"Wait did I hear you correctly? You... you want to come to thirdclass?"
Jungkook was baffled at the complete change of heart Jimin had made about going to his part of the ship.
"I thought you couldn't be seen there... and that you hated rats. Jimin let me tell you there are quite some rats down there if you know where to look."
"Are you trying to talk be out of going?" Jimin asked, still dragging Jungkook towards the elevator.
"No, no ofcourse not but-"
"Then be quiet and lead the way because I actually don't know how to get there."
Jungkook chuckled at the weirdness of the situation, but took control and guided Jimin into the elevator nonetheless.
"This thing feels like it will break but that is just an illusion I can assure you," Jungkook said as the narrow elavator struggled to carry the two men down.
Jimin looked around nervously. "Yeah... sure."
The younger man stared at Jimin from the corner of his eyes, a large smile creeping onto his face as he realised this gorgeous man was indeed beautiful on the inside and on the outside.
It turned out the man didn't care about how filthy and cramped thirdclass was after all. It was all just for show...
"Can you stop staring at me please... is there something off?"
Jungkook shook himself out of his thoughts. "What? No! No, ofcourse not I was just thinking... how this ship might be my goodluck charm since all my wishes seem to come true."
Jimin's eyes darted to the ground as his face flushed, still trying to act like he wasn't extremely flattered.
The elevator came to a strained stop on the deck where Jungkook stayed.
"After you," he said, signing for Jimin to exit first.
Jimin rolled his eyes but walked out first anyway. "You have to stop treating me like a woman or I swear to god you will be swimming with the sharks soon."
Jungkook followed after Jimin with a grin. "I don't mean to treat you as a woman. I mean to treat you galantly."
The two men walked the cramped hallways that were twice as small as in firstclass.
A foreign family came by, with two parents that spoke a different language and two little children that played with dolls.
Jimin smiled sweetly at the little kids, waving while mouthing them "hello," and Jungkook's heart nearly burst at the sight.
"So... are we going to your room?" Jimin asked, not sure why he was walking in front of Jungkook since he didn't know where to go.
Somewhere in the background of the ship's many haunting sounds, Jimin heard pleasent music echo through the corridors and laughter that didn't sound forced perk his ears.
"No... I know a better place," Jungkook said, tugging at Jimin's shirt when the boy nearly took the wrong direction.
~~~
P
eople were dancing on tables, drinking bottles of beer and spilling stories about the different places they originated from.
"Where in the name of christ..."
Jimin looked around with parted lips, in awe of the happiness the people around him were wearing on their faces. This surely couldn't be possible? How could thirdclass scum have this much fun while they had to sleep with rats?
"Not what you had expected?" Jungkook asked, perking up a brow as he took Jimin's hand and guided the young man through the dancing crowd.
"F-far... far from it," Jimin stammered, still staring at his surroundings in wonder.
Jungkook found a table for both of the men to sit down at and smiled proudly.
"Amazing isn't it?" He said when Jimin slowly took a seat.
Jimin nodded, looking at the dancing people with widened eyes. They were twirling around and jumping in ways he had never seen before. No boring waltz no balroomdancing, simply enjoying the music and letting the rythm take control.
"Do you like dancing?" Jungkook asked, seeing the way Jimin was studying the movements of the crowd.
"Oh... well yes but I can't dance myself," Jimin laughed sheepishly, immediatly tearing his attention away from the dancers.
"Nonsense," Jungkook said, rising from his seat right away.
"No it makes perfect sense," Jimin said, waving his hands in refusal of what Jungkook was surely about to ask. "We don't dance like this where I come from. I never learned it."
Jungkook laughed right in Jimin's face. "You can't learn this dance, that's the point! You do what your mind tells you without asking questions. What would be the fun otherwise?"
Jungkook grabbed Jimin's hands and pulled the man out of his seat.
"J-Jungkook stop, we can't dance together!" He said with a panicked voice, frantically looking around in fear of people seeing them.
"The world is different down here Jimin," Jungkook said with a grin, dragging Jimin towards the dancefloor despite the older struggeling against him. "We might not be rich but we're free, just like our dances!"
Jungkook spun around and laughed, pretending he was some famous performer on the broadway stage.
