"I'll walk you up." Kookie turned off the car and angled his body toward you.
"No Koo, you have practice I'll be okay, thanks for getting me home." Your tone was flat, you'd pushed your emotions down deep watching him drive. There had been something so soothing about focusing on that.
Kookie rolled his eyes and got out of the car meeting you on your side. He shoved your door closed and pressed his palm to your lower back. This elevator ride was silent, no tears, no shushing noises.
"Why were you waiting for me? How did you even know I stayed at his place last night?"
You pushed the heavy door to the apartment open, the smell of soup and kimchi permeating the space. You realized you'd not cleaned up your mess the previous night when you'd rushed out with Kookie. It seemed as if everything had come full circle, you and Kookie back at the beginning, only last night you'd not dreamed this was going to be the outcome.
"I was on punishment for hours and never heard his door open, but this morning I just happened to be waiting for Joonie when you came out." Kookie stepped into your apartment and the door eased shut behind him.
"You're going to be late, you'll be on punishment again." You headed toward the kitchen, intent on taking care of the take out disaster splashed all over your sink.
He caught your wrist and pulled until you were trapped against this chest in a tight hug. You succumbed to it, breathing deeply and sighed, your tears seemingly gone. Were you surprised? You'd spent the last eight months crying for one reason or another over Park Jimin.
"Why did you stay the night if he broke up with you?" Kookie said it so gently that you felt frozen for split second.
"He broke up with me this morning, said there's no time to fix things, that his schedule is too busy."
"He fucked you last night then dumped you this morning? What the fuck?" Kookie growled the words holding you away from his body, anger on all his pretty features.
"Koo no, that's not what happened, but even if it did, I can't let you choose my side. You can't be mad at him on my behalf, only I get to be mad." You stroked your fingers across his cheek, but said the words forcefully.
"I'm sorry bunny, you deserve so much better." He brushed your hair away from your face and kissed your nose, backing down. You noticed he didn't commit to letting Jimin off the hook.
"You should go." He shook his head and pinched your arm gently.
"I don't think you should be alone, is there someone you can call? Where's Aiyun?" He walked past you to the kitchen, clearly smelling the spoiled food. Kookie raised his brow as if to say 'what happened here?'
"She's on a business trip, there's really not anyone I want to be here, I'll be alright. I'll clean up and go to work, it will keep me busy."
"Go get a shower I'll take care of this," he lifted the bag of take out with a grimace, "see you in a few."
The shower didn't do much to improve your mood, but when you emerged from the hot steam wrapped in a towel Kookie was sitting on the bed. He weakly smiled and you blushed pulling the towel tightly above your breasts.
"Don't be shy, I've seen everything before." You rolled your eyes and wiggled into a pair of underwear from your drawer trying to maintain your modesty.
Turning your back you dropped the towel and managed to get your bra on. You wondered if he was watching, looking at the bare line of your back, admiring the blue lace underwear. You really shouldn't be thinking that but it was easier to sexualize the situation than accept that Jimin dumped you.
"I think I'm going to work from home today, I just don't trust myself to keep it together." You turned and found Kookie looking at his phone, not staring at your body.
"That's a good idea but I still worry about no one being here when it really hits you." His eyes turned to you and were wide with concern, you knew what he meant.
That out of no where moment when all the emotions and ramifications of your break up with Jimin fell into your head. The tears, anger, disappointment would feel like a vise on your heart and there would be too many pieces to pick up alone. Aiyun had been there last time, it had taken a couple weeks to really feel anything that wasn't hate for Irene and Taemin. You didn't think it would take nearly so long this time.
"What would you do Koo? If you were me?" You sat on the bed next to him, he seemed completely unbothered that you'd not finished dressing.
"Part of me thinks he wants you to fight his decision, and part of me thinks he needs space." Kookie looked sad admitting both of those contradictory pieces of advice.
"I don't think he wants me to prove my love, he made it clear he doesn't want to be together. He even said he didn't know if we could fix it even if we had the time." Your hands pressed against your stomach, tendrils of nausea rolling through you at the thought it was really over.
