoulders and chest before rising to meet his gaze, and he licks his bottom lip. Taehyung mimics the movement and reaches out to take Jimin by the waist. 

"About that kiss...?" Taehyung begins, and Jimin looks scandalized, rolling out of reach, whining, "I have morning breath, you animal."

"Swish some mouthwash and come back," Taehyung groans, reaching for Jimin, who scoots further away. 

"You also have morning breath, Tae."

Taehyung rolls his eyes. "Fine, come back and spit some of the mouthwash into my mouth."

Jimin sits with a start, pink hair sticking out in every direction, and he twists to glare down at Taehyung—a sight that makes his heart pound. 

"You're disgusting," Jimin says, and Taehyung falls onto his back, laughing. 

"Fine," Taehyung concedes with a sigh, sitting up and kicking the baby blue blanket off his legs. "We'll gargle some mouthwash quick and return to bed so I can kiss you until you're dizzy."

"Fine," Jimin responds, clearly fighting with the corners of his mouth and resisting the urge to smile. 

The two of them leave the bed and pad into Jimin's bathroom to brush their teeth side by side at the sink. All joking and eagerness to lock lips aside, Taehyung takes his time and returns to Jimin's room for the cup they used the night before and carries it into the kitchen for more water while Jimin closes the door to the bathroom for privacy.

Taehyung sips at the water as he returns to Jimin's room and sets the glass on the bedside table, then notices the photo strips on Jimin's dresser. He walks over, picks up the top strip—which is curved slightly as if it had been put in a butt pocket—and his breath hitches.

In the first frame, he and Jimin are holding up peace signs with wide, cheesy smiles, but as the photos progress, Jimin looks confused, and finally, surprised. There's something in Jimin's eyes that Taehyung can't quite discern, and it looks like he might be on the verge of tears. Taehyung wonders, with a swell of affection in his chest, if this is the moment he told Jimin he loves him. 

Jimin returns, hair tamed and face flushed, and he sits on the edge of the bed. Taehyung nibbles his lip and sets the photo down, then returns to the bed, taking his place beside Jimin, who fidgets with his hands in his lap. 

"Oh my god," Taehyung groans, "don't be so nervous. We can wait if you're not ready."

"I'm ready," Jimin responds hurriedly. "And nervous. I can be both."

Taehyung scoots back on the mattress and leans back against one hand while he pats himself on the thigh, saying, "I'll ease your nerves. Come here."

A look of confusion that blends into intrigue tugs deliciously at Jimin's features, and he stands and turns, then slowly positions one knee on the bed and pauses. "Y-you want me to—"

"Get on my lap?" Taehyung interjects with a smirk. "Yes."

Jimin licks his lips and complies, swinging a leg over Taehyung's thighs and straddling him. Taehyung reaches for Jimin's chin and gently pulls him close. "Kiss me, pretty," he mutters, and smiles as Jimin leans forward and brushes plush lips against his. 

A pleased groan rumbles in Taehyung's throat, and Jimin wraps his arms over his shoulders and settles comfortably in his lap while Taehyung moves his hand to cradle Jimin's nape. He gently sucks Jimin's lip between his teeth—just as he has imagined time and time again—and the deep, needy groan that falls between Jimin's lips makes every second that has passed since the moment Taehyung first laid eyes on him worth the wait. 

Taehyung releases Jimin's lip with a pop and a smile, eyes not fully closed so he can see the way Jimin's mouth is open for him as he lets out a delicate gasp. He rotates his face ever so slightly, making room for their noses to slot beside one another, and licks between Jimin's lips, tasting mint and spit, and gently presses his fingertips into the back of Jimin's head. 

There is a soft but present frenzy in the way one of Jimin's hands pushes into Taehyung's hair while the other grips onto his neck, his shoulder, and back to his neck again, as if he is mapping out shapes or plotting points for later. Jimin darts his tongue out to meet Taehyung's, and they lick and groan and smile against each other's lips in languid movements, teasing and tasting and inviting the other for more. 

"Let's lay down," Taehyung suggests into Jimin's mouth, receiving only a nod in return. 

Taehyung bends at the elbow to lower them to the mattress, and, with a giggle, Jimin slides off Taehyung's lap, prompting him to open his eyes. Jimin hovers close as he says, "Lay down for real."

With both elbows, Taehyung scoot-crawls further onto the bed, and he slowly swings his legs up—with what little room Jimin gives him—and wiggles around, settling onto his side. Jimin clambers back onto the mattress, wraps one arm around Taehyung's neck, then the other as he crashes their lips together, and pushes Taehyung into the pillow, laying him half on his side and half on his back.

"I hope you're right," Taehyung mutters against eager lips, getting a hum in response before continuing. "I hope none of this is a dream."

Jimin bites down on Taehyung's bottom lip—not hard, but enough to elicit a painful hiss and confused groan. Taehyung's eyes open wide to find a devious smirk, and Jimin says, "Looks to me like you're awake, Tae."

The pain, the snark, and those soft, beautiful lips have heat building around Taehyung's groin and his lower back. He wants more—wants everything—but it is still soon, and he is unsure whether it would be too impolite to ask. 

Jimin swings a leg over Taehyung and pulls their bodies flush. If the bulge that rubs against his own is anything to go by—and the elicit moans that fell from both their lips—Jimin must feel the same. 

"Want you," Jimin whines, confirming Taehyung's suspicion—or, perhaps, reading Taehyung's mind. "I know it's too soon, but I—"

Taehyung rolls forward, forcing Jimin to crash onto his back with a whine, and grinds his hips slowly against Jimin, sliding their cocks together with intent. Jimin's head digs into the pillow, fingers grip Taehyung's bare shoulders, and he rasps a needy, pretty sound that blends with the pleasure coursing through him, shivering down his spine. 

"I want you too, baby," Taehyung groans as he leans forward and places soft, wet kisses against Jimin's throat and neck. "Always wanted you."

"Please," Jimin whines as his body writhes beneath Taehyung as if searching for friction. 

Taehyung lowers his hips and lifts his head, and he watches as Jimin grinds up against him and bites his lip to stifle a moan. "God, just look at you," he groans, delighting in how shameless and needy Jimin has become. 

Jimin squeezes his eyes shut and whines petulantly, then grabs onto the back of Taehyung's neck and pulls him until their lips are hair's widths apart. Taehyung watches Jimin's lips as they part and tremble, and he darts out his tongue to leave a teasing strip of spit.

"How do you want me, baby?" Taehyung asks before sucking Jimin's lip between teeth where it belongs. 

Jimin hisses and moans and mutters, "Slow. Fuck me slow."

A pleased, needy groan rumbles and rips through Taehyung's throat. He lifts himself enough to stare down at Jimin and see his entire blush-flushed face. He asks, "You want me to fuck you, baby?" and delights in how wide and desperate Jimin's eyes become when he nods. 

Taehyung rubs their noses together. "Do you need to clean? Wanna taste you."

A whimper accompanies a slow shake of the head. "I cleaned already. Probably still wet."

Taehyung can't help but gasp. "This morning?" Jimin nods and hums. "You weren't in there long."

"I cleaned before the date too," Jimin confesses with a blush, "just in case."

Intrigue with a hint of jealousy deepens Taehyung's arousal. "You cleaned yourself in anticipation for the date?"

Jimin nods and hums, giving Taehyung wide, innocent eyes, and Taehyung chuckles. "You wanted our sweet Jeonggukie to fuck you, is that it?" he groans as he leans in close and nuzzles noses and cheeks. 

"I wanted to be open to the possibility," Jimin whines. "You know how horny I've been; stop teasing."

Taehyung grins and nibbles his bottom lip. He, too, had gotten himself ready, just in case. 

"So is it me you want," Taehyung continues with a dark tone, "or will any cock do?"

Jimin slaps Taehyung on the side of the arm and pulls him close enough to lick at his lips, making Taehyung smirk. "Stop," he whines.

A deep chuckle passes through Taehyung's lips as he taunts a bit further. "Sorry, baby; I don't mean to tease. I like how slutty and needy you are, I promise."

Taehyung doesn't say these things to hurt Jimin—he watches Jimin's expressions and listens closely to his voice to make sure he doesn't seem to be crossing a line. It has simply been a test of endurance to be Jimin's friend and listen as he gets drunk and whines about how badly he needs dick, and now Taehyung cannot resist making him regret saying it all those times, just a teensy bit.

"Want you, Tae," Jimin whines. "Please."

And if Jimin is going to ask so sweetly, Taehyung is sure that he could never deny him anything. "Get on your stomach for me, baby." 

Jimin twists and wiggles, turning onto his stomach with very little room to move. Taehyung watches with a smile as Jimin pulls his hands above his head and digs his fingers into the pillow with anticipation—cheeks squished and round just as they had been when he was asleep. 

"Take your top off for me," Taehyung instructs, and Jimin groans as he moves from his new position to attempt to anchor himself onto his elbows and work the buttons on his nightshirt. 

