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Summer
Yoongi hated summer.
It stood for everything he despised. First of all, the heat. At the unusually high temperatures, Yoongi eventually had to give up on his black clothes, long sleeves and denim jeans, replacing them with short sleeves and knee length shorts that exposed his pasty white skin to the world, much to his chagrin. Daegu in summer was flooded with confused western tourists that wished to know the “big cities” of South Korea, when the weather wasn't too cold for them. This often resulted in lame attempts from visitors to speak Korean with the locals, foregoing formalities and honorifics in their haste to be understood.
Yoongi, as the people-hater he was, didn’t want to help lost tourists nor correct their crumbled use of the language - as a Korean speaker himself, he knew getting into the specifics of it, not to mention all the different kinds of satoori to be found; well, he wasn’t messing with that.
So yes, he hated summer with a passion. He hated everything summer brought with it. And then one day he arrived.
“Of all days, why today?” Yoongi grunted as he roughly tied up his sneakers. The cause of his dismay meowed behind him. “Don’t give me that look,” he napped at his cat, putting his snapback on. “It’s your fault I have to go out, you know? It’s melting hot outside,” he grumbled.
His cat just stared at him and Yoongi finally gave up. If one got to think about it, it really was his own fault. The cat couldn’t exactly go to and from the store to buy its own food, so Yoongi, as the reluctant owner, had to take care of the chore. He finally stood up and walked to the door, not without throwing one last warning glance at his cat.
“Don’t destroy anything while I’m gone, okay?” The cat just meowed again.
As expected, it was blazing hot outside, not one cloud on sight. Yoongi had been walking for less than two minutes and he could already feel sweat forming around the edges of his snapback as well as the back of his neck. He quickened his pace; the sooner he bought what he needed, the sooner he would return to the comfort of his simple but effective ceiling fan. He kept rushing down the sidewalk, his gaze on the asphalt since looking straight forward made him squint his eyes and he hated that.
That was then he turned right on a corner, way too fast. He kept walking next to the walls, hoping doing so would cut some time; apparently, someone had the same idea as he did.
Yoongi’s body collided with another, sending them both to the ground. He heard groans of pain, both his own and someone else’s; subbing his pained shoulder as he stood up. “That fuking hurt,” he wheezed out.
“Oh my god. I’m so sorry, are you okay?” a worried voice asked next to him.
Yoongi patted himself down, cleaning any trace of dirt. “Yeah, don’t worry, it was my-,” his voice cut off when he looked up at the guy he had stumbled into.
The first thing he noticed was that he was small, perhaps a bit smaller than Yoongi himself. The second thing, and his heart skipped a beat in reaction, was that the man was breathtakingly beautiful. His skin was slightly tanned but still fairly light, his hair golden, so better looking than Yoongi’s own bleached yellow hair. He had traces of an angular face hidden under a pair of full cheeks, and the most luscious, full set of lips he had ever seen on a guy. Yoongi didn’t believe in love in first sight, or at least he had thought he didn’t, but both his heart and mind seemed to be betraying him at the moment.
“... sure that you’re okay?”
Yoongi blinked a couple of times and shook his head, getting out of his stupor. “Yeah,” his voice croