Chapter Text
On Christmas Day, Jimin wakes up with a bunch of messages from Jeongguk, in which the boy excitedly wishes Jimin a very very very very very very very… beautiful Merry Christmas, bombarding him with cute pics of cookies he baked and decorations he hung up inside his small apartment. He then proceeds to go on a rant about how cute puppies are when covered in snow and fills half of Jimin’s gallery with puppy pictures, but the older one is not a bit mad.
Ever since they went out ice skating, Jeongguk has become more and more comfortable with sharing small things from his life with Jimin, to the point he informs the older about the smallest and most unnecessary thing, but he’s not mad.
He loves seeing Jeongguk getting excited over small things and he loves to be the person Jeongguk wants to share with.
So when he leaves towards his parents house, Jimin is sure no one will be able to ruin his day, because a said bunny looking boy made sure from the first hour of the morning to make it absolutely wonderful.
But the actual day spent at his parents’ house is, to say…eventful, and when Jimin comes back home, he’s so drained and tired that he simply texts Jeongguk a message, saying “could’ve been better. im tired. u can come over whenever tomorrow, u have the password just walk right in. i need some of ur energy i miss u” — and with that, he slumps back in bed and goes to sleep almost immediately, not even waiting for a reply.
⟷
The next morning, Jimin is woken up with his face being itchy because of something seemingly fluffy. At first, he’s too tired to really think about it, so he simply tries to scratch at his chin and nose and move his face to the side, but the feeling is still there, accompanied by small giggles that sound like they’re meters away, and Jimin groans.
He’s tired and the constant itchiness annoys him, so he finally decides to open his eyes barely, a frown immediate on his face when the light blinds him.
It takes him a few seconds to adjust to the brightness, but when he does, he looks around for the source of his itchiness, and frowns at the ball of fluff.
The realization hits him a few seconds later, when the ball moves, and reveals two big brown orbs, that shine as they look up at him. Jimin’s first reaction is to gape, then frown?
How the fuck did a bunny get in his apartment?
Then he hears another giggle, and suddenly everything makes sense when his head snaps up and he sees Jeongguk giggling as he watches everything from the side.
“You…”
“Good morning,” Jeongguk giggles. “And Merry Christmas!”
Jimin blinks rapidly, then moves his attention back on the fluff ball that seems to have taken a liking on Jimin’s pillow and curled up in the middle of it. “Merry Christmas to you too…what’s this?”
Jeongguk bites his lip to suppress a smile, and wiggles his hands, saying, “Your Christmas present!”
“You…” Jimin gulps, looking back up at the younger boy. “You got me a bunny?”
The younger boy bursts into a wide smile and nods excitedly, “I did,” he confirms, then watches as his words make Jimin’s confused expression morph into something between awe and excitement, his small hands shaking as they extend forward to pet the small animal.
“It’s…mine? Really?” the boy asks once again, finding it almost unreal for it to be true. Did Jeongguk really get him a bunny?
“It’s yours, hyung. It’s all yours! And I got him the basic necessities as well, just cause I didn’t know what you’d want for him.” he says, walking closer to the bed and taken aback when Jimin suddenly hops down and right into his arms, almost knocking him over.
“Thank you thank you thank you Ggukie,” Jimin cries out, hugging Jeongguk as tight as he can, his heart beating like crazy out of happiness. His eyes water, but he squeezes them really tight, not wanting to cry right now, even if it’s out of happiness.
“You’re welcome, hyung,” Jeongguk whispers in his ear and squeezes his waist tightly, letting Jimin hug him for how long he wants, without showing any signs of wanting to pull back.
“I’m gonna name him Koo,” Jimin says out of nowhere, pulling back quickly from the hug to look at Jeongguk. “I’m gonna name him Koo, and no one will stop me.”
Jeongguk laughs, a little bit confused, but laughs nonetheless. “No one’s gonna stop you, hyung,” he confirms, his hands still on Jimin’s waist. “But why Koo?” he questions, genuinely curious about the meaning behind the name.
“Because,” Jimin takes a deep breath. “Because it reminds me of you, and because it was a gift from you and because you look like a bunny so it all adds up. His name is Koo. Kinda sounds like Ggu. So Koo.” he explains, stumbling over words and rambling, but Jeongguk understood anyway.
