it was one of those fortunate days when jungkook had agreed to bring aera to the gym with him, even though the most he knew she could do was whine about it and keep sulking the entire day, but today is a busy day and having a sulking a teenager by his side isn't something he wishes. so instead of telling her no, he asked jimin to join them as well, just so he could work out without any disturbance.
as of now, it seems like a distant goal. jimin had strategically flipped his 'babysitter' card on the younger brother and started working out himself, leaving it for jungkook to entertain aera and let him excercise in peace.
"come on, ri, sit there, i've got a few miles to run." the brother sighs, hearing chuckle from jimin who is watching them unbothered while continuing with his pull ups.
"alright," jimin jumps down, nodding his head for aera to come to him, "how about you join me?"
"in what?"
"push ups?" he suggests, wiping some sweat from his locks in a towel and takes the position on the floor, "come."
"no, how about i help you?" the girl says, sitting in front of him, with her pack of jellies that jungkook just gave her before coming here.
"help me how?"
"i will count for you," she states, giggling as jimin shakes his head, beginning with the push ups, while aera starts to count with every dip and rise his body makes, flexing the muscles in his arms along with the beads of sweat on his forehead, that aera always ran away from, calling their sweaty and stinky state 'icky'.
jimin doesn't mind when the sister's counts become faint, almost hushing mixed with the deep breaths of people working out and machines operating in the gym. he looks up from the floor, realizing aera's attention is on something else now that has her mind distracted enough to bring forty-three after fifty-seven.
"ri?" jimin calls.
"hm? yeah? fifty-four, fifty-five, fifty-"
"forty-six," he corrects, chuckling at her and continues with the last few push ups until he reaches fifty and finally stops.
"oops" aera scrunches her face, following the brother up, eyes occasionally glancing at the side, a feet away from where jungkook was, finding the same person who stole a part of attention a few moments ago, following up her brother on the treadmill beside him.
"are you not going to run?" she asks.
"not today-"
"why? you should run, koo is running alone... he must be feeling so lonely."
"he's fine," jimin glances at the brother, "we should go now."
"no! i mean, i didn't exercise yet."
"you said you don't want to...?"
"now i want to." she nods, handing him the jellies and dusts her hands, "why did koo give me this? i'll get fat oppa. now i have to burn those calories."
"uh okay?" jimin frowns, giving a look of confusion to the sister whose sudden boost of energy and the will to exercise has him questioning if jungkook put something in the jellies to convince her to exercise.
"i should do a run." she says quickly, stealing another glance at the boy, which jimin noticed this time, following her gaze and blinks a few times, reminding himself that his baby sister is now thirteen, and teen crushes are too common. but not so soon!
"i... i think, you can go for a run later in the evening." jimin says, putting his arm around her smaller body and starts walking towards the exit.
"no, i'll do it here, right now."
"aera, c'mon baby, oppa's tired now. let's go home?"
"oppa please, you can sit there." she points at the bench on the corner and smiles at him widely, "i'll-"
"guys, i'm done. let's go." jungkook says, grabbing his container of protein shake as he walks over to his siblings. he opens his arms, grinning at the sister, "and guess i have a hug for riri."
"nope, i will run." aera says pointing at the treadmill, earning an impressed look jungkook and a sigh from a jimin.
"really? that's good."
"no it's not," jimin whispers, getting a confused look from jungkook while aera nods,walking over to the treadmill, "you see that dude? it's because of him."
"what does that mean?" jungkook frowns, following the elder's eyes that are pinned on a tall guy with light hair, longer than jungkook's. he's facing the other way, but the brothers are certain of his well-built body from his broad back.
"she's trying to impress him, you dumbo."
"no, shit! wait- why? she's so young, like she doesn't even know what that is. and uhm isn't he too old for her?"
"she's thirteen, jungkook."
"ah crap! that is dangerous."
"now what?"
"i have no idea..."
they sigh, staring at the young girl who looks confused with the running machine, giving some relief to the brothers, thinking that maybe she'll give up if it doesn't work. but the next moment, their eyes expand, when the guy glances at her, smiling and pauses his running session, asking aera if she needed some help.
before the brothers could jump in between, aera had already nodded, pointing at the buttons, making the guy chuckle as he walked over to her. he presses a few buttons and gestures his hand for her get on. aera follows the instructions, scared at first, then eventually gets a hang of it.
"thank you," she smiles at him.
"no problem," the boy shrugs, going back to the next treadmill and resumes his run, "press the button on the right, if you wanna stop."
"okay,"
aera glances back at her brothers, smiling at them as she points at the machine she's jogging on, earning forced smiles from the two. jungkook cracks his neck, throwing his towel and protein shake container aside, and makes his way to the treadmill next to aera's while jimin does the same, taking one next to the boy.
he lowers the speed gradually, now just walking while aera glances at jungkook and then at the buttons on her machine, "i'm getting tired..."
"i'll do it, don't worry." the other boy says stopping his treadmill and then aera's.
"thank you," aera speaks shyly, making jungkook cough as he halts with his walk too, and sits on the bench nearby, keeping his eyes fixed on the guy.
"it's nothing, don't thank me." he says, "what's your name?"
"uhm aera, i'm jeon aera." she answers, "and you?"
