Work Text:
It was much too early to be awake in Jimin's opinion. Yet, there he was, sitting on the subway on his way to work. How he got convinced to switch to the opening shift was something he would never really understand. He was pretty sure that Hoseok tricked him somehow. He had a vague memory of puppy dog eyes and a pout, something about something and Yoongi and... Jimin sighed and took a slow sip of his coffee while glancing around the car. It was fairly packed that morning, not like it was some days, but still enough that it was a little stuffy. It was not uncomfortable like it could be sometimes. He noticed, though, that sitting in the seat directly across from him was Headphones. Jimin did not know who the guy was; just that he was tall, beautiful with the cutest smile ever, and he always seemed to have a set of red, expensive looking headphones on his head plugged into his phone whenever Jimin saw him on the subway. Headphones always got off the stop before Jimin did in the mornings, and he stayed on the subway after Jimin got off in the evenings if they both caught the subway on any given day. Except the weekends. Jimin never saw Headphones on the weekends. Of course, that could be because Jimin did not go into work on the weekends and often did not leave his friends' apartment after a night out with them.
Headphones looked tired that day, eyes glued to the phone in his hand. There were dark circles under his eyes and his hair looked a little unkempt. His clothes were rumpled as if he'd fallen asleep in them somewhere. Jimin took another drink of his coffee, tearing his eyes away from Headphones before he got caught staring. That morning, despite looking rather dead on his feet, Headphones stood up once he noticed an elderly woman entering the car on one of the stops, bowing to her with a comment that Jimin did not really hear over the hustle and bustle around them. The woman smiled though, saying something about him being such a sweet boy; Headphones smiled and shook off the compliment, moving to stand, grabbing onto one of the handles that would help him make sure that he did not fall down while the subway car was in motion.
It put him closer to Jimin, close enough that if Jimin put his leg out and over to the right some their legs would be touching. It was a bit of an awkward thought, but subways were incredibly awkward, weren't they? Jimin had always thought so. There were sometimes some really strange people on the subway, after all. It was at the next stop in which Jimin followed in Headphones' footsteps and stood up to let an obviously pregnant lady take his seat, making some small talk with her before finding a place to stand. It almost startled him to realize that Headphones was right there in front of him, seeming even taller now that Jimin actually was standing next to him. Headphones did not seem to even notice, his focus more on he phone in his hand. It was not the first time that the two of them had found themselves in that position. There had been a time in which they had practically shared a seat, even, due to how packed the car was. It almost made Jimin laugh that Headphones had been closer to him than some of his friends, and he did not even know the guy's name.
The jostling of the car caused Jimin to make a step closer to keep his balance, but Headphones still did not seem to notice. Or if he did, he did not say anything, did not move away any. Jimin thought that maybe his grip tightened on his phone, though. He let out a breath he did not realize that he was holding when the car finished coming to a stop and Headphones let go of the handle in order to join those filtering out and onto the station platform. Jimin groaned and lifted his hand to his face as the doors shut and the subway car moved forward again.
***
“So... why haven't you asked the guy's name again?” Hoseok asked from somewhere behind the counter. Jimin honestly did not know what Hoseok was doing back there, but from the sounds of the shuffling about he was probably rearranging again. It was slow in the shop that day, just a couple of regulars in the corner going over wedding plans or something. Jimin just knew there was a lot of pink and flowers in the book they were looking through when he'd gone over to offer them a refill. It had been slow all morning, which had been nice considering that Jimin had been stuck with a new recruit to the shop – his name was Kim Youngkyun and he was actually pretty good, but he could use some more training. Hoseok had come in around noon with a pleased smile that had Jimin scowling. He missed his mid-day shifts that Hoseok had taken over. Okay, so Jimin still worked mid-day but that was because he pulled doubles most days. He did not have anything else to do and they were understaffed, so why not?