Taehyung sits up, straddling Jimin's very plump butt, and he reaches his arms below him and begins to help unfasten the buttons near his tummy, working his way down. Jimin struggles to shrug out of the shirt before Taehyung is finished, and he can't help but giggle at his impatience.

"So needy," Taehyung teases as he helps pull the shirt off one arm and then the other, then tosses the cloudy garment to the floor. 

"Keep teasing me, and I'll kick you out," Jimin whines with absolutely no conviction, returning his hands to the pillow beside his head. 

Taehyung leans down, lays his weight against Jimin, and as he nuzzles his nose into Jimin's nape and smells his citrus shampoo, he mutters, "Is that so?"

A shiver visibly runs through Jimin, followed by a whimper, and Taehyung smirks. Taehyung kisses Jimin's neck, smells his sweet skin, and takes in every tiny sound and movement that comes from below. Jimin's back is soft against Taehyung's chest, and he slowly crawls down the length of his torso leaving soft, wet kisses in his path. 

For months, Taehyung has felt ashamed of the vivid ways in which he imagined worshiping every inch of Jimin under the assumption that he may not have felt the same way. Now, with Jimin in his hands, Taehyung can't seem to think clearly and kisses with abandon as he works his way down to the soft, plump cheeks he has sketched and painted and squeezed his cock thinking about time and time again. 

Taehyung kneels between Jimin's thighs and dips his fingers below the band of his pants. Jimin tilts his hips up, and Taehyung catches his briefs as he begins to tug down, pulling carefully in front to prevent Jimin's erection from catching in the fabric.

Despite having witnessed the peaks and valleys of Jimin's perfectly toned body, getting to touch and praise and really see him makes Taehyung's heart pound. He lifts his legs, gently but clumsily getting Jimin's pants down past where he kneels and to Jimin's ankles while staying between them, then drops down to the mattress with his hands on Jimin's ass as his feet help to guide the fabric past his feet. 

Taehyung gets on his stomach between Jimin's thighs, runs his hands over his ass, and in response, Jimin begins to lift his hips. Taehyung pushes him down, slowly but firmly. "Relax," he mutters, and Jimin settles his hips and attempts to spread his legs a bit further.  

"You're so perfect," Taehyung groans as his lips touch the underside of Jimin's cheek, over the crease where soft flesh turns to firm thigh. Jimin trembles below Taehyung's touch, and he kisses up, over the pillowy curve, toward the center, where he wants to kiss most. All the while, arousal pools in his groin and tingles through his limbs

Gently, Taehyung spreads Jimin and holds back a groan at the sight of such a cute, puckered hole, still moist, as Jimin had promised. Taehyung kisses toward it, keeping his eyes on it until it begins to blur from being too close, then he laps his tongue over it, slowly and tentatively, and Jimin's hips shake as he lets out a breathy moan. 

There is a delicate sweetness to Jimin's skin, and Taehyung laves over him in long stripes and slow circles as his hands move up to Jimin's hips and settle. Taehyung groans and licks, letting Jimin's cheeks close around his face, threatening to suffocate him, and Jimin whimpers and gasps such pretty sounds for him. 

He takes his time licking and sucking against Jimin's rim, dipping his tongue inside to taste and tease just a little more. Then, he pulls one hand down to spread Jimin's cheek and gently prod one finger in while his tongue twists and flicks, leaking drool and making a mess. 

Stretching Jimin on one finger, then two fingers, and then—with the addition of lube that Jimin practically throws at Taehyung's head—three fingers takes time. Jimin's hips grind and shake under Taehyung's languid, measured movements, and by the time he is twisting and scissoring with three fingers, Jimin is choking out wet sobs, begging for his cock.

Taehyung grabs the bottle of lube that he placed beside Jimin's hip and pops the cap open with his thumb. He anchors himself onto his elbows, burying his face in Jimin's ass as he squirts more than enough liquid onto his hand, then snaps it shut and flings the bottle just hard enough for it to land close enough to reach again. He shimmies onto his knees and reaches between his legs to slick up his hard, neglected cock as he slowly tongue fucks Jimin. 

A moan rocks through Taehyung's chest, stifled by Jimin's ass as his hand grips onto his cockhead and slides down over his shaft, sticky-slick, sending waves of pleasure through him. He comes up for air, gets onto his knees, and rubs the leftover lube over Jimin's ass unceremoniously with his fingers and palm. Jimin grinds back against his hand, and Taehyung cannot resist dipping his fingers into Jimin's stretched hole once more before rolling away from Jimin, onto his side. 

"Come here, baby," Taehyung says as his sticky fingers tug at Jimin's hip, and Jimin twists his face away before rolling onto his side and scooting himself to fit against Taehyung as if he was meant to be there. Taehyung wraps his lower arm beneath Jimin's neck, and he spreads his palm over Jimin's chest, smiling softly as Jimin wraps both of his hands around his hand and wrist.

Taehyung nuzzles his lips against Jimin's nape as he spreads his cheeks around his cock and slowly slides his blunt tip over the expanse of his cleft, from the top of his cheeks down to his balls, and back to his hole. 

"Tell me if you need me to go slower, okay?" 

Jimin nods and mutters a broken mmhmm, and Taehyung presses his cock against Jimin's rim and slowly pushes himself inside, squeezing his eyes shut while breathing through how tightly Jimin grips him. Jimin moans and gasps and swallows his tip eagerly while Taehyung rocks his hips in gentle motions, slowly carving a place inside Jimin that is meant just for him. 

"Fuck, you're tight," Taehyung mutters as his lips drag across Jimin's skin.

"S-so big," Jimin sobs, bowing his back as Taehyung holds Jimin's cheek spread and works him open. "Please don't stop."

With one slow, deep push, Taehyung nearly gets his entire length inside and stops, giving him a chance to adjust. The sounds that pass through Jimin's lips are nothing short of heavenly, and Taehyung pulls him closer, trailing kisses up to his shoulder and back to his neck. Jimin doesn't protest, only holds his arm tight and litters kisses on his wrist. 

"Ready, baby?" Taehyung asks as he nuzzles his nose in the hairs at Jimin's nape.

"Yes, please," Jimin responds, breathy and sweet. 

Taehyung pulls out, feeling the head of his cock drag deliciously against Jimin's tight, eager walls. Then, he presses back inside, as deep as he can before he worries he is too deep for it to be pleasurable. Jimin's back arches, and his ass swallows Taehyung deeper still, and Taehyung moans and squeezes his eyes closed—the pleasure he feels is nothing short of overwhelming, and he worries he could be swept under far too soon. 

"So good," Jimin whimpers, scratching blunt nails down Taehyung's wrist. 

The morning light floods the room, sharp and bright, kissing Jimin's skin so perfectly, and Taehyung does his best to keep his eyes focused and open—desperate to see every tiny mole and goosebump on Jimin's skin; eager to commit each detail to memory. 

Taehyung rocks his hips slowly, back and forth, moaning in tandem with Jimin, whose leg bends and straightens as if restless. Taehyung smoothes his hand over Jimin's thigh in hopes of calming him, then picks up his pace just enough to pull sweet, pitchy sobs from Jimin's throat. 

"You're so perfect, baby," Taehyung groans into Jimin's neck. "So good for me."

Jimin rocks his hips to match Taehyung's movements, grinding his ass against him with each thrust, and Taehyung's eyes roll back as he rasps deep, satisfied moans. He will absolutely cum if Jimin keeps it up, but he doesn't want it to stop. 

"Want to kiss you," Jimin whines, attempting to turn his head.

All Taehyung can manage is dragging his lips and teeth over Jimin's jaw, and with a huff, Jimin shifts forward, pulling Taehyung's cock out of him and sending it against his tummy with a weak slap. Taehyung whines as Jimin rolls onto his back, spreads his legs wide, and tugs at Taehyung's shoulders to join him.

Grumbles all are Taehyung can manage as he moves—pleasure-dizzy and disoriented—dropping his limbs over Jimin, getting between his legs, and slipping his cock back in. Taehyung's back arches as Jimin wraps an ankle around his thigh and pulls him deeper, drowning Taehyung in how good he feels. He lets his head fall forward, and Jimin grabs his face and pulls him into a kiss, causing Taehyung's body to melt like warm wax as he settles over Jimin and picks up a steady pace with his hips. 

"I should have known you would be this good," Jimin groans into Taehyung's mouth. 

"Imagine me fucking you often?" Taehyung teases in a bit of a daze, allowing Jimin to use his mouth as he pleases while keeping his eyes open.

Jimin cocks an eyebrow and nips at his bottom lip, and Taehyung hisses as he mutters, "Maybe I have."

"That so?" Taehyung drives his cock particularly deep, and Jimin's back arches as he moans, "Ahhh, yes!"

