Chapter Text
It must be a hallmark in the journey to ‘worst boyfriend ever’ in which said boyfriend crushes on his significant other’s best friend. Though it isn’t an obvious crush, it is still there. The lingering glances at the crush’s back. The insistent need to conjure excuse after excuse to stay late after dance practices just to ‘go over the choreography of the duet’ one more time.
Jungkook knows that it’s bullshit.
But its bullshit that he’s willing to believe in just so it’s not really cheating.
///
5 Months Ago
Taehyung is blissfully unaware, ignorant, trusting, and loving. He is everything that Jungkook wants and needs in a boyfriend. Their first meeting was quite an eventful one – a story that Jungkook and Taehyung would always recount to their other couple friends.
The story goes like this: Jungkook retells how he comes bursting into the student-run bookstore, desperate for the newest addition to the Iron Man comics. Taehyung, while withholding this laughter, explains the love-struck expression on Jungkook’s face when Taehyung returns from the back of the store to restock the shelves. He has been holding the copies in his hands, and he cannot (and will not forget, as he assures Jungkook) how he hears the highest noise a man can emit from their mouths from Jungkook.
Comics, Taehyung would say after the expected bout of laughter from their couple friends, are usually released monthly. They aren’t like manga or webtoons which are released weekly. However, Jungkook would come in every week to check for more Iron Man issues, claiming (and here Taehyung reiterates claiming) that he wants to see if any new ones had come in.
So it takes a few more visits for Taehyung to call bullshit and here they are. Dating. Happy. Inexplicably happy.
That is until Taehyung introduces his best(-est) friend in the whole world to his best(-est) boyfriend in the whole world (granted he’s only had like three).
///
It’s the day when they will finally meet each other; Taehyung eagerly drags Jungkook by the hand to the arts building located at the west part of campus (the furthest building from Jungkook’s dorm) blabbering about how his best friend is the best at dancing and that his boyfriend just has to witness this and make it the best moment of his life. (By the end of this, he will personally eradicate the word best from the Webster's Dictionary, Jungkook swears.)
Jungkook frowns, slightly jealous as he is literally manhandled by a boy two years older than he is. He can’t stop thinking about how Jimin (‘he is so handsome that even in middle school both boys and girls couldn’t stop talking about him!’) was Taehyung’s crush for literal years before he gently turned him down. Well it’s been three years since and he seems to be happy with Jungkook but that doubt is still there.
However, all his inhibitions had fallen away when he meets Jimin for the first time.
It doesn’t hit him at first how simply beautiful Jimin was. It is a beauty that slowly creeps up on you; the more you’re near the beauty, the more enraptured you got.
Later, Jungkook blames it on the spotlight shining on Jimin’s sweaty body.
///
Soon after meeting Jimin, it doesn’t take long before Jungkook develops a habit to stay in the corners and just observe. He watches the way Jimin twists and turns – the whole universe is squeezed into a dimly lit dance room and the seven wonders of the world became one and that was Park Jimin.
His dancing was out of this world. Drawn to it like a moth to a flame, he finds himself in front of the dance room door when he has free time. It’s because of Jimin that he re-discovers his love for dancing.
When Jimin dances, his face will alight with something akin to hope and dreams – something that he has lost since long ago when he decided to become an economics major. He is content with just watching though, giving background applause when one of the students nails a particularly tough move.
Then Jung Hoseok, a dance instructor from a nearby college (and he was damn good, his age only being 4 years older than Jungkook), notices Jungkook’s watchful eyes one day while spectating and nudges the boy a bit into the center of the dance floor.
“Show me what you got.”
So Jungkook shows that raw intensity that he didn’t know he has and filters out everything but the music and just goes with it.
The room is silent.
It is only broken when Jungkook opens his eyes and the light comes flooding in and reality sits and stares at him right in front of him in the form of a mirror. He sees Jimin’s awed face in the reflection and Hoseok’s ecstatic expression.
“Please tell me you’ll join us for the showcase,” Hoseok says as he shakes Jungkook’s body by the shoulders. “I know you’ve watched enough to follow along with the choreography. Heck, you don’t even have to come three times a week. Two is enough; its fine for a person with your skills. How long have you been dancing?”
Jungkook rubs a bit of the longer strands of hair on his nape. “I stopped the beginning of this year but before that…maybe twelve years?”
Jimin lets out an impressed whistle and nods his head.
“No wonder you’re good. I can’t believe Taehyung was hiding such a talented person from me.” Hoseok grins his bright grin and Jungkook can’t stop himself from reciprocating.
“Will you join us? Please.”
Jungkook thinks a bit. His schedule could get hectic. Though only two meetings a week isn’t asking that much, he still doesn’t know if the workload from his studies will pile up.
“It would be amazing if you could! Ah, I’ve been wanting to dance a duet and honestly, I think you could be my partner.” Jimin pops up besides Hoseok and Jungkook, slightly startling the two.
It wouldn’t be the end of the world if he says yes, Jungkook thinks.