Jimin sighed and kept focusing on cleaning the tables that a couple of people had just left. He was not even going to bother answering Hoseok's question. “Are you kidding? He's so far out of my league it's not even funny,” Jimin found himself responding before he could stop himself. He guessed that he failed at the whole not answering thing. But it was Hoseok, he told Hoseok everything. It was a thing. It had been a thing since Jimin moved into the apartment complex that Hoseok did and they'd literally ran into one another while Jimin was carrying some boxes up to his new place. Hoseok had simply grinned and basically swept Jimin underneath his wing after that and they'd been inseparable since. With Hoseok came Hoseok's boyfriend, Yoongi, and their friends – Namjoon and Taehyung, the two of them having been a couple since high school. They were all waiting with baited breath for one of them to take that next step and ask the big question. Jimin was sure that Taehyung would be the one to do so, though Hoseok seemed sure that it would be Namjoon. They may have possibly had an ongoing bet over it.
Hoseok's head popped up from behind the counter. He had a scowl on his face as he watched Jimin move from table to table, making sure everything was clean and fine. “You take that back right now Park Jimin.” Jimin looked over to where Hoseok was standing up, resting his palms on top of the counter to lean forward and fix Jimin with the most intense glare he'd ever seen on his friend's face. It was actually a little terrifying. He had never seen Hoseok look so upset. “You are amazing. You're talented and funny and incredibly sweet and any guy would be lucky to have you.”
Jimin grew red in the face at the compliments, ducking his head a little and trying not to smile stupidly. He was not sure that Hoseok was right, but it was still nice to hear those kinds of things. “Yeah, yeah okay, hyung,” he agreed, mostly just to get Hoseok to stop looking at him like that. He knew that Hoseok was not thrown off by his agreement, though. It was not like it suddenly changed his thoughts on himself, but it was a process. Like how Hoseok had to be reminded that it was okay to not push himself so hard with dance, that he was good and he knew the routine. Jimin could not count the number of times he heard Yoongi and Hoseok shuffling past his apartment door, Yoongi scolding Hoseok for being at the studio so late (not that Yoongi had room to complain considering one time Hoseok had to drag Yoongi back home after having spent nearly 48 hours cooped up at work). So they were all perfectionists in some way or another, it was a thing and Jimin was not sure it would ever change.
“You should talk to him, Jiminnie,” Hoseok insisted, the glare on his face giving way to a bright smile. “I mean, you were all up in his business again.”
“Yah! Don't say it like that.” Jimin tossed the rag he was using to wipe down tables at Hoseok's face, causing him to laugh and flinch backward.
***
The subway car was packed again that evening. Jimin had turned down Yoongi's offer to give him a ride since he'd shown up to pick up Hoseok. He knew the couple was going to go out to dinner and that he'd end up third-wheeling it when they insisted he join them; he did not want to give them the chance to do it. So, he found himself on the subway, sitting next to Headphones. Headphones had his gaze on his phone, playing some sort of game while idly mumbling along to some song that Jimin knew from the radio. He did not know who originally sang the song – some idol group of ridiculous boys that people seemed to adore because they were silly and goofy a lot of the time, he thought – but it sounded vaguely familiar anyway. Jimin idly picked at one of the cookies he'd had shoved in his hand from the baker of the shop before he'd left, insisting it was a new recipe that he needed an opinion on. Jimin liked it. It was a cinnamon sugar cookie base with chocolate chips. He'd said as much while heading out the door with the two cookies, continuing to eat a little of it slowly. He was not much for sweets and tended to take it slow when he did have any.
They'd been riding next to one another in an almost awkward silence from basically being in one another's spaces when Jimin took a deep breath and took the second cookie out of the paper wrapper, nudging Headphones with his elbow before holding it out to him in offering. Jimin watched as Headphones' brow furrowed as he looked from the cookie to Jimin and back, slowly reaching up to take the headphones off of his head, resting them around his neck. “I work at this coffee shop and bakery,” Jimin quickly rushed to explain. “The baker is experimenting, trying new things. I have extra. I mean, if you'd like one. Uh... yeah.” Jimin was a little red in the face the more he spoke, wanting to almost just disappear. He sounded so ridiculous and he knew it.