He smiles widely and scrunches up his nose happily, glad to be the inspiration for the bunny’s name. “Koo it is, then. Good name choice,” he winked towards the older boy, who smiled and rolled his eyes playfully, before pulling back and turning towards the bed so he could gently pick up the small ball of fluff.
“It’s a he, right?” he asks just to make sure, but knowing that even if it’s a girl, the name would be the same.
But luckily, it’s a boy. “It is. And he’s around 3 months old. I left all his things in the living room, and also I brought breakfast!” he announces, having forgotten till now about the food he brought.
“You didn’t have to do all this, Ggukie. Thank you, so much,” Jimin said softly, looking towards the younger boy with such adoration in his eyes that Jeongguk felt his knees buckle.
“I’d do anything for you, hyung.” the boy confessed. “Plus, you said last night you weren’t feeling the best, so I thought these could help a little.”
Jimin smiled softly, thankful for the boy. He couldn’t have asked for more.
“You’re the best, Ggukie.” the older boy murmured, tiptoeing to quickly peck Jeongguk’s cheek before running away giggling, leaving behind a dumbfounded boy.
“He’s unbelievable,” Jeongguk shakes his head with a fond smile, before rushing to catch up with Jimin, his heart beating fast and full of love.
⟷
After eating the breakfast Jeongguk bought and setting up Koo’s place, Jimin let the bunny sleep in his temporary cage as him and Jeongguk plopped down on the couch and opened netflix, ready to binge some Christmas movies and eat the cookies Jeongguk baked yesterday.
“How was Christmas at your family? What was the said present?” Jeongguk curiously asked as Jimin scrolled to find an eye-catching movie. The older boy grimaced before sighing deeply and dropping the remote on his lap, with no intention of finding a movie anymore.
“It was…eventful, kinda. Or not really, maybe more weird and tense. The present was what we all expected, Minho’s adoption papers. He’s officially a Park now, I guess,” Jimin shrugs, slumping down on the couch next to Jeongguk.
“And is that a bad thing?” the younger asks, and suddenly gets a feeling of deja vu, because they had a similar conversation when they went ice skating as well, but Jimin never finished the whole story.
“It isn’t,” Jimin concludes. “It isn’t. I’m happy they’re happy and I’m happy for Minho, but it’s hard to watch them raise him like they didn’t with us. We were their kids, why couldn’t they raise us the same? Why must it be different with him? And why now? Are they finally ready to properly raise a kid now? And if they weren’t ready for us, why did they have us?”
Jeongguk’s lips turn downwards as he listens to the older boy questioning his life, and he scoots closer to the boy, to silently let him know he’s here.
He doesn’t know what to say honestly, because he’s unfamiliar with the situation and because he’s not really good at comforting people, so all he can do is be there for Jimin if he needs him.
“Yesterday we didn’t fight, cause Minho was there, but I know my siblings were upset. Not at Minho, but at the situation in general, the one I was talking about. So it was pretty tense and awkward, especially when seeing and being able to compare how our parents act with Minho and how they acted with us. It’s like we aren’t even their kids, just simply acquaintances.”
When he finishes talking, he turns his head to the side to look at Jeongguk, with eyes so big that the younger boy almost melts right there. But instead, he slowly and reluctantly opens his arms, and not even two seconds later he has his arms full of Jimin, who hugs him so tight as if he’s been wanting to do so forever.
“I’m sorry, hyung,” Jeongguk said in a whisper. “I don’t know what to do or say to help, but just know that I’m here if you ever need me. No matter what for, no matter when. I’m one call away, okay?”
Jimin sniffs and nods, his face hidden away in Jeongguk’s chest, close enough to hear the rapid beating of Jeongguk’s heart, that slowly calms down as time passes and then two of them remain in the same position.
“Thank you,” he mumbles suddenly. “Thank you for everything.”
“My pleasure,” Jeongguk replies, followed by a gentle kiss on top of Jimin’s head, which makes the boy’s heart flutter.
“I’ll always be here for you too, Ggukie,” Jimin says, lifting his head just so he can look up at the younger boy so he can make sure Jeongguk knows he’s serious.
