Archive of Our Own

It had honestly been a pretty good day today–and by that, Jeon Jungkook just considered it a normal day where everything had gone to plan. Nothing unusual had happened; everything was just going according to his usual routine and that was a good day in his book. That morning he’d woken up early enough to tidy his apartment and have cuddles with Bam before he had needed to leave for work. There, he had been doing a lot of re-organising, which he always liked, and it hadn’t been particularly busy so Min Yoongi had dealt with any customers who had come in, and Jungkook could listen to his music interrupted. 

He was only a couple of steps away from the front door of the art supplies store where he worked when there was a flurry of movement that had his head jerking back before he was suddenly colliding with the blonde hurricane that had been hurtling toward him. 

The noise-cancelling headphones were knocked, and instantly there was noise . So much noise, not just from the stranger who was half on top of him, but also from the traffic not too far from them, and the people who were walking around them, and the music from the restaurant nearby with the doors wide open. 

And then there was the fact he had dropped his drink, and it had splashed on the sidewalk, and was soaking into the arm of his jacket, and his elbow hurt, and his stomach hurt–the person who had slammed into him was still on top of him and their arm was digging into his stomach. 

“Sorry, I’m sorry– shit , sorry,” at least they weren’t yelling at him, Jungkook could at least be happy about that. 

Happy was completely the wrong word, because his jacket was wet now, and the shirt he had on underneath was too thin for him to be comfortable with his jacket–he had planned on wearing his jacket all day. Now, he was going to be cold, and he was probably going to have to ask Yoongi if he could borrow something of his, and he would be grateful–he really would–but it wasn’t what he wanted to wear. 

He wanted his own clothes.

He wanted his own jacket . 

And that fucking music was all tinny, and it scratched at his ear drum, and it was making his shoulders twitch, and–he was still laying on the ground. 

“Hey–hey, are you okay? Can I touch your arm? Is that okay?” The stranger asked gently and finally Jungkook sucked in a sharp breath through his teeth and tilted his head, looking up at the petite blonde that was leaning over him. “I think–we should probably move, I can pick up your things?” The stranger continued and Jungkook finally jerked his head in a single nod, pulling himself up off the footpath, and grabbing at his headphones, slipping them over his head, and letting out a sigh of relief at the way the world became so much quieter. The blonde picked up the drink that Jungkook had dropped, holding the sticky mess in his hand, grabbing at the two books that had also fallen. “Should we go–”

“In here,” Jungkook muttered without looking back, quickly stepping forward and shoving open the door for the art store, wincing at the way the fabric of his jacket was clinging to his arm and trying desperately to ignore it. He heard the stranger behind him, but all he was thinking about was getting his jacket off, getting the material away from his arm. 

“Koo?” Yoongi called out but Jungkook just kept walking, his head down, his footsteps heavy as he made his way to the back of the store where the employees lounge was. He slipped his headphones off as he stripped out of his jacket, and then his long sleeved shirt that was underneath. He wasn’t sure what was happening out in the shop, but Yoongi would probably apologize to the stranger and take the rubbish from him, and he would need to thank Yoongi and apologize for that later, but right now he just needed to get clean. 

Jungkook kept unscented wet wipes in his bag and he used them to clean down his arm, before wincing at the stain that was settling into his jacket, and part of the long sleeved shirt he was wearing under it. He found a bag to put them into, and let out a sigh of relief when he realized that he had actually left a sweatshirt here a couple of days ago, and he could wear that. The fabric was soft and he let out a sigh of relief at feeling warmer again, and being in dry clothes, and his skin didn’t feel as tight and uncomfortable anymore. 

When Jungkook came out of the back room, he hadn’t expected the stranger to still be standing there, next to Yoongi by the counter. There was music playing softly, and Jungkook took a deep breath as he realized that he was actually going to need to speak with the stranger. He wasn’t happy but he pushed his headphones off one ear so that he would be able to clearly hear what was being said. It wasn’t what he wanted to do, but he knew that it was the polite thing. 

“Hi! Jungkook-ssi?” The stranger turned to him with an apologetic smile, bowing forward as Jungkook approached. “I’m really sorry, I just wasn’t paying attention to where I was going.” Now that Jungkook didn’t feel like he had an impending headache and he could actually focus, he could see that the person who he’d collided with him was really, really, really pretty.

Maybe the prettiest person that Jungkook had ever seen, and that was saying something, because he knew Kim Seokjin. 

“I’ve just started at a new job and the boss is actually my best friend’s boyfriend, so it’s not like I’m nervous or anything, but I wanted to get us lunch and I was running late and–” the man made a face as he twisted his wrist to look at the watch there. “And now I’m running extra late, but…Oh well,” he shrugged as he looked back at Jungkook, his expression softening once again. “I like your sweater.”

“Oh!” Jungkook hadn’t been expecting that–it actually took him a moment to respond, because the stranger had been talking so quickly that his brain just needed a minute to catch up. “I–thank you?” 

“You’re welcome,” the man smiled widely. “I’m Jimin–Park Jimin.”

“I’m Jeon Jungkook,” Jungkook introduced himself, focussing on Jimin’s mouth before bowing quickly. He really didn’t like looking people directly in the eye, and he had found with time, that as long as he was focussing somewhere on peoples faces, they generally couldn’t tell if he wasn’t forcing himself to stare directly into their souls. 

“Yeah, your–your friend told me your name,” Jimin smiled as he glanced over at where Yoongi was pretending not to pay attention to them. He was doing a really shitty job, but Jungkook was just happy that Yoongi hadn’t left him alone with the pretty stranger. He really wasn’t good with new people–he could handle customers just fine, that was one thing, he could absolutely put on a front and mask, that was something he had been practising his whole life–but it was different with more personal conversations. 

“Right, I–I’m sorry,” Jungkook forced himself to say, because technically he hadn’t been looking where he was going. He needed to say sorry, that was the right thing to do. 

“That’s okay!” Jimin chirped, looking as though he fully meant it, even though the shirt he was wearing was stained as well–probably from Jungkook’s drink as well. It looked expensive too, and very soft. Jimin was still staring at him, and Jungkook’s eyes darted over to Yoongi for help before looking back toward Jimin, his eyes on his nose now. The silence stretched and Jungkook wasn’t really sure what he was meant to say, but it felt like there was something expected. Finally, Yoongi cleared his throat and Jimin straightened up. “Oh, I–I should get back to work.” 

“Okay,” Jungkook nodded, turning to the boxes that must have been delivered by the courier while he was at lunch. Jimin and Yoongi said something quietly between themselves before Jimin left. Jungkook’s focus was on unpacking the boxes and running his hands over the new vinyls that had been ordered in, and it wasn’t until Yoongi hadn’t moved from wherever he was behind Jungkook, and Jungkook turned around to face him. “What?” He asked in confusion. 

“That guy was cute,” Yoongi pointed out and Jungkook blinked.

“Yeah,” he agreed, because it was the truth. 

Jimin was beautiful. 

“And he was checking you out,” Yoongi continued and Jungkook paused, glancing toward the front doors where Jimin had just disappeared. 

“Oh,” he muttered, and Yoongi let out a laugh, but it wasn’t mean . Jungkook had studied the way people had been laughing for a long time–for as long as he could remember. And Yoongi was someone that he had been able to study in depth for some time, so he particularly knew Yoongi’s laugh–and he knew Yoongi wasn’t laughing at him. Not like a lot of people had. 

“If he comes back, you should ask him out for coffee,” Yoongi told him and Jungkook just hummed under his breath.

He definitely would not be doing that. 

Life went on, and the next time that Jungkook saw Jimin, they didn’t crash into each other, and Jungkook’s jacket was safe. Jungkook had more time to look at Jimin since he saw him approaching first–at the faded jeans he was wearing that looked as though he had worn them so many times they were just moulded to his body now, and at the way his blonde hair shined. It looked a bit like a halo, which would make sense with how pretty Jimin was. 

“Jungkook-ssi!” Jimin called out, and it was only because Jungkook’s music was playing softly that he heard him. He lifted his chin and immediately noticed Jimin, who was winding his way through the crowd and walking toward the alley where Jungkook was standing. The art store was off the main walkway enough that Jungkook could usually sit outside on his breaks without feeling too overwhelmed–just another thing that made his job as close to perfect as possible. 

“Hello, Jimin-ssi,” Jungkook said tentatively, pushing his headphones off one ear and nodding at Jimin, his eyes fixed on the other man’s mouth. He had very pink lips, and they looked really soft and plush as he spoke, his mouth framing the words in a way that Jungkook could absolutely become hypnotized by if he wasn’t careful. 

“I brought you this,” Jimin kind of floated over to him, comfortably leaning against the wall beside him and holding out a drink.

A banana milk.

Jungkook blinked and his eyes lit up, looking up and meeting Jimin’s eyes briefly before focusing on his nose. 

“For me?” He asked in surprise. 

“For you,” Jimin confirmed with a smile. 

“Oh,” Jungkook stared in surprise. 

Banana milk was his favourite.

“Banana milk is my favourite,” he stated and Jimin’s smile got bigger. 

“It was what you were drinking the other day–I wanted to replace the one I made you spill,” he replied, and that answered Jungkook’s questions. He’d wondered how Jimin had known that he liked banana milk, and also why he had brought one for Jungkook. 

“Thank you,” he said as he reached out for the drink, and Jimin passed it to him eagerly before nodding at the small table and chairs that was set up outside the art shop. Jungkook had worked here for over a year and he still wasn’t sure if the table and chairs belonged to their shop, or the one next door, but they alternated cleaning them and it worked fine for them. 

“Can I eat lunch here?” Jimin asked with a tilt of his head, his fringe ruffling over his forehead. 

“Sure,” Jungkook shrugged, focussing on opening his banana milk and taking a sip. Jimin made himself comfortable and put down the bag with his lunch. Jungkook had already eaten, but he still had ten minutes left of his break. He looked down at the seat opposite Jimin, pursing his lips together as he thought things over, probably longer than was appropriate, because then Jimin was looking up at him. 

“Did you want to join me?” He asked, and his smile was very kind. Jungkook imagined his eyes probably looked kind as well. 

“Okay,” he agreed and moved to sit at the seat opposite Jimin. 

Jimin liked to talk, and Jungkook didn’t mind that, especially since Jimin had a nice voice and he didn’t talk loudly , and he asked Jungkook questions and listened when he replied, but also didn’t get upset when Jungkook’s answers were short and to the point. Jungkook didn’t even realize he had gone over his allotted break time until he saw Yoongi smiling at him through the window, not looking particularly upset at the fact he was running late but definitely a reminder that he was . 

“ Aish ,” he made a face as he looked down at the time on his phone. “I need to get back to work, Jimin-ssi.”

“Oh, right! Of course! Sorry,” Jimin made an apologetic face for reasons Jungkook didn’t understand, because it wasn’t Jimin’s fault he was late. And he had liked spending time listening to him. 

“It’s not your fault,” Jungkook said as he got to his feet and pushed in his chair. 

“Is your lunch break this time every day?” Jimin asked and Jungkook nodded. 

“At one-fifteen,” he confirmed and Jimin’s face glowed again with a smile. 

“Thank you for sitting with me, Jungkook-ssi,” he said before Jungkook bowed his head forward before walking back into the shop. 

Jimin started coming by more often.

So often he actually became a part of Jungkook’s regular routine. He didn’t often have things that happened that depended on other people in his routine, except for Yoongi and Yoongi’s boyfriends. He knew he would see Yoongi every day he came into work, and if for some reason he would be alone in the store, Yoongi would call him well in advance to let him know. And every Sunday night he went to Yoongi’s house to have dinner with him and his boyfriends, every Sunday at six o’clock. It wasn’t often that people were reliable enough for Jungkook to even consider them part of his regular routine–and that wasn’t their fault, Jungkook had realized a long time ago that his need for things to follow a schedule, a lot of people just preferred things to ‘go with the flow’. 

But Jimin started coming by two days a week at lunch–sometimes three days. He started coming a bit earlier than he had the first day, so he arrived shortly after Jungkook’s lunch break and they had almost half an hour to sit together and talk. Jungkook would drink his banana milk, and eat his ramen and apple, and Jimin would usually have something different each day, packed into adorable pastel coloured lunchboxes. 

Jimin did most of the talking, but he listened closely whenever Jungkook spoke. He never got annoyed when Jungkook looked down at their food, or at his feet, or into the distance when he addressed Jimin, and he never teased Jungkook about eating the same thing every day. 

Jungkook started looking forward to his visits.

Jimin always came on Tuesday and Thursday, and sometimes on Friday. Jungkook started watching the clock as his lunch break got closer, and he started bouncing on the balls of his feet, a happy stim that usually didn’t come out at work unless a song he really liked came on. He didn’t notice it at first–he had been stimming his whole life, before he had even realized what it was he was doing–and a lot of the time he still didn’t notice it unless he felt like he needed to have tight control over himself. 

Yoongi noticed it, though. 

Yoongi knew him well, better than most people, and he had been Jungkook’s closest friend since he had been in university. He had only gone because it was what his parents wanted him to do–although he thought that was mainly because they wanted him to move out of the house and not necessarily because they had plans for him. They had given him a sizeable allowance–and still did–for him to study whatever he wanted, and he had chosen music. Yoongi had graduated the year before but he did tutoring, and he took Jungkook under his wing. So Yoongi knew him well.

“He’s cute,” Yoongi commented one day after Jungkook had come back inside after his break, and Jimin had stuck his head in the door to wave cheerfully at Yoongi before continuing home. Jungkook couldn’t help but frown, his shoulders suddenly feeling tense.

“You already said that,” he replied, because Yoongi had said exactly that about Jimin earlier.

“Well, he is ,” Yoongi smirked and usually Jungkook thought Yoongi looked really attractive when he smiled, but today it just made Jungkook’s eyebrows pull together deeper. 

“You already have two boyfriends,” his words came out more bluntly than he usually tried to speak. But he didn’t try to adjust himself, still feeling strangely affronted by the idea of Yoongi finding Jimin cute . Yoongi didn’t find it rude, letting out a laugh and shaking his head.

“I’m not looking for another boyfriend, Koo,” Yoongi replied with a grin before he was heading toward the front of the store where a few boxes of new equipment had just been dropped off, ready to be put away.

Jungkook chose to ignore Yoongi’s comment. 

He liked the new addition to his routine. 

He quite liked Jimin.

Choi Soobin messaged him a couple of days later and asked if he could come up and introduce someone to him, and Jungkook already assumed it was his boyfriend. He really liked Soobin–he lived with his grandmother in Jungkook’s apartment building and other than Yoongi and his boyfriend, he was the only person that Jungkook trusted with Bam. Soobin was incredibly sweet and understanding, and Jungkook didn’t like too many people in his space– especially when he wasn’t around–but Soobin was different. 

Soobin would come to his apartment in the afternoons to walk Bam, and take him out to the dog park.

On the few occasions that Jungkook had needed to go back to Busan to see his family, it had been Soobin who had looked after Bam–and sent him regular photos and updates without Jungkook needing to ask–which was good, because that made him anxious. And Soobin would send videos and call him at night so he could say goodnight to Bam, and most importantly, Bam trusted him. 

It was his boyfriend that Soobin wanted to introduce him to–Choi Yeonjun. He was striking, with blonde hair falling in front of his eyes,  but when he spoke his whole face softened, and the way he smiled at Soobin was adoring. He was respectful of Jungkook’s space when he came into the apartment, and Bam liked him, so he had Jungkook’s approval. He let Soobin know later that he would be okay with Yeonjun joining him when he looked after Bam, and Soobin sent back a cheerful selca.

Jimin also sent a lot of selcas. 

Jungkook saved every single one. He wasn’t really sure if he was supposed to, but there wasn’t anything–anything lewd or intimate about the photos, they were the kind that Jimin probably posted on social media. But Jungkook didn’t have any social media, other than junk accounts to follow his favourite bands and updates for manga he was reading or shows he was watching. He wasn’t really sure what to reply to Jimin a lot of the time–Jungkook wasn’t really good at messaging, he never had been. Sometimes he took days to reply to people, but he tried really hard not to let that happen with Jimin, but he couldn’t help but feel his responses were always lacklustre. Especially compared to Jimin, who always seemed so full of life, sending emoji’s and selcas and pictures of plants from the store where he worked. 

But…Jimin didn’t really seem to mind. 

Just like when they saw each other in person, he seemed okay with carrying most of the conversation, and even when Jungkook went on a long winded tirade about the most recent Marvel movies, Jimin responded with enthusiasm. 

Usually Jungkook tried to hold back when it came to rants about things that fascinated him, his special interests or current hyper-fixations. Not many people were interested in listening to him talk for hours about dogs, or Marvel and the way it had completely gone downhill, or Lego, or how a mixtape released by an underground rapper had saved his life when he was younger and that was what had made him fall in love with music. There weren’t really many people that he wanted to talk about those things with–he had learnt when he was young that most people didn’t appreciate the same things he did, or at least not to the same extent. There was a glazed over look that their eyes would get the longer he spoke, and that was the better reaction. His parents would snap and tell him to stop babbling, his brother would sigh loudly through his nose, and classmates used to snort and roll their eyes right to his face. After a while, he learnt to hold in the things that were important to him, because he didn’t want people to make him feel bad about the things that made him happy. 

It had actually been Yoongi and his boyfriends who had helped so much with that–especially Yoongi’s eldest boyfriend, Kim Seokjin. Seokjin had a way with words–a bumbling, clumsy way that just always seemed to work, kind of like the older brother than Jungkook’s personally had never been. He had shown and explained to Jungkook that he absolutely could trust people with the things that were important to him, he just had to be careful. He had to protect his heart and what was important to him, but he also had to keep his heart healthy, and that meant letting people in who loved him. 

Love was a concept that Jungkook had some difficulty with, maybe because the family that was meant to love him unconditionally had never properly shown him that, but Yoongi, Seokjin, Jung Hoseok–he definitely loved them. He loved them a lot , even if he had difficulty saying those words. 

Jimin loved a lot of things, and he had no problem at all saying it. 

He loved Kim Namjoon, his boss who was also his best friend's boyfriend. He absolutely loved his best friend, Kim Taehyung–he called him his soulmate. He loved flowers, and cupcakes, and Megan The Stallion, and his father, and The Notebook and–

And one day he said he loved Jungkook. Not directly , in those words, but it was implied with his words, and it made Jungkook’s brain completely short-circuit. 

“That’s what I love about you, Kookie,” Jimin was giggling at something that Jungkook said, and honestly, Jungkook had no idea what it was even though he usually had such a good memory. 

He knew it was a figure of speech–he knew people said that, but–but people meant it too , and he wasn’t sure if Jimin meant it. And he wasn’t going to ask . 

He really liked his lunches with Jimin. They were his favourite days every week, and part of him wished that they happened every day. Yoongi had tried to prompt him a few times to ask Jimin to come out with them for dinner with them after work some time, but Jungkook had always shied away from the idea. Jimin had a lot of friends, and he probably had much better things to do. 

And then almost four days went by, and Jimin didn’t come by.

He didn’t message Jungkook either. 

It wasn’t like they messaged every day or anything, but it was still a few times a week, and it was always Jimin who messaged first. Sometimes Jungkook thought about sending him something–he would see a flower that reminded him of Jimin, or he would want to share something that Bam did, but he always second and triple guessed himself, always talking himself out of it. 

But when Friday came around, and Jimin still didn’t come in, Jungkook finally sent the first message.

Maybe it had taken some prompting from Yoongi, who had been watching Jungkook closely as the week had gone on, and the way that he would stare at the clock and then look toward the door every time lunch time got closer. 

Hello, Jimin-ssi. Are you alright? 

It was probably more to the point than Yoongi would have suggested, but Jungkook didn’t really care. He had actually considered going by Jimin’s work–the plant shop just down the block that Jungkook had scoped out a few times now–but what if Jimin was upset at him for some reason? Not that Jungkook could think of anything he had done or said that might have upset Jimin, but it had happened enough times for Jungkook without him even realizing that it was always a possibility. And if that was the case, then he definitely didn’t want Jungkook showing up. At least with a message, Jimin could ignore it if he wanted to. 

But he didn’t, he replied, even though it took longer than usual. 

Hey, Jungkookie. I’m sorry I haven’t been there for lunch this week, I haven’t been feeling well. 

Jungkook frowned as he looked down at his phone, tapping his thumb against the side of his phone. He didn’t like being sick, and he didn’t like being around people who were sick. And yet…

I can bring you some soup? Soup makes me feel good when I’m sick.

Jimin replied quicker this time, while Jungkook was still looking at his phone. 

…Are you sure?

Yes , Jungkook’s response was instant. 

I would really like that, Jungkookie. Thank you. 

“Hyung?” Jungkook called out after looking up at the clock on the wall. “Can I leave early?” It wasn’t often that he left early–hardly ever, actually. Yoongi was pouring over a new guitar that had arrived–they didn’t sell a lot of instruments, but Yoongi had a lot of connections, and he was known to be able to find things. This was a guitar that someone was sourcing as a wedding gift for their son and new daughter-in-law, which Jungkook thought was really cool, but he really had no interest right now.

He wanted to see Jimin. 

“Is everything okay?” Yoongi asked, sitting back on his heels and looking over at Jungkook. “What’s going on?” It wasn’t like Yoongi was just his boss, he was one of Jungkook’s best friends, and he could easily see the concern on Jungkook’s face. It also wasn’t as though Jungkook was any good at covering up what he was feeling. Seokjin said Jungkook’s face came with subtitles, especially when he was upset. 

“Jiminie’s sick,” Jungkook replied simply, and Yoongi just nodded without hesitation. 

“Go on,” he said with a wave of his hand and Jungkook exhaled in relief. If it was anyone else, they would probably ask questions, but Jungkook really didn’t need that right now, and Yoongi knew that. 

“Thank you, hyung,” Jungkook murmured after he had gathered his things and passed by Yoongi on the way out. 

“Let us know if we can help with anything,” Yoongi replied, referring to him and his boyfriends, and Jungkook just nodded before he left quickly. 

The address Jimin sent him wasn’t actually too far from where he was now. That would make sense–given they both worked around here. It was a bit further from Jungkook’s apartment, given he lived in the opposite direction but it wasn’t that far. Not in the scope of the city. That was…Something he noticed. 

That meant Jungkook’s familiar ramen and soup bar wasn’t much out of the way, and it didn’t take him long to collect a variety of soups. He wasn’t sure what Jimin’s order was, but he never seemed very fussy–he ate chicken and beef and there had been days when he had something so spicy his nose turned red–so he got Jimin options. The ajumma behind the counter gave him a surprised look when he ordered, because she was used to him getting the same thing every time he came in, but he added with a shy voice that it was for a friend who was sick. When she came back, she informed him that she had also added rice porridge and tea and waved her hand briskly when he tried to pay for them. 

Jungkook stopped to pick up mochi and some cheeseballs as well–Jimin had cheeseballs often after he’d finished his lunch, and he clearly liked them. He would suck the powdered cheese off his fingers in a way that had made Jungkook blush a few times, and had giggled one day when Jungkook finally asked if they were his favourite, nodding rapidly. 

Jimin lived in a really nice apartment building, with a doorman who greeted him when he stepped in and checked his name before telling him what floor Jimin lived on. Jungkook lived in a nice place as well, but it was smaller and a lot simpler. This place suited Jimin, it felt classy but comfortable, and Jungkook tried not to let any of his usual social anxiety settle in his chest as he stood in the elevator. He wasn’t very fond of going to new places without any preparation–actually, he hated it, he really hated it–but he hadn’t even thought twice before asking Jimin if it was okay to come over. Now, everything was catching up to him, but…

He didn’t regret it. 

He stepped out of the elevator with his mask fixed firmly over the lower half of his face and walked slowly down the hall toward the apartment number Jimin had given him, his fingers clutching the handles of the bags he was carrying. Once he reached the third door on the left he stopped, facing the door and noting the ring camera and swaying back and forth on his feet a few times before tapping his knuckles on the door and waiting. 

Jimin took a few minutes before opening, and Jungkook ended up checking the address twice on his phone even though he knew he was right, and was about to message Jimin and ask if he was okay, before the door opened. 

Jimin looked very different from how he usually did. Not any less beautiful, just less put together. He had a blanket wrapped around his shoulders and his hair looked as though it wasn’t washed, and it definitely wasn’t styled like he usually made sure it was, and there were stains on his shirt. Jimin seemed like the kind of person who took his appearance very seriously and always tried to look his best–and he did , he always looked pretty–and even though he was petite, he always had such a big presence. Today, though, his shoulders were slumped and curled in on himself. 

“Jimin-ssi,” Jungkook ducked his head in a greeting.

“Hi, Jungkook-ah,” Jimin’s nose twitched and he gave Jungkook a very small smile.

Very different to how he usually was. 

“I brought soup,” Jungkook held up the bag in his hands. “And there’s tea–and porridge, and–”

“Cheeseballs,” Jimin exhaled with wide eyes as he looked into one of the bags Jungkook was holding. Jungkook let out a laugh as he held the bags out toward Jimin, who took them eagerly and turned to walk back inside, leaving the door wide open for Jungkook to follow after him. He stepped inside, wondering if he should really be lingering if Jimin was sick, but he realized very quickly that he actually didn’t care. He wanted to be here with Jimin. 

“Slippers are just–here,” Jimin paused to point at his shoe rack which was absolutely overflowing with shoes, before he was scuttling toward the lounge with the bags of food clutched to his chest. Jungkook carefully took off his shoes and changed into a pair of slippers, following after Jimin much slower and looking around as he went.

There was a lot of stuff around, but the place wasn’t dirty and it didn’t feel crowded, it just seemed as though Jimin had a full and colourful life. 

“This is amazing,” Jimin had settled on the couch where there was a pile of blankets arranged in a nest–Jungkook definitely recognised Jimin’s resting spot. It was the kind he created when he was feeling burnt out and just needed to recover by closing all the curtains and watching his favourite movie, clutching his plushie and petting Bam. 

It made him wonder what kind of sick Jimin was feeling, especially since he didn’t look like he had a cold, and there wasn’t a bowl nearby indicating his stomach wasn’t sore. When he stepped into the lounge, Jimin looked around with wide eyes before making a face.

“Shit, sorry, I–” he began to scramble and try to move the blankets off the couch, which made Jungkook feel awful, because he knew that he always organised his blankets and pillows to be just so. If Jimin was sick, he should be comfortable.