Headphones looked between Jimin and the cookie another time before he smiled and nodded a little. “Thank you,” he replied, his voice almost startling Jimin as he'd yet to actually hear it. “I might have accidentally skipped lunch.” He looked almost guilty at that, taking the offered cookie with one hand while storing his phone in his hoodie pocket with the other before breaking off a piece of the cookie so that he could try it. He looked a little surprised for a moment before laughing softly. “Tell the baker that this is a good idea. He should make more of these. Or she, I guess. I shouldn't assume.”
“He,” answered Jimin with a slight laugh and a nod. “I'll make sure to tell Juho I'm not the only one who agrees. He's always experimenting like that.” Headphones nodded slightly at the information, taking another bite of the cookie – partially because he was not sure what else to say and partially because it really was a good cookie, and he was starving. “I'm Jimin.”
Headphones looked up at Jimin again, then, a slow smile on his face despite the fact that they were squished together almost uncomfortably due to those people sitting around the two of them. “I'm...” Headphones' name was drowned out by the sound of the subway coming to a stop, the announcement of which platform they were at, and the general hustle and bustle of those getting ready to leave.
It was Jimin's stop and he quickly jumped up with a regretful smile. “My stop,” he said, walking with the others to filter out the door, though he did spare a glance back to Headphones.
“My name's Jungkook!” he called out just before Jimin exited, causing Jimin to turn back to smile at him while making the final steps off the subway and onto the platform. Jungkook smiled to himself, ignoring the glances the strangers around him were fixing on him, as he pulled his headphones back onto his head.
***
It was once again much too early, Jimin yawned and rubbed his face before walking onto the subway car that morning. A quick glance around proved that there were not that many people there that day, but Headphones – Jungkook, his mind supplied, was sitting with his head tilted back against the window behind him. His eyes were closed and he looked to be asleep. Jungkook's eyes opened when he felt someone – Jimin, he realized with a smile – sit down next to him. “Hey, Jimin-ssi” Jungkook said, his voice a little deeper than usual which made him clear his throat as he tried again. He looked incredibly exhausted, much like Yoongi-hyung did whenever the guy would stay awake all night working on a new song, or Hoseok-hyung when he'd been at the dance studio all night, or Jimin himself when he would stay with Hoseok. It made Jimin want to frown to see Jungkook that tired.
“Jimin is fine.” Jimin reached over and lightly patted Jungkook's shoulder. “Rest some more, I'll wake you at your stop,” he offered, which okay sounded a bit creepy and Jimin could not keep from wincing at his own words. It wasn't creepy. He and Jungkook had been sharing the same daily commute for months by that point, there was no way he didn't know what Jungkook's stop was. Just like he was sure Jungkook knew which stop was his on the way home.
Jungkook laughed, it was more like a giggle and it was so cute that Jimin did not really know what to do with himself. He just nodded a little, resting his head back against the window. “Thanks, Jimin,” he mumbled, letting his eyes fall closed. Jimin smiled a little to himself, getting as comfortable as he could there in the early morning hours with Jungkook sitting next to him.
True to his word, Jimin woke Jungkook up just before they reached his stop. Jungkook had to fight back a whine and stretched a little with a thankful smile to Jimin. He saw more than he heard Jungkook thanking him again, and they did not get a chance to say anything else as Jungkook got up and followed those exiting right off the subway car to the platform.
The rest of Jimin's morning commute was rather uneventful. He rode the subway to the next stop, got up and filed out with the others. He then finished the walk that took him from the station to the coffee shop. He was surprised to find Hoseok there already when he got there. “Shouldn't you be in bed?” Jimin questioned, shutting and locking the door behind him after he'd gone inside, having used his own set of keys to gain entry in the first place. It was not quite time to open yet.
“Nope! You and me this morning, Juho in the back,” Hoseok said with a smile too bright for how early it was. “Switched with Jaebum. Mark is taking your middle shift today, right?” Hoseok was pretty sure that was the updated schedule had said, but he was not completely sure.