The younger boy smiles softly, and nods once. “I know. Thanks, hyung. You’re the best.”
Jimin huffs, and hides his face back in Jeongguk’s chest. “Says you, the most amazing and selfless person.”
“Says you , the most kindhearted and sweet person,” Jeongguk contradicts, and Jimin doesn’t even have to look up to know he’s pouting, which makes him smile in his chest.
He doesn’t argue back, but instead squeezes with his hand at Jeongguk’s side, making the younger squeak and giggle amusedly at the tickling sensation, the vibrations of his laugh being sent right to Jimin, whose heart speeds up at that.
God, he’s so head over heels for this boy, he can’t wait to finally confess and hopefully make him his.
⟷
It’s New Year's Day, and Jeongguk is so very late to Jimin’s. He was supposed to arrive a few hours early so he can help the older boy decorate the apartment a little and also help him choose and outfit, but Jeongguk being Jeongguk, wanted to get Jimin some flowers so he walked towards the closest flower shop, which was sadly closed, and then had to walk and find some other more to finally stumble upon an opened one.
It took him five flower shops to find the one, but he finally did, and then spent twenty minutes arguing with the cashier because they wanted to give Jeongguk some other flowers when all he wanted was a red bouquet.
Then, it took him another half an hour to reach Jimin’s apartment, time in which his phone turned off and his fingers almost fell because of how cold it was.
When he finally got in front of Jimin’s door, he barely had the strength to move, so he resorted to banging with his head slightly till Jimin came quickly and opened the door for him, bursting out laughing at the sight in front of him.
Jeongguk was sitting there like a statue, shaking from the cold, the flowers moving at the same time with his shivers, his teeth clanking as well.
“Oh my God Ggukie,” Jimin laughed, helping the boy inside, where he slowly took the flowers from his hands, because Jeongguk was way too frozen to move.
Koo hopped quickly out of nowhere at the younger boy's feet, sniffling him a little to make sure it’s all safe before rushing to hop around after Jimin who went to put the flowers into a vase, like a small baby duck following its mother.
When coming back, Jimin found the younger boy slowly defrosting, and giggled once again. “Thanks for the flowers, Ggukie, but you didn’t have to,” he smiled, unzipping the boy’s cold jacket and helping him take it off.
The younger boy was still way too cold but tried his best to move and ease Jimin’s job of taking off his jacket, beanie and mittens, which were hiding cold hands and blonde hair.
“Holy shit,” Jimin gasped as soon as Jeongguk’s beanie was off, staring up at the younger boy with eyes so wide it looked like he just saw a ghost. At first, Jeongguk didn’t know if it was a good ‘holy shit’ or a bad one, and was too scared to ask, but the answer came rather quickly.
Jimin slowly carded one hand through Jeongguk’s hair, brushing it back and looking intensely at it, as if in a trance. And he was. The older boy was so shocked with how good Jeongguk looks with blonde hair that he can’t help but stare at it without even blinking.
“You look so beautiful…” he murmurs, tiptoeing just so they can be almost the same height so he can reach his hair more easily.
Jeongguk blushed at the compliment, his cheeks slowly heating up under Jimin’s intense gaze. “Thank you,” he whispers shily, his voice raspy and raw from the cold.
“I love it,” Jimin smiled. “You look like a pretty angel.” he continued, wanting to fluster Jeongguk just a little bit more, because he looks so pretty with flushed cheeks and sparkly eyes, that he just can’t help it.
Jeongguk can’t get himself to give a proper reply, but he huffs and stutters and turns his head to the side when feeling his cheeks heat up even more than before, making Jimin laugh at the situation.
“You’re so cute,” he cooed, pulling his hands back. “Now c’mon, let's make you some hot cocoa to warm up so we can start decorating after. We have like three hours left till the others will show up.” he instructs, wrapping his hand around Jeongguk’s wrist to pull the boy inside the kitchen, even if there was no need to do so.
“Do you have cinnamon?” Jeongguk asked.
Jimin smiled and nodded. “I do, I bought some for you.” he mumbled, and opened a cabinet to pull out the cinnamon and cocoa powder. “I know you like your hot cocoa with cinnamon so I got some just in case,” he adds.