Taehyung rocks his hips slow and deep, losing himself to pleasure as Jimin moans into his mouth, scraping blunt fingernails over his shoulders and back. He wants to cum—wants to hold Jimin close and fill him up and do it all over again in every position conceivable.

"Don't think I'll last much longer, baby," Taehyung groans with his lip pulled between Jimin's teeth. 

"Cum inside me, Tae," Jimin whines, and Taehyung nearly does so just from those words alone. "I'm close, too."

Taehyung wants to see Jimin's entire body react—wants to watch his face warp and twist from pleasure—and he manages to sit up on his knees, wiggling out of Jimin's grip. Jimin giggles as his arms fall up above his head, and he relaxes into the new position. 

"Touch me," Jimin whimpers through kiss-swollen lips, making Taehyung swoon.

Teasingly, Taehyung runs his fingertips over Jimin's pretty cock, from the soft skin below his head, down to his base and back up, thinking about how good it would feel lodged in his throat or deep in his ass. Jimin whimpers and whines, jutting his lip out and clearly unsatisfied, and Taehyung chuckles as he wraps his palm around Jimin's cock—revels in how Jimin's entire body responds to him. 

"That's it, baby," Taehyung groans as he dry-strokes Jimin to the rhythm of his thrusts. "Cum for me."

Jimin's back lifts from the bed at his command, squeezing Taehyung as his hips jolt, mouth trembling with pleasure, and he sprays his release all over himself. Jimin looks incredible—flayed on the bed with his neck elongated, while his sweat-sheened skin glistens in the morning light. His muscles contract in the time with his moans, and Taehyung loses it—sees stars and stutters his hips—as Jimin cums, needing only a few more deep pumps to unravel completely, himself. 

Pleasure quakes through Taehyung, and he buries himself deep, deep, deep as he spills his release inside a still quivering Jimin. Moans and whimpers fill the room, and Taehyung gently rocks his hips, tipping him close to the point of overstimulation before he releases Jimin's cock and pulls out. 

Taehyung collapses onto Jimin, squelching cum between their bodies and connecting their lips as Jimin tries to complain about the mess but is interrupted by tongue and teeth. 

"Let's shower." Taehyung groans into Jimin's mouth.

"Shower and then breakfast," Jimin grumbles, nipping at Taehyung's lips as his shaky hands rub the length of Taehyung's arms. 

"Deal. Anything you want, baby."

"Just want you."

Taehyung's kisses leave Jimin's lips and trail down his chin and jaw as he mutters, "You have me."

"Fancy seeing you here," a deep, familiar voice rasps, and Jimin turns to find Yoongi and Jeongguk standing behind him at the café just down the street from his place. 

Jimin hugs Yoongi, then Jeongguk, and then he notices Jeongguk—like Taehyung—is wearing the same clothes as the evening before. Taehyung returns from the restroom and hugs them, then points out that he and Jeongguk clearly haven't been home yet, making everyone chuckle and blush.

The four of them order drinks and pastries and find a table for four in the corner, and Jimin smiles as conversation flows easily between them. Just yesterday, two of these men were strangers, and the other was just a friend—a crush which he thought, for the life of him, was unrequited—and here they are, catching up as if it hadn't only been twelve or so hours since they last met.

"I guess we're having that promised second date faster than anticipated," Yoongi says with a grin, and Jimin feels his heart melt just a little. 

"I suppose so," Jimin responds, blush rushing to his cheeks as Taehyung grabs his hand under the table. 

What had begun as a wine-drunk cry for someone to dick him down has twisted and melded into something fun and hopefully long-lasting, and Jimin can't help but smile as he chats with the others. He learns more things about Yoongi and Jeongguk, who gaze at each other with stars in their eyes, and feels proud to have contributed to the two of them finding each other, even if the circumstances were as unorthodox as they were. 

"It's pretty obvious that the four of us are meant to be together," Jeongguk announces as if it's fact, following a comment from Yoongi about how strange but delightful it all turned out, and everyone chuckles.

"No complaints from me," Taehyung responds, squeezing Jimin's hand, and Jimin turns to match his smile and gaze into his deep, pretty eyes as he nods, agreeing wholeheartedly. 

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Fluffy black hair framing a perfectly sculpted face. Eyes that were always sparkling with mischief and warmth. An impish smile that could light up a whole city.

Falling for Taehyung wasn’t a decision Jimin had made; it had just happened, and the more he looked back on it, the more it seemed inevitable, the only outcome of their friendship.

The two had met back in primary school, and Jimin had known from the moment he caught sight of the smiling, playful little boy on the first day of classes that they would be best friends. He was unlike anyone Jimin had ever seen before – his laugh brighter than the light pouring through the windows, his every movement elegant and intentional despite the inherent clumsiness of being six years old, attracting all the other kids around him. The buzz of conversation and giggles filled his ears in a steady stream from the other side of the room. 

His heart had run a marathon when they were assigned seats next to each other, an uncontrollable smile taking over his face when Taehyung immediately turned towards him to introduce himself. Even though the boy had just been talking with everyone else, something in the way Taehyung looked at him made him feel special. Every word that left Taehyung’s mouth drew him closer, filled him with a bubbly sort of hope that his wish to be friends would come true.

And within mere days, it did. Every morning Taehyung would turn towards him again with that same look, and they would talk until the teacher quieted them down – only to resume their conversation the moment they were able to. 

They always stuck by each other after that, practically attached at the hip. Even as their friend group expanded, even as new acquaintances were made, they were always most comfortable with the two of them. 

It was the first time in his life that he had felt anything so strongly, had been so confident as he was in their friendship. Maybe it didn’t say all that much, considering he was in primary school, but what did say something was the fact that those feelings never went away.

They hadn’t been romantic, not at first. For a long time, most of their friendship, Jimin was perfectly happy to occupy the role of Taehyung’s best friend. He felt lucky to have someone so kind and unique choose him as his closest companion, but it was a friendly admiration and nothing more. It was hard to tell when exactly things had changed. 

Somewhere along the way, his giggles at Taehyung’s jokes and antics had transformed into a warmth in his chest that seemed to grow with every minute. Hugging and touching was normal and frequent between them, since it was just the way the two of them showed affection. But recently, every small touch sent a spark through Jimin’s body and a flush to his cheeks. It was only getting more obvious and more embarrassing, so of course, Taehyung teased him playfully about it. 

They would laugh, and he would shake things off, and hope these unfamiliar emotions would go away soon.

It took him months to recognize what was going on, and months more to finally accept it.

He was desperately, hopelessly in love with his best friend. 

His denial had finally broken under the weight of his feelings a bit less than a year ago. Taehyung had dragged him to a get-together, insisting that it was good for him to get out a bit more (and to Jimin’s frustration, he couldn’t argue with that because Taehyung was right). Things were alright, though – the people were kind, and it was nice to get out of his shell.

What wasn’t nice was the girl flirting with Taehyung right in front of him, clearly trying to get Taehyung’s number, practically pressed against him the entire time. Uneasiness consumed Jimin, instant and overwhelming, and the entire scene was almost…disturbing.

Taehyung had rejected her gently, and after that no one else attempted to charm him, but it still bothered Jimin. The idea of anyone acting like that around Taehyung, or feeling that way about him – or even worse, Taehyung reciprocating – made him sick to his stomach. Angry, almost, but why would he be angry? Shouldn’t he be happy for his best friend if he got in a relationship?

Later that night, alone in his room and unable to take his thoughts off the entire situation, he admitted to himself the truth: he wanted Taehyung to love him. He wanted him for himself. 

Taehyung was the most transparent person Jimin knew. All his feelings were easy to read from his body language and expressions, and he never made any attempt to hide it. It was the way he was, never one to hold back if he was passionate about something.

Never, in all the years they had known each other, had Taehyung looked at him with any affection that wasn’t platonic. Everything Jimin thought about him, the spark that had overtaken his heart, the way Taehyung consumed his mind whenever they were together – every bit of it was one-sided. 

So instead of doing something with it, he smothered it as well as he could and did his best to ignore it when it bubbled up to the surface.

And now, here he was, at Jungkook’s apartment for a small Christmas party with a few other friends, Taehyung standing beside him.

Taehyung was clad in a loose-fitting Christmas sweater that was a strong contender for the most egregiously designed thing Jimin had ever seen, but somehow it looked fine on Taehyung, because everything looked good on Taehyung. It was a fact of life at this point.

Maybe it was the way he wore it with such confidence. Taehyung was well aware that he was handsome and had an impeccable sense of fashion, and he was always more than happy to show it off.

It was torture. 

Jimin loved it, loved him and the fact that he was comfortable with himself as he was, refused to compromise any part of him for anything, but the knowledge that Taehyung didn’t feel the same when he looked back at him hurt.

So out of his mind just from a simple sweater – he really was hopeless, wasn’t he?

“Jimin-hyung! Can you help me put all the food down at the table?” Jungkook called from the kitchen. Jimin tore his gaze away from Taehyung, realizing that he had been staring for quite a while. 