Jimin hummed and nodded in response to the question, heading back to clock in and leave his jacket in the break room just off the hall that connected the kitchen to the front room. It was to the right of the hall while the office was to the left. “Morning, Juho!” Jimin called back toward the kitchen, chuckling a little when he heard some sort of muffled response from the younger man that was probably rushing about trying to finish up enough baked goods to fill the display case for the morning rush. When he made his way back to the front, tying on the apron he was required to wear, he let out a small sound of gratitude when he realized that Hoseok was holding out a cup of coffee for him. He even hummed a little when he found it was made exactly like he liked it. “Best hyung ever.”
His mumbled words caused Hoseok to laugh and shake his head with a smile. “Don't let Hyung hear you say that,” he encouraged, knowing that Yoongi would take mock offense to that. “Hey. He and that kid he was working with finished up the song they were doing. It's really good! Wanna hear?” He knew that Jimin would agree, and Yoongi would like some extra feedback – he was sure the vocalist would too. Hoseok pulled out his phone when Jimin agreed, more focused on his coffee than anything. It was early, okay? Jimin did not like early. “I think they're going to collaborate some more.”
“Cool.” Jimin did think it was neat even if his tone of voice sounded disinterested. He knew that Hoseok would understand as Jimin was never the most animated in the mornings.
Once Hoseok found the file he was looking for on his phone, he started to play it and Jimin perked up almost immediately. The voice was vaguely familiar, though Jimin could not pinpoint why. It wasn't too high or too deep, somewhere right in the middle with a slightly breathy element that was perfect for the cover. It was an English song that Jimin knew was pretty popular; he'd heard it on the radio before. He almost preferred the cover, though. It was simple and deceptively upbeat for what he could understand of the lyrics. It just kept bothering him, though, that the voice sounded familiar to him but he had no idea how or why.
Hoseok had a small smile on his face as he placed his phone on the counter and started to make sure that everything was ready for them to open up. There would be customers ready to break down the front door to get their caffeine fix if they did not open in time. Okay, so maybe not so dramatic, but they would be annoyed if the shop wasn't open in time. “It's good,” Jimin said once the song was finished, nodding his head a little more to himself. “Really good. Yoongi-hyung should be proud. Who is it he's working with?”
“Oh, he is. You should have seen the smile on his face when he shared the file with me,” replied Hoseok, grabbing his phone to put into the pocket of his own apron while walking over to the front door, which he unlocked and pinned open before moving their sign advertising the weekly special out in front of the door. Jimin took his place behind the counter as a couple of their regulars started to file in and he set aside his coffee while putting on a smile and greeting them.
By the end of his shift, Jimin had completely forgotten that he never received an answer about who the vocalist on the track was. That was okay, though. It was not that important, he guessed. He was dead tired and grateful to not have to pull a double that day. Mark had asked for some more hours, so Jimin had gladly given up some of his double shifts. Jimin had spent the morning trying to convince Hoseok to stay on the morning shift with him; they could give their newest hire evening shifts with Jackson. Besides, Jimin was sure that Jaebum would much rather work with Mark if watching them chat before clocking in was any indication. He was pretty sure Hoseok saw it too, considering the look he had in his eyes. They would have to discuss it later. Hoseok was off to deliver lunch to Yoongi. Jimin was going to use his free time to get some shopping done that he needed to do for the apartment.
When he was finished with that, admittedly only having two plastic sacks with things he needed and not nearly a completed shopping list – but he would save that for when he had his car and could easier transport the products – it was the same time that he usually got onto the subway. It was crowded like usual and Jimin somehow managed to find a seat. It was at the next stop that Headphones, that Jungkook came on at. He had two drinks in his hands and he seemed to make a beeline directly to Jimin once he caught sight of him. Jimin maybe shifted over a little to make sure there was enough room for Jungkook to sit down next to him. Once Jungkook was settled, he held out one of the cups toward Jimin, chuckling at the look of surprise that crossed his face. “It's for you. For sharing your cookies. And we're celebrating,” Jungkook insisted, and, well, Jimin could not say no to that. He simply smiled and thanked Jungkook while taking the offered drink. “It's a smoothie – I didn't know what you'd like so I just got a strawberry one.”