“No, no, it’s okay,” he quickly replied. “I can sit here,” he didn’t think before plopping down on the ground. Jimin’s eyes were wide, almost panicked. 

“You don’t have to sit on the floor ,” he began and Jungkook just shrugged.

“I like sitting on the floor,” he replied simply, because it was true. Jimin paused, looking at Jungkook for a moment before reaching for a pillow and holding it out toward him. Jungkook took it happily, tucking it underneath him before settling back down comfortably and looking back up at Jimin, focussing on his pretty mouth rather than his eyes even as Jimin stared back at him. 

He did that a lot, not just with Jimin, with everyone . It felt so confrontational to look people in the eyes when they spoke, even though he had been told over and over and over again that it was polite , but it just didn’t work like that. If he was busy trying to look people in the eyes as they spoke, he was too busy trying to choose what eye to look in that he missed everything they were saying. After a while, he had learnt coping mechanisms and where it was best to look at people when talking. Usually he settled for their eyebrows or their nose, most people got the impression he was looking them in the eye.

With Jimin…Jungkook’s eyes always settled on his lips. 

Jimin had the nicest lips Jungkook had ever seen. 

“If you’re sure,” Jimin replied as he settled back into his blankets, and he still looked a bit uncertain, but Jungkook nodded firmly, and that seemed to mollify Jimin. Jungkook’s eyes moved to the TV, where an English movie was playing with subtitles, and he tilted his head to the side as he recognised one of the actors. 

“She’s in Doctor Strange !” He pointed out excitedly. 

“Hm–Rachel McAdams?” Jimin smiled. 

“She’s really pretty,” Jungkook nodded as he wiggled himself around until he could lean against the back of the couch and made himself more comfortable on the couch. He heard the crinkle of the chip bag opening when Jimin ripped open the cheeseballs, and a moment later, the bag appeared beside him. “No, thanks,” he replied simply, his eyes fixed on the TV. He recognised the main guy in the movie as well, and it seemed like a romance movie.

It was cute that Jimin was sick and watching romance movies in a blanket nest. It was kind of what Jungkook did when he was overwhelmed and just wanted to put his safe movies behind.

“You don’t like cheeseballs?” Jimin sounded offended and Jungkook just shrugged.

“You’re sick,” he replied. “I don’t want to share germs.” There was quiet behind him, and a moment later, he internally cringed, wondering if he had been too blunt. He turned to look at Jimin, but Jimin didn’t necessarily look upset. He was about to look back at the TV but then Jimin spoke up.

“I don’t–I’m not physically sick,” he replied and Jungkook tipped his head to the side. “I, uh–” Jimin licked his lips nervously, his fingers tightening around his chip packet and making more noise. “Sometimes I–I just get really depressed,” he blurted out, and his head fell forward, like he was ashamed of himself, looking like how he had when he had first opened the door–as though he was trying to curl in on himself. Jungkook just frowned and tilted his head to the side. 

“That sucks,” he said plainly before reaching up to take off his mask, unhooking it from around his ears and tucking it into one of his pockets. He still didn’t want any cheeseballs, though, he didn’t like powdered cheese all over his fingers, and he hoped Jimin wouldn’t offer again so he had to turn him down again . He didn’t like saying no to Jimin, even though he really never had any issues saying no when there was something he didn’t like. 

“Yeah,” Jimin mumbled after a moment, and Jungkook glanced back at him, but Jimin was munching on his cheeseballs and watching the TV, his attention seemingly diverted. But apparently Jungkook was wrong, because after five or so minutes, Jimin spoke up again. “It does suck!” His words were emphatic and caught Jungkook off guard as he turned back to look up at Jimin, who was staring down at him. “Being depressed.” Jungkook nodded.

“I know,” he said with a shrug and Jimin’s eyebrows pulled together. 

“Do you deal with it as well?” He asked curiously and Jungkook just shrugged again.

“Not…” he trailed off as he thought about what to say, looking down at the frayed denim of his jeans. “Depression is pretty common in people who have autism, same with anxiety and a bunch of other things,” Jungkook’s nose twitched, because he knew the comorbidities all too well– sensory issues, OCD, difficulty sleeping , the list went on. “But–anxiety affects me more than depression. I, um–one of my hyungs can get depressed at times. His boyfriends help him a lot.” Hoseok was actually a lot like Jimin, he glowed like the sun most of the time, it was difficult to imagine him as depressed. Jungkook had visibly reacted the first time he had seen Hoseok sitting on the couch, his eyes dull and his expression blank, and Yoongi had needed to scold him gently about staring. 

“I’ve always been like this–for as long as I remember,” Jimin’s voice was quiet, and Jungkook shuffled around so that he could rest his arm on the couch and look up at Jimin properly. “There were times when I was a kid and I would just get sad , and my mother would get angry, because I just didn’t want to do anything all day, and I just cried and…” he broke off with a sigh. “It got really bad when I was in high school, and that’s when my appa took me to be diagnosed properly, and I managed it–it wasn’t…It wasn’t as bad once I started on medication, but…”

“Medication doesn’t fix everything,” Jungkook murmured and Jimin instantly nodded.

“Right?” Jimin said. “And–and I do all the things , you know? I make sure I get exercise and I try to get out in the sun every day and I drink water and–”

“It doesn’t make everything go away ,” Jungkook muttered. “It helps but it isn’t magic .”

“ Exactly ,” Jimin nodded emphatically, and he pushed away his bag of cheeseballs, licking his fingers clean quickly before shuffling around so he could face Jungkook. “And sometimes it gets bad, it just–it gets really fucking bad.”

“And this week was a bad week?” Jungkook asked curiously and Jimin sighed, rubbing his hand over his face, tugging at his hair that looked oily. 

“Yeah,” he sighed, and the way his face had lit up at the understanding that had been happening between them faded away again. “I’m really lucky that I work with Namjoonie now, he’s amazing .” Jungkook felt a twitch of something uncomfortable at Jimin’s open praise for a boss, but he quickly reminded himself that Namjoon was dating Jimin’s best friend. “I’ve been going in for the mornings and doing what I can, and then coming home in the afternoon’s–that’s why I didn’t see you for lunch,” he clenched his teeth. “I also–I didn’t know if you wanted to see me like this.” 

“What? Why?” Jungkook asked with a frown, sitting up straighter. 

“Well…” Jimin looked down at his fingers and pursed his lips. “Well, you know …I’m usually the one that does the talking, and I just–wasn’t in the best mood…” he trailed off again before coughing and letting out a half laugh, as though he was trying to break the attention. “And I wasn’t looking cute or anything,” he added. 

“You always look cute,” Jungkook replied before his brain could catch up with what he said, and he instantly felt his face flame red. Jimin’s eyes widened, but he started smiling, and his cheeks went pink, so it didn’t seem as though he had minded.

“Thanks,” he said after a few moments. “And, uh–thank you for telling me about your autism,” he added, sounding a bit tentative, and Jungkook froze for a moment as he flashed back to that moment of the conversation. 

“Oh, right,” his nose twitched and his fingers began to tap against the couch cushions as the topic of conversation turned to him. “Yeah.” 

“Taehyungie is autistic,” Jimin told him, and Jungkook blinked as he looked up, meeting Jimin’s eyes briefly before focussing on his lips, which were slightly chapped. “I kind of–I wondered if you were. Some, um–some things you do are similar to Taehyungie,” he still sounded a bit nervous, as though worried he was going to say the wrong thing. But Jungkook just nodded in a way he hoped was encouraging, hoping Jimin would continue. 

Some people thought it was a bad thing, when asking about autism, like there was something diseased with him. But there wasn’t . It was just part of him, and he liked when someone recognised that part of him. It made him feel seen a bit less like an outsider. It also explained why Jimin seemed to have adapted to him so easily when other people always took a long time–or they just never did, having no patience for him. 

“Just–you eat the same thing most days and you always have banana milk,” Jimin said. “And some of the things you say–nothing bad!” He quickly said and Jungkook couldn’t help his laugh, because he wasn’t offended by anything Jimin was saying. “Just…I don’t know. I did a lot of research into ASD when me and Taehyungie were first becoming friends, and then I’ve done a lot more since then, and I–yeah, I just wondered but I didn’t want to ask in case I was wrong.”

“I would have been okay if you asked,” Jungkook shrugged. “But I know–I know some people wouldn’t,” he added and Jimin nodded before he looked toward the bag of soup that Jungkook had brought in. 

“Should we eat?” He asked and even though none of the meals in the bag were Jungkook preferred options, he liked the chicken okay, he would have that. 

“Okay,” he agreed. 

Jimin had seemed a lot happier when Jungkook had left the other night, but he knew that didn’t mean Jimin was just– better . He was there until late, and Jimin had quietly offered the couch for him to stay but Jungkook declined. He needed a lot more preparation before he spent the night away from home, and he hadn’t seen Bam since that morning. Thankfully Soobin had already let him know that he and Yeonjun had taken him to the park that afternoon, but he still needed to get home to Bam. 

He also hadn’t been expecting this evening between him and Jimin, and while he didn’t regret a thing, he also just needed some space to process and be in a familiar, safe environment. 

Thankfully Jimin had understood, and just smiled, walking him to the door and asking if he could hug him. Jungkook had chewed his lips and nodded and then had to force himself to hug Jimin back because he was distracted by how strong and safe Jimin’s arms felt wrapped around him. 

He knew when he showed up at Yoongi, Seokjin and Hoseok’s apartment that they would ask about Jimin and what had happened on Friday. They all told each other everything, it was just a given that whatever information one of them held, the rest of them would know by morning, and Jungkook was unfortunately one of their favourite topics to discuss. Jungkook whined whenever they probed him about his love life, or cooed over how excited he got when they would rewatch Totoro , or when they would fuss over what meals he was eating–but he loved it. They were all predictable, and it barely took them fifteen minutes before Jimin came up. 

“So, the pretty boy,” Hoseok piped up before immediately looking across at Seokjin when their eldest hyung let out an unhappy sound. “The other pretty boy–the pretty boy who isn’t in this room!” He corrected himself as his eyes flicked over to where Yoongi was, looking a little pouty at the characterisation as well. “ Jungkook’s pretty boy ,” he settled for, and both his boyfriends appeared appeased while Jungkook protested.

“He’s not my pretty boy!”

“Not yet ,” Seokjin pointed out. 

“ Stop ,” Jungkook whined, and he couldn’t help the way he shifted his weight from foot-to-foot as he did so. He saw Yoongi and Hoseok exchange looks and their lips twitched with fondness, but then the conversation moved along.

“Come on, tell hyungs what happened on Friday,” Hoseok wrapped an arm around Jungkook and gave him a bit of a squeeze and that just really wasn’t fair. Because Hoseok gave the best hugs and he always smelt so good , they all knew it was his weakness. Bam had also completely abandoned him, snuggled up against Yoongi’s side, so Jungkook had never really stood a chance. 

He didn’t go into detail about everything he and Jimin had talked about, only that Jimin’s mental health hadn’t been doing good so he wasn’t working as much that week. All three of Jungkook’s looked a bit subdued by that comment, and Hoseok squeezed his shoulders again, although it was comforting rather than teasing this time. But he mentioned the good things, like how they had finished watching The Notebook together, and then afterwards Jimin had insisted Jungkook choose a movie, so he had put on the first Iron Man . Jimin had watched attentively the whole way through, and Jungkook had ended up on the couch after they had finished eating, curled up underneath the fluffiest blanket in Jimin’s pile.

Jimin seemed to prefer soft blankets, while Jungkook loved to stroke his hand across fluffy material, rubbing it between his fingertips, especially when he was doing something like watching TV. It was a good balance, Jungkook noted as he glanced between them before he had refocused on the TV. 

And then there was what felt the most important for Jungkook. 

“I told him I was autistic, and he said that he thought maybe I was,” he scrunched his nose and tapped the toes of his slippers together absently. “His best friend is autistic.”

“That makes sense,” Yoongi hummed and Jungkook looked over at him, but he was scratching behind Bam’s head and his face was turned away from Jungkook. 

“I like him,” Hoseok nodded his head firmly. 

“Of course you do–you like pretty things,” Yoongi smirked as he looked up and Seokjin let out another squawk from the kitchen as he was preparing dinner.

“ Ai ! Haven’t you collected enough pretty boys?” He cried out and Hoseok just grinned before leaning in to whisper against Jungkook’s ear. 

“You can never collect too many pretty boys,” he said, and Jungkook couldn’t help his giggle. “You should bring him around for Sunday dinner some time,” Hoseok said, giving Jungkook’s shoulder one last squeeze before stepping back. 

Thankfully the interrogation was over for the next few hours, as they all ate the incredible dinner that Seokjin had prepared–with a few, simple alterations to Jungkook’s meal which made it more enjoyable for him–and then settled in front of the TV to play Playstation. Jimin came up again, but it was less confronting when all of their attention was on the TV, rather than being able to feel their eyes all resting on Jungkook. It made it easier for Jungkook to talk, and he spoke about how Jimin had told him that he used to be an investigative accountant–and he enjoyed numbers and Math but apparently the environment had been terrible. Jungkook didn’t mention that Jimin had said he ended up having a complete meltdown after months and months of dealing with a bad bout of depression and he’d actually been fired, not quit. That wasn’t his part of the story to tell. But he did say that it was after that he began working at the plant shop with his best friends boyfriend. 