Taehyung had noticed. Of course he had. But Jimin didn’t even consider turning his head back to see his reaction. Primarily because of the wildfire of pink blush spreading over his face in embarrassment, but also out of fear. Fear that he’d look into Taehyung’s eyes and see disgust.

His feelings not being reciprocated was one thing. He could handle it. The thought of Taehyung hating him, though, was a nightmare. A nightmare he knew probably wasn’t true – Taehyung wasn’t the type to hate anyone, really – but one he was constantly on the run from.

To his surprise, Jungkook made no comment on how flustered he was when he walked through the kitchen doorway, too focused on balancing approximately too many plates of food on his arms. Sighing, Jimin rushed forwards and grabbed one with each hand, careful to not shove Jungkook off balance.

Jungkook’s determined gaze relaxed as he looked up, a sheepish bunny smile on his lips. “Thanks, hyung.” 

“It’s not illegal to take multiple trips from the counter, you know,” Jimin teased, setting the food down on the table as cautiously as he had picked it up. 

“But it’s quicker not to!”

“Does that really matter if you end up dropping some of them?”

“But I didn’t,”

“You would have if I didn’t stop you!”

Jungkook pouted at him, but his lips twitched as he failed to fight a smile, a laugh tumbling out of his mouth and his eyes full of mirth. “Alright, next time I’ll be more careful. Maybe. Can you get Taehyung-hyung for me? I tried a recipe he sent me and I want to be sure I did it right before Jin-hyung gets here.”

Nodding, Jimin walked back out of the kitchen, poking his head around the corner. Taehyung, who had been scrolling through his phone absentmindedly, looked up before he even said anything. 

“Jungkook wants you to try something real quick,”

“The squid kimbap?”

Jimin wasn’t sure, but he nodded anyway. If Taehyung had so readily expected it, it was probably what Jungkook was referring to. “Yeah, the squid kimbap.”

“I knew he was going to ask about that at some point,” Taehyung cracked a smile, pushing himself off the couch to head towards the kitchen.

As he got to the corner, his eyes flicked above Jimin’s head, a mischievous sparkle lighting up his eyes. He rested one hand on the wall and leaned forwards, graceful and without hesitation. Entranced by the motion, it took Jimin a moment to realize that Taehyung was leaning in further.

Soft lips brushed against his, warm breath puffing against his face. Taehyung let his lips linger for a moment, pressing them into Jimin’s plump ones gently, and Jimin could feel his lips grow thinner with a smile. 

The cold emptiness when Taehyung pulled away lasted only a second before a flush replaced it, though the phantom feeling of his touch lingered on Jimin’s lips. Taehyung’s giggle filled his ears, and his heart began working overtime as his mind raced along with it. He almost felt lightheaded with all the thoughts rushing through his head. 

Taehyung had just kissed him. Taehyung.

His brain took a solid second to finally catch up to that fact, joy flooding his senses immediately, and for a moment, he allowed himself to hope. Hope that this was real, that he wasn’t imagining it, and that it meant something. That his love wasn’t unrequited. 

But the next second, he realized that he should have never done that at all.

For the first time in his entire life, Taehyung’s rectangular smile didn’t warm his heart. Not because it was any different than usual, but because it was accompanied with Taehyung’s finger pointing above his head. 

And above his head was a floppy piece of mistletoe dangling from the ceiling, haphazardly taped to a string. It looked as sad as Jimin felt. 

That kiss had meant absolutely nothing to Taehyung.

Well, not quite nothing, but nowhere near as much as it had meant to Jimin.

It wasn’t like they hadn’t kissed before. There had been a few light pecks on the cheek here and there over the years. But this time was…different.

Partly because it was on his lips. Mostly, though, because of that hope that Jimin let himself indulge in, even though he knew he shouldn’t have. Taehyung didn’t feel that way about him – so why, why, could he never stop wishing that Taehyung did?

“Jiminie, you okay there?”

Jimin’s gaze went from the mistletoe above to Taehyung’s face, his attention towards the mild confusion in his smooth voice. There was still that happy lilt in his voice like there had been all night, because why wouldn’t there be?

Nothing had changed except for Jimin, and how could Taehyung know that?

“Yeah- yep, I’m good,” Jimin forced a smile back onto his face, a nervous laugh tumbling out. “Brain just went a bit wonky for a moment, you know?”

Taehyung was observant, always aware of tiny changes in people’s emotions – if something was off with Jimin, he could always tell. But tonight, caught up in all the emotions of Christmas and their preparations for it, apparently that wasn’t the case.

Jimin was grateful for that fact and cursed it at the same time. 

“I get that. Now let’s finish helping Jungkook get things ready before everyone else comes, eh?” 

Grabbing Jimin’s hand gently, Taehyung pulled him back into the kitchen. Neither seemed to notice the blush on his cheeks or the expression on his face, and he tried to lose himself in their sense of fun. As their friends arrived one by one, things got steadily more chaotic and enjoyable, because with them, those things were directly connected. 

But even as jokes were told, delicious food stuffed into eager mouths, gifts exchanged in a room covered with festive decorations, he couldn’t seem to shake the haze that had settled over him. It left him on edge, overanalyzing every little thing Taehyung did in the hope that maybe Jimin was mistaken. 

He wasn’t, and he knew that. 

But somehow accepting it still felt like a loss, even if he had never had Taehyung’s love in the first place. And if he lost Taehyung, he wouldn’t know what to do with himself. 

•

The next few days, Jimin’s brain went mush whenever he so much as looked at Taehyung. If his feelings had been difficult to ignore before, now they were downright impossible to deal with. The sight of his roommate made all his emotions flare up, usually in the form of rosy cheeks and ears, to his embarrassment and Taehyung’s confusion.

“Are you sure you’re okay, Jiminie? You’ve been acting weird these past few days. You can tell me if anything’s wrong, you know. Maybe you’re sick? I can take you to the doctor’s?” Taehyung muttered, eyebrows scrunched up in concern as he placed his hand gently on Jimin’s forehead to feel for a fever. Jimin mustered up a smile and tried to will away the blush on his face, reaching up and grasping Taehyung’s wrist. 

It was stupid, so stupid, how the contact made him giddy. 

“I’m alright, Tae, don’t worry. I’m just a little tired from the holidays, that’s all,” Jimin guided Taehyung’s hand away from his head, giving it a reassuring squeeze. 

“Messed up your sleep schedule?” Taehyung’s face relaxed, but his eyes remained focused on Jimin, who nodded to soothe his worries. Taehyung squeezed Jimin’s hand back before stepping back and hoisting his backpack over his shoulders. “Try to get some rest while I’m gone, then. A nap might help. And I’ll show you some of the pictures I take to cheer you up too!”

“I’ll try. Now go take some nice photos for me! And for your grade, of course,” Jimin chuckled.

“I think you’re the more important part,” Taehyung remarked, flashing a toothy smile at Jimin as he turned around towards the door. “See you in a bit!”

The door opened and closed, leaving Jimin there, mind spinning, as Taehyung went off on his photography class project.

What did Taehyung mean by that?

Maybe…maybe he felt the sa-

Jimin shook his head, pursing his lips and walking away from the door. No. He couldn’t get his hopes up again.

But what if?

With a sigh, Jimin pulled out his phone, navigating to his texts with Jungkook. He couldn’t be alone like this right now. Not with all this confusion, all his feelings finally boiling over. His brain fumbling over its own thoughts, he typed in a message and sent it before he had the time to second-guess himself. 

hey kook! Taehyung’s not here right now, but i was wondering if you’d like to come over and hang out for a bit? 

He felt a bit guilty, omitting the reason why he wanted to talk with Jungkook, but he couldn’t bring himself to admit that over text. Hell, he wasn’t sure if he’d even be able to confess about his feelings for Taehyung in person.

Jungkook’s response came quickly, the typing bubble appearing only a few seconds afterwards.

ofc i’d love to hyung! i’ll be there in a bit :D

Responding with a smiley emoticon and a see you soon, Jimin waltzed over to the couch, putting his phone down and burying his head in his hands, half-panicking, half-trying-to-calm-himself-down. He wasn’t sure how long he stayed like that, focusing on his breathing – it was long enough, though, that he was startled out of that state by a series of raps on the door. 

He tried to plaster a happy expression on his face as he practically stumbled over to open the door. He was met with the sight of Jungkook’s excited smile, his friend bouncing a bit on his feet out of habit, but as his eyes flickered to Jimin’s face, his grin fell.

“Hyung?”

For a moment, Jimin considered keeping up his cheerful act. But his mood was already obvious, and once Jungkook got an idea in his head, he would never abandon it. And if that idea was that one of his friends was suffering in any way, then Jungkook would always do whatever he could to remedy it.

So Jimin decided that just this once, he’d let Jungkook do that. 

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have…you can leave if you want,” Jimin forced himself to look Jungkook in the eyes, to not avoid him. 