“That's perfect. Thank you, Jungkook,” replied Jimin with a kind smile before taking a drink of the smoothie. Honestly, he preferred banana, but strawberry was fine. Especially considering he hadn't paid for it. “What are we celebrating?”
Jungkook got a bright smile on his face then, straightening up a little in his seat. “I got a song recorded and I might get picked up by this label. It's nothing huge – mostly underground work, but I mean it's still amazing.”
Jimin smiled right along with Jungkook and nodded a little. He understood that a lot. Yoongi and Namjoon worked for a smaller label like that. People recognized their names, but they weren't idols. Neither one of them wanted to be, though Jimin was pretty sure that a major label kept coming around to kiss their asses, trying to get them to sign. Neither one of them were willing to let go of their baby, and Jimin could not blame them. (Secretly, Jimin was pretty sure Yoongi turned it down because he did not want to have to hide his relationship with Hoseok for anything and a major label would probably try to make him.) “That's great, Jungkook. Congratulations. Maybe I'll hear your stuff around, then.”
“I don't know.” Jungkook seemed to grow rather shy, then, ducking his head and reaching up to idly ruffle his hair at the back of his neck before turning his head a little to give Jimin a small smile. “It's just some cover work, really.”
“There's nothing wrong with that. I actually listened to a cover today my friend did with someone. It's better than the original, I think. They'll probably get quite a bit of recognition from it.” Jimin offered Jungkook a smile, albeit a tired one as it had been a rather exhausting day between his shift and dealing with crowds at the store. Jimin was tired and probably would be until he managed to get a nap, something he planned on doing as soon as he got back to his apartment; and if he dozed off thinking of a certain shy smile then it was no one's business but his own.
***
Once again, it was much too early to be awake yet there he was on the subway, nearly dozing off onto Jungkook's shoulder. Neither one of them said anything that morning. They had exchanged tired smiles as Jimin took a seat next to Jungkook once he'd moved the backpack he'd placed in the spot. Jungkook looked extra tired again, maybe even a little sad; but most his focus was on his phone. Neither one of them tried to start a conversation but it did not feel awkward or strained. It was nice, just knowing that someone was there. Jimin wanted to talk to him, ask where he was going and why he was on the subway so early. He wanted to ask if making songs was a hobby or if it was his job. He wanted to ask where Jungkook had gone to school and what his favorite color was. But it was too early for that. It was much too early for anything other than sitting there with their shoulders touching while Jimin sipped at his coffee and Jungkook messed with his phone, headphones on as usual. He thought he heard Jungkook humming along with whatever song was playing on his phone, but it very easily could have just been him hearing things.
It was a nice morning, even if it was much too early for his liking. The only upside was that Hoseok had switched to the opening shift with him so that it was the two of them and Juho in the kitchen. Sometimes Juho's boyfriend would hang around in the back with him; they all pretended not to notice as long as he didn't touch anything. Jimin wondered if he would be there that morning, supplying Juho with more coffee to help him stay awake. He guessed he would find out when he got to the shop. Until then, he would just sit there next to Jungkook, head practically on his shoulder while not saying a word. Jungkook did not seem to mind the closeness, did not tense up or try to nudge Jimin away. If anything, Jimin would say he almost seemed to relax some more himself. That was until it grew close to Jungkook's stop. Jimin sat up straight then, yawning behind the hand that wasn't clutching his coffee with a blush that formed on his cheek when he heard Jungkook chuckling next to him. “Have a good day, Jimin,” Jungkook stated before standing up once the subway had come to a stop at his station, leaving before Jimin could find his words to reply.
Jimin sighed inaudibly and continued his subway ride to his stop but it wasn't until the train had almost came to a stop that Jimin realized that Jungkook had left the backpack he'd brought that morning sitting on the floor where it had been placed between their feet. Jimin grabbed the backpack off the floor as he stood and took it with him. He would give it back to Jungkook that afternoon. He made sure it was zipped and that nothing was going to fall out as he made his way off the subway and out of the platform to the street that led to the coffee shop.