The younger boy’s heart clenches at the words, and he has to bite his lip to contain his happiness at the fact that Jimin bought cinnamon just for him. Hell, he didn’t even tell Jimin he likes his hot cocoa with cinnamon, so he has no idea how the boy knows — maybe from Yoongi? He’s the one that knows how Jeongguk likes his hot cocoa because he’s the one that makes it every time he visits the cafe —, but it doesn’t even matter.
What matters is Jimin went out of his way to get something he doesn’t even use, just in case Jeongguk ever wanted it.
Jeongguk almost confesses right there and then, but he’s interrupted by a small nibble to his feet. When he looks down, there’s Koo gently munching on his sock, making the boy erupt in a fit of giggles.
“Koo seems so much more comfortable to be around now,” he pointed out, crouching down to pet the small bunny, who doesn’t seem scared or nervous at all.
Jimin watched the two with fond eyes and a big smile on his face. “He is,” he agreed. “We spent the last few days together at all times, so he got comfortable pretty quickly. He’s just really curious, and really clingy. It’s adorable, really.” he said, his voice so tender and filled with love that it made Jeongguk almost coo at it.
“I’m glad you two are getting along,” Jeongguk says truthfully. “A kitty and a bunny, the best combo.” he laughs.
Jimin rolls his eyes, but smiles and corrects the younger boy. “A kitty and two bunnies.”
“Two?”
“Mhm,” Jimin hummed, turning back around to pour some milk into a cup. “You’re my bunny too,” he said lowly, almost too quiet for Jeongguk to hear, but thankfully he was close enough to hear it, and he doesn’t regret it.
“Am I?” he asks, somehow unsure if Jimin meant it the same way Jeongguk hoped he would.
“I mean…” Jimin murmured, quickly glancing over his shoulder at Jeongguk, his heart racing as he saw the way the younger looked at him. It’s now or never. “I want you to be.”
Jeongguk stopped petting the bunny, and instead stood up so he could walk next to Jimin. He leaned on the counter and looked at the older man so intensely, as if he wanted to read his mind right there and then.
“Hyung, look at me,” he pleaded when he saw Jimin was way too focused on opening the cocoa packet, and waited patiently for the boy to turn his head around, and look up at him. The older boy’s eyes were shining in the kitchen lights, and it looked like they held the stars as he looked into Jeongguk’s eyes.
“Hyung…” the younger boy whispered, heart racing and hands sweating. “Hyung, do you…mean it?”
Jimin gulped, and wetted his lips quickly before nodding slowly. “I do,” he murmured. “I really do, Ggukie.”
“You…want me to be yours?”
“I want you to be mine,” Jimin confirmed. “I want you to be mine, and I want to be yours, in every possible way.”
Jeongguk’s breath hitched at Jimin’s words, and it felt like everything around them was a messy blur and the time stopped, and the only thing in focus was Jimin, who was now completely facing Jeongguk, eyes full of hope.
Both their hearts were racing like crazy, and their hands were sweaty and cheeks hot, but none of that mattered as they looked into each other’s eyes, all giddy and excited.
“Hyung,” Jeongguk breathed out, inhaling deeply. “Hyung, I like you. I like you so much, and I want you to be mine, and I want to be yours, and I want everything that comes with it.” he finally confesses, now feeling like a weight lifted from his shoulders. He put his heart out in front of Jimin, and now the ball was in Jimin’s court.
The older man exhaled in relief, and closed his eyes happily for a split second. When he opened them again, he found Jeongguk watching him attentively, and almost afraid, and he hurried to reply, “Jeonggukie, I like you too, so much. I’ve liked you for some time now, to be honest.”
Jeongguk’s eyes widened and a bright smile showed up, his face literally glowing with happiness.
“Hyung, can I…can I ask the question?” the younger boy asked, making Jimin giggle amused at it, before nodding excitedly.
“Of course, go ahead.”
“Hyung…do you want to be my boyfriend?” Jeongguk asked, with a smile so big and bright he could outshine the sun, and his voice was so sweet and genuine that Jimin couldn't help but coo, heart clenching painfully.
“I do, baby. I wanna be your boyfriend,” he replied, his husky voice together with the pet name doing God’s work and melting Jeongguk’s heart into a messy loving puddle.