///
The Spot is a popular student-dominated café located at the center of campus (half of the distance to the dance room from Jungkook’s dorm). It runs on 5-hour energy drinks and 3-hour powernaps taken by half-dead students which resemble actual living zombies. Jungkook is probably one of them but his boyfriend is not.
It takes only a whole minute for Taehyung to start talking about how his parents won’t let him go to Japan for the summer but rather three European countries back-to-back.
Jungkook hates this side of Taehyung. The side that’s not-quite humble bragging but most definitely is humble bragging.
Usually, he would let it slide when Taehyung flashes his adorable-as-fuck boxy smile at Jungkook. He admits it. He has a weakness. But today just isn’t the day to deal with this. His parents had been on his ass about his tuition again. (“Are you sure you can’t graduate in three years?” “Yes, dad. I’m sure.” “Son…It’s just.. Nevermind, it’s fine. We’re here to support you no matter what.” “Yeah. I know.”)
“So, you’ve been to Europe before, then? That’s why you’re frustrated?”
“Yeah! I’ve been going there every year since I was five. I mean, would it kill them to change it up a bit? Since this IS my last year after all.”
“Huh.”
///
It’s around 2 A.M. on a Sunday when Jungkook shoots out of bed, cursing to himself. Something had been bothering him since he had left dance practice that afternoon, nagging at him in the back of his mind. He quietly searches his (admittedly) very cluttered desk for his wallet and groans into his hand when he realizes that he had left it in the dance room. Hopefully someone had picked it up.
He grabs his phone and checks his messages. None from Hoseok and his panic levels are gradually increasing. With one last look at his roommate, Namjoon, and satisfied with the continuous snoring as indication of undisturbed sleep, Jungkook slips out of the dorm without a word.
Jungkook lists his multiple failures earlier.
- Spilling Gatorade on two of his dance members.
- His wallet.
- His damn wallet gifted to him by his grandmother.
- His dead grandmother.
///
The campus is deathly quiet save for the few drunk stragglers that usually stumble out of parties at this time. Without the usual university bustling of overworked college students, it feels like he has stepped into another universe.
He lives for these moments. The peacefulness. To Jungkook, it would seem like the world’s taking a break from charging ahead. With a society that never sleeps in a city that doesn’t know the difference between AM and PM, it is a nice change of pace.
But maybe, Jungkook is simply just an introvert.
With hurrying steps, Jungkook shoves his hands into his long overcoat and tries not to grimace when his sandals are soaked with recently-watered grass. God. He just wants to be in bed right now. It is the tenth time since he had stepped outside his dorm that he regrets his carelessness.
The arts building is dark and foreboding. He should really stop watching those horror movies before going to sleep.
Jungkook stops just before he reaches the stairs leading up to the main entrance.
Odd.
The lights for the dance room are still on.
///
Music thumps and reverberates the hallway as he continues down. Jungkook checks his phone once again, making sure that he isn’t mistaken. There seriously can’t be someone practicing this late.
2:37 AM
He opens the door and is greeted with blinding lights and a dozen Jimins reflected in the mirror.
The dancer boy in front of him hasn’t taken notice of Jungkook just yet and continues through his movements in one solid, fluid moment.
It’s beautiful. Jungkook can’t tear his eyes away.
The song sings of a boy in search of his lost item, what that item is is a mystery. He travels through time, through his memories, desperate, clinging to the one thing that item left him. A single red ribbon tied around his wrist.
Perhaps it’s a symbol of the fated Japanese red cord that ties soulmates together.
The song stops abruptly and Jungkook snaps out of his reverie. He smiles at Jimin who is bent over, panting.
“How long have you been there? Sorry, I was too focused.” Jimin grimaces. His throat is too damn parched to be speaking right now.
“No worries.” Jungkook tosses over a water bottle the mini-fridge before situating himself on the hardwood floor and leans against the dance mirrors. Jimin follows and takes a big swig before letting out an exhausted sigh.
A few minutes of silence passes before Jungkook’s curiosity gets the better of him.
“Why are you still here? It’s late.”
Jimin scoffs humorlessly. “When am I never here, honestly.”
“It’s just that…when I think that I’m early to practice, it seems like you’ve already been there hours before I am.”
Jimin’s head lightly hits the mirror behind him as he gazes up into the fluorescent lights, contemplating.
“Dance. It’s very important to me.”
Jungkook remembers of when he asked Hoseok about Jimin’s extreme passion for dancing and received a complicated smile in return.
Jimin nudges Jungkook in the side. “What about you? You didn’t join dance when you enrolled.”
“Dance used to be important to me. Then I got ‘practical’ I guess. I don’t know. Seeing you guys throw all your effort and time into this…kind of reminded me of how I was before. How come dance is important to you?”
Jimin closes his eyes and stands up, reaching a hand down to Jungkook. “That’s a story for another time, Jungkook.”
After Jimin grabs his stuff and they head out of the arts building together, Jungkook hands over his phone with a blank contact page open. Wordlessly, Jimin does the same and phone numbers are exchanged. Jimin flashes a smile before waving and heading towards his dorm.
Jungkook takes a few steps away from the building before letting out a huff.
“Ah shit.” His wallet.