He was a little surprised to find that the doors were already wide open when he got there. It was still early and the shop wasn't supposed to be open yet. Walking in the front door, Jimin realized just why the shop was already open. Yoongi stood at the front counter, leaning against it as he talked with Hoseok, who attempted to keep his focus on making coffee but was all soft smiles and laughs at whatever it was Yoongi was saying. Yoongi appeared to be struggling to keep a matching smile off his own face, idly tapping his fingers against the cup of coffee he held resting on top of the counter. “Morning,” Jimin mumbled to the two of them as he moved behind the counter to go to the back.
He did not make it very far before he heard, “Why do you have Jungkook's backpack?” behind him, making Jimin stop and turn to see that Yoongi had stood up straight and his brow was furrowed as he looked at the backpack in Jimin's hand. It was a very stereotypical backpack, nothing quite distinguishing about it except for a couple of keychains attached the the zipper. Yoongi had recognized them immediately because Taehyung had announced that they meant that he and Jungkook were bros for life and he was Jungkook's favorite.
“You know Jungkook?” was the response that Jimin managed to muster up in his complete surprise at Yoongi's question. “He left it on the subway this morning.”
“Wait. Jungkook is Headphones?” Hoseok's slow smirk as he spoke was enough to make Jimin grow pink in the face and want nothing more than to run into the back. Juho would save him. Maybe. “You got his name and you didn't tell me?” Hoseok exclaimed after a moment, realizing that Jimin hadn't told him that he'd finally got his subway commute friend's name finally. Jimin just nodded slowly, shifting the backpack from one hand to the other.
“You're the guy that Jungkook's been obsessing over for months now?” Yoongi sounded incredibly amused and Jimin wanted to throw something over Yoongi's head to cover that smirk on his face. He was not sure what was worse; the fact that both Hoseok and Yoongi seemed to know Jungkook or the looks of knowing on their faces.
“Wait, what?” Jimin said as he placed the backpack on the floor at his feet, looking incredibly confused by Yoongi's question. Obsessing? Months? There was no way. Yoongi had to be mistaken. It would not be the first time that he'd been wrong. “He has not.”
Both Yoongi and Hoseok laughed then, and Jimin narrowed his eyes at the two of them. He was close to just turning and walking away but Yoongi started speaking again, altering his voice in a poor imitation of what Jungkook sounded like. “'Hyung, he's so pretty I nearly cried'. 'He wore this sweater today that went past his fingertips'. 'His hair is pink now, hyung. Why is he like this'? 'He was right there in front of me. I thought I was going to die'. 'He shared this cookie with me – his voice, hyung'.” Jimin grew steadily more red in the face and was incredibly close to giving into the whole flight response telling him to just toss the backpack at Yoongi's face and run into the back room. Yoongi laughed at him and Hoseok just looked all incredibly fond. Jimin hated them both. “You know, if you want to come by the studio he should be there soon.”
“Oh, yeah,” Hoseok said with a slight laugh and a charming smile that was deceptive, Jimin did not trust it. “Jungkook was who was singing in that song I shared with you the other day.”
Jimin was pretty sure that he had misheard Hoseok. Jungkook was the person who sang so beautifully and softly in that cover? That was... Well, it actually made sense. He had thought the voice had seemed vaguely familiar, after all. He'd never actually heard Jungkook sing on the subway but he'd heard him speak and there was some mumbling under Jungkook's breath. “He works with you and Namjoon?” Jimin questioned, earning himself a nod and an explanation of how Jungkook had started out as an intern for them but had impressed them with his knowledge – he'd even helped them out on some tracks before Namjoon had heard him singing. He had shared the secret recording he'd made with Yoongi, and from there Yoongi had featured him on a couple of his songs. Jimin heard all of it, but it was almost like a faint buzzing in his ears.
All that time, Jungkook had been right there and neither one of them had known. Or had Jungkook known? Had he been the only one unaware they had mutual friends? Jimin really was not sure what to do with all of the information he was being given. He would like to get to know Jungkook more, but what if he was the only one? Yoongi's teasing comments did nothing to quell those sorts of worries. He just did not know. Maybe he was only good to look at, someone that was fun to talk to on the subway but not someone he would want in his daily life.