They didn’t kiss after that, like Jeongguk expected to happen after a confession.
No. Jimin went back to finishing Jeongguk’s hot cocoa, while the latter busied himself by playing with Koo. When the hot cocoa was done, and Jeongguk was significantly hotter, Jeongguk let Koo hop away while he followed Jimin inside the living room, where all the needed decorations were splayed around, ready to be put up.
They spent the next hour like this, listening to some music in the background as they worked on decorating Jimin’s apartment to their best extent, sometimes stealing small cheek or forehead kisses, and making each other giggle or blush happily. Jeongguk realized that Jimin is a lot clingier now that they’re in a relationship, but he didn’t mind it one bit.
He didn’t mind a surprise hug or a loving, gentle kiss as long as they came from his boyfriend.
Two hours later, the first to show up were Taehyung and Yoongi, who found them tickling on the floor and almost kissing. The two newbie boyfriends pulled away shyly, while Taehyung and Yoongi turned towards each other at the same time, but with Taehyung handing Yoongi a specific sum of money.
“We made a bet,” Yoongi shrugged when Jeongguk frowned confused at them from the floor. “I said you two would get together before 2022, Tae said after. I won.”
Jimin hummed, but shrugged as he helped Jeongguk up. “Seems fair to me.”
“But not to me,” Taehyung grumbled, plopping down on the couch with a pout on his face. “Couldn’t you wait for like, a few hours?”
Jeongguk shook his head slowly. “A few more hours and I would’ve peed my pants of stress. It was now or never,” he said, his serious tone making the rest laugh loudly.
“Was it that scary?” Jimin asked, giggling.
“It was,” Jeongguk nodded. “I felt like my heart was pounding out my chest. I thought I was having a damn heart attack when you said I was yours. No fun, really.”
“You’re unbelievable,” laughed Taehyung, fanning himself because he got hot from laughing so much.
“It’s a couple thing,” Yoongi chuckled, plopping himself down on his boyfriend’s laugh, who couldn’t help but agree.
It was true. They were both unbelievable.
⟷
A few hours later, the other three arrived as well, and the party started. Somehow. At first, they spent a good amount of time being shocked and teasing the newbie couple, which made Jimin promise to kick them out in the cold if he heard another word about it tonight. Seems pretty fair to Jeongguk, if you ask him.
Then, they sat down to eat, so later they could drink in peace, without worrying their stomach will hurt. Of course, Jin brought a portion of the meal, the rest being completed with what Jeongguk brought today and what Jimin already had prepared. They ate slowly, mostly talking and laughing about everything and nothing. The drinks started slowly, first beer, one can, two cans, till there were more cans than plates of food on the table, and the seven of them were laughing at the most unfunny things.
Jeongguk and Yoongi offered to clean up the table, since they were the most sober ones and didn’t trust the others on not dropping the plates, so they did a quick work of that, sharing a few words in between, mainly because they knew they’ll have enough time for explanations later. But Yoongi couldn’t help his curiosity, so Jeongguk indulged him a little.
“Who confessed first?”
“It was kinda both, but me I think. He made the first step, though.” he explained.
“Who asked the question?”
“I did, cause I wanted to.”
Yoongi smiled happily. “I’m happy for you, Gguk. I hope you two will be together for a long time.”
“Me too, hyung.” said Jeongguk, smiling faintly. “Me too.”
“What did he say about the bunny? Also, where is it?”
“He absolutely adores it. He was so happy when he saw it. And it’s upstairs in one of the guest room, he was afraid he’d get hurt if he’d let it roam free with us drunk around.”
Yoongi hummed, “Seems fair. I’m happy he liked it, though. You struggled a lot with deciding on a present.”
“Mhm,” Jeongguk agreed. “I did, but I’m happy with what I chose. He was somehow upset, though, because he didn’t have time to get me a present. I told him not to worry, but he promised he’d get me something soon as a late Christmas present.”
“He’s really sweet,” Yoongi chuckled. “Seems a lot sweeter and kinder to you, though.”
“Does he?”
“Yeah,” Yoongi nodded. “Think it’s the Jeongguk effect.”