“Have you visited him at work?” Seokjin asked as his fingers smashed down on the buttons of his controller. “You know, since he always comes to see you?” Jungkook froze, and onscreen his car rolled right off the road and exploded at his inaction. 

“Oh,” he muttered. “I…No.” He remembered what Jimin had said about being unsure if Jungkook would want to see him, because Jimin was the one that usually carried the conversation, and then how every time they messaged other than when he made a point to follow up with Jimin on Friday, it was always Jimin who messaged first. And now he was getting another reminder of how much more effort Jimin was putting into their–not their relationship , but maybe their friendship.

“I should,” he murmured after a moment, and he heard the sound of protest from Seokjin, but he didn’t see the way Yoongi poked him in the side with a frown. Probably for making Jungkook a bit upset because Yoongi was always overprotective, but it was also good to hear these things, and Seokjin was usually the one that said it. Yoongi and Hoseok definitely prompted Jungkook to do things that he felt a bit uncomfortable with, like trying something new, but it was Seokjin who would blatantly ask things that made Jungkook stop and think. 

Jungkook appreciated that. 

Sometimes things that seemed normal to other people just didn’t occur to him, and he liked that he had a group of people that knew him well enough to help him in those ways, never with any judgement, only wanting to make things easier for him. 

Or to help him get a boyfriend, which was clearly their intent here. 

Jungkook really wasn’t sure about that part. Jimin was so beautiful, and lively, and kind to everyone, and cheerful most of the time, and talkative and–

Jungkook wasn’t any of that. 

But what he did know was that he definitely had a bit of a crush on ‘the pretty boy’, as Hoseok had called him. And when Hoseok’s other words echoed in his head– Jungkook’s pretty boy –it made his stomach feel like it was filled with knots and his cheeks felt hot. 

“Jiminie’s here!” Yoongi called out from the front of the shop and Jungkook’s head snapped up so quickly he almost smacked it on the shelves he was restocking. It was a Monday, and Jimin never came on a Monday. But he was there, and he looked–he looked a lot better than he had on Friday. Not that he had looked bad on Friday, he had just clearly not been feeling good. But right now, his eyes were brighter and his skin was shinier and his hair was styled and pushed back from his forehead, in a way that made him strikingly handsome. Jungkook almost tripped twice as he walked toward the front of the store. 

“My lunch isn’t for another ten minutes,” was the first thing he said, but Jimin didn’t seem put off by his words. 

“You can go now! Take a longer lunch!” Came a call from Yoongi and Jimin grinned with a scrunch of his nose. 

“Thanks, hyung!” He called back, even though it was Jungkook who was getting a longer lunch, so it should be him thanking Yoongi. 

They sat outside in their usual spot, and Jimin had brought a salad today while Jungkook ate his apple and ramen and drank his banana milk, and Jimin told him about how much better he’d been feeling that weekend. He went out with Taehyung and his dog, Yeontan, and Namjoon for a hike and apparently Yeontan had gone on strike halfway through and Taehyung had needed to carry him. He also mentioned he’d be working a couple of Saturday mornings in a row even though Namjoon said he didn’t have to make anything up to him, but he felt he owed Namjoon for being so understanding with him. 

“I think seeing you really helped pull me out of my head,” Jimin added when they only had a couple of minutes left together and Jungkook’s eyes jerked up from Jimin’s chin to meet his gaze. Jimin smiled and tilted his head to the side, nodding a couple of times. “I really appreciated you coming over on Friday.” Jungkook’s eyes widened before he was looking down at the fidget toy in his hands, his fingers beginning to work faster over the colourful poppers. 

“Oh, I–I liked Friday too,” he mumbled after a moment, unsure of what his response should be. He thought he said the wrong thing when there was silence from Jimin, but when he looked back up, Jimin was smiling, and his cheeks were pink. 

They sat in comfortable silence until it was time for them to both get back to work and then from the moment they parted and until Jungkook finally fell asleep that night, all he could think about was what he could have said. It sounded like maybe Jimin was giving him an opening for something more, and he should have taken it.

I liked Friday too .

“Oh my god ,” Jungkook groaned into his pillow in frustration and Bam’s head jerked up in surprise, tilting to the side so that his ears flopped adorably before he was shoving his nose into Jungkook’s shoulder. “It’s okay, I’m okay,” Jungkook reassured Bam, scratching behind his ears before his hand began to stroke down Bam’s back in repetitive motions that were soothing. “Next time,” he murmured under his breath, and he kept petting Bam until he fell asleep. 

He didn’t say anything the next time, or the time after that, or the time after that, as Jimin came to see him for lunch. His anxiety was spiking and he couldn’t stop stimming as he and Jimin sat at lunch together, his fingers playing with his fidgets, or rubbing at his earlobe, or his feet bouncing. He wondered if Jimin could sense his anxiety, but thankfully he didn’t say anything. 

In the end, it was a spur of the moment decision, which really wasn't Jungkook’s speciality at all but somehow it worked this time. 

It was on Saturday morning when he was walking Bam, his headphones on and his bucket hat pulled low over his eyes. It was overcast today, and Jungkook was wearing his typical oversized hoodie, and he was going to take his usual path when he settled for following Bam. Sometimes he would do that, allowing Bam to lead the way and follow his nose, and he would tug on Bam’s leash to take him home when he was tired of being in crowds. If it was up to him, he would spend his weekends completely indoors, but…That wasn’t exactly healthy, and that had been another reason that he had got Bam. He didn’t even realize that they were just a block away from where Jimin worked, the little plant shop that he would be at on this Saturday morning. 

Jungkook really didn’t believe in fate, but he heaved in a sharp breath and decided that if he was going to do it, he just needed to throw himself into it. Usually he hated that, he liked being able to weigh up his options and then act accordingly, in his own time, and especially when it included other people…Other people were always such an uncertain factor, and usually not for the positive.

But Jimin…Jimin had never given him a reason to doubt himself when it came to him. In fact it felt more the opposite.

And if he just kept overthinking it, he would talk himself out of it. He always did.

So he steered Bam in the direction of Jimin’s work, and tried not to let the knots in his stomach become too tight. He kept his eyes down and turned his music up and tried to think of the things he specifically wanted to say.

Unfortunately, nothing came to him and then he was standing directly outside the plant store. 

Bam tugged on his leash to keep going, but Jungkook came to a complete stop, off the side of the footpath so that he wasn’t in the way of others, and Bam circled him in confusion, but didn’t try to pull away again. Jungkook licked at his lips nervously and the hand that was wrapped around Bam’s leash tightened and loosened repeatedly as he tried to keep his breathing measured. There were people bustling by him, busy on their Saturday mornings, and he could feel himself getting more flustered each time he was bumped, and he knew he needed to move or step inside the store. 

He stepped into the store. 

“ Annyeong haseyo !” Came a call from somewhere in the back of the store in Jimin’s sweet voice and Jungkook’s free hand went up to his ear, tugging at the earlobe before stroking over one of the studs.

He still had no idea what to say.

He really didn’t like going into situations like this unprepared– any situation unprepared, really, even though therapy had long ago taught him that there was no possible way for him to be prepared for every situation. A lot of the times, he would just avoid a scenario all together if it made him nervous, even though he knew he couldn’t always do it, but he had long ago learnt that people weren’t usually kind if he was awkward and stuttering and floundering for something to say. Not everyone –he knew that–but a lot of people. And it was difficult to forget all the times that people had been unkind, especially his family, but Jimin felt different.

“Jungkook-ah!” Jimin came around from behind a large stand that was overflowing with plants. “And– aish , this must be Bam!” Bam’s ears instantly pricked forward at the sound of his name, and Jimin glanced up at Jungkook as he began to hold out his hand. “Can I…?” 

“Yeah,” Jungkook nodded. “Just–be slow.” Bam wasn’t a particularly big fan of strangers, at least not ones who thought that they could just touch his face and get in his space without letting him adjust. They were similar in that way. But Jungkook trusted Jimin, and as he expected, Jimin knelt down and held out his hand toward Jungkook, but he didn’t try to move forward, letting Bam sniff at him and move forward at his own pace. And that was exactly what Bam did after nosing at Jimin’s painted fingernails and then at his hand, shoving his snout into Jimin’s palm, eagerly asking for pets and Jimin giggled before doing exactly that. 

Jungkook felt his shoulders slump slightly, some of the tension leaving him at the way that Bam so eagerly accepted Jimin. 

“He likes you,” Jungkook didn’t even notice as he started smiling, watching as Bam moved in closer and bumped his nose against Jimin’s cheek, and Jimin didn’t appear to mind at all as his laughs got louder. 

His laughter kind of sounded like bells, sweet and tinkling. 

One of his earliest memories had been about his mother describing love, and talking about hearing the sound of bells when around the person he loved. Years later, he had asked her what the bells had sounded like, and she had been annoyed and confused, and then said she hadn’t been speaking literally , she meant that bells went off inside her head. Then she had scowled, because she had been getting annoyed a lot more frequently at him, something he had gotten used to.

Well, like with a lot of things, Jungkook had taken her literally. 

And Jimin’s laughter sounded like bells, and Bam liked him, and if he was ever one to believe in signs, this was probably it. 

“Jimin-ssi?” Jungkook began and Jimin looked up at him.

“I told you to call me hyung ,” Jimin replied, and he was right, he had, but hyung was always so familiar and Jungkook took a long time to work up to the point where he felt he knew someone well enough to call them that.

Jimin felt a bit different, though…

Although, it was also cute, the way Jimin scrunched up his nose and huffed a little every time he corrected Jungkook. He didn’t actually sound upset, it was just…Cute. Jungkook was pretty sure he wasn’t upset, it felt a bit like teasing, the kind he saw between Yoongi, Seokjin and Hoseok. 

“Jimin-ssi,” he repeated, kind of as a test, and it happened–Jimin’s nose wrinkled and he grumbled under his breath as he petted down Bam’s back before straightening up. Bam looked between them briefly before he was turning to look at the plants on a nearby shelf. “I-I wanted to ask you something,” his fingers curled nervously into his palms as he spoke, and Jimin tilted his head to the side, nodding as a prompt, his expression open and interested. “Would you-would you like to go for a walk with me and Bam sometime?” Jimin’s eyebrows pulled together in confusion for a moment before a smile slowly spread across his face.

“Are you asking me out on a date, Jungkookie?” He asked, and Jungkook hesitated for a moment, but Jimin’s smile was so bright and kind, and his eyes darted up to meet Jimin’s briefly, and he only saw sweetness. Bam sensed his nervousness and shifted in closer against Jungkook’s side, nudging at his hand with his cold nose. 

“Yes,” he murmured, feeling nerves twist in his stomach, his nails biting into his palm nervously as he waited for Jimin’s response. 

“Of course,” Jimin didn’t make him wait, his smile getting so wide, his eyes becoming adorably crescent-shaped. “Would you-I finish soon. Did you want to wait?” He asked, and Jungkook shook his head.

“No,” he replied before blinking once and quickly continuing. “I-I have to do my washing, and my grocery shopping,” he added. He tried to get the grocery shopping done on Saturdays, since it was one of his least favourite chores. He got most of his things delivered so he didn’t need to be in crowded stores with horrible overhead lighting, but when it came to meat and fresh vegetables, he liked to get them in person.

“Oh-well…I could come grocery shopping with you, if you want?” Jimin offered and Jungkook’s head jerked up in surprise. 

He hadn’t realize that was an option.

He actually really liked that option.

“I still have to do my washing,” he said before realizing he hadn’t communicated his earlier thought. “ Yes , please, but–my washing is in the dryer and it was going to be ready for the next load when I get home, and I was going to put it on before I went to the grocery store, so I need to–” he was rambling as he tried to explain himself, trying to rein himself in immediately but sometimes he just couldn’t stop himself. It was something that frustrated a lot of people, and something he had trained himself not to do often. Except when he was nervous, and Jimin made him feel simultaneously calm and nervous, all at once. 

“Jungkookie,” Jimin’s voice was sweet and understanding as he reached out a hand and briefly touched Jungkook’s arm before letting it fall back to his side. “How about you go and do your washing and take Bam home? And I’ll finish up here, you send me your address, and I’ll come and meet you when I’m done? That way we can leave when you’re ready.” Jungkook stared at him for a moment, his brain suddenly going calm at the very clear path ahead, Jimin putting it so easily into a plan.

“Okay,” he agreed with a nod. “Yeah, okay, that–yeah,” he nodded again. It felt so easy. 

It never really felt this easy, except maybe with Yoongi. 

But this was so different from being with Yoongi. 

“Okay,” he repeated and Jimin smiled.

“Okay,” he echoed back. 

Jungkook left shortly after, once he’d brought a plant that Jimin had insisted on giving him a discount on. He tucked the plant under one arm and held Bam’s lead with the other, and they started on their way home, Jungkook moving with more purpose than he had been before. His first load of washing in the dryer would be done, and it would be time to put his sheets in, and then by the time he and Jimin finished his shopping, his bedding would be done and he could get that folded, and maybe he would end up showering and eating dinner a bit later than expected, but that was okay on the weekend. And it was also okay because he was suddenly spending time with Jimin, which he hadn’t been expecting. 