Frowning, looking more uneasy than frustrated, Jungkook simply shook his head. “It’s okay, hyung. Can I come in?”

Jimin nodded, finally letting his gaze drop down a bit as he stepped to the side to let Jungkook through. Jungkook hesitated for a moment before stepping through, and stopped again once he was actually inside.

“Do you want to talk here, or…?”

“I think I’d rather do it in my room. More comfortable there, you know?”

Jungkook nodded, leading the way to Jimin’s bedroom, already intimately familiar with the layout of the apartment from his many visits. It was somewhat awkward, but it comforted Jimin to follow him there, in a strange way.

Jungkook plopped down onto his bed and patted the spot next to him. As Jimin sat down, Jungkook turned towards him and sighed. 

“What’s bothering you, hyung? I promise I’m not upset or anything. I’m always here for you, you know that,”

A small smile spread across Jimin’s face. Jungkook really was a great friend to him, had been ever since the two first met several years prior. It quickly dropped, though, when he remembered what he wanted to talk to Jungkook about in the first place.

“Thank you, Kook. It’s just…” the words dried up in Jimin’s throat as he tried to get them out. He had never been brave enough to say what he felt about Taehyung out loud – hell, it had taken a while for him to even admit it to himself. 

His breathing froze as he tried to gulp down the confession on the edge of spilling and spit it out all at the same time. Jungkook’s gentle hand came to rest on his back, giving it a small rub in a comforting gesture.

“It’s alright, hyung. You don’t have to say anything now if you don’t want to,” Jungkook assured him, his smooth voice soothing Jimin’s thoughts out of their paralyzed hesitation.

Jimin took a deep breath, and like a switch had been flipped, he finally allowed his greatest truth to pour out of him, each word falling heavy from his lips like honey.

“I’m in love with Taehyung,”

Immediately Jungkook’s doe eyes widened, and his mouth dropped open slightly. Jimin wasn’t sure if it was out of shock or if Jungkook wanted to say something, but the words continued to spew from his mouth in a way he wasn’t able to contain.

“I have been for- years now, too long to even count. I’m not sure when, I’m not sure why. I just know that he makes me happy. I just know that I want to be around him all the time, that I love his smile and his voice and his laugh and just him,” Jimin rambled on frantically, “And then on Christmas Eve at your house, Taehyung kissed me under the mistletoe as a joke. I knew it was a joke, but it still hurt to know that that’s all it would ever be to him. He’s never thought of me as a potential romantic partner, he probably never will, and yet I’m still just as in love with him as I always have been. It hurts so bad to know that. That’s why I wanted you to come over, because I can’t just hold it in anymore.”

Jimin didn’t realize tears were streaking down his face until one ran over his lip, the salty taste a bit startling. The urge to curl himself into a ball, to hide himself and the part of his soul he had just bared, was overwhelming.

Yet he resisted, looking Jungkook in the eyes even as his vision blurred slightly.

“I don’t know what to do, Jungkook,” he sniffled out, hands clenching at his jeans. “I can’t tell him. I don’t know what I’d do if I lost him. But I don’t know if I can go on like this, either.”

Creak.

The sound of the screechy door hinges was unmistakable, and Jimin snapped his head towards his bedroom door, seeing Jungkook do the same out of the corner of his eye. Sure enough, the door to his bedroom was open, just slightly, before it closed again. Like someone had opened it by accident and quickly tried to rectify their mistake.

No. No, no, no, no, no.

“...Taehyung?” Jimin whispered out.

Fuck. This couldn’t be happening.

“Tae?” Jimin couldn’t stop himself from speaking up again, louder this time, his voice breaking.

A moment of all-consuming silence passed. Jimin wished the earth would just open up and swallow him.

The squeak of the door sounded as it opened again, slowly, wider this time.

Taehyung stood there, quiet and unmoving. He looked pale, awkward, and utterly shocked and confused.

Jimin felt more tears well up in his eyes just by looking at him, just by seeing Taehyung look at him like that. Like he was embarrassed. Like he was the one who should be ashamed, when it was Jimin who had committed the crime of falling head-over-heels for someone who would never like him back.

Jungkook sat there silently, unsure of what to do. Jimin didn’t blame him. He wished he could sit out of this moment.

“Jimin, is it…true?” Taehyung breathed. Jimin wasn’t sure how he did it. The air between them was heavy and suffocating, and he was sure he was drowning.

“How much did you hear?” Jimin wanted to know if there was any possibility he could repair this situation, pretend he had been talking about someone, anyone but Taehyung.

“Almost all of it. I realized I forgot my film so I came back, and I heard you two talking,” Taehyung stared at Jimin, the expression on his face somewhere between grim and something else that was utterly unreadable. “Did you mean that, what you said about me?”

Ah. So that left Jimin with a grand total of zero wiggle room to work with here.

Great. Amazing. Jimin wanted to ooze into a puddle on the ground.

All he could do was tell the truth. Or lie, but that would undoubtedly only make things worse.

He remained paralyzed for a few seconds more, hesitated just to delay the inevitable, and nodded.

Taehyung’s facial expression barely changed at the confirmation. He didn’t look glad, angry, anything – hell, he barely even looked surprised. For once, Jimin truly couldn’t tell what his best friend was thinking.

He didn’t know why, but the apathy hurt so much more than any reaction Taehyung could have given him.

Jimin dropped his gaze down to the bed – in shame or in avoidance, he wasn’t entirely sure. Probably a mixture of both.

“Oh,” Taehyung’s voice reached his ears, low and quiet.

A few seconds and zero more words later, the door creaked open and shut yet again, and Jimin and Jungkook were left in the devastating silence.

The next sound to ring through the air was a sob falling from Jimin’s lips, tears blurring his vision of his hands lying limply on the sheets below him. His emotions were out of his control in an instant, drops falling nonstop from his eyes and snot clogging his nose.

Jimin cried loud, and Jimin cried hard. Taehyung could almost certainly hear him from the other room.

Any other day Taehyung would have come back to comfort him, to reassure him and console him. 

Today he did not.

Instead it was Jungkook who leaned over and pulled Jimin into a tentative hug, arms wrapping him in a soft embrace. Jimin leaned into it, allowing himself to hiccup against his friend’s shoulder, breathing in his shirt. Gently, Jungkook rubbed his back in a soothing motion. Slowly, Jimin began to calm down.

“Koo?” he managed to choke out after a few minutes. “Thank you. And I’m sorry.’

“It’s okay. It’s all a mess now, but we’ll find some way to fix this. I promise, Minnie,” Jungkook whispered, his voice as deep and soothing as ever. He clearly believed what he was saying, always the optimist of their friend group.

Jimin held him tighter and hoped he was right. 

•

Jimin didn’t see Taehyung for the rest of the day, choosing to remain in his room after Jungkook left. The only time he left was for a few minutes to make himself some instant ramen so he could eat a quick dinner and get back into his room as soon as possible.

He was half-hoping Taehyung would come into their kitchen or knock at his bedroom door at some point, but Taehyung never did, and Jimin’s confidence level was in the negative right now, so there was no way he would be able to go into Taehyung’s room instead to talk.

It was only the next morning that he caught a glimpse of Taehyung, sitting at their table stuffing his mouth with tteokbokki, chopsticks clinking against the side of the bowl. He was so intently focused on eating that he didn’t seem to notice Jimin walking into a room, and Jimin couldn’t help but smile a bit.

“Morning, Tae,”

Taehyung paused and looked up, chopsticks halfway between the bowl and his mouth. Instantly his face scrunched into his rectangular grin, and he tried to say something that was obscured by the food he was trying to eat.

He swallowed quickly before starting to talk again. “Hey, Jiminie!”

Taehyung patted the chair next to him to signal Jimin over. He seemed comfortable, carefree, like the events of yesterday were no problem. 

Despite Taehyung’s joviality, Jimin was nervous as he took a seat, though he tried his best to not let his nerves show. The truth of his feelings, the fact that Taehyung knew — it all weighed heavily on him.

He held his breath, waited for what Taehyung had to say, hoped he hadn’t messed things up too badly. Taehyung didn’t seem upset, so it couldn’t be too bad, right?

Seconds passed in silence, Taehyung saying nothing and seemingly having no intention of changing that. Jimin’s eyes focused on him, and Taehyung turned to meet his gaze with an impish smile.

“Yah, Jiminie, what are you doing? Are you just going to sit there and stare at me instead of having some breakfast?”

His tone was perfectly happy, yet his eyes…weren’t. There was some sort of nervousness there.

Jimin did his best to return Taehyung’s smile, getting up silently to make himself some eggs. Why were things so…awkward all of a sudden?

So this was how their friendship would end. Not with a sudden bang after Jimin’s indirect confession, but instead with a slow breakdown of their trust and comfort in each other.

The small brown-haired boy giggled at Jimin from across the desk, pulling his hand closer and grasping it in his own, before dramatically intertwining their pinkies and shaking their hands eagerly.