"i'm yeonjun." he smiles, "how old are you?"
"i- i'm thirteen, why?"
"ah, nothing you just looked too young to be working out in a gym." he says. "by the way, i'm twenty-one."
"oh" aera hesitates a little, but when her eyes look up again, gradually making their way up from his the sport's shoes on his feet to the navy blue track pants and light grey t-shirt, to his perfectly angular face with short strands of his bangs falling on his forehead unevenly, she can't help but avert her gaze quickly, catching a tint of crimson red on her cheeks.
the girl blinks a few times, flinching in her place as jungkook clears his throat, standing right beside her, having his eyes fixed on her shorter figure, raising his right eyebrow questioningly, "shall we head home?"
"uh uhm..." she nibbles on her lower lip, thinking of possible reasons that her brothers would buy and let her stay back, "are you done working out...?"
"yeah, it's been enough for today." he speaks, making her nod slowly, as his gaze shifts to the guy. "you should continue,"
"i'm sorry, who are you?"
"i'm her-"
"neighbour!" aera squeaks, "he's my neighbour, jungkook. i came with him today. and that is his older brother."
"...neighbour?" the brothers look at her with disbelieving eyes.
"yes," she laughs nervously, "you should go. your wives must be waiting!"
"wha-"
"bye!"
jungkook sighs deeply, tongue the inside of his cheek while eyes are busy shooting daggers at the oh-so handsome guy who is much older than his sister. he frowns when aera drags him by his arm, having jimin following on his own.
"what the hell was that?" jungkook stops, maintaining a sharp glare at the yonger girl.
"please be my neighbours! oppa, did you see him he's so handso–"
"oh please! he's nothing that good." jungkook rolls his eyes, "i'm way better. you should have some standard little one, when your own brothers are so cool."
"done?" aera gives a straight face, "yeah fine, you're cool. but look at him..."
"jesus, aera you- you're a baby! stop please, i feel so wierd!" jimin sighs deeply, and holds her hands, "i can't see my child simping over some dude- like, come on! he's not even your age! he's twenty-one, means just three years younger than kook."
"is it that bad?" aera pouts, making the brothers sigh, "but you said age doesn't matter when you love someone."
"first, you're just a child, it does matter! and second, you don't love him for god's sake! you just met aera!" jungkook exasperates, "i feel strange hyung, i think i'm having a heart attack, please tell her to stop doing this. she was five yesterday, oh my god!"
"people are looking, oppa."
"then stop!"
"no, i mean they're looking at you."
jungkook halts for a second, scanning around and realises the people are watching him with displeased glances for making noise and stomping like a kid in the gym. he looks down in embarrassment and breathes deeply before fixing his eyes on aera again.
"okay look, we're leaving, you won't talk to that idiot or talk about that idiot, got it?"
"but-"
"we'll get a lot of chocolates and ice cream for riri on the way back?" jimin smiles hopefully.
"excuse me?"
"what?" jungkook snaps at the owner of the voice who happens to be the same guy that got his sister's attention, "can't you se we're trying to talk? a good 'neighbour' is trying to talk to another not-so-good 'neighbour', what do you want?"
"uh actually, i thought i should tell aera that i- i'm leaving...? yeah i'm leaving, sir." yeonjun gulps, hesitantly sending a smile to the girl, "my girlfriend must be waiting too."
"what- no, wait." jimin interrupts, "come back. you have a girlfriend?"
"yeah, uh why?"
"ah nothing, i'm so happy!" he sighs in relief and hugs the boy,
"huh?"
"for you!" jungkook adds, looking equally relieved like his brother, "he's happy for you, man."
"oh yeah, thanks." yeonjun says, pulling himself away slowly and shakes his head, "i'll get going now. bye aera, see you around."
aera sighs softly, nodding her head as she doesn't look at him again, waving weakly at him. the brothers release a breath once yeonjun leaves, doing a mini fist bump to celebrate their victory.
"i loved him..."
"no, you did not." jungkook says, "you don't even know him."
"i know, he's yeonjun and he's twenty-one."
"and he has a girlfriend."
aera sighs again, shaking her head and takes her pack of jellies back from jimin, putting one in her mouth as she extends her arms out, "carry me."
"no, why?"
"because i just had a heartbreak."
"you can walk, unless it's a legbreak." jungkook snorts, making the sister whine. jimin chuckles softly, scooping her up his arms and walks out behind jungkook.
"ri?" jungkook calls again, "who's more handsome? yeonjun or me?"
"you," aera says, busy eating her jellies while also feeding a few to jimin, "who's more pretty? me or yeonjun?"
"yeonjun, of course."
"oppa!"
"my baby's the prettiest." jimin whispers, kissing her cheek, "please stay like this, my little girl."
aera giggles, hugging him quickly and nods, "yeonjun wasn't that good y'know. i like my oppa more and! and i'll stay with you forever!"
"even we get married?"
"yes,"
"even you get married?"
"yes," aera nods confidently, "i'll marry someone only when the person says i can stay with my oppa."
jimin laughs at her thought, bumping his forehead against aera's, "done."
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a/n- hiiiii how are you? i don't have much to say, just vote if you liked the chapter and uhm share it with your friends, comment and– oh! follow me, now that's all, yeah. have a good day/night take care ❣️✨
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