Sometimes grocery shopping could end up being too overwhelming and he put it off if it was a bad day, but today was good. Jimin had briefly come into his apartment, before they had left together for the grocery store. Jungkook had originally only slipped one Loop into his left ear, rather than in both, not wanting to put it in the ear beside Jimin and miss anything he said. But Jimin caught a glimpse of it at some point and encouraged him to use them. 

“Taehyungie has those,” he said with a smile. “And I got a pair for when we got to concerts, I’ve never had a headache the morning after using them!” Jungkook hadn’t been able to stop his smile as he slipped the other bud into the ear, the world quieting just a little around him. Enough that slightly uncomfortable itch at his skin that occurred when there was so much conflicting noise surrounding him went away, making things a whole lot more manageable. 

Jimin chattered a lot as they shopped, but he didn’t seem to expect Jungkook to reply much. When he did, he purposefully touched Jungkook’s arm to draw his full attention, and Jungkook appreciated the way he just laid his hand on Jungkook’s arm, not tugging on his clothes or poking at him. He didn’t rush Jungkook when he was taking his time deciding on which chicken he wanted to get, or when he was very purposefully taking a longer way around when there were more people in the direct path. 

And then afterwards, when he walked Jungkook back to his apartment, he didn’t linger for too long either. Instead, he asked if they could do this again–except actually walk Bam next time. 

“I walk Bam tomorrow, around the same time that I did today,” Jungkook blurted out. “I could–I could meet you somewhere? We could take him to the park together?” He asked and Jimin smiled.

“I’d like that,” Jimin replied and Jungkook’s eyes lifted from the curve of Jimin’s upper lip to meet his eyes, and Jimin’s smile seemed to brighten at that. “Thank you for coming to see me today, Jungkook-ah.” 

“Thank you for coming with me to do my shopping… Hyung ,” Jungkook replied after a moment and Jimin puffed out his chest with pride, and maybe he was trying to make himself look bigger, but he just looked really, really cute.

“Of course,” Jimin replied. “I’ll see you tomorrow.” 

They started seeing each other more often outside of work after that–most weekends, actually. For the first few weekends, Jimin was working the Saturday morning that the shop was open, and so he and Jungkook met on Sunday’s instead, taking Bam for long walks, going out for a hike one of those times. 

On their third walk together, Jimin had asked if he could touch Jungkook, and Jungkook had agreed, and Jimin had linked their arms together as they walked. It was comfortable, and Bam clearly approved given the way he ran back to sniff at both of them before running forward again to lead the way. The next time, Jimin asked right from the start if he and Jungkook could hold hands, and Jungkook had shyly nodded, and then the time after that, Jungkook had been the one to ask, reaching out his hand tentatively toward Jimin, and Jimin had taken it happily. 

Sometimes it made things difficult when Jungkook had the urge to stim, a rush of energy or excitement going through him, and his hands want to flap, or reach up to play with his hair or his earrings, but he had learnt how to control that a long time ago.

Jimin figured it out, though. 

Jungkook didn’t even notice the way that Jimin watched him, which said a lot, given it was so often that it felt as though there was a physical weight blanketing over his body from the eyes of those around him. But Jimin noticed a lot, and he seemed to realize one afternoon when they were at the dog park and there were so many dogs running around happily that Jungkook was resisting the urge to stim. Maybe it was also because Jungkook’s hand kept twitching in Jimin’s, but eventually, Jimin bumped his shoulder gently against Jungkook’s.

“Do you not like to stim in public?” He asked softly and Jungkook froze for a moment, even though by now he had heard Jimin casually use language that wasn’t so common. It was clear that what Jimin had said earlier was true, that he had done a lot of his own research into ASD and asked his best friend a lot of questions. He knew enough not to assume Jungkook’s boundaries or limitations, but he always seemed to be prepared for them. 

“I, uh–” Jungkook blinked at the question, and he purposefully stilled his hand in Jimin’s, hoping that he wasn’t upsetting the other man. “N-not really,” he replied quietly. “No.” 

“Why not?” Jimin was frowning at him, and it made Jungkook chew down on his bottom lip nervously. He had gotten good at picking on microexpressions and allocating them to a mood, but sometimes there were expressions he couldn’t understand. He wasn’t sure if Jimin was angry at him, because he had been smiling just a few moments ago. 

“I just…” Jungkook swallowed, and he didn’t even notice when his right foot started tapping. 

“Has someone told you that you shouldn’t?” Jimin asked, and the frown was still there. 

“Yes,” Jungkook nodded honestly. “A lot of people.” Jimin’s grip on his hand was suddenly tightening, and then he was moving to stand in front of Jungkook, and Jungkook could feel how intently Jimin was looking at him, and it definitely felt as though Jimin wanted him to meet his eyes. Jungkook focussed in between his eyebrows, glancing occasionally into Jimin’s brown eyes. 

“That’s bullshit, Jungkook-ah,” Jimin’s voice was firm, and it was definitely angry. Jungkook had never seen Jimin angry before, and the hand that Jimin wasn’t holding started to flap nervously back and forth at his side. “I’m sorry anyone said that to you. That’s bullshit .” Jungkook blinked.

Jimin didn’t seem angry at him . 

“I…It’s okay?” Jungkook replied after a moment, unsure of what to say. “It’s—”

“It’s not okay, Jungkook-ah!” Jimin cried out and Jungkook blinked, his head jerking back slightly at how upset Jimin sounded. “I–” he suddenly broke off, and Jungkook’s eyes flicked to look directly into Jimin’s, except they had already dropped, looking down at where his and Jungkook’s hands were touching. “Sorry,” he shook his head and let go of Jungkook’s hand. “Sorry, that’s not fair.”

“Fair?” Jungkook echoed in confusion. 

“I get–I get kind of worked up at the idea of people forcing others to act different or–or mask,” Jimin muttered. “Taehyungie used to get teased in school, and people would tell him to act normal ,” Jimin looked genuinely pissed off as he hissed the words out, and Jungkook could strangely feel himself starting to smile. “Taehyungie would always tell me to stop, and that it would just make it worse, and I hated that–that wasn’t what I wanted, but–but people can’t just be horrible like that, you know? You just can’t,” Jimin’s voice had raised and a couple of people nearby were looking at them, but Jungkook didn’t care. 

It was nice hearing Jimin so passionate about protecting his friend. 

Maybe if he’d had a friend like Jimin back in school, being a child and teenager wouldn’t have been so difficult for him. 

“But I–” Jimin shook his head, and he seemed to realize that his voice had raised and he gave a half smile, Jungkook watching him closely, as the way he held himself and the look on his face became rueful. “It wasn’t my place to do that either, you know? Not to the extent I did. It should have been Taehyungie’s choice how he dealt with those people, and I should have just supported him. It’s just–it’s difficult for me just to watch people get hurt? And…And for something that hurts no one? That literally just makes you feel better, and more comfortable in your skin?” Jimin sighed. “It’s so stupid.” 

Jimin was completely correct. 

It was stupid.

Jungkook found it so incredibly hard to imagine being someone who didn’t feel affected by the loud sounds, or didn’t feel the need to stim at all, and yet he was expected to. No one was expected to understand how he felt, he was the one who had to adjust. 

He was always the one that had to adjust, that had to contort himself to fit into the expectations of others. 

“My parents are important people,” he decided to say instead. “And they didn’t like it when I was– distracting .” That was the word they would always use, but he knew that they wanted to say something harsher, sharper. As he had gotten older, he’d heard those words from others. He’d even heard them from his parents, when they thought he was out of earshot, or they simply didn’t consider that he was listening. He’d been trained to be quieter and smaller, and when he had gone to school, and students were even crueller than his family, he had shrunk even more. 

Yoongi had helped him come out of his shell a bit, and so had Hoseok and Seokjin, but that didn’t stop the damage that had already happened years ago, and the habits that he had picked up on over the years. Or–the habits to suppress himself. 

“I think Taehyung was very lucky to have you,” he finished with a firm nod. “I would have felt a lot stronger with a friend like you by my side,” he met Jimin’s eyes briefly when he said that, hoping that it made his point clear, and it seemed it was, because Jimin was smiling again.

“Well, I’m here now, right?” Jimin murmured and his hand was finding Jungkook’s again, Jungkook gripping his back firmly. Jimin shuffled to move until he was standing at Jungkook’s side again, both of them looking out at where Bam was playing with a smaller dog. “But…Maybe not just as your friend,” he added quietly, and Jungkook’s eyes widened, glancing to look at Jimin, but Jimin was just smiling, and looking ahead. 

Jungkook liked it when things moved slow. Not glacial , but with enough time that he could process everything that was happening, so that he was at least somewhat aware of where the direction they were moving in. It gave time to understand and put his years of studying people and their patterns and reactions to good use. 

Except that wasn’t working this time. 

He was getting impatient. 

“You okay over there?” Yoongi had an amused expression on his face, and Jungkook blinked as he looked over at him, wondering how long he had been standing there. He was swaying back and forth, his hands clenching and unclenching at his side as he stared blankly at a wall of records–mostly filled with Yoongi’s favourites that Jungkook had made sure to listen to over the years. 

“I’m fine,” Jungkook said automatically by way of response, and wasn’t even thinking about how Yoongi was going to react. It caught up quickly though, when there was a gentle flick to his ear. “Ow,” he mumbled, and he forced himself to stop swaying, his nose twitching from side to side. “Sorry,” he muttered. 

“You know I always know something is wrong when you say fine , right?” Yoongi replied, and his lips quirked into a small smirk that Jungkook knew was more teasing than mean. 

“Mm,” he hummed, because Yoongi had told him that before, many times. He didn’t stop doing it, though, not like when other people pointed things out about him and he then tried to force himself not to do ever again. Maybe it was because he didn’t mind that Yoongi knew his tell and would probe for him to talk. Maybe it was also because he knew that if he didn’t want to talk about it, Yoongi would never make him. 

“What’s going on, Koo?” Yoongi asked, but he had started to busy himself with rearranging something on the shelf so that his full attention wasn’t on Jungkook. It made it easier for him to talk when there weren’t eyes directly on him. 

“I…” he didn’t really know how to put everything he was thinking into words. He could say it simply; he didn’t know what he and Jimin were, and he didn’t want to ruin it by asking. But he already knew Yoongi’s response; he should trust Jimin and just talk to him. It sounded simple, but it wasn’t. When he was nervous, sometimes he could say stupid things–blunt to the point of almost harsh–and that was the last thing he wanted to do. Although, it was undeniable that he would see that side of Jungkook at some point if they were still friends…

That if rung loud in his head, because he really just couldn’t get his mind around the fact that someone as lovely and kind and beautiful as Jimin would really want to be friends with him, muchless more than friends. 

“Jimin,” he eventually said and Yoongi hummed under his breath. 

“Why don’t you invite him over for dinner on Sunday?” He asked and Jungkook’s fingers instantly started curling and uncurling again, nails pressing firmly into his palms as he thought through Yoongi’s suggestion. He was quickly finding that he was really enjoying any time that he was able to spend with Jimin so his first instinct was to say yes. But Sunday nights were also always a safe space for him to reset with people who knew him well, and he couldn’t help but be worried about how it would be with Jimin there. Not because he thought that Jimin wouldn’t like Yoongi, Seokjin and Hoseok, just that…They were all very important to him. The idea of them all coming together on his favourite night of the week just made him nervous. 

But maybe that was a good thing. Or, not a good thing that he felt like his stomach was going to twist into knots and he would feel like throwing up because he was so nervous, which he would definitely feel on Sunday if Jimin agreed. 

But sometimes good things required doing things that made them nervous. Hoseok had told him that before they had gone on a rollercoaster–Jungkook’s first time. Jungkook had loved it. Hoseok had clung to his arm and refused to ride with Jungkook a second time. 

There were foods that Seokjin had cooked him that he had been hesitant about, and some of them he didn’t like, but others he really did, and he wouldn’t have tried them without encouragement from Seokjin. It was also the lack of judgement when it came to him trying new things; if he didn’t like them, Seokjin wouldn’t huff and get annoyed at him. He usually had a separate meal prepared for him in case he didn’t, or Jungkook would just help himself to ramen while Yoongi, Seokjin and Hoseok had their meal. He liked that.

And Yoongi had probably pushed him out of his comfort zone the most, when he was back in college and he was scared of everything and everyone. Yoongi had looked intimidating, even though Jungkook knew that concept was hilarious now, but he had always looked like an angry kitten with his hair dyed various shades, and a beanie constantly pulled down low over his eyes. And yet Yoongi had pulled him in, and had forced him to open up–just a little at a time–and now he had friends, and a job he liked. 

Sometimes scary things were good. 

“Okay,” he agreed.

He planned on rehearsing what he needed to say that evening, because Jimin didn’t usually come on a Wednesday, but then he did , and Yoongi gave him a long look as he was leaving. Yoongi’s expression really didn’t give anything away but Jungkook could guess what he was thinking. 

He was distracted the whole time he and Jimin were sitting there, and even though Jimin usually carried the conversation, Jungkook knew that he wasn’t paying anywhere near the same attention he usually did, and he missed a few of Jimin’s questions. 

