DEAR JIMIN.

0.7

"Seokjin, what are you doing?" Jimin tore his wrist away from Seokjin's grasp, rubbing at the red imprints that had appeared on his skin. It wasn't easy to put him in a bad mood, but it was natural that he'd be upset. It seemed as though everyone was keeping secrets from him, like all of them had things they didn't want to tell him, and he wanted to know why. "What's so important that I had to leave the room?"

Seokjin didn't answer. Jimin crossed his arms over his chest, raising in eyebrow at the deep sigh that escaped Seokjin's lips in place of a response. "You and Yoongi have been acting weird lately, and I want to know why."

"Stop being so nosy, Jimin. It doesn't concern you, and you don't have to know why." Seokjin pinched the bridge of his nose, shaking his head. It didn't surprise him that Jimin was curious, but he really didn't have anything to tell him. It wasn't any of Seokjin's business, either; he had no right to tell Jimin anything when he had been spared of the details himself. "Be a doll and keep yourself out of this. It doesn't matter."

"But it does matter," he argued, obviously not comprehending that Seokjin didn't know anything either. He just wanted to know what was going on around him, because evidently, there was something happening that he didn't know about. "Everyone I know is acting weird, you won't tell me anything, and Yoongi's avoiding me like the plague. I think I should be informed about what the hell is going on."

Seokjin offered a smile, but it was coated in such malice and bitterness that Jimin almost flinched. He didn't want to argue with Jimin; it was pointless, but Jimin refused to back down. "Listen, Jimin, don't you think that Yoongi would have told you by now if he wanted you to know? Obviously, he doesn't want you to know, so stop concerning yourself with things that don't concern you."

Jimin's gaze wandered around the room in a desperate attempt to avoid Seokjin's eyes. The pillow on the sofa looked a bit out of place, the red contrasting with the color scheme of the rest of the living room; had it always been there, or had he just never noticed? The television stand looked a little bit dusty, when was the last time he'd wiped it down? Seokjin seemed so troubled that the atmosphere around them became awkward, and Jimin didn't know what to do. He wanted answers, not to find a way to break through the heavy silence. "Seokjin..."

The said man's gaze flickered upwards slowly, and for a fraction of a second, he looked concerned. Seokjin had always been like that, been too worried about the well being of others without even the slightest bit of care for his own. His selflessness could be a bit worrying at times, but at that moment, Jimin couldn't be bothered to care. "What?"

"I care about Yoongi, okay? I don't mean to be nosy, if that's how I'm coming across. I want to know why he's so down because I want him to be happy." Jimin's teeth sunk into his lower lip, almost about to draw crimson, but he stopped himself before he did so. He just wanted an answer, and no matter what kind of pleading puppy eyes he pulled, Seokjin wouldn't give him the satisfaction of curing his ignorance in favour of Yoongi's happiness.

"Jimin..." Seokjin's lips were twisted into a frown, and Jimin, who had grown used to his usual smiles, found it quite unnatural. He looked as though he understood where Jimin was coming from, and he did, but he had to respect Yoongi's wishes. If Yoongi didn't want to tell Jimin, Seokjin wouldn't do it for him. He let out a soft sigh, sending a pitying look toward Jimin, who didn't seem to appreciate it. "I know you care about him, and that's great and all, but it won't do you or him any good if I say anything."

"But he looks so sad." Sad was an understatement. Yoongi looked as though he had given up on life completely, as if he had nothing left worth waking up for in the morning. Jimin hated seeing him like that. "He doesn't talk about his own emotions, and you know that. I want to be able to be there for him before he breaks down completely."

"I know you do, and I'm sorry, but I can't say anything. I can't tell you anything that he doesn't want me to say." Jimin was stubborn, and it didn't help. While Seokjin was a patient person, he didn't know how much longer he could sit and argue before Jimin was satisfied - which, as long as Seokjin refused to tell him, he would never be.

"I want to help."

"What's the point of helping if it's going to do more bad than good?"

"At least let me talk to him." Jimin's voice was laced with a thick tone of desperation that made Seokjin resist the urge to give in. Jimin was filled to the brim with a pure, genuine want to help, and he wanted nothing more than for Yoongi to get the jubilance he deserved. If only he knew that he was the reason behind Yoongi's sorrows.

"He won't listen to you."

"Then just let me tell him that I'm there for him. Please."

Seokjin knew that Jimin cared for Yoongi, knew that Jimin loved him; but not in the same way Yoongi loved him. Friendly affections and loving affections were drastically different, even if Jimin couldn't tell them apart. Jimin could never be what Yoongi wanted him to be, and there was no point in telling him. Jimin didn't have to shape himself and his own happiness to fix Yoongi's. "You're just going to make him cry."

"Does Yoongi hate me? Is that why we're having this conversation?" It was a wild assumption, one that wasn't exactly backed up by proof at all, but Seokjin could understand why Jimin would say that. It wasn't unlike him to prepare himself for the worst, to jump to the most unimaginable conclusions, even when they were hardly fathomable.

"Not at all. He cares for you a lot, and that's why he's not telling you." Seokjin pursed his lips, drumming his fingers on his thigh. He wasn't lying. The only reason Yoongi hadn't made his feelings clear to Jimin was because he knew the latter was already satisfied with who he was dating, and Yoongi didn't want to ruin that happy. He may have been selfish, but he wasn't selfish enough to sacrifice another couple's contentness in favour of his own.

"Then why do you make it sound like he despises me and never wants to see me again?"

"What if I told you that you hurt him?" As soon as he said it, he regretted it. Jimin looked taken aback, completely shocked, as if the thought had never crossed his mind. Seokjin knew that Jimin would never intentionally do anything to harm the boy, and as he wasn't especially knowledgable of the toll that Yoongi's unspoken thoughts were taking on him, he was blissfully unaware of how much he had actually hurt him. Fuck. Jimin wasn't supposed to know of the distress he had unintentionally brought upon Yoongi.

"What? What did I do?" There was a heavy fear that rushed over his features, only thinly masked by the confusion that overwhelmed his neutral expression. Well, shoot. He didn't know what he had done, but evidently, he had done something wrong, and Yoongi was suffering because of it.

"You know what, nevermind." Seokjin knew he had already spilled a bit more information than he had intended to, and it was in his best interest that he stopped before he let the secret slip accidently.

"I care about Yoongi, okay?" Jimin's gaze flickered to the ground, almost afraid to meet Seokjin's. The pleading tone had been dropped from his voice, replaced by a heart wrenching sadness that had Seokjin feeling worse than ever. He had Yoongi's best interest in mind, but he didn't realize how he was affecting Yoongi more negatively than positively. "I care about him, and I want to be able to help him."

"If you care about him," Seokjin's voice almost quivered, but he recomposed himself as soon as he realized that his cold facade was falling apart, "please do him a favour and stop talking to him."

"Excuse me?" Jimin blinked rapidly in confusion, furrowing his eyebrows at how Seokjin didn't falter. "You can't be serious. I can't do that. Yoongi's—"

"Jimin, please." Seokjin's voice was solid, unwavering, but his eyes were urgent and imploring. "It's not about you. It's about him. I know it'll be hard, but you have to do it. If you don't want to hurt him anymore, you have to stop talking to him."

Jimin was terribly quiet afterwards, unsure of what exactly to say. He didn't want to end contact with Yoongi, not when the boy was hurting, but at the same time, he didn't want to harm him any more than he already had. Seokjin pursed his lips, letting out one final sigh before standing up abruptly, but Jimin was too lost in the depths of his thoughts to notice.

For Yoongi's sake, Jimin told himself. He had to do it for Yoongi.