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One could say that finals week was hitting Jimin rather hard.
All in all, it wasn’t anything new: he’d been a chemistry student for a good three years now, and this definitely wasn’t his first time undergoing the harsh process of cramming, taking the exam, and then forgetting everything as fast as possible to cram for the next exam.
But this year, the university gods had really chosen to test his faith.
Firstly, the winter was absolutely unbearable. The heating in their dorm had been broken for the entire week, forcing them to sleep in their coats with two or three layers of blankets covering their bodies from head to toe.
Secondly, his father had called him one night to tell him that he would be cutting the monthly deposits by half because of all the gifts he had to buy during Christmas season, which was completely alright in itself – Jimin would never complain about such a thing, except that he was now forced to survive on instant noodles (provided by his roommate Jungkook) and energy drinks from the vending machine downstairs.
This dangerous combination was already starting to take its toll on his body: his skin was acting up, his hair had gotten dry and unhealthy, and just yesterday, he’d forced Jungkook to hide the weighing scale somewhere he wouldn’t be able to find it because no. Things are hard enough as it is.
One day, however, a small beacon of light shines down upon the misery that has become Jimin’s life.
He’s lying in bed, head propped up against the pillows to be able to read his notes, hood up to hide his messy hair which definitely needs to be dyed again, when Jungkook enters the room with a brown paper bag in his hand.
Immediately, a warm, syrupy, deliciously sweet smell starts to fill the room, and Jimin gasps, eyes narrowing on the bag that Jungkook is carrying. “Oh my god,” he whines. “What is that?”
Jungkook blinks up at him confusedly, then looks down at the bag. “Ah,” he laughs. “Hyung, I bought bagels from that bakery you like so much.”
Jimin doesn’t notice Jungkook’s shy, hesitant smile, too busy salivating about the thought of soft, sugary bagels after days of eating terrible food. Instantly, his stomach growls noisily, and he can’t even bother to feel ashamed. He sits up in bed and makes grabby hands at Jungkook.
“Kook-ah,” he whines. “Food. Please-”
Jungkook tuts amusedly and throws the paper bag at Jimin, who immediately scrambles to reach inside. “What would you do without me, hyung?” he asks playfully, throwing himself down on his bed with a grunt.
Jimin is too busy inhaling the delicious smell to really think about Jungkook’s question, so he just hums and whispers, “My precious,” clutching the bag to his chest. Jungkook’s loud cackle resonates in their tiny double room, and he turns his eyes to Jimin, an amused glint in his gaze.
“That bad?”
He’s probably talking about finals, and Jimin doesn’t waste a second before he starts complaining, a petulant tone in his voice Jungkook is all too used to hearing by now. Some people would probably find it annoying and whatnot, but Jungkook finds it cute.
“There’s just so much to know, Jungkook. I feel like my brain is going to explode any second now. When that happens, please take care of my pets back in Busan,” Jimin pouts. “Will you do that for me, Kookie?”
“So dramatic,” Jungkook rolls his eyes playfully, but Jimin insists. “Jungkookie. Will you or will you not-”
“Okay, okay,” Jungkook concedes. “I’ll make sure to take care of your pets if finals get the best of you, hyung.”
That seems to calm Jimin down a bit, and he lies back down on his pillows, contented smile on his face. The bag is still clutched to his chest, the force of his grip almost crushing its contents.
“You know, hyung,” Jungkook starts nervously, eyes fixed on the ceiling, “I think you should take a break from studying. I know you must be stressed, but you always do well on your exams anyway. All this pressure can’t be good for you. We could watch some anime or something. Maybe I could give you a massage? I mean, if you ask me to, just know that I-”
Jungkook is cut off by the sound of Jimin snoring softly beside him. He turns his head slowly, and his eyes fall upon Jimin’s sleeping form, mouth slightly open, strands of hair hiding part of his eyes. Jungkook sighs and smiles at the sight.
Careful not to make any noise, he gets out of bed, despite his muscles complaining about the excessive effort he’d had to put into practice these last few days. Quietly, he covers Jimin with one of the blankets that fell off the bed, and places the bagels on his nightstand.
Turning off the light, he gets back to his side of the room and closes his eyes.
“’Night, hyung,” he whispers before sleep takes over, his limbs heavy but heart surprinsingly light.
-
There is a persistant, annoying rumbling noise in the room, and Jungkook grunts, turning on his other side, trying desperately to cling to sleep.
But it’s no use – the sound is too loud to be ignored, and Jungkook glares begrudgingly at his alarm clock.
3am.
What the hell, he thinks. He’s ready to go off at whoever’s making noise at this hour – sleep is too precious for that kind of behavior, okay – when he realizes that the sound is coming from his very own room.
Even more confused than he was before, Jungkook gets out of bed, feet padding lazily across the ice-cold floor, bedhead probably a sight to behold, and step by painful step, he reaches the kitchenette. The light from the refrigerator, strangely left open, is the only thing illuminating the room, and it takes some time for Jungkook’s eyes to adjust.
When they do, though, what he sees only makes him more confused.