Jimin went through the rest of his day trying to figure out if he wanted to tell Jungkook what he'd learned. By the time he got onto the subway, though, all those thoughts disappeared as they went past Jungkook's stop and he never got on the train. Jimin's brow furrowed a little and he held Jungkook's backpack a little tighter to his chest. It was not a day that Jungkook wasn't on the subway in the evenings, that was later in the week. It was rather quiet and lonely sitting there, glancing over to the empty spot next to him. He could practically hear Jungkook's laughter at some ridiculous joke he'd told before. It was just strange to not have Jungkook there since he'd grown so used to the other's company.
Jungkook was not on the subway again the next morning. Jimin spent the ride pressed up against the side of some guy who seemed incredibly angry and kept shooting glares in Jimin's direction. He tried his best to make himself seem smaller and shift away so that he was not sitting so close. The space did not really allow for it. Jimin rushed off the subway that morning, wanting to get away from the glaring man and just get to work for the day.
***
He'd enjoyed his days off, spending some time with Seokjin who was visiting for a couple of days before he needed to head back out to New York City where he had an audition for some movie that he really wanted the role for. He had no time to think about Jungkook or his absence until he was walking back onto the train only to find Jungkook sitting in his normal seat, his right foot wrapped up in an elastic bandage and some crutches propped up on the seat next to him. “Jungkook? What happened to you?” Jimin questioned, trying to keep himself from sounding as frantic as he felt. Jungkook laughed a little, a shy smile forming on his face while Jimin grew red in the face as he realized just how he sounded.
Jungkook simply shifted his crutches out of the way and patted the seat next to him so that Jimin would sit. “I may have severely sprained my ankle trying to show off a skateboarding trick to one of my hyungs,” Jungkook answered as Jimin sat down. “I was supposed to stay off of it for a couple of days, but I'm impatient and might have just made it worse.”
“Jungkook!” Jimin scolded, instinctively reaching out to swat his shoulder, which only made Jungkook flinch away with a laugh and a smile in Jimin's direction. “You should be careful.”
The smile on Jungkook's face was incredibly fond and it almost made Jimin want to look away, finding himself growing incredibly self-conscious suddenly. He was not sure why. It was just Jungkook – his friend. Sort of. Were they actually friends, though? “I, uh... I have your backpack. You left it on the subway the other day,” Jimin said after a moment, glancing over at Jungkook when he laughed again.
“Yeah, I know. Yoongi-hyung told me.” He nodded a little as he spoke. “I didn't believe him at first, when he said he knew who you were. He had pictures though.”
Jimin groaned at that, reaching up to cover up his face with his hand. If Yoongi showed Jungkook pictures off of his phone, Jimin was pretty positive in the fact that they were going to be incredibly embarrassing pictures. Jungkook did not offer any explanation of what kind of pictures, though. Instead he simply talked about how he couldn't quite believe this cute guy he'd wanted to talk to for ages but had never gotten up the courage to until after the guy offered him a cookie was actually friends with all of his friends, even lived in the same building as his hyung and hyung's boyfriend. “You think I'm cute?” Jimin questioned, getting caught up more on that statement than anything else that Jungkook had said. Jungkook just nodded with a smile that grew when Jimin's face colored red all over again.
“When my ankle is done healing, I'd love to take you out on a date, if you'd let me.”
Jimin's response was cut off by the clamoring of those around them getting off the train at Jungkook's stop, Jungkook getting up as quickly as he could with the crutches and hobbling toward the exit with a slightly saddened smile in Jimin's direction. “I'd love to!” Jimin called out before the door's shut, making Jungkook nearly stumble in his haste to turn around and look back at Jimin with a beaming smile. Jimin was too busy smiling behind his hand to pay any attention to the dirty looks those around him were giving him. He could care less what any of them were thinking right at that moment. He had a date with Headphones – with Jungkook. It was a date that he hoped would just be the first of many.
And it was.