“Wasn’t that something along the lines of ‘scare everyone away with my looks’?”
Yoongi shook his head, disagreeing. “No, it’s more like, ‘make everyone whipped for Jeongguk because of his personality’.”
Jeongguk giggled, handing Yoongi the last empty beer can, without replying. He knows he doesn’t have to. Yoongi simply listens, without needing Jeongguk to talk.
When the two boys went back to the living room, they found Namjoon already pouring shots for everyone, the rest cheering him on loudly. Jeongguk laughed when he saw the way Jimin’s face lightened up at the sight of him, then pulled him closer and handed him a shot, half spilled but still enough for him to cheer with the rest, — “To a year filled with love and happiness, lasting friendships and relationships!” exclaimed Yoongi, sharing a quick, fond look with Jeongguk — and down it quickly.
After the first shot, the rest came quickly. They were drinking, singing and dancing around silly, but with no care in the world. They were all happy, content and so in love.
Near the middle of the night, they decided to slow down with the drinks, because all seven wanted to be as awake as possible when the clock hit 12 a.m., so they all splayed around the living room and turned on the TV, deciding to watch the popular “Home alone.” Truth be told, it was a lot funnier when you’re half drunk and your friends can’t help but comment at every single thing happening in the movie, so no one really minded.
Jeongguk swore that it was the most he had ever laughed, his stomach hurting and eyes being filled with tears from laughing so hard. Jimin, who was in his arms, was in the same state, almost falling down a good couple of times because of how hard he laughed.
Jeongguk had to keep his hands wrapped around his waist at all times to keep him up, but he didn’t mind. He loved having a lapful of a happy and giggly boyfriend, who was also extremely clingy and loved to pepper kisses all over Jeongguk’s face when they had a few seconds of silence.
When the movie ended, there were only a few minutes left till New Year’s, so they all dressed up, poured a glass of champagne, and went outside to watch the fireworks. The second they took their first step outside, all seven of them gasped silently as they witnessed their first snow of the year, them all with their significant other by their side.
“I think the universe wants us together, one way or another,” Namjoon laughed, wrapping his hands around his boyfriends, kissing them both happily.
“Yeah, I think so too,” mumbled Yoongi as best as he could, with Taehyung cupping his cheeks and showering him with kisses.
“What do you think, hyung?” Jeongguk asked, sparkly eyes looking at his boyfriend as if he hung the stars in the sky.
Jimin smiled, pulling Jeongguk by the hand closely, pressing his hot lips on Jeongguk’s forehead gently, murmuring against the boy’s skin. “I think so too, baby.”
The first firework exploded, and that’s when Hoseok exclaimed at the same time as Seokjin, “Happy New Years!”
They all turned to cheer their glasses, before downing them quickly so they could watch the colorful fireworks, small ‘wow’s escaping their lips.
“Jeonggukie,” Jimin whispered in his boyfriend’s ear, making the boy turn his head towards him.
“Yeah, hyung?”
“Baby…” Jimin looked into his eyes, then down at his lips. “Can I kiss you?” he asked, and Jeongguk’s heart skipped a beat. God, how is he supposed to survive this?
“Yeah,” he nodded, gulping down evidently, making the older man smirk, before leaning in quickly without wasting a second, and pressing his lips against Jeongguk’s.
The younger boy made a small sound in the back of his throat, but he quickly refocused and kissed back, melting into the warm kiss and touch of Jimin’s lips and hands.
The night was cold around them, the snow melting quickly on their hot skin, everything quiet around except the fireworks. Even if Jeongguk couldn’t see them, he was sure the rest were kissing as well, because who would miss a kiss with their lover on New Year’s? No one.
And into the cold night, with Jimin’s hands around him and lips on his, Jeongguk silently thanks the Gods and more specifically Nabi, the cat who made all this possible with her little antics.
“Y’all should thank Nabi for that,” Yoongi said from behind them, making the two pull back from their kiss to look at him.
Jeongguk giggled and nodded, “That’s what I was thinking about. Nabi is the reason all this happened.”
“Ah yes. Nabi, the cat cupid.” Taehyung sighed dreamily, making the six other boys erupt in a fit of giggles, that sounded way too loud, but somehow not enough, in the silent night.