“That’s a pinky-promise, Jiminie. You can’t break those, my mom told me that. Pinky promise we’ll be best friends forever?”

It had only been a year since they had met for the very first time, yet Jimin knew they would be. He gave Taehyung a grin, a few teeth missing from his mouth, and held his friend’s hand tighter. “Pinky promise.”

Jimin shook his head, willed away the memories, and stood over the pan wishing Taehyung would just yell at him, outright state he didn’t feel the same way, even cut him off completely – anything but this excruciating decay.

But when he came back to the table, Taehyung’s stiffer body language and insincere eyes were still there. Fighting back tears, stuffing food in his mouth before any words to escape, Jimin resigned himself to the fact that he had fucked up in a way he couldn’t figure out how to fix.

•

“I’m sorry,”

Jimin looked up at Taehyung from across the table as his voice pierced through the silence, low and airy. The two of them had been sitting at their kitchen table studying together, reviewing different subjects and hardly saying a word but still wanting to be in each other’s presence.

“Hm?” Jimin hummed, a bit confused.

“For what happened a few weeks back,” Taehyung continued, and Jimin’s body stiffened.

Taehyung’s stare was intense, his lips pursed in a frown and his eyes drowning in guilt. Jimin couldn’t remember the last time he had seen Taehyung, a natural-born troublemaker, a man who always sought to make people smile, so serious. Years, definitely – probably not since secondary school.

Jimin swallowed and fought the urge to look back down, biting his lip gently. “It’s…it’s okay, Taehyung,”

His friend shook his head, only seeming more upset at Jimin’s attempt to sooth him. “It’s not. I was so caught up in my own emotions that I hurt you. That’s not okay,” Taehyung murmured, eyebrows furrowing as tears built up in his eyes. “It’s just - I’m sorry, Jiminie, I should’ve told you before-”

Jimin pushed himself out of his chair then, getting up and walking to the other side of the table to give Taehyung a hug from behind, abandoning his sprawled papers. It was relieving to get an apology, to know that things wouldn’t be just pushed under the rug forever, but Taehyung getting so upset over all this wasn’t a price he was willing to pay for it.

It was Jimin’s fault, after all, wasn’t it?

Warm hands reached up to pull Jimin’s arm closer, and Jimin leaned further into the embrace with a small smile. 

“I forgive you, Tae. We can just go back to normal, if you want. If you can,” Jimin whispered into his ear, the words hurting his heart as they left his mouth. 

Taehyung’s breath seemed to catch in his throat and his hands gripped Jimin’s arms tighter, shaking his head again, more vigorously this time. “No, that’s- that’s not what I want, Jiminie,” he blurted, turning his head to meet Jimin’s eyes, and for a moment Jimin panicked. 

Taehyung…didn’t want to be his friend anymore?

Immediately Taehyung seemed to notice the fear in his eyes, frantically rushing to undo the damage his words had done. “I’m sorry! I meant…” Taehyung took a deep breath, eyes flicking to the side before meeting Jimin’s again with determination. “Can I kiss you again?”

Those were the last words Jimin ever expected to come out of Taehyung’s mouth.

The logical part of him insisted that this must be another joke, something ingenuine. That was all it had been before, and all it ever would be. But his heart screamed at him to say yes, to give into all the years of pining. 

In a heartbeat, he had already chosen who to listen to.

Taehyung stepped up from his own chair to look Jimin in the eyes, to bring their faces close enough that he could feel Taehyung’s warm breath puff against his lips, and he nodded silently, looking up at his best friend with the adoration that had been in his heart before he had even been able to understand it.

He was half-prepared for it to all be a gag again, but instead Taehyung’s eyes stared back at him with relief and delight. Oh so carefully, he grasped Jimin’s face and leaned forward to slot their lips together.

As Taehyung’s soft lips moved against his, Jimin finally let himself relax, leaning into the kiss and letting out a low noise of bliss. Taehyung seemed pleased at that, his lips thinning in a smile.

Jimin could tell from the care Taehyung was treating him with, from his every gentle movement, that this kiss was genuine. There were feelings behind it.

When Taehyung finally pulled away, he leaned forward again to rest his forehead against Jimin’s. A giddy smile was on his face, but in a mere moment it was overtaken by a frown.

“I’m sorry, Jimin. I’ve been such an idiot. I think I like- no, love, you too. And I didn’t realize until I had to stop and think about it, and I hurt you because of that,” Taehyung whispered, voice dripping with shame.

The only thing in Jimin’s heart that beat stronger than the glee filling him was the need to see Taehyung happy, the need to wipe the distress off his handsome face and replace it with one of his beautiful smiles instead.

He practically leaped forward, wrapping Taehyung in a tight embrace, something he felt like he should have done ages ago. Taehyung let out a slight umpf at the impact, but the moment he recovered from his shock he reciprocated, somehow pulling Jimin even closer. Jimin smiled into his shoulder.

“I forgive you, Tae. It took me years to come to term with my feelings, too. And no one’s perfect,” he murmured into his friend’s ear before loosening his arms and pulling away from the hug to smile at him. It still hurt, the memory of Taehyung’s initial reaction – but it was something they would move past together. There was no use in holding a grudge against the person who made him happiest. “Especially not you.”

Taehyung snorted, shaking his head, and Jimin noticed that the sparkle in his eyes was back. Really back, for the first time in weeks. His eyes became softer after a second, a bit of anxiety slipping back in, but more than that there was fondness.

Jimin could get used to Taehyung looking at him like that.

“Really? You’re not…kidding, or anything? About forgiving me?”

“Of course not. You’ve always been my best friend, and you always will be. And you’re not kidding about loving me, right?”

Taehyung let out another laugh, like the idea was laughable. And it was, to him. “Never. I promise, Jiminie.”

Jimin stuck out his pinky finger, and Taehyung moved his own hand to meet it, wrapping their fingers together in a familiar motion.

“No hard feelings,” Jimin whispered, looking up at him, heart full of hope.

“And no more lies,” Taehyung said back, fully at ease.

•

The warm spring air blew a stream of stray cherry blossoms past Jimin’s face as he stood under the tree, a couple getting trapped in his hair. The scene around him was almost picturesque, lush grass under his feet and blooming flowers of all colors surrounding the area. 

Most beautiful of all was his boyfriend, Taehyung, who was squatting down with his hand out in an attempt to feed his cashews to the squirrels. He pouted as a few scurried away from him, but a few particularly brave ones ran towards him. Their little feet grasped around the nuts as they made a happy squeak before leaving. 

Instantly Taehyung’s face lit up again, a soft giggle tumbling out of his mouth as he smiled. 

They had been dating for half a year now, and yet he was still just as adorable as the day Jimin met him.

“The sign over there says you’re not supposed to feed them, you know,” Jimin said. Taehyung turned toward him and shrugged, smile still on his face.

“They’re still cute, so I’m still going to feed them,” he responded, and Jimin laughed, leaning down to take a nut from Taehyung’s hand and place it in front of the nearest squirrel. He let his hand linger on Taehyung’s for a moment just because he could, because even after all this time it still gave him a thrill.

Dating Taehyung wasn’t really all that different from being his best friend. Now they kissed, held hands, told each other they loved them whenever they wanted (which was often), but they had always told each other they were soulmates growing up.

And they were right. Jimin truly felt like Taehyung was his other half, like the two of them together were something special.

If there existed a thousand other universes, he knew that in each and every one he would choose Taehyung.

Soon enough Taehyung was down to his last cashew, which he popped into his mouth as he stood up. He dusted off his hands before placing them on Jimin’s cheeks to guide him into a kiss.

“I think these past six months with you have been the best ones of my life,” he whispered in Jimin’s ear as he pulled away, and dear God, he was so giddy, so happy with Taehyung.

“Pinky promise?” Jimin asked, wrapping his pinky finger around Taehyung’s before waiting for an answer.

Taehyung shook his head amusedly, but he still squeezed Jimin’s pinker gently to humor him. “Aish, you and your pinky promises.”

“You were the one who started it!”

“When we were five years old,”

Jimin broke into a fit of giggles, reaching up to place a peck on Taehyung’s cheek. “Well, it’s good you’re happy with our relationship, because you’re not getting rid of me now.”

Who would have known the day would have ended like this? You are currently sandwiched in between your two friends on a single queen-sized hotel bed. Well, it was more like Taehyung was wrapped around you like a burrito, his habit of needing to hold someone kicked in soon after you got settled in bed.

Being hugged to death in your attractive friend’s sleep was only one of your problems. The other was Park Jimin. Really, he was doing nothing wrong, but he rolled over in his sleep and is now facing you and is oh so close, too close. Tiny breaths slip out of his parted lips and brush against your face. You feel like you are going to self-combust.