“Jungkook-ah?” Jimin’s voice was tentative and Jungkook blinked, looking up from where he had been tracing an invisible pattern on the table, over and over again with the tip of his finger, his eyes fixing on Jimin’s upper lip. “Are you…Okay? Did you, uh, did you want a quiet lunch today?” He asked and Jungkook’s eyes darted up to Jimin’s. He noticed the way Jimin’s eyes were darting from side-to-side, scanning over Jungkook’s face, and the way his upper teeth began nibbling at his lower lip. He was nervous, or maybe upset, and Jungkook instantly felt his heartbeat quicken, instantly wondering if it was his fault, if he was the reason that Jimin was looking that way. 

“Yes! No–I mean, I’m okay, yes–s-sorry, hyung,” Jungkook stumbled over his words, and was relieved when he could instantly see a positive reaction from Jimin. His sunny smile came back and he nodded, receiving Jungkook’s words easily, the way he usually did. “I, um…” it was Jungkook’s turn to chew down on his bottom lip, and his eyes dropped down to the table, his finger beginning to retrace the same pattern he had been following before. “I wanted to ask you something,” he said and out of the corner of his eye, he saw Jimin straighten up. “I–well, hyung asked–I mean, he suggested–” Jungkook broke off and shook his head, and let out an awkward laugh at the way he was tripping over his words.

This was exactly why he had wanted to rehearse before asking Jimin. 

Everything felt jumbled up and didn’t come out quite right, and that had been something that had been a problem his entire life. 

Jimin didn’t laugh, though, and when Jungkook peeked upward, Jimin was just smiling kindly at him and waiting patiently, his chin propped up on one of his dainty hands. 

“I have dinner at hyung’s house every Sunday,” Jungkook began again. “With Yoongi, and his boyfriends.” He had already told Jimin about Seokjin and Hoseok–he had talked about how Hoseok danced, and Jimin had mentioned he used to love dancing when he was younger, and it had just reaffirmed his earlier thought that Hoseok and Jimin would probably get along really well. “And Yoongi asked if you would like to come this Sunday.” 

“Do you want me to come, Jungkook-ah?” Jimin asked after a moment, and Jungkook looked up, his index finger finally pausing its tracing. 

“Yes,” he nodded his head firmly, and Jimin’s smile widened. 

“Then yes, I would love to come,” he said. “Should I meet you at your place? Or should I meet you there?” 

“Um–” Jungkook hadn’t thought that through. “I can pick you up,” he said, hoping he didn’t blush. It sort of felt like a date, even though there wasn’t quite that pressure of it being a date, even though right now he didn’t think his heart would be able to handle that kind of pressure. 

“Yeah?” Jimin looked surprised but happy, bouncing in his seat in an adorable way that had Jungkook biting his lip for a whole other reason, trying to hold back his wide smile that would show off his ‘bunny teeth’. Hoseok cooed over them and his big smile, but he had been mocked for them a lot too. “Okay! That sounds great!” 

Like so many things, it was easy. Jimin just made it easy. 

The plans developed a little more as the week went on. Jimin came for lunch on Tuesday, and Thursday. On Thursday, he had asked more about Yoongi, Seokjin and Hoseok and about their relationship, and what they meant to Jungkook. He mentioned that they sounded like they meant to Jungkook what Taehyung and Namjoon meant to him.

“Do you think…” Jimin began tentatively, glancing over at Jungkook as he slowly dipped a piece of sushi in sauce, looking nervous as he asked his question. “Do you think it would be okay if they came as well?” Jungkook’s eyes widened in surprise. “I just–it’s totally fine if you think it wouldn’t be okay, I was–” 

“No, no, I–” Jungkook hadn’t been expecting the question, and he was thrown off guard momentarily. But then he thought about what Jimin was asking, and thankfully Jimin let him think, and how if he was meeting the most important people to Jimin, he would definitely want someone there that was familiar to him . Of course Jimin would want that to. That made sense. “It will be–I’m sure it’ll be okay,” he didn’t want to give a firm answer just yet though. It didn’t feel right just inviting more people over to someone else's home, even though he had a feeling Yoongi would just roll his eyes and reprimand him lightly. “Can I answer tomorrow?” He would ask Yoongi, and then also check in with Seokjin–since he was the one that would be doing all the cooking. 

“Of course!” Jimin’s eyes glittered happily and Jungkook couldn’t help but sway from side-to-side in his seat, always feeling as though there were fireflies in his stomach when he was the one to make Jimin so visibly happy.”And–and I understand, if it’s last minute, and it’s too much–for any of you.” Jungkook wondered if Jimin was saying that to leave things open ended, so Jungkook didn’t need to admit if he was going to find it too overwhelming. “Just–let me know tomorrow, that sounds perfect.” He reached over, his hand hovering over Jungkook’s momentarily, giving Jungkook an opportunity to pull back.

He didn’t, and Jimin laid his hand briefly over Jungkook’s. It was nice, having the connection, and it was also a relief when Jimin pulled back after not too long.

Jungkook liked how he did that. 

He liked how Jimin did a lot of things. 

And he wanted to meet the people that were most important to him. 

In the security of his hyungs apartment, it would probably be the best place. It was a safe and familiar place, but he also had the availability to leave, to escape back to his own home if things became overwhelming. 

He was still nervous, but he was feeling a lot more excited than he expected.

As he had expected, Yoongi had immediately replied that Jimin’s friends could come along. He then obviously told Seokjin before Jungkook had–which Jungkook found out just a few hours later when he finished working and checked his phone to see that there were several messages waiting for him in the groupchat he had with his hyungs. 

Of course your boy can bring his friends, Jungkook-ah! 

Introduce us to the pretty boy’s friends! The more the merrier! 

Don’t leave him hanging, let him know tonight

Jungkook looked over his shoulders to where Yoongi was finishing stacking things up, and he felt a rush of affection. 

He was incredibly lucky to have them–all of them.

And now Jimin. 

He did as Seokjin had prompted him in the groupchat, and he messaged Jimin and told him what had been said. Jimin sent back a range of emoji’s that made Jungkook smile, and then after he put his phone down, he tried not to spiral too much. 

It didn’t help, given how quickly plans had developed just in the past couple of days, and he found himself stuck in analysis paralysis, sitting on the floor beside his bed, running his fingers through the fluffy rug beneath him and rocking back and forth slowly. Bam whined a few times before curling up at his side, bumping his head against Jungkook’s arm, which eventually broke him out of the spiral and prompted him to get up. His head was still too busy, running through all the possible way that things could go wrong this Sunday, but he forced himself to move, one foot in front of the other. 

Feeding Bam was the priority, and he made himself do that, and he really wasn’t feeling like anything at all , but he forced himself to have some yoghurt. He drank the Yakult as he walked slowly around his living room, following in the same path over and over again as he circled around the back of the couch, and his footstool, and then in front of the coffee table before beginning to circle all over again. After Bam finished his food, he followed after Jungkook, patiently wandering after him and occasionally boofing his head against the back of Jungkook’s calf. He was familiar with Jungkook’s pacing, and wasn’t at all concerned, and he patiently plodded after Jungkook when their pattern finally broke, and Jungkook went back to the kitchen, throwing away his rubbish before heading to the shower. 

The burning hot water of his shower helped break him out of the cycling thoughts his brain was running through; ranging from Jimin just straight up cancelling before dinner, and to things going terribly and Jimin storming out of the dinner, refusing to talk to him ever again. None of the thoughts were logical, he knew that everything he was thinking were worst-case scenarios that he was allowing to spiral out of control, because that's just how his brain worked. At times like this, he hated it. It had been overwhelming when he was younger, before he’d had any proper understanding of himself, and when he was only surrounded by people who looked at him with negativity. 

There had never been someone as beautiful and charming as Jimin who had been interested in him– genuinely interested in him. There had been a handful of people over the years that had found it funny to pretend to be interested in him, and even a couple who actually had been genuinely friendly but…Once they had gotten closer to him and noticed some of his ‘quirks’ they had backed off quickly. He preferred that, to the people who were just teasing him, and taking advantage of his own naivety just to laugh at him, but it was still lonely. 

Being with Yoongi and Seokjin and Hoseok, it was the first real sense of belonging he’d ever felt. He’d had a bit of a crush on Yoongi when they had first met, just because Yoongi was so cool and he spoke so gruffly but with care and he was really, really cute –Jungkook had never stood a chance. But then he had met Seokjin, and afterwards Hoseok, and the three of them just worked so perfectly together. They brought different things to the relationship, and they complemented each other so well, and somehow they still had some love left over to encompass Jungkook. 

There had been a few people over the years, after leaving college, and returning to therapy at the encouragement of Yoongi–a therapist that he sought out and chose himself, not his parents–but there had never been anyone serious . He’d had sex a few times, but those were all awkward instances–at least for him–and he never felt all that great after. The sex itself was fine, but he didn’t like the awkwardness that came over, the expectation of a sleepover in a strange place, or someone strange staying at his place. 

It had been a while since he’d had one of these moments. 

He fell asleep after his shower and his nightly routine, but he woke up a few times, and by the morning, he just felt horrible. Lethargic and drained and absolutely not in a headspace to be around people. 

It was a good thing Yoongi understood that, and the moment Jungkook walked in the door with headphones on, his bucket hat and his hoodie pulled up and over that, with sunglasses on and his head tipped toward the ground, he knew what kind of day it was for Jungkook. His head wasn’t even stuck on Jimin–and Taehyung, and Namjoon–for the upcoming weekend. Once he was stuck in a loop, he just continued to spiral, and now he was in that place where everything just became too much–sounds, sights, sensations. Leaving his apartment was a whole thing on it’s own when he had days like that, and going to work and interacting with customers was enough to completely run him out of spoons. 

Yoongi ushered him into the pack to clean while he handled the front of shop, and Jungkook was relieved to leave his headphones on and zone out as he methodically took things off the shelves, cleaned them down and then replaced everything tidily. Everything else felt far too tiring to even consider , and that was why he was so grateful to Yoongi. When he felt overwhelmed like this, he hated it when people made him feel incompetent or useless because he wasn’t , he just…He needed some accommodations, was all. 

He completely forgot about Jimin, he just wasn’t thinking about anything other than what was right in front of him. 

Jimin didn’t always come on a Friday and Jungkook honestly just wasn’t even thinking about the time or lunch as he busied himself and turned his music up loud. It wasn’t until there was a small hand with chipped blue nail polish tentatively waving a hand in front of his face that he realized someone was addressing them, looking up with a scowl to see Jimin standing there with a hesitant smile. Jungkook’s eyes widened, looking down as he pulled his phone out to see that it was past his usual lunch time. 

“Hi,” Jimin’s voice was soft, softer than usual, which was soothing to Jungkook as he pushed his headphones up and looked tentatively back up at Jimin. 

“Hi,” Jungkook echoed. 

He didn’t want to have lunch with Jimin.

It sounded cruel, and he knew he shouldn’t say those words out loud, and he really hoped he wouldn’t have to, but he didn’t want to have lunch with Jimin. 

“I–I brought you this,” Jimin was suddenly holding out a small bottle of banana milk. Jungkook’s hand fluttered at his side, wanting to reach out and take it, because he always wanted banana milk, but it felt rude to take it if he didn’t want to share a meal with Jimin.  

“I…” he couldn’t help but look back over Jimin’s shoulder, to where Yoongi was half-pretending not to be paying them attention. 

“It’s okay, I know today isn’t a good day,” Jimin said quietly, still proffering the drink to him. “Low spoons?” Jungkook let out a heavy, relieved breath he didn’t realize he had been holding before he reached out and took the banana milk gently from him. 

“Thank you,” he murmured. 

“It’s okay,” Jimin replied. “I understand.” And a lot of people said that, but even though Jimin couldn’t properly comprehend what Jungkook was going through, he understood better than most people. And his off-handed use of the word ‘spoons’– referring to spoon theory, an incredibly easy way for someone like Jungkook to communicate their energy and capability levels–made Jungkook even more comfortable. 

“Thank you,” he repeated quietly.

He really hoped that this wasn’t making Jimin doubt the Sunday night dinner, but he didn’t have it in him to have that conversation now. 

“I’ll see you on Sunday, okay?” Jimin said with another gentle smile, as though he was able to read his mind. Jungkook found his shoulders untensing even more, and even though Jimin’s words didn’t fix everything , they fixed enough. They soothed something inside Jungkook–similar to how Jimin always seemed to do. “Bye, Kookie,” he didn’t try to touch Jungkook like he usually did–touching his shoulder or his elbow or sometimes his hand. Jimin liked touch, that was incredibly obvious–not just from observing him and the way he was so naturally tactile, but also because Jimin was very upfront about it. He spoke about how that had been something difficult between him and Taehyung for a long time, until they both understood one another, and each other more with time. 

And Jimin seemed to be doing a lot to try and understand Jungkook as well. 

And it strangely made Jungkook want to break down in tears after his shitty sleep last night and how tense he had felt all day and the headache that had been building at the base of his skull. 

“Hey,” Yoongi tapped his foot on the floor in front of Jungkook, trying to catch his attention as he stared down at his hands, at the banana milk that he was still holding. When he looked up, his vision was blurry with tears and Yoongi’s expression shifted a little as he knelt down in front of Jungkook, making sure not to crowd him. “Hey, how about you call it an early day, huh? It’s always quieter on a Friday.” That was a lie–Friday afternoon was one of their busiest afternoons of the week. 

But he knew Yoongi would probably call Seokjin and ask him to help–and Seokjin would whine and complain but he loved making himself useful for any of his boyfriends. 