"I don't know what Jimin wants, but I wouldn't have done that to you." Kookie leaned forward and nuzzled your cheek with his nose. It was sweet and you sighed.
"Will this ever feel better?" The words almost choked you, how could you lose him again, you'd been so sure things were going to work out. You still wore his ring, didn't know if you could bring yourself to take it off.
"It won't feel better for a while, but one day someone might make you forget why you were so hung up on him." Koo kissed you softly his fingers on your neck drawing you closer and the first tears you swore were all gone slipped down your cheeks between where your lips met.
~
Jimin paced the practice room, no one wanted to engage with him when he was like this, so tense he could snap your head off. Everyone else was going over the changed choreo for Black Swan but Jimin didn't bother. The dance leaders had given up trying to pull his attention back. The constant loop of the music was making him crazy.
Finally Kookie came into the room, Jimin turned in his direction immediately. He would have made it to him if Joon hadn't stepped in his path, flexing his height to back Jimin down.
"Almost two and a half hours late? We're twenty minutes from her apartment." Bitter accusation poured out and Jimin lobbed the words at him despite the distance Joon kept between their bodies.
"Give us a minute." Jin directed at the staff and they scattered at his curt head nod toward the door.
"Don't speak to Kookie like that, you've got no right." Joon pushed Jimin backward now that outside eyes were gone. Jimin tightened all of his muscles to not stumble.
"I just want to know what took so long." Jimin was glaring but Kookie stayed silent, his dark eyes assessing. He shrugged noncommittally and sat his bag in the pile at the side of the room.
"I don't think anything that happened after she left your apartment is any of your business. You dumped her and didn't even make sure she had a way home." Kookie dropped to the floor, tugging a pair of beat up shoes from his bag.
"Don't be cheeky Koo, how is Y/N?" Yoongi looked sad, and it instantly made Jimin feel guilty.
"She's sad, and confused. Aiyun is away on business and I didn't think I should leave her alone like that." Kookie responded to Yoongi, and each word just made Jimin feel worse.
"So sleeping with her was going to make her less sad and confused?" Jimin thrust the allegation and anger out, trying to conceal his own real emotions.
"Stop, don't answer that Kookie." Joon glared at Jimin and Tae grabbed Jimin's arm. "If anything happened with Y/N, it's between me and him not the two of you." There was serious warning in Joon's tone, and everyone seemed to sense it but Jimin.
"What do you mean it's not between us?" Jin joined Tae putting his hand at Jimin's other arm. They all knew how he could get when he lost control.
"You broke up with her, whoever she chooses to sleep with now isn't your business. If Kookie broke our arrangement by having sex with her, that's an issue for us." Joon backed Jimin up another five steps away from where Kookie sat on the floor tying a shoe lace.
"Jimin we don't do jealousy over sexual partners. You don't own her and you can't block anyone from being with her." Jin's grip pulled him back and Jimin deflated.
"What was I supposed to do? She wasn't going to end things with me for the third time. I can't break her heart anymore, I'm wrong for her and maybe she'll see it this time. I never should have tried to get her back, I should have let her move out and blocked her number. She would have moved on by now." Jimin sank to the floor and Tae crouched with him, petting his hair as Jimin fell apart his voice cracking with emotion.
"Jiminssi, I didn't have sex with her, she passed out on my lap and I didn't want her to wake up alone." Kookie walked over to the group and knelt in front of Jimin. "If you believe you're wrong for her, then I'm glad you ended things, she needs someone stronger than that." He said it gently, but Jimin dropped his head to his knees, overwhelmed.
"Whoever chooses to maintain contact with her is their business, but we're not gonna keep having this drama. You made your choice Chim, if you don't like it make another." Jin scolded him and then with Tae's help dragged Jimin to his feet.
"You need to figure out what you're going to do about Sae, I admit she's a lot of fun, but she can't stay with us permanently." Tae elbowed Jin in the ribs and the room brightened with the sound of his laugh. No one understood the joke but the two of them shot a look between them.
"Get the staff in here, we're going to be here all night at this rate." Hobi complained walking to the remote for the track to roll it back.