eighteen
8 HOURS PRIOR
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Jimin lent back in his seat still half asleep as he tried to muffle a heavy yawn. He'd been home for only a few days now, and his sleep schedule had really taken a hit as he scrambled to make up for lost time. He was drowning in homework, and he had barely slept the night before as he attempted to catch up on all of it (nor did he sleep the night before that). It didn't help that he could hardly pay attention in class - Professor Kim's voice was soft enough to lull him to sleep right then and there, but he forced himself to stay awake and pay attention. Jimin was slightly regretting their last minute trip, but every time Professor Kim's gaze meets his own - and he's suddenly reminded of how his lips felt against his own - he knows getting some air was the right thing to do. Jimin tried not to think about the kiss, but it's much harder than he expected. The creature's lips had molded perfectly with his and he had felt things he'd never felt with another person before. It drove Jimin wild.
Unregrettably, that's how Jimin spends the rest of the morning - thinking about him, and the way he'd kissed him - instead of paying attention to what Namjoon was saying. He would have liked to say he was better than that. That he had focused on school instead, but he wanted answers, not knowledge about poetry.
Who was he? What was he? Why does he feel as if he had known him his whole life? Why was he aching to be in his arms again? To be kissed by him once more? Jimin had neglected to tell Jin these feelings - because as he had pointed out multiple times during their trip - that maybe he was the mad spirit who wanted him dead and that he should keep his distance. But Jimin knew that if he wanted to get to the bottom of this, then he had no other chance but to speak with him (and truth be told, Jimin didn't want to stay away from him - he craved him). If he could avoid talking to him he would, but Professor Kim wouldn't tell him. He'd continue to evade his questions and avoid telling him outright what he wanted to know. If he wasn't mad at him for slapping him across the face, then maybe...maybe they'd still have a chance at talking to him. But that would mean having to confront his Professor, because without him, he had no way of contacting him.
Jimin sat upright in his seat, shifting uncomfortably. Professor Kim was pacing the room, lecturing about a French poem from the 1700s that he had forgotten the name about because he hadn't been paying attention. He's forced to swallow a lump in his throat and he can feel a chill run down his spine when he briefly meets his professor's eyes. His throat only tightens in response to this. If he wants answers, he's going to have to take matters into his own hands.
Jimin nearly jumps out of his seat when the bell rings. He'd been planning what he wanted to say and been so immersed in his thoughts, that he wasn't aware of how much time had passed. He took his sweet time in packing up his things, nervously watching the other students file out of the class. Professor Kim stood behind his desk, flicking through various stacks of paper. He isn't paying him any attention as he finally rises from his seat and wanders down the aisle. His heart raced in his chest as he cautiously made his way towards him.
Professor Kim didn't seem to be displaying any sort of emotion as Jimin approached him. It was almost robotic the way he flicked through the papers on his desk. His movements were stiff - like he was waiting for something to happen. Jimin forced himself to take a deep breath.
Just talk to him, you can-
"You're incredibly distracted today,"
Jimin blanked.
Namjoon halted all actions, relaxing entirely. No longer did his movements seem robotic - but natural. Jimin realized that he must have been acting while the rest of the students were filing out of class. Not that they were alone, he seemed more human in his actions. He glanced at Jimin with a raised brow.
Everything he had planned to say in the past half an hour or so had now slipped his mind and Jimin was staring up at him with a dead expression. He opened his mouth to say something, but no words came out.
It was clear to Namjoon that he'd caught the younger off guard, and when he didn't respond, he handed him a stack of papers. This seemed to prompt a response from him, because Jimin made a face and groaned. He was reluctant to take the package from him knowing all too well that he wasn't going to be getting much sleep tonight. Jimin wondered if it would ever end. He's cursing himself for missing so much class now - he's definitely going to be drowning in homework for weeks at this point. Namjoon let out a slight chuckle at his response.
"I promise it's not as frightening as it looks," he assured, noting just how stressed Jimin was already getting just by looking at it. "-this is the price for missing so much class,"
Jimin sighed, running a hand through his hair, "I realized that too late," he joked. "I apologize for missing so many days, I-"
"You don't need to apologize, Jimin," Namjoon interrupted. "I'm just glad you're safe,"
Several long minutes of silence then passed between the two. Namjoon didn't know what else to say - it was obvious that Jimin wanted to talk to him about something, Yoongi most likely, but he seemed hesitant about bringing up the subject. And Jimin didn't know how to bring it up. It didn't matter how many times he'd gone over it in his head, he couldn't find the right words. He had planned to be upfront about it, to demand answers, but Professor Kim was intimidating with the way he towered over him, and he didn't even know if he would agree to help him.
It was Namjoon who broke the silence.
"I want to apologize for his behaviour that night," he began in a smooth tone. He cleared his throat before continuing. "I was afraid that he might overwhelm you if you met outside of a controlled setting and well..." he sighed. "He's incredibly sorry for overwhelming you - normally he's very good at controlling his emotions, but it comes to you, he forgets how to act,"
Jimin briefly glanced away from him, frowning, frowning for no particular reason. When he looks back at him, he's chewing nervously on his bottom lip.
"I-Is he...is he angry with me?" he questioned, tilting his head to the side. Namjoon frowned, unsure of what he was talking about.
"For what?" he asked, needing clarification.
"For slapping him and then running away," Jimin replied, before turning bright red.
To Jimin's surprise, Namjoon let out a quiet laugh.