"Jungkook!" Jimin whisper-shouted, his face heating up as people started staring at them.
"Come on Jimin, don't disappoint the audience!" Jungkook said, shuffeling his feet on the music and making a fool out of himself for the spectator's entertainment.
Jimin buried his face in his hands, mortified at the amount of eyes focusing on him.
But Jungkook grabbed Jimin's wrists and intertwined their fingers, turning them in circles and blurring the crowd from Jimin's vision.
"Focus on the music!" Jungkook giggled, his nose scrunching cutely and his bunny teeth making a quick appearance.
Jimin squeeled as the room spun and pressed his eyes shut, doing as Jungkook said and focusing on the sounds of the melodic violin and chiming piano filling the room.
"Hey look at that!" A man from the crowd yelled, followed by everyone cheering as Jimin finally dared let go of his fears.
The pain in the boy's back disappeared like melting snow, and he saw only Jungkook's bright smile when he opened his eyes again.
He couldn't count how many times he had squished Jungkook's foot under his own, but Jungkook still giggled at him as their heels clicked over the dancefloor. They felt like they were floating as they continued to dance and spin.
The pressure of Jungkook's warm hand on Jimin's waist made it seem like the lights twinkeled with each step they made and caused butterflies to craze in Jimin's stomache.
This was perfect. This was dancing and art coming to life, strong pointed moves didn't matter here. All that mattered was the person in front of you.
The adrenaline and cheering crowd guided the men deeper into the night, when the joyful music had calmed down to a slow melody that spun around them lifting away gravity.
It was safe here, Jimin realised, drifting into a part of his mind that acted free of judgement. He rested his head on Jungkook's chest as the men let their bodies sway 'round and 'round again on the soft violin symphony playing in the room.
And even though Jimin couldn't imagine it to be true. No one blinked an eye and no one spoke a word, when two men danced together so intimately as if they were the only ones in the world.
~~~
Jungkook and Jimin walked back towards the elevator in silence, both still feeling like they were floating on a cloud.
Their hands were intertwined, but they were acting as if they weren't, both a little afraid of the electricity that sparked where their skin met.
The elevator creeked and complained as it descended to the thirdfloor and revealed a man and a woman inside.
Jungkook and Jimin both let go of each other's hand immediatly, and felt as if they had ripped themselves away from something they never wanted to let go of.
"I should go now..." Jimin said after the man and woman had walked away without sparing the men a glance.
"Sadly so..." Jungkook said, smiling a little akwardly since he didn't know what expression he was supposed to wear. He wasn't happy that Jimin had to leave. But this was how it had to be.
"Until we meet again?" Jimin asked, his lips too, carefully edging up into a hesitent smile.
"You're welcome here anytime," Jungkook blurted out as Jimin entered the elevator. "And I'll surely get to your floor again... for the view ofcourse..."
Jimin nodded while the elevatordoors slowly closed up. "It's prettier than anywhere else on the ship," he chimed as the elevator took off and climbed up.
Jungkook found himself waving even though Jimin had already left.
Wait... god what an idiot he was! He hadn't even said goodbye properly! What was he? Inexperienced? Waving like a lunatic, honestly!
Jungkook turned around and stomped back to his cabin, muttering cursewords at himself in the process.
~~~
"I barely even spoke with him! I got distracted by how he was looking at the dancers!"
"But you danced with him right?" Taehyung asked, forced to wake from his sleep at midnight when Jungkook bursted into the room.
The two other men in the room slept right through Jungkook's frustration even though the boy was ranting at quite a loud volume.
Jungkook climbed onto the topbunk of the bed and sighed deeply. "Yeah I danced with him..."
"And you both had a good time right?" Taehying continued, trying to get Jungkook to see the point.
"I think this was the best night of my life... and I went to a stripbar where the drinks were free for one night."
Taehyung smiled contently. "Then do shut up and let me sleep."
Jungkook chuckled softly, remembering the faces of pure happiness Jimin had made tonight. Never had Jungkook seen a smile that beautiful. It was such a pity that the boy didn't show it very often.
"I think I love him Tae..." Jungook whisperer quietly, wondering what Jimin would be doing right now.
But Taehyung had already drifted into slumber, and Jungkook's thrilling confession, turned into a mere whisper of the night.