Jungkook felt bad that he was leaving, as though he was letting Yoongi down, but if Yoongi was telling him that he could go…Jungkook wasn’t going to turn down that opportunity.  His fingers squeezed around the bottle of banana milk as he got to his feet and nodded gratefully. 

“Thank you, hyung,” he mumbled. 

“It’s okay, Jungkook-ah,” Yoongi replied with a wave of his hand, already heading back toward the counter. “Give Bam a hug from me.” 

On Sunday, Jungkook was trying to contain his nerves, and he ended up taking Bam for a hike in the morning to try and clear his head, and once he’d had his shower after getting home, he was able to completely zone out as he played Elden Ring . Bam kept him company, completely worn out from their long walk, and then Jungkook’s alarm went off when he had plenty of time to get ready to go for dinner. Usually he didn’t care what he wore when he went over to his hyungs place for dinner. 

It was different this time, though, because Jungkook had spent so long picking out his outfit the day before–something nice but that was completely comfortable. He had laid it all out over the chair in the corner of his room so that it was one less thing for him to worry about and stress over before going, and he was thankful for that today after he showered and walked into his room and saw the clothes laying there. It was just a pair of sweatpants and a white shirt with a hoodie, but they were his nice sweatpants, and one of his newest graphic hoodies that he had unpicked the tag on when he had first gotten it, and was so, so soft on the inside. 

Jungkook changed and then stared at his reflection in the mirror, wondering if he should put some makeup on. He had makeup–it had been something he had always thought was pretty but had never really touched when he was younger because that really wasn’t something that his parents would be happy about–but Hoseok had taught him a lot. Even Yoongi liked wearing makeup sometimes, mainly around his eyes and a little bit of lipgloss. He decided against it today, though, because sometimes he hated the way makeup felt on his face, like it was all sticky and thick on his cheeks, and the last thing that he wanted tonight was to add anything that might make him feel overwhelmed. 

And he was incredibly happy with that decision once he and Bam got into his car and started driving over to his hyungs apartment, because he could already feel clamminess on his skin and the way his heart started beating faster. His fingers were twitching and he was swaying back and forth in the drivers seat the closer he and Bam got to the apartment, finding a parking spot in his usual place around the block from where they lived. 

“Okay, Bam, okay,” he mumbled under his breath after the engine of his car was turned off and he was trying to psych himself up to get out. “Okay, okay, okay, okay, okay,” he repeated, nodding as he took in deep breaths, and Bam bounced a few times in the passenger side, all too understanding of how long it could take Jungkook to get out of the car and go into a social gathering. “Okay–we’re good, Bam, right? We’re good,” he exhaled shakily and Bam nudged at his face and his arm and Jungkook nodded. “We’re good,” he repeated to himself, finally reaching for where he was keeping Bam’s leash. Just as he was about to click it onto Bam’s collar, his phone vibrated in his pocket, and he paused to pull it out.

Hey, Jungkookie!! We’re almost there! I can’t wait to see you!!

It was Jimin, and his message made Jungkook smile even though his stomach was still tight with tension.

Oh, and TaeTae said to tell you it’s okay if you want to leave early, because him and Joonie probably will as well. Meeting new people can be a lot! 

Jungkook stared down at the message, and he couldn’t help but feel his body slump forward and rest his forehead against the steering wheel. 

Maybe it would seem like a small thing to a lot of people, but that reassurance from Jimin meant so much . More than he could convey through text, but he tried.

thank you xx

He was glad that his first time meeting the people who were so important to Jimin he wasn’t going to be alone, facing three people who knew each other so well. He was never very good when it came to meeting new people, especially when it felt as though there was so much riding on the meeting going well. He was also glad that Jimin already seemed to understand that there was a good chance he was going to want to leave early, to escape to somewhere familiar. He had Bam with him as well, who always helped to ground him. 

“Jungkookie!” Hoseok greeted him with a wide smile as he opened their apartment door, before his attention completely focussed on Bam. “Bammie!” He crowed and Bam bounced on his leash excitedly, although he didn’t move from Jungkook’s side until Jungkook reached down to unhook his leash and then gave him the signal. Hoseok, Yoongi and Seokjin were some of the people that Bam was most comfortable around, and he had been to their apartment more times that Jungkook could count. 

He galloped inside and Hoseok ran after him while Jungkook shut the door behind him and took off his shoes, helping himself to the slippers that were reserved specifically for him. They were fluffy and blue and he wiggled his toes before continuing into the apartment. 

Jimin arrived not long after with Namjoon and Taehyung, and Hoseok was the one who once again opened the door, Jungkook trailing behind him, nervously tugging his sleeves down over his hands. Hoseok greeted the three people he had never met before so easily, which was something that Jungkook was envious of, but then Jimin’s eyes found him, and Jungkook gaze met his briefly before they dropped to look at Jimin’s cute nose, and then down to his pink lips.

They were shiny and a bit redder than usual, like he was wearing a coloured gloss. 

They were so pretty–all of Jimin was so pretty. 

“Jungkookie!” Jimin called out to him, his voice pitching upward in excitement, and Hoseok stepped aside to let the trio into the house. Jungkook’s eyes skimmed over the two men behind Jimin–he knew which one was Namjoon, and which one was Taehyung, based on photos that he had seen–but then his focus was back on Jimin, who moved to stand right in front of him. “Can I hug you?” Jimin asked quietly, clearly not trying to draw attention from anyone else, but Jungkook saw Hoseok’s lips twitch like when he was trying not to laugh at one of Seokjin’s bad jokes. It wasn’t a mean laugh, it was fond and amused. 

“Yeah,” he dipped his head in a quick nod, and when Jimin stepped forward and wrapped his arms around him, he felt his whole body relax into Jimin’s touch. Jimin was smaller than him, but he was so strong, and his hug was all encompassing. They were interrupted when Bam reappeared, nudging his way in between them with his damp nose, and Jimin let out a delighted sound. 

It was so bright, like a sunflower bursting to life on a summer's day. 

Jungkook always wanted to hear those happy sounds from Jimin.

“It's Bam!” Jimin cried out as he dropped down to his knees and held a hand out toward Bam, who leaned forward and sniffed at his fingers eagerly before bumping his head against Jimin’s hand as he recognized him. “Oh, you’re so sweet,” Jimin murmured. “Oh you’re so sweet, pretty baby.” Bam liked Jimin, he enjoyed every walk they took together and he was clearly happy that Jimin was here now. 

Jungkook understood, and as usual, of course he and Bam were on the same side. 

Seokjin and Yoongi had prepared an amazing dinner, like they always did, and it was a bit louder than usual given there were more people than normal around the dinner table, but Jungkook didn’t mind. He participated in some of the conversation, but for most of it he was quiet, happy to observe those around the table. Namjoon and Jimin talked as much as Seokjin and Hoseok did, and Jungkook’s feet tapped happily on the floor as he watched his friends get along well with Jimin and his friends. Yoongi was quiet to begin with, he didn’t speak as much as his boyfriends did, especially around new people, but he seemed to warm up to their new acquaintances. It felt like an important moment, and occasionally when his eyes drifted over to Taehyung, he noticed Taehyung smiling and swaying back in his seat happily. 

He recognised the soothing motion, and when Taehyung’s eyes flicked over to him a few times, there were brief looks of understanding exchanged before they were looking away. 

After dinner, Jungkook and Jimin were waved into the kitchen to do the clean up, and Bam kept them company for all of ten seconds before he trotted out to get attention from the men in the lounge. 

“What do you prefer? Washing or drying?” Jimin asked with a smile, and Jungkook immediately nodded to the sink. 

“Washing,” he stated. 

“Oh really? Perfect,” Jimin smiled widely, showing off his cute, crooked front tooth. “I hate washing.” 

They worked well together–Jimin hummed under his breath as he swayed back and forth and dried the dishes that Jungkook washed and put on the drying rack, and Jungkook tried to recognise the songs that Jimin was bouncing between. Bam checked on them a few times, and so did Yoongi, acting as though he was just filling his glass, but they were finally left alone as they dishes were finished and Jungkook was wiping down the benches. 

“Hey, Jungkookie?” Jimin said quietly, making sure the conversation was kept just between them, and not heard by any of their friends in the room next door. 

“Mm?” 

“I really like your friends,” he said with a smile, his lips not as shiny as they had been before, his gloss mainly wiped off from the meal they’d eaten. 

“I…Like your friends too,” Jungkook replied, because it felt like that was what he was meant to say, but it came out awkward and he made a face after, and Jimin laughed. 

“You’ll have time to get to know them, don’t worry,” Jimin told him as he hung the dish cloth up and leaned against a bench to face Jungkook. “Do you think you can take me home tonight? Tae wants to head home soon, but I want to stay with you longer.” Jungkook’s cheeks heated up, and while he appreciated how straight forward Jimin communicated, it still made his insides flutter and he didn’t really know how to respond. So he just nodded and kept his head ducked forward. He heard a soft laugh from Jimin, and then the smaller man was stepping forward, reaching out a hand to hold the sleeve of Jungkook’s jersey. “I don’t want to make you uncomfortable–I can find my own way home if you don’t want to take me.”

“No!” Jungkook blurted out in his rush to make sure Jimin knew that he was okay with taking him home. “No, I’ll take you.” Jimin smiled, his eyes squinting into adorable half moons, and he nodded, tugging lightly at Jungkook’s sleeve once more before he was stepping back. He lead the way out of the kitchen and Jungkook followed after him, a few steps behind, and he chewed on his lower lip as he saw Namjoon and Taehyung sitting in the lounge with the rest of his friends, the group of them looking comfortable. 

He liked that.

He really liked that.

And then a few hours later, when Jungkook was driving Jimin home with Bam sitting in the backseat, Jimin asked Jungkook another question. 

“Can I kiss you, Jungkookie?” His voice was so soft that Jungkook wouldn’t have even heard the question if it wasn’t for the fact that Jungkook found himself completely hyper aware of everything related to Jimin. But he still need a few moments before he found the words to respond, and luckily, Jimin didn’t taken offence to that, waiting patiently. 

“Yes…Please,” Jungkook said after a few moments. They were pulled off on a side street where it wasn’t quite as busy, and there was a streetlight a few feet in front of them, which left them in shadows, but there was enough light for Jungkook to see the shape of Jimin’s cute face and plush mouth. 

The kiss was brief and close mouthed, but it made white noise begin to play in Jungkook’s ears, and his fingers curl tightly into fists. And afterwards, Jimin smiled prettily, before he reached back to scratch behind Bam’s ear, and then he slipped out of the car, waving at Jungkook before he disappeared into his apartment building. 

Jungkook sat there for a long time after Jimin disappeared, his fingertips brushing against his mouth.

There were a lot more kisses that happened after that. They saw each other most days, and not just when they were working, but also on the weekends. Jimin would meet Jungkook when he took Bam out for walks, and Bam would happily trot between them, and they went to cafe’s together–and Jimin had no problem when Jungkook found the surroundings overwhelming and needed to put his headphones on. Most of the time, though, if they were getting food together, they would pick it up and then go somewhere quiet, like a park, or back to one of their homes. 

Most of the time, if they were at one of their apartments, it would be Jungkook’s, because that was where he was comfortable, but as time went by, Jungkook started spending more time at Jimin’s place. Jimin’s apartment was colourful and bright and he had a lot of stuff . Jungkook wasn’t a big fan of mess or clutter, but Jimin’s apartment was clearly organised and it was clean, and there were a lot of soft blankets and pillows and almost as many fidgets as Jungkook had in his own place. Jimin mentioned off-handedly that he had been collecting them for as long as he and Taehyung had been friends, and that also explained why he had quite a few sensory-friendly items, multiple lamps that he used rather than overhead lights and so many soft things. 

Jungkook really liked Jimin. 

He felt safe to be around. 

And he wanted Jimin to feel that way too. 

Jungkook had learnt a long time ago to be careful where he expended his limited energy. He had always been overly empathetic, and that had been something that had been taken advantage of when he was younger, when he hadn’t realized that not everyone actually meant what they said. 

But Jimin did . Jimin was good , and Jimin deserved the best that Jungkook could give. 

And so Jungkook learned Jimin’s facial expressions, and his tells, and his body language, in the same way he had learned with Yoongi, Seokjin and Hoseok. He wasn’t always the best at reading the room or picking up on moods when it came to groups of people, or those that he didn’t know, but when it was someone that he knew–someone that he cared about–he went above and beyond to learn their tells. And Jimin was so expressive and also just so open with Jungkook, which made it easier for Jungkook to learn about him. 

So on the days when they would see each other and Jimin smiled only with his mouth, not with his eyes, Jungkook tried to make him feel better. 

He knew that he couldn’t fix Jimin and the moods that he sometimes sunk into–maybe he understood that better than a lot of people–he just wanted Jimin to know that he was there for him. He would make an effort to visit Jimin at work when there were stretches of days when Jimin’s mood would dip, bringing him his favourite foods–kimchi stew and BBQ chicken and of course, cheese balls–and maybe Jimin’s smile still wouldn’t reach his eyes, but there was this exhale of relief that his body seemed to release. Jungkook didn’t understand that exactly, because he was just trying to do for Jimin what Jimin did for him–Jimin went out of his way to stock up on Jungkook’s favourite ramen and banana milk at his home, so that there was always his safe foods available when he was over. And Jungkook wanted to do that for Jimin as well.

