Breathe Me | Jikook

17

That was when Namjoon saw him out of the corner of his eyes. "Yo, Jungkook!"

It seemed as though Jungkook's efforts to remain small were pointless. They always seemed to notice him no matter where he was.

"I have a favor to ask." Namjoon said, pausing the track. "Can you come here?"

Taehyung was in that room. Taehyung was pouring life into the room, his bright smile feeding everyone except for Jungkook. In fact, he was basically tearing Jungkook down now, each word a hidden attack; it made him scared of what he might say next.

He was nervous when he stood. His steps were shaky as he went the remaining way down the stairs and into the warmth of the kitchen. All of them were sitting down, Namjoon at the head of the table. Jungkook was mildly alarmed to find Taehyung sitting in his seat, taking his spot, but figured it was unintentional.

"Yeah?" Jungkook's voice was quiet.

"Can you sing Jin's parts for us? It feels incomplete to leave it empty."

Taehyung was just sitting there, sipping on tea, wisps of steam rising around his face. Jungkook didn't know why his eyes drifted to him, the one friend he had relied on, but they had and he wanted to jump off a cliff because of that. He couldn't depend on Taehyung anymore.

"Singing?" Jungkook asked. "I can't sing. Especially not well."

Namjoon just waved him off. "You've been listening to our tracks, right? We haven't changed anything on this one quite yet, so you should know the lyrics. We aren't expecting you to sound good, we just need something to fill the silence."

"Why not just use one of you?" Jungkook asked. He felt like he was being put on the spot and he hated that. It ground against his nerves and caused his heart rate to spike.

Taehyung smiled, half of it being obscured by the dark-colored mug. "It isn't as fun that way."

Jungkook hated it. He wanted them to progress but to put him in a situation like this? Wasn't that a bit much?

Jungkook glanced at Jimin. He nodded his head and mouthed the words, "Do it."

Jungkook was still unsure. Jimin didn't know Jungkook, not the way Taehyung did, and it made him nervous that Taehyung was trying to persuade him to do this. It put him on edge.

"If it makes you uncomfortable," Namjoon said, noting Jungkook's posture and the way his wide eyes darted from person to person, a lump stuck in his throat. "you don't have to do it."

This oddly made Jungkook more comfortable. He felt some of the tension in his shoulders ease.

"Thank you." He said, "I just came down here to see where you all would sleep. There's an air mattress, although one of you won't have a place to sleep. Just sleep anywhere. I don't mind. You can order takeout, because..." Jungkook raised his burnt hand, feeling oddly exposed, but kept faith in the lie he had told Namjoon just yesterday. "I can't cook without burning myself."

Jungkook tried to smile. He didn't miss the disappointed looks in their faces.

Welp. They'll never come back.

"Okay...thank you."

Jungkook smiled before turning away, heading back up towards the steps. If they needed anything else they could just ask Taehyung because Taehyung knew where everything was; he could care for them, probably better than Jungkook could due to their friendships.

"Jungkook," Taehyung said. Jungkook looked over his shoulder, seeing genuine concern in Taehyung's eyes. That lump that seemed so permanent grew larger. "I know you, I know you can cook safely. What are those bandages really for?"