Him & I - G-Eazy & Halsey
Jungkook
Earning money was not easy. I repeat. This was not a drill.
I took on the job as an experiment to see how Jimin made it through, and if I made some money out of it, I could always help Ulrich, but working in the shoe department had to be the most boring job one could ever find. I sat around, smiled as customers walked in, looked at myself in the floor-length mirrors, and helped the customers with ugly toes and stinky feet to put on shoe covers.
I was losing my goddamn mind and it has only been a week.
Ulrich was surprised I took the job, to begin with. "I am betting you won't last one week." He had said. I had to prove my point, so I did stick here.
Another reason was that I wanted Jimin's approval. So far my track record hasn't really been really good with him. He must have thought of me as a spoiled and wild child, disrespectful and headstrong, who doesn't care about anyone, but ever since he showed up in my room that night, his opinions about me seemed to have changed.
Although the stiffness in his body still stayed around me, he started doing a better job at not running away from my sight. In fact, he bought me coffee last week in the cafeteria. Sure, it wasn't specifically for me, he was buying it for everyone, and I happened to 'pass by,' but he did, which counts.
One time, he saved me his treadmill during the rush hour at the gym.
Another time, he saved me a seat next to him during the lunch break.
We seemed to be falling into a peaceful territory now. He still didn't let his guard down entirely, but he wasn't the same Jimin from before either.
I also decided to tone down my actions. I scared him a lot with my impulsive expression of feelings. He needed his sweet time, and I needed a solid plan because my feelings alone didn't worth jack shit to him. I couldn't keep being stupid. I needed to be strategic.
He wouldn't be wrong to think of me as a wild child. I secretly always was. But I had to keep pushing the brakes before because of my father, but now? I loved the liberty of it all.
As I was walking back to the dormitory, I decided to stop and buy some sodas for us for our study session. It helped with sleep. Semester exams were on our asses and we had to do good. Ulrich studied much more than I did, but I was confident I'd score well. The first semester wasn't all that difficult so far if I was being honest, but we knew what was ahead, and people were using the easier days as a headstart for the bumpy road ahead. I was the only one who slept for seven hours a night these days.
When I entered the store, a girl I spotted in a uniform was rushing to the back of the department. The place was almost empty, and only one billing counter was active. I saw a few more young boys and girls rushing back, giggling, and then I heard distant shrieking. It was an enthusiastic kind.
I smiled at the boy with bronze skin. "That's twenty-one euros," he spoke in a thick accent.
I handed him the money. "What's happening back there?" I asked.
He only shook his head while mumbling "nothing," but I was curious. These people were clearly the workers, and they didn't look as miserable as I was.
"Do you guys have a job here? I am also looking for one." I asked him.
Something stuck in his throat as he carefully checked my clothes and my accessories before nodding his head begrudgingly. "If you want, I can talk to boss. He'll come in the afternoon tomorrow."
"Sure," I grinned, overly enthusiastic about it. "Please show me what's happening there."
"You cannot tell anyone," he warned, looking straight at the camera.
I gestured to lock the zipper on my lips. "You go there first. I'll lock up and come get you."
I walked away, looking through the shelves to make it seem I was searching for some more stuff. The boy came back quickly and whispered "follow me" before rushing ahead.
I noticed there weren't any cameras in this storage area. What I saw ahead had me laughing. "Is this a slumber party?" I asked.
"Oh," he shook his head, eyes flinching. "Over time, I added things from departments. Pillows, blankets, lamps, and a foot massager... Then we started stocking it with all our snacks. No one knew it was there for months. I was basically living here. But people found out and now they take hour shifts and come here to take a nap or study and the others keep an eye out and do all the work."
Admiration found its way to me. He managed to make a cozy corner for himself, probably risking his job. "Do you want to come inside?"
I shook my head. "I better get going. But thanks for showing me your cozy corner."
"Oh wait," he said. "I'll come with you."
He ushered me out of the store and then flipped the open sign. I walked silently to the dorm, loving the burning cold on my exposed skin. After entering the campus, I whipped around to look everywhere. Senior dormitories on my right were lit like London's eye. Lights on. Of course, everyone must have been studying.
Our sports were on hold. We no longer had practice. The cafeteria had a few students buzzing like flies around leftovers. I walked there directly and picked up food to take to our room.
At last, when I approached my room, I released a sigh. I needed a hot shower and some food in me. And then I thought I'd text Jimin.
Working in a place he referred me had created a silent understanding between us, which I didn't share with anybody else. I'd texted him immediately after getting the job, asking him if he'd let me say thank you to him by buying him a meal, but he had said to save up my money.
Since then, the job gave me an excuse to share a few texts with him on a daily basis.
Ulrich wasn't here yet, so I set up the food on the counter to heat it later and tossed the soda bottles in the fridge. I took an average-length shower and got out of the bathroom. Jimin was sitting on Ulrich's bed.
And I was in a towel.
FUCK!
He looked at me. I looked at him.
He looked away. I kept looking at him.