He wanted to be a safe person for him. 

And a couple of months after they started dating, Jungkook finally felt as though he was that person. 

Jimin rang him late on a Thursday evening, as Jungkook was getting ready to go to bed. Jimin didn’t often call without giving Jungkook a heads up first, because Jungkook really disliked phone calls, and especially when calling close to ten in the evening made Jungkook’s heart race as he answered the call. 

“Jungkookie?” Jimin’s voice was shaky on the other end of the phone, and Jungkook instantly started swaying, his free hand fidgeting at his side as he stared at a spot on the wall. 

“What’s wrong?” He asked and Jimin let out a shuddery breath. 

“I just…Could you–could you come over?” He asked and Jungkook nodded instantly, turning and walking out of his bathroom and toward his room. “I–I’m sorry, I know you don’t like–”

“I’ll be there in fifteen minutes,” Jungkook said when he realized that he hadn’t actually verbally responded. 

“Yeah?” Jimin’s voice was small, but there was a sliver of hope running through it. 

“Yeah,” Jungkook grabbed one of his most comfortable hoodies and tugged it over his pyjama top. “Is it okay if I bring Bam?” Bam had been laid down in his crate, knowing Jungkook’s signals for when it was time to get ready for bed, but he had perked up at the sound of Jungkook’s voice, his head tilted to the side curiously. 

“Y-yes, of course,” Jimin replied and Jungkook nodded again, before cringing and speaking. 

“I’ll be there in fifteen minutes,” he repeated his earlier words and Jimin thanked him before the call ended. 

Jungkook didn’t like it when things happened that he hadn’t planned and prepared for, but it was different when it came to his friends. He knew life could be unpredictable and difficult, and at least he knew he was going to be walking into an environment that was comfortable for him–even if Jimin made him feel out of his depth. 

Going to Jimin when Jimin was asking for him didn’t even require him to think about it–and there weren’t many people or situations he would say that for. 

Jungkook arrived at Jimin’s exactly fourteen minutes after he had ended the call, Bam’s tail wagging as Jungkook knocked his knuckles twice on the door to let Jimin know he was there. Bam had come over to Jimin’s several times now, and the second time he had come over, Jimin had brought a big pet bed for him–he already had a small one for Taehyung’s dog, and now there was a second one, just for Bam, which had made Jungkook’s eyes widen happily when he had first seen it. 

It also made it easy to get Bam settled when Jimin opened the door and shuffled to the side. 

“Bed, Bam,” Jungkook ordered in a stern voice before he was closing the door and turning to Jimin. “How…What can I do?” Jungkook asked quietly, because the last thing he wanted to do was make it worse. Jimin looked smaller than usual, wrapped up in a blanket and his hair a fluffy mess, his cheeks chubby and red with a few marks as though he’d been laying down on a pillow. Jimin didn’t verbally respond, but he shuffled closer, still clinging to the corners of his blanket around his shoulders, and his body tipped forward until his head was resting against Jungkook’s chest. Jungkook’s arms went around him automatically, and when he felt Jimin begin to shake, his hold on Jimin tightened. 

Jungkook stayed over that night. 

They slept in Jimin’s bed–and Jungkook was surprised that he actually managed to sleep, he usually found that incredibly difficult in a bed that wasn’t his own, but he did. Jimin cried, and even though it was late, they put The Notebook on the TV in Jimin’s room as they made themselves comfortable under the covers. Jungkook didn’t ask Jimin what was wrong, and Jimin didn’t really say much, but that seemed to be okay. Jimin had told him previously that there wasn’t always a reason why he got sad, and Jungkook didn’t want to put him on the spot by asking, by expecting an answer from Jimin when maybe the answer was just that his brain wasn’t being kind to him. 

“Thank you for coming over,” Jimin whispered as he was falling asleep, his leg thrown over Jungkook’s and his arm wrapped around Jungkook’s waist. “I really appreciate it.” Jungkook nodded, not sure how to respond, so instead he pressed a kiss to the top of Jimin’s head, in his soft, fluffy hair, and his thumb stroked Jimin’s shoulder. Jungkook could feel Jimin’s body getting heavier against his, and once Jimin fell asleep, he would shuffle the smaller mans body off his, because he couldn’t sleep while cuddling or spooning, but for now he was more than happy to give Jimin whatever comfort he needed. “You’ll be here when I wake up, right?” 

“I’ll be here forever,” he answered without thinking, but he meant it. 

He’d never felt about anyone the way he felt about Jimin. 

The words drew another sniffle from Jimin and he tipped his head back to look up at Jungkook.

“Thank you, Koo,” he murmured, his thick lips pouted together in a way that made Jungkook stare. 

“Can I kiss you, Jiminie?” Jungkook asked, repeating Jimin’s question from the first night they kissed. And Jimin smiled up at him as he nodded–it wasn’t a big smile, but it reached his eyes, which made Jungkook feel relieved, and strangely proud. 

“Please,” Jimin breathed, and Jungkook leaned down to kiss Jimin. It was an awkward angle and Jimin’s lips were sticky from the tears that had been starting on and off, but just like every kiss with Jimin, it was lovely. 

Jungkook felt more confident in their relationship after that night, and even though he had always thought that Jimin had been much more assured with the way things were between them, often taking the lead, he seemed more confident as well. They began sleeping over at one another’s houses more often–and while Jimin was someone who clearly liked to hug when falling asleep, he and Jungkook came to a compromise. One of Jimin’s small hands would wrap around Jungkook’s wrist between their bodies, and while it took Jungkook some getting used to, after the first few times it happened, his hand started turning over, and their pinkes would link together, and he really, really liked it. 

They also talked about sex, which was something that could be a bit of a touchy subject with Jungkook. He’d had good sex, and he’d also had bad sex, but it was the stuff that came after that often tainted the whole experience for him. Jimin was the first person he wanted to have sex with–that he planned to have sex with–who actually asked him about everything he wanted, throughout the act and after. 

“I know…I know a lot of people like to just lay there after, or go to sleep,” Jungkook said when they were on Jimin’s couch one Sunday afternoon. Bam was in his bed, and Yeontan was in his own, because Taehyung and Namjoon were visiting family in Daegu and Jimin was petsitting. “But I hate that sticky feeling after, it just makes me feel uncomfortable and yucky and–” Jungkook visibly shuddered. “I usually like to have a shower, and then I can go to sleep after– you don’t have to shower,” he quickly added, because he’d had partners who had gotten annoyed when he had gotten up and wanted to clean off afterwards, saying that he was ruining the afterglow. 

“No–I’ll shower with you,” Jimin quickly responded, before blushing, probably at the enthusiasm of his own words. “I just–I don’t like being left alone after sex. So, I would want to shower with you, if that’s okay?” 

It just felt so easy with Jimin. Not everything–they both had things that they needed to work around, and learn about each other–but Jimin made things easy for Jungkook to understand, and he was patient, and kind. 

And the first time they sex, even though it wasn’t perfect , it was better than any other experience that Jungkook had had. 

It was a night that they were spending at Jungkook’s, and even though they had discussed sex a few times, they hadn’t planned to have sex that night, and that was probably for the best. Jungkook would have likely stressed out about it and begun to overthink because he wanted the experience with Jimin to go perfectly. Although, the next morning, he would learn that Jimin had definitely been hoping that they would go further than just their usual fooling around, kissing and rubbing against each other, given he had cleaned and stretched himself a little before coming over. 

“Can I ride you?” Jimin panted into Jungkook’s mouth after they had stripped out of almost all their clothes. They’d been kissing for so long that both of their mouths were swollen, Jungkook’s lips were tingling and his hands couldn’t stop exploring Jimin’s body. 

“I…” Jungkook paused, because he knew that Jimin was already so accommodating toward him. They had turned off the overhead light, and instead turned on Jungkook’s favourite mood lamp in the corner, purple and blue galaxies projected on the ceiling and the walls around them, bathing them in pretty, dim light. Jimin had also happily stopped a couple of times when Jungkook wanted to shift positions or take a moment to breathe, and now Jimin was asking for something, and Jungkook wanted to give that to him. 

But…

He was also nervous.

He had learned early on that he preferred to be the one on top, in the sense that he liked to be in as much control of his body as he could, and that was usually with himself on his knees, his partner either kneeling in front of him or on their back. 

But…

He trusted Jimin. 

“Jungkookie?” Jimin had caught his breath and was looking more closely at Jungkook, his blonde hair falling in front of his face and concern shining through his eyes. Which Jungkook didn’t want , he wanted this experience to be good for both of them, and to give Jimin what he wanted, and not for Jimin to have to be worrying about him. “Jungkook-ah, I don’t have–”

“No,” Jungkook shook his head, closing his eyes for a moment, his hands sliding down Jimin’s sides until they were resting on Jimin’s hips. “No, I…I want you too,” he said slowly. When his eyes opened again, his gaze was on Jimin’s mouth, red and plumper than usual from his kisses, and then slowly he lifted his eyes until he met Jimin’s. He saw the way Jimin softened, smiling down at him before kissing the tip of his nose in a way that tickled and made Jungkook scrunch up his nose and smile back. “Just…Slowly?” 

“Of course,” Jimin whispered. “Anything you want, Jungkookie.” 

Jungkook believed him, and he felt the anxiety in his body leave him in the next few breaths. Not that there had been much anxiety, but he couldn’t help it.

Jimin could help, though, the way he always tried to. 

And Jungkook believed him, when Jimin said that he would do anything Jungkook wanted–including stopping, if that’s what he needed–he believed him. Jimin had already proved to him over and over again that he only wanted to make Jungkook feel good, and comfortable, and safe, and loved . 

“Okay,” he exhaled and Jimin smiled again and Jungkook’s eyes closed again, his hands sliding around to clasp at the base of Jimin’s back and trying to hold him even closer. He liked the weight of Jimin on top of him–that was how they would usually kiss, with Jimin straddling him on the couch or in one of their beds–and so Jimin sitting across his lap while on his cock…That would probably feel good. Really good. 

Jimin fingered himself while straddling Jungkook, reaching behind him and his head tipping back as he let out little whimpering noises, and Jungkook just watched, completely enraptured with his hands resting on Jimin’s thighs. He couldn’t help the way he stared, or the way that his hips would begin to grind upwards, his cock rubbing against Jimin’s ass and bumping against his hand as he readied himself for Jungkook. 

“You ready?” Jimin asked breathlessly and Jungkook nodded, swallowing hard, words completely escaping him. 

Jimin rolled the condom down over Jungkook’s cock, and Jungkook winced a little, not liking the feeling but also knowing it was necessary. He adjusted quickly, shaking off the feeling and then holding out a hand so that he could steady himself as Jimin lifted himself up on his knees and positioned Jungkook with his other hand, small but strong. And then Jimin sunk down, slowly but without faltering and Jungkook wished that he was able to keep his eyes open to take in every detail of Jimin’s expression, but he couldn’t. Jimin was so warm and tight around him, Jungkook’s head fell back into the pillow beneath him, his eyes rolling back and exhaling heavily. 

“Shit… Shitshitshitshitshit ,” Jungkook couldn’t think of anything else, curses falling from his mouth as his fingers sunk into Jimin’s thick thighs. 

“ Jungkookie …” Jimin’s pretty voice reached his ears and Jungkook managed to open his eyes to look up at Jimin.

He felt incredible. 

He looked ethereal.

It was so overwhelming, Jungkook couldn’t help the way his hands began opening and closing, squeezing at Jimin’s thighs. 

“Are you okay?” Jimin asked softly, and Jungkook nodded, his eyes locking onto Jimin. Jimin stared back, smiling gently before he was lifting himself up on his knees, and dropping back down, and the smile dissolved as his mouth fell open and he let out a whine. 

His sounds were so pretty. 

Jungkook wanted to hear them on repeat. 

Maybe next time he wouldn’t be so overcome with how good everything felt that he would actually be able to pay full attention and commit to memory every sound Jimin made. 

This time, though, Jungkook just let Jimin take control and everything wash over him. 

Afterwards, just like Jimin had mentioned, he sleepily stepped into the shower with Jungkook. He wasn’t as fussed about washing as thoroughly as Jungkook did, but Jungkook liked just having him there, and Jimin seemed to just want to be close to him–like he had said when they had talked about it earlier on. Jungkook felt the need to fuss over Jimin a bit, washing him down himself, and then drying him off with one of the fluffy towels that he had put over the towel warmer when they stepped out of the shower, and Jimin seemed pleased with that, a satisfied smile on his face as he stood still and let Jungkook dry him down. 

When they laid back down in Jungkook’s bed–Jungkook feeling sated and clean and ready to fall asleep beside Jimin–Jimin reached out and linked their pinkies together, the way that he did when they had first begun sleeping together. Jungkook flipped his hand straight away, and he felt the way Jimin squirmed happily beside him, and that made Jungkook happy in turn. 

“You’re my boyfriend…Right?” Jungkook had to ask, taken over by the urge to check, even though he was pretty sure he knew the answer. He knew they were dating exclusively, they’d talked about that, but…Jungkook just needed to make sure. There was a giggle from Jimin into the darkness around them, and Jimin squeezed his hand. 

“Yeah, Kookie. I’m your boyfriend.”