TIME AFTER TIME ; jjk

18

Jimin didn't like to hear when I praised myself. I could never understand why.

"About your message..." I said.

Taehyung clicked his tongue. "Ooh, got you wondering?"

"Not really."

"I wasn't supposed to tell you that."

"Fine."

However, he continued to talk about it. He was such a snitch. "He's just curious about what goes on inside your love stuff or whatever you'd like to name it but he can't bring himself to ask you directly."

"Does he work here?"

Taehyung gave a nod. "Of course."

I said, "Tell me his name."

"Don't want to expose anyone."

"Do I know him?"

"Too much information," he replied, shaking his head.

. . .

Lately, Namjoon had become a little more inquisitive, which I did not mind and in fact I had welcomed the slow development in our setup. He was curious but not demanding for attention and each day I was grateful for every effort he invested just to talk to me. The simple act of sending me funny videos after I got off work. The unprecedented visits of him to the hospital just so we could eat dinner together. The times he was willing to listen to me when I could no longer bottle up the thoughts in my head.

After a few months, Namjoon took the initiative to ask, "What do you think about me?"

I was taken aback but I did not show it. "You're a really nice guy. Sweet. Thoughtful."

"It makes me happy to know that." He flashed a lazy smile. "I'm into you, Soohyun. I hope you're aware of that."

My heart rattled in my chest, my hands slightly going along in action with it. "Well, yeah. I feel that you're sincere but I wouldn't really think that you're into me, knowing we have only been hanging out together for nearly five months."

"But I am. This sounds corny but most of the the time, I can't get you out of my head. And it makes me so confused because you don't seem like you're against my advances nor you don't like how I express my feelings, yet you're not saying anything on how you would like us to get somewhere. What are we? I won't answer that we're just friends. Sure, there's friendship but for me, as delusional as it sounds, we're more than that.

But, anyway, this is not to give you pressure. Take as much time as you want. I'll be just here. Just want to make it clear that I'd like to be in a relationship with you when you're ready and when you want me enough to go further than this."

Was he this serious about me?

It was hard to believe, if truth be told. But I wanted to hold onto the confession and not disregard his thoughtfulness and patience on this matter. I was thirty, and after the rejection I got from Jungkook, there was a realization I didn't need to rush myself of settling with someone. It would come if it was fully ready. If it was not forced.

"You don't like the guy you told me about before anymore, right?" Namjoon asked me.

"I've moved on."

"You're friends with him now?"

"Sort of? I haven't talked to him properly in weeks."

He cleared his throat. "But is he no longer a threat?"

I knitted my brows together. "What do you mean?"

"I know it's too much for me to ask this, but you never talked about that guy, which, of course, is understandable because what right do I have to bring him up? But are you sure you really got over him? You've pined for him for several years. That's some serious infatuation."