author:
Hi, guys. Belated
Happy New Year!
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"You can leave early, yes. But you're coming to my place."
Too stunned and confused to speak, Hoseok couldn't utter a word for a few seconds. "Y– your place? Why?"
Jimin then sighs. He takes Hoseok's hands in his own and brings them closer to his lips. Leaving a few open–mouthed kisses on the knuckles, Jimin gazes at Hoseok. He then uses his one hand to hold both of Hoseok's wrists, and the other to caress Hoseok's slightly swollen eyes.
Hoseok closes his eyes instantly, and tries to absorb the feeling of Jimin's soft palm on his face.
"Oh, Hoseok.." Jimin smiles deviously, You have no idea why, he thinks. He then leans a little lower to place a kiss on both of Hoseok's eyes. "Did you cry a lot today?"
Great. Jimin is bringing up the topic which Hoseok doesn't really want to talk about. At least, not right now.
Not when his mind and heart are both stuck at Jeongguk.
With his eyes still closed, Hoseok shakes his head, answering Jimin a 'No' in gesture. He then feels Jimin's palm holding his cheeks rather tightly, making his lips pucker a little. Hoseok takes it as an indication to open his eyes and look at Jimin.
Jimin's thumb runs over Hoseok's lips, "Use this pretty little mouth of yours to answer me, baby."
Hoseok's heart drops to the lowest depth of his stomach. That nickname, albeit this isn't the first time he's being called like so from Jimin, but something about this situation has made things a lot more hotter. "I didn't cry a lot.." he replies weakly.
Humming, Jimin scoffs softly, "Hasn't anyone told you, that you're not a good liar?" Smiling gently at Hoseok, he presses his inquiry further. "Did you cry because of me?"
And at that, Hoseok hangs his head low. He couldn't bring himself to look back into Jimin's sharp, questioning eyes. What if Jimin gets disappointed if he does agree?
"I don't like to ask twice, Hoseok." Jimin says authoritatively, and that's what it takes for Hoseok to spill the reason behind his tears without giving it another thought. Jimin listens to him calmly, and waits until he's done.
"Honestly, Hoseok, I was mad at you." He starts, taking Hoseok slightly by surprise. Before Hoseok could ask why, Jimin continues. "Not entirely at you, but you surely were the reason for me being so mad. Do you want to know why?"
And this time, Hoseok stops himself from nodding to instead reply verbally. "Yes, please."
"It's because of Jeongguk. Who does he think he is to snatch you away from me?" Hoseok could see Jimin's face slowly turning red because of anger now. "Tell me, Hoseok. What is your relationship with him? You said you guys are just friends."
To Hoseok, something about the tone Jimin has just used made him sound so accusing. Something that charges him of being a cheater. So, feeling the urge to clarify the budding doubts in Jimin's mind, "He is!" He instantly replies, "He really is my friend. He's just very protective of me because of my past, that's all."
"Your past, you say?" Jimin's brow quirks up at that, "Care to elaborate?"
Hoseok is not yet ready to talk about his painful past in front of Jimin. He needs more time, and more understanding from the latter to actually share anything regarding his own past. "I— Can I— Can we talk about this later?"
His hesitation is clear, but his boss looks at him boringly. "Does it look like I'm someone with a lot of patience, Hoseok?" He presses. "If not now, we will never talk about it. The choice is yours."
Jimin knows what he's doing. He's putting Hoseok in a tight spot. He knows Hoseok well enough to guess his choices. Hoseok most probably wouldn't want to keep Jimin hanging. He'd feel terrible, if he does so. "Know that I'm not forcing you though. But do keep in mind that whatever you decide, will affect on our blooming relationship. I'm telling you this beforehand because I do not want you to blame me for anything in the future."
Hoseok gives it a thought. But he couldn't even contemplate for a little while because Jimin keeps tapping his shoes on the ground; indicating he's growing impatient.
So, giving up, he slowly starts. "It all started when my mother died due to an accident." Despite all these years, the memory of his mother being hit by a truck is still very fresh in his mind. That scene alone haunted him for years; and it still does, occasionally.
"My dad loved her so dearly. He couldn't handle her death. It was already so hard for me to witness my mother's death. Handling him was even worse. He started drinking to keep his pain away. But still... I stayed strong to give him strength. But then— the bakery he then recently started before the accident got caught up in a fire which caused him great loss."
"The job he used to have was long gone, too, and because of the bakery incident, he completely lost control over himself. He was always drunk; barely ever sober, and when I tried to keep him away from the alcohol, he..." Hoseok doesn't realise when the tears have started flowing down his face.
"He started abusing me."
Jimin clenches his fist as soon as he hears that. Sure, he knew about the fire incident through his sources, and few bits of his withering relationship with his father. But hearing all of that through Hoseok's sobbing voice? His anger on his face is as clear as the sky of summer.
"Jeongguk and I were best buddies since our middle school." At the mention of his rival's name, Jimin suddenly remembers why this topic was initiated at the first place. "He was studying abroad all while this happened. He didn't know a thing about what happened in my life. Not until very recently. He flew back home as soon as he learned about it."
Hoseok clears his throat as Jimin wipes a stray tear from his cheek. "He blames himself for not being there for me even though it's not his fault at all. It's not his fault that it all happened, after all. I keep reassuring him that but he doesn't listen. He vowed to me that he'll stick to me and stay by my side no matter what happens. And I gladly let him."
Jimin squints his eyes pointedly at that.
"I love him so much, after all."
And at that, Jimin inhales sharply. His heart twists in a way that makes him go feral in anger and jealousy. You love him so much, you say? He bites the insides of his cheeks, in an attempt to contain his anger in. I will make sure to change that.
He ignores the way his heart is also delighted [his dick, really] to see Hoseok sob so prettily in front of him. A part of him wants to absolutely rail Hoseok to oblivion just so he could hear him cry and beg for him to stop. For now though, he thinks, he needs to put his depraved side aside and focus on creating rifts between this supposedly inseparable duo.
"So, umm.. yeah." Sniffling, Hoseok laughs awkwardly, "Didn't mean to cry like a little baby, I'm sorry."
"It's alright." Jimin replies, patting Hoseok's head. "It's all right. Don't be sorry." He sees Hoseok nod shyly, after which he speaks again. "Now, back to what I was saying... let's go to my home."
Hoseok's eyes widen at that— because he has completely forgotten about that! He needs to go to Jeongguk but he also wants to go with Jimin. To his home. His cheeks warm up at the thought alone; of being with Jimin at his home. Will they be spending the night together? A blush is now evident on his face.
But then he shakes his head cutely, resoluted to solve things up with Jeongguk first. Because he knows he won't be able to think about anything else if he doesn'tend up doing that right now. "Can, uh. Can we do that later?"
"Can I ask you the reason?" Raising a brow, Jimin simply asks.
"Of course..." Hoseok replies dumbly. "I promised Jeongguk I'll meet him after my working hours end. I— we have some things to sort out. And I, uh, promised him that I'll be back home early to do that..."
"Hoseok." Jimin calls. Enjoy your days with him as much as you can, he wants to say. "Pack up. I'll drop you off."
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an;
I actually forgot why I
wanted koobi to meet 😭
I was planning to include
their meet-up in this chap
but since my stupid brain
cannot remember the reason
this chapter had to wait for
this long.
━
wc: 1.4k words.
not proofread !
18-01-2023.