There Jimin is standing, still wearing the clothes he’d fallen asleep in earlier, except for the jeans he’d chosen to discard. His hoodie is big enough on him to cover the top of his thighs, and Jungkook tries really hard not to think about Jimin in his boxers standing in their kitchen at 3 o’clock in the fucking morning.
“What-“ Jungkook mumbles, but his voice is lost to the sound of what he recognizes to be the blender whirring furiously. Jimin is stood frozen in front of it, and Jungkook slowly approaches him, tilting his head to try and see what’s going on.
The bag he’d brought Jimin the day before is empty, there is a stray bottle of milk on the counter, and a weirdly brown liquid slushing around the mixer. It doesn’t take a genius to put two and two together, but- “Jiminie-hyung? Why are you putting bagels in the blender at 3am?”
The noise abruptly stops as Jimin takes his finger off the on button. Slowly, he turns to Jungkook, and they stare at each other in complete silence for about a minute before Jimin – to Jungkook’s horror – suddenly bursts into tears.
Not the subtle kind, either – Jimin is downright sobbing, face contorted into a painful expression, back hunching with the force of it.
Jungkook’s eyes widen and he immediately starts to panic.
First of all, he’s not used to seeing Jimin cry. The only other time had been a year ago, when Jimin had finally broken up with his asshole of a boyfriend, but at that time, Jungkook had been more angry than scared. He remembers making the promise that the next time he saw that jerk in the halls, he’d punch him so hard the guy wouldn’t be able to feel his face for weeks. Jimin had laughed a bit at that, still sniffling but at least smiling for the first time in days.
He’d slapped Jungkook’s shoulder playfully, calling him stupid, but had cuddled closer to him all the same, and Jungkook’s heart had started doing weird acrobatics in his chest as a result.
Now, however, Jungkook has no idea how to react – he doesn’t know what’s wrong, doesn’t even know why Jimin is acting this way, doesn’t remember him being sad or secretive or upset about anything in particular.
“Hyung?” he asks again, softer this time.
But Jimin keeps on crying, and he wordlessly plants his face in the center of Jungkook’s chest, his unruly hair tickling Jungkook’s throat and chin.
Because he doesn’t know what else to do, and because he’s never been good at handling a sad Jimin, Jungkook warps his arms around his hyung’s trembling form, bringing him closer to him, resting his cheek on the top of Jimin’s head.
“Hyung, what’s wrong?”
Jimin just shakes his head.
After a few minutes of Jungkook silently holding Jimin, and Jimin getting his t-shirt all wet, the tension finally seems to come down.
Jimin lets out a final hiccup and quietly raises his head, eyes red and puffy, mouth still turned slightly down. Jungkook feels his heart squeeze painfully in his chest.
He puts his hands on Jimin’s shoulders to make sure he doesn’t stray too far away. “Who do I need to beat up?” he asks, determined.
Jimin lets out a breathy laugh and shakes his head affectionately. “If you could give my exams a good punch in the face, I would really appreciate it,” he murmurs, his first words of the night if the way his voice cracks is of any indication.
Jungkook hums in understanding, the whole thing suddenly becoming a lot clearer.
He’s known Jimin for quite a long time now, and he knows how stressed he always gets during finals week – although he was unaware of the fact that it could get this bad. Jimin is an overachiever, a perfectionist, although he often tries to deny it. No matter how hard he works or what he manages to accomplish, it’s never enough for him. Whenever he gets compliments, despite his obvious pleased smile, there is a look in his eyes that tells Jungkook he doesn’t really believe it.
But Jungkook is all too happy to remind him that everything is going to work out just fine, even if he has to do keep doing it until Jimin finally believes him.
He puts both of his hands on Jimin’s cheeks and squeezes them together. There is a slight blush coloring them despite the darkness of the room, just like they always get when Jimin is a bit embarrassed about something he's done. "Hyung, you’ll do great, I know you will.”
Jimin tries to speak but because Jungkook is still squeezing his cheeks, it sounds a bit muffled and a lot funnier than it should. “How d’you kno’ tha’?”
Jungkook smiles proudly at him, puffing out his chest. "Because I’m always right.”
Jimin snorts. “Brat.”
Jungkook laughs and just then, remembers the bagels in the blender, now completely ruined. “Hyung, the bagels,” he pouts. They’d been so expensive too.
Jimin turns his head and looks at the blender with pity in his eyes. The mushy, brownish texture of the milkshake looks like an abomination. “It could still be good, maybe?"
As soon as he says it, it’s obvious that neither of them are really willing to test that theory. Jungkook just wants to go back to bed and savor his last hours of sleep, and maybe – just maybe – cuddle with his Jimin.
He’s trying to get over his shy nature – or alternatively, the bane of his existence – and just ask Jimin to sleep in the same bed tonight, when Jimin does it for him.
“Cuddles?” Jimin asks simply, his cute pout and puppy eyes completely unnecessary because Jungkook has never agreed to something so fast in his short life.
They go to Jungkook’s bed, because it smells like you, Kookie, and it only takes a few seconds for them to fall back asleep, Jungkook burying his nose in the nape of Jimin’s neck, a soft sigh escaping him.
The next time he sees finals week in the halls, he’ll make sure to give that jerk a piece of his mind.