"No Jimin, he isn't angry with you for slapping him. If anything he was more angry - well not angry - he was more worried, when you disappeared. He's already lost you once, Jimin, he's not ready to go through it all over again,"
Jimin nodded slightly, inhaling deeply.
"I'd like to talk to him...if that's possibl-"
"He would still very much like to talk to you, Jimin. He really is sorry about his behaviour, it's - hard to explain. He wasn't thinking properly after he pulled you from the ocean. He was worried about you, and as a result of not being able to properly express his emotions at that time, he kissed you. If he upset you he-"
"I'm not upset, I'm frustrated," Jimin grumbled, somewhat rudely. "-and it doesn't help that you are incredibly unreliable, seeing as you tell me nothing or make everything sound incredibly cryptic," His lips pressed together in a firm line. He's annoyed that his Professor can't tell him about something that relates directly to him. He understands how ridiculous and strange the whole thing seems - why of all people should his English Professor be the one to have all the answers. It hardly made sense to him, however, nothing seemed to make much sense these days. Everything felt so unreal to Jimin.
Another sigh.
"I know, and I apologize for that as well. It's not my place to tell you, Jimin and I understand how frustrating that sounds, but it's the truth. It's his place to tell you, and even if I did tell you, I wouldn't be able to answer any of your questions, seeing as I don't understand the situation fully."
Jimin let out a frustrated noise as he ran a hand through his hair. That wasn't exactly the response he was looking for, and it only annoyed him more that Namjoon didn't have the answers to his questions either.
"Although it might be less overwhelming for you if I told you myself," Namjoon stated, mumbling under his breath, and Jimin almost hadn't heard him. "-knowing him, he'd be too distracted by you, but-"
"Can't you tell me something?" Jimin pleaded, pouting up at his professor. If this were any other situation and someone were to see the two of them interacting, one might actually think he was sleeping with his teacher. Namjoon pursed his lips but Jimin wasn't budging. "Anything? Please professor? It's my life, I have a right to know," Jimin argued.
There was another moment of silence before Namjoon sighed. The older male pinched the bridge of his nose. Yoongi would be furious with him, would he not? Surely he would want to tell him himself.
"Well..."
"How do we know each other?" Jimin prompted, hoping that he would just give him in and tell him. Eventually he did. Namjoon moved around the side of the desk and perched himself on the edge.
"You knew him in a past life...you were very close," Namjoon sighed.
"How close?"
"He loves you,"
"Loves?"
"Yes, or at least, he loved past you, however I don't doubt for a second that he wouldn't love this version of you either. You've always been his Jimin, and he will always love you,"
Jimin could feel his whole world stop for a second. So that's why he craved him; why he needed him. He was in love with him - or at least he used to be. He sighed softly, sucking his bottom lip between his teeth. Namjoon could see the younger visibly relax, as if this news was somehow comforting to Jimin. Namjoon didn't know if this was a good sign or not.
"When can I see him?" he asked, peering up at him. Something had changed about his expression. Jimin no longer seemed frustrated with him. "You said he wasn't angry with me so..."
"How does Saturday sound? Ah - you are still my student Jimin, and you've missed several assignments. If you want to pass my class you're going to have to complete them."
Jimin glanced down at the stack of papers he had been holding in his hands. "Where can I meet him?" he questioned, moving on with the subject. Namjoon was right, he couldn't afford to fall behind any more than he already had.
"That depends...would you rather go to him? Or have him come to you? I can assure you that regardless of where it happens, it's still going to feel overwhelming, and knowing him, he'll have a hard time maintaining control around you,"
"What do you mean?"
"Don't be surprised if he tries to kiss you again,"
"Oh," Jimin went red for a second time.
I really wouldn't mind that to be honest, he thought to himself. Kissing him had been a pleasant experience.
"My point is that maybe you should be somewhere you feel the most comfortable," Namjoon explained in a gentle voice.
"Then...we could-" Jimin stops to think for a moment. He doesn't want to face Jin's wrath when he tells him that he's going to go through with this afterall, but maybe it would be best to have both him and Jungkook there with him when it happens. That way if he needed help, they would be right there. "We could talk at my apartment," Jimin decided, with a firm nod (moreso to himself rather than to Namjoon). "Is 10:00 am to early? I'd like to see him as soon as possible,"
"10:00 am will be fine,"
Jimin nodded then, not knowing what to say next. He glanced down at his new mound of homework in his arms.
"I should probably go and get started on this...Thanks Professor,"
"You're welcome Jimin,"
"U-Um...do I need to give you my address or-"
He was silenced as the older raised his hands.
"We'll worry about that when the time comes,"
"O-Okay. I'll see you tomorrow Professor,"
"Goodbye Jimin,"
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okay first things first
i do not deserve your patience because i don't know how many times i've said that i'm going to be consistent with this book and then take weeks to update
second of all, my new years resolution is to stop saying that i hate every chapter that i write because i know i do that a lot and it's probably really annoying. that being said, i don't hate this chapter. do i think that my introduction to namjoon could have been smoother and that maybe this chapter could better explain things? yes, but i don't hate it, and i hope that you guys love it.
this chapter was going to be longer, but i'm splitting it into two so i'm hoping that maybe i can have it up in the next few days or so? life is just a lot right now and i'm still trying to catch up on missing credits so that i can apply to university and honestly it's very draining to the point where i can barely bring myself to write most days. it's a little disappointing cause i miss updating regularly and writing in general, so cross your fingers for me that i can get back into it
anyways, i'm done rambling. if you have questions or something confuses you, leave a comment down below and i will get back to you (:
p.s. happy new year!