Single Father • Namjoon + BTS!Kids

lxxviii.

"I didn't even have the answer right."

"But you tried," Tae countered.

More silence.

"Okay, look, this is me trying to not make things awkward between us but you're really not helping me out here," Tae finally said, and Jungkook jolted in his seat.

"Oh...um...okay..." Jungkook struggled to think of something they could talk about. "Um, why were you asleep in math class in the first place? I thought you liked all that stuff?"

Tae looked surprised that Jungkook even remembered his interests. "Well...I don't know," Tae said, rubbing the back of his neck and looking down. "I just...it all seemed so important when Jimin was- you know, not here. Like the teacher might tell me the answer at any moment, and I had to be listening every second in case I missed the important clue that would solve everything." He laughed to himself. "Stupid, I know."

It's not stupid, Jungkook wanted to say, but he kept his mouth closed, still not completely comfortable talking to Tae again.

"And...well...now that Jimin is back, it all just...I don't know. It's not a clue anymore, it's just geometry. If I figure out the answer, I'm not bringing Jimin back home, I'm just finding the sin of x. It's not...it's not special anymore. It's just boring."

"Join the club," Jungkook mumbled, and Tae was startled into laughing. Jungkook flushed, looking down and tapping his shoes together. "At least you're smart. Even if it's boring, it's all easy for you."

"Maybe, but only if I stay awake," Tae said, and the two looked at each other and smiled.

"No, but really, I had no idea what she was asking," Tae said after a moment, and Jungkook laughed.

"Me too!"

"Seriously, Jungkook, it was a triangle. Where did you even get pi from?"

"Maybe if you would've been awake, I would have told you."

"Hey! I'm your hyung!"

"By like a minute!"

"Ask Jimin! The minute counts! Because he was-"

"Born in Busan first! Shut up, I already know!"

They two yelled at each other, not even realizing how easily their words were coming out, and other students stopped to stare.

"Do they even know each other?"

"I thought they never talked?"

"Didn't they hate each other?"

But neither Tae nor Jungkook paid attention to anyone else, because they had something they hadn't had in a long time: each other.

"I can't wait for Jimin to come back," Tae said, grinning, and Jungkook smiled as well.

"I'm a little nervous," Jungkook admitted, speaking freely, and Tae looped an arm across his shoulder.

"It's going to be fine, Jungkook! It wasn't your fault, and Jimin knows that. Just think how fun it will be for all of us to be in the same class again!"

"Yeah, but I bet he's going to be super shy. You know how he is. What if the other kids don't like him?"

"Then we'll beat them up."

"But Jimin will be mad if he finds out."

"Then we won't let him find out," Tae said, giving Jungkook a look.

Jungkook slowly nodded. "All right."

"I feel bad for him," Tae said after a while.

"Why?"