"I am so sorry. I should apologize, but you really need to start locking your door, Jungkook."
I didn't know what to say, so I lunged ahead and locked the door. His cheeks gained tint. "I- I should come back..." he pointed at me, getting up from the bed. "When- when you are decent."
"Please stay." I was going to give myself a special treat because my voice didn't shake.
He did.
He sat back while I grabbed the first pair of cloth I could find and then dashed back inside the bathroom. When I walked out, he looked at me, finally breathing.
Jimin
Jungkook. There was something about him. He was a man. I was a man. There wasn't anything indecent about a man in a towel. But since it was Jungkook who has made it too obvious for me to spare me a scope to pretend not to know his evident desire for me, I couldn't help it.
He once said he didn't know how to behave around attractive people. Ironically, I wasn't sure since then how to behave around him even when he has been a perfectly fine gentleman. It was absurd.
What was even more accursed was that I suddenly noticed how good-looking he really was. I don't think I've ever looked at him like that before and noticed him as I did right now.
He was always dressed with pizzazz. His wardrobe was impressive and he had a variety in his collection. Taehyung was an open bisexual, but he didn't dress up in a feminine way, but Jungkook did sometimes. I noticed. It wasn't like he wore girly clothes, but some fittings or the type of fabric he wore added to that appeal.
Maybe because Jungkook was gay that he had such a good fashion sense. While many people thought men wearing silk blouses was ridiculous, I could appreciate it.
But right now, he wasn't in any tip-top clothing. His hair has always been a bit messy, but the wet hair right now looked ragged on him. I didn't know why I was noticing him. I couldn't keep my eyes from taking a good look at his pink lips against his porcelain skin. The black star under the pink shadow. He was delicate. He was delicate in the most unobvious ways.
"What is it, Hyung?" His brows were a bit furrowed, cheeks flushed. He was gulping. My eyes traced the movement of his neck, then the bare shoulder bone and a mole underneath.
"I actually needed to give you something, but I need you to be silent about it."
His eyes twinkled in a way that was surreal. It couldn't be a 17-year-old boy sitting in front of me. There was no way a teenager could hold an innocence like that. Did he even know about himself? "I promise." He smiled.
I sighed, giving a break to my mind from all the scrutiny. "Here," I extended the check over to him. His hands, and fingers, so delicate. This kid was a living oxymoron. How could he break bones on the soccer field — not even an exaggeration because he did break an opponent's wrist during a heated moment — and hold a piece of paper with such exactitude that he was afraid of hurting it? I noticed one more thing. He was a left-hander.
I was in his room this time by my choice. I found myself pleasantly surprised by that other side of him that I'd discovered by accident. It was caring and mature which was quite a contrast to his usual bright scheme. Nonetheless, I felt the heat crawl up my spine and I knew I had to get out of there. This was bad. I got up, cupping my nape, and flashed an unsure smile at him. He was still looking at the check when he looked up suddenly. Stood up. "Um... You should- you should stay. This is really helpful. Thank you. Thank you, Hyung. I wanna do something too. Please stay."
I could see how overwhelmed he was. I smiled. "I'll let you treat me to a meal some other day."
"Oh," he tried to gulp and exhale at the same time and strange noise came out of him. He couldn't hide his smile after. "I'd be happy to. Please let me know whenever you are free."
"I will," I said. "But probably after exams. And you'll have to do something for me in return."
"Do what?" He asked, his frown appearing.
"I'll have you know soon, Jungkook."
It became so clear how important it was to him to have a meal with me. I didn't want to do this, and I was hating Taehyung for it. He was the one who kept pushing me to talk to Jungkook and slip the junior something about him to see his reaction. It was safe to say that Jungkook had created his distance from him after the whole fundraiser thing. I did, however, want to help Ulrich, but the whole meal thing was impromptu. I didn't want Jungkook to feel led on.
I still had a girlfriend whom I liked very much and the last time I checked, I was still a straight man.
Things with Rosenow had started two and a half years ago. We met in our first year. Our alliance formed during the second semester of the same year. Taehyung used to tell me that she was looking at me, and then to notice her looking at me, I started looking at her. We couldn't help but notice the tension building, but not wanting to act on it at first, I ignored it.
One day when we were just starting the second year, Taehyung asked me to meet at a new waffle place near the liquor store. I was waiting for him, but he didn't show up. Instead, Rose came with her friend to the same place. I was dialing Taehyung's number aggressively, sitting alone when she invited me to join them.
Her friend left later on, but we continued to talk. We didn't have much in common except that she was always silent in class, just like me. However, at that time, we both couldn't stop talking and laughing. Our vibes matched, and we clicked. That was probably the first time we talked to each other without our whole group present.
We started making plans without our friends, and one day, I couldn't ignore whatever was happening to us, so I asked her to be exclusive, to be my girlfriend. Taehyung thought it was too soon, and I did too, but we were happy at that moment.
I didn't know what the future held for us, but I was committed to her.
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3 Apr, 2023