Dirty thoughts race through your mind and you hate that you’re thinking of your two peacefully sleeping friends in such a manner. The urge to literally slap some sense into yourself is very compelling right now. However, it is an impossible feat due to Taehyung’s strong arms pinning your own down. This brings a new wave of nasty thoughts where Taehyung holds you much like this but with intent as Jimin does things to your front.

Turning your head to the side, you scream mentally into your pillow. Curse the storm outside canceling your flight and all the other hotel rooms being booked. Seriously though, you got lucky with this room and just very unlucky at rock, paper, scissors, hence why you are in the middle of the bed.

“What’s wrong?” a voice laden with sleep, deep and husky, asks.

Startled, you jump slightly, or as much as you can in Taehyung’s hold, and turn your face away from the pillow to see Jimin staring at you with half lidded eyes. You gulp and your mouth feels dry all of a sudden. A groan rumbles behind you and the arms around you tighten to pull your back firmly into Taehyung’s chest.

“Can’t sleep,” you whisper quietly.

“Is Tae’s cuddles bothering you?”

Yes, they were, but probably not in the way Jimin was thinking.

“No, he’s fine. I think I’m just not used to sleeping with anyone like this or cuddles in general.”

Jimin pouts, “you don’t like cuddles?”

You shrug the best you can in your position. “Just never had a cuddling situation present itself, I guess. Like maybe a couple of times but it was just like someone resting their head on my shoulder…or Yeontan.”

Jimin’s pout deepens at your lackluster cuddle life, how could he and Taehyung as your friend not give you every cuddling opportunity possible? They are the cuddling kings. Grinning sleepily, he plans to remedy that.

Your heart pounds at how precious he looks and you just want to melt.

“Can I present you with a cuddle?” he chuckles, “make that a cuddle sandwich?”

You thought that was what this was already, but apparently not. “Sure,” you whisper against your better judgement. You really must be touch starved.

Jimin scoots closer and gently places an arm around your waist. His head comes to rest against your chest and he nuzzles into it. You tilt your head back slightly, careful not the headbutt Taehyung, and mouth ‘oh my god’ in your shock. Everyone’s legs are now in a messy entanglement and you are thoroughly cuddled. Your heart is beathing rapidly and you’re somewhat surprised it isn’t startling your two friends awake. After a few deep breaths you find the stress from the day, the comfort of the mattress, and the warmth of your two friends lulling you to sleep.

It was actually a really comforting sleep, one you haven’t had in a long time. You wake up feeling surprisingly refreshed when the morning call rang, but the realization that your two friends both had a case of the mooring wood throws you back in a state of turmoil. Your friends don’t take kindly to the alarm, Taehyung slams his hands down on it and then resumes cuddling you.

“Guys!” You wiggle, trying to get free. “We have to get up.”

Jimin’s groan in muffled with how far his face is pressed into your cleavage, “too comfy.”

“Five more minutes,” Taehyung wines into your ear with a voice somehow deeper and more luring than it normally is.

.

Jimin was known as a thief for shiny things but always managed to escape all the accusations because people never had any proof. He was pretty good at what he did and how he did it.

Taehyung had a lot of shiny things but he only thought about that when he hang up the phone and looked around him.

They knew each other from their school time, they used to go to school together and do pretty much everything together. But, as they chose different paths for their lives, they grew apart. Taehyung didn't approve of Jimin's way of living and Jimin never believe in what Taehyung did, he always thought it was all fake.

It pained them both to grow apart from each other because they both loved each other very much and even had nights where they would please each other in a more than friend's way but they decided to never talk about that again. (although neither of them forgot about it).

They had met a few times after starting their jobs but Taehyung got mad at Jimin because he would always mock him and say his job was all fake so Taehyung barely talked to him ever since.

.

After around 30 minutes, Jimin knocked on Taehyung's door and Taehyung rolled his eyes and took a deep breath before opening the door.

-Hey. - Jimin said and smiled.

- Hey. - Taehyung said back and they both just stared at each other for a few seconds before Taehyung stepped to the side to let Jimin through.

They both looked at each other from head to toe and both gulped. Jimin was wearing skinny black leather jeans, a black shirt with a white one under and a blazer, lots of chains around his neck, and gloves just covering his fingers. He had his black hair to the side and a few strands of hair falling over his forehead.

Taehyung had black pants, a white shirt a long black jacket with shiny patterns and pearls on it.

-Go on to the room, I'll be there in a sec. - Taehyung said pointing to the session room. Jimin nodded and went there. Taehyung had a camera on the room and went to the screen to see if Jimin was capable of stealing something from him.

Jimin went around the room, seeing everything Taehyung had but Taehyung noticed that everything he picked up to see more closely he would put it back down and he found himself smiling looking at the screen.

Jimin looked at the door again and then sat on the chair, waiting. Taehyung joined him and sat across the table and reached for the cards but Jimin stopped him.

- I'm not here for that. - He said. Taehyung rolled his eyes and looked away.

- Of course not. You don't even believe in this. - He paused and then looked back at Jimin with a piercing look. - What do you want then? - He asked.

- Just wanted to see you. - Jimin said smirking. - I've been thinking about you a lot. I miss you. - He added never taking his eyes off of Taehyung's eyes.

Taehyung did not expect that and just stayed silent, not sure what to say.

Jimin got up and went closer to him.

- No! - Taehyung said also getting up and putting his hand in front of him. - Don't. I know what you're trying to do. Just don't. - He added and Jimin smiled.

- So I still have some kind of effect on you. - Jimin said. Taehyung chuckled ironically rolling his eyes.

- You wish. - He said.

- I know you still remember those nights. - Jimin said trying to get closer again, making Taehyung take another step back.

- Stop. And we agreed to never talk about that again. - Taehyung said.

- But I can't stop. I can't stop thinking about it. - He paused. - About you. - He added and got closer again and Taehyung hit the wall behind him and he put his hand on Jimin's chest to stop him from getting too close. He felt his chest muscles and looked down at his hand and then back up at Jimin, who was smirking. His muscles were not too defined but they were just how Taehyung liked it.

- Come on, stop resisting TaeTae. - Jimin said trying to get closer again, pressing on Taehyung's hand.

Taehyung looked away and zoned out for a couple of seconds and then looked back at Jimin.

- You know... - He paused. - I had a bad feeling all day ever since I woke up. Now it makes sense. Never thought it would be about you if I'm being honest. - He rolled his eyes again.

- And why am I a bad feeling, Tae? - Jimin asked smirking. - Because you don't want... - He stopped and then corrected himself. - I mean, because you can't resist me and miss me too? - He asked trying to put his hand on Taehyung's waist but Taehyung's grabbed his wrist, tightly, looking straight into his eyes.

- I said don't! - He said and Jimin smiled.

- Hmm... But you see... - Jimin paused. - I like pretty and shiny things... That's why I like you. - Jimin said, softly, and caressed Taehyung's face. - You're pretty. - He said looking at every part of Taehyung's face and then passed his hand over the pearls on his jacket. - And wear shiny things. - He looked back at Taehyung's eyes. Taehyung hadn't moved at all but he did all of a sudden.

- You're saying that just to keep mocking me and my job so please, just get out. - He firmly said letting go of Jimin's wrists and going near the door of the room, pointing at it.

- Why would I say you're pretty and that I like you to mock you? That doesn't even make sense. - Jimin said getting close to Taehyung again. - Plus... - He added, not letting Taehyung answer. - I see where you've come. - He said looking around the room. - I'm not the best person to judge how you make money because you know how I get mine. - Taehyung was going to say something but Jimin put a finger on his lips. - And about that story of mocking your job, I am sorry, I was stupid back then. Obviously, I don't think like that anymore. - He said and took his finger off Taehyung's lips to let him say something.

- Yeah right. - Taehyung said rolling his eyes. - And your thoughts changed just now? After all these years? - He asked ironically. He wasn't looking for an actual answer but Jimin gave it to him anyway.

- What? No! Of course not. - He said shaking his head. - But I didn't know how to make you answer me and give me a chance to talk. - Jimin explained. - And I am trying to get my life together... - He added almost in a whisper. Taehyung chuckled at the last part. - I am serious, Tae. - Jimin said. - I even thought you could help me out. - Jimin was smirking now.

- Me? - Taehyung asked laughing.

- Yeah, you! You know you helped a lot when we were younger. - Jimin said. Taehyung rolled his eyes again. - HEY! - Jimin raised his voice a bit and pointed a finger in Taehyung's face. - Stop rolling your eyes at me! - He said. Taehyung raised one eyebrow.

- Why? - He asked and smirked.

- It pisses me off. - Jimin said and Taehyung laughed.

- And if I keep doing it? What will you do? Hit me? Or better... you'll end up stealing something from me, right? - Taehyung said playfully but also a bit serious.

- If I wanted to steal something from you, I would've done it already and you would've known. - Jimin said.

- How could I know? - Taehyung asked and Jimin chuckled.

- You think I didn't notice your little camera? - Jimin asked pointing at where Taehyung had his camera.

- Hmm... I see. - Taehyung said. - So If you hadn't seen the camera, you would have stolen something. Good to know. - He said turning his back on Jimin and was going to start walking away when Jimin grabbed his hand and turned him around, wrapping an arm around his waist and gluing their bodies together.

- I would never steal from you TaeTae. Camera or no camera. - Jimin said and looked at Taehyung's lips. He was too close for Taehyung to keep resisting.

- Let me go. - Taehyung whispered and tried to push Jimin by his chest.

- Oh come on. - Jimin smirked. - Why do you keep resisting if you want this as much as me? - Jimin asked and got even closer, still staring at Taehyung's lips. Taehyung tried to move back but Jimin held him tighter by the waist. - Tell me you don't want it. - Jimin simply said and finally looked up at Taehyung's eyes. - Just tell me you don't want it and I'll stop. - He said. Taehyung didn't even blink and Jimin waited but Taehyung didn't say anything. - That's what I thought. - Jimin said and Taehyung sighed, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. Then he kissed Jimin himself. Jimin let go of his other hand and Taehyung grabbed his face with both hands while Jimin wrapped the other around Taehyung's waist to bring him even closer (as if it was possible).

The kiss began messily but as they calmed down, it became slower and more passionate and then they finally parted from the kiss and they both sighed.

- Wow... - Jimin let out. - I sure missed that. - He said smirking. Taehyung chuckled and rolled his eyes, smiling. - Don't! - Jimin said about him rolling his eyes.

- You know... I kind of want to know what you will do if I don't stop. - Taehyung said smirking. Jimin grabbed his neck and pushed him down on the table, making Taehyung fall on his back.

- No, you don't. - Jimin said and Taehyung smiled putting his hands in the air.

- All right, all right. I'll stop. - He said and Jimin smiled but didn't let go of his neck.

- Good boy. - Jimin said leaning over Taehyung.

- No this table, please. - Taehyung stopped him. Jimin pulled back and pulled Taehyung back on his feet too, still by his neck.

Taehyung smiled seeing Jimin respected his workspace now.

- What are you smiling for? - Jimin asked.

- The old Jimin wouldn't respect my workspace like this. He wouldn't care. - Taehyung explained.

- I told you, I'm not the same I was back then. - They both smiled softly and Jimin finally let go of Taehyung's neck and went behind him, putting his hands on his waist. - Lead the way then. - He whispered against Taehyung's ear. Taehyung got goosebumps and started walking towards his bedroom with Jimin following, never taking his hands off his waist.

Jimin was blown away by how big Taehyung's house was and he smiled seeing that the decoration was totally done by Taehyung.

They got to his room and Taehyung closed the door and Jimin put himself in front of him, grabbing his neck again, making him the door with his back.

- I'm glad to see you've got a big house. - Jimin said and Taehyung smiled. - Glad to see you've got everything balanced to how big you are too. - He added looking down at Taehyung's crotch. Taehyung chuckled. - At least how big I remember. - He slid his hand from Taehyung's neck down his torso and grabbed his cock through the pants, making Taehyung close his eyes and take a deep breath. - How could I forget? - Jimin got even closer. - Look at this! - He whispered against Taehyung's neck while rubbing his cock slowly. - Damn, I missed you so fucking much. - He added and licked his neck up to Taehyung's mouth and kissed him, invading his mouth with his tongue. Taehyung let out a quiet moan which made Jimin smile.

Jimin reached for the collar of Taehyung's jacket and undressed it. Taehyung did the same with Jimin's blazer.

Then, Jimin took Taehyung by his waist and led him towards the bed, pushing him and making him fall on his back. Jimin bit his lip looking down at Taehyung, who smiled up at him.

Jimin got on top of Taehyung and kissed him everywhere he could. In no time, both their shirts were all over the floor and Jimin gently started biting down on Taehyung's nipple, making Taehyung moan and arch his back. Jimin stopped and looked up at Taehyung's face, smiling.

- Glad to know you missed me and my tongue too. - Jimin said and Taehyung laughed.

- Shut up. - He said, still with his eyes closed and his head back on the pillow, waiting for Jimin to keep going. Jimin smiled and continued kissing down Taehyung's torso, making Taehyung let out moans at the touch of his lips and tongue on his body.

Jimin got to the waistband of Taehyung's pants and stopped again. Taehyung looked down at him this time and Jimin smiled and went up to his face again.

- Are you still into all the teasing I used to do back then? - He asked whispering against Taehyung's lips, who smiled.

- Normally yeah, but right now I just want you to fuck me good. - He finally admitted and Jimin's eyes grew wide open. He didn't expect that answer.

Taehyung took one of Jimin's hands and guided it to his cock.

- Please. - He said against Jimin's lips.

- How desperate. I love it. - Jimin said and bit his lower lip. Then, he took both of Taehyung's hands and held them in one hand while the other took down the rest of their clothes. - You're bigger than what I remember, TaeTae. - Jimin said while grabbing Taehyung's cock and putting it in his mouth before letting Taehyung say anything.

After blowing Taehyung for a while, he stopped and grabbed his own belt from the floor and tied up Taehyung's hands so he could have both his hands free to do whatever he wanted to Taehyung. He tied up his hands and put them behind Taehyung's head.

- Don't move them! - He warned Taehyung, who smirked. He did miss Jimin controlling his body.

Jimin pecked his lips quickly and got back down on Taehyung's body, stopping at his cock again and teasing his hole, making Taehyung moan desperately.

- Where do you keep the lube? - He asked and Taehyung pointed with his head. Jimin went to get it, along with a condom and came back in between Taehyung's legs. He put Taehyung's legs up and started to prepare his hole putting his fingers in, making Taehyung moan and arch his back.

While he worked with his fingers in and out of Taehyung, he also put his cock back in his mouth.

After a while, Taehyung's legs started shivering and Jimin stopped, making Taehyung whine.

- Not yet, babe. - Jimin said and Taehyung groaned at his words and let his head fall back on the pillow and started catching his breath.

Jimin got on his knees and positioned himself, entering Taehyung's hole, slowly.

- Fuck! - He said slowly sliding in. - You're still so tight. - He said when he was finally all in and letting them both adjust.

- And you still feel so good. - Taehyung said looking at Jimin and smiling. Jimin smiled down at him too and started moving, holding on to Taehyung's legs, one of them resting on his shoulder and the other on his hand, spreading Taehyung even more open.

Taehyung's orgasm was building up and he took his hands from the back of his head and took Jimin's hand that was on his leg, resting on Jimin's shoulder. Jimin tilted his head and bit his lip.

- What... Did I tell you? - He managed to ask looking at Taehyung's hands still tied up together with his belt. Taehyung was going to say something but Jimin hit his prostate and the only thing that came out of his mouth was a loud moan and his eyes rolled back.

- FUCK! Right there Jiminaaaah! - He screamed out making Jimin smile looking down at him. - Please, don't you dare stop! - Taehyung opened his eyes and gave Jimin a piercing look, letting him know he wasn't joking and so Jimin went even harder, building up his orgasm as well. - Jimin!! Aaaahh - Taehyung screamed out.

- I'm close too, TaeTae. - Jimin said and tried to calm his breathing. - Come for me, baby. - He managed to say before groaning. - Fuck!! - He screamed too letting his head fall back and they both came at the same time, screaming each other's names, with their bodies shivering and shaking at their orgasms, and then Jimin let himself collapse next to Taehyung on the bed, both looking at the ceiling, the same smile on their faces.

After catching their breaths, Jimin turned to face Taehyung, standing on his elbow, tracing lines with his indicative finger on Taehyung's chest.

- Does this mean we can go back to how we were? - Jimin asked. - Maybe more. - He whispered looking at his fingers.

- Maybe. - Taehyung simply said. - And about what you said about getting your life together... - He added after a while and Jimin looked up at him and nodded. - You can't change your destiny... But I can help you, yeah. - He smiled and Jimin smiled back at him. - All fates were determined from the day the universe was formed so maybe yours was to go through a bad path and then have someone make you change to a good one. - Taehyung was looking at the ceiling now and shrugged his shoulders.

- That someone is you then. - Jimin said. Taehyung looked at him and chuckled shaking his head. - I don't need you to see my future about this. I know it's you. I can feel it. - Jimin said, more serious now. - It's always been you. - He added and rested his hand over Taehyung's heart. - "Fate" didn't reunite us after all these years for no reason. - He said and leaned for a kiss and then passed his other hand over Taehyung's hair. They both smiled at each other.

- Do you want to stay for dinner? - Taehyung invited.

- Of course. Even for the night. - Jimin said jokingly but Taehyung nodded.

- Why not? - He asked smiling.

- Oh... - Jimin wasn't expecting it but smiled. - Okay then, it's settled. - Should we shower together too? - He smirked and Taehyung laughed.

.

They ended up showering, making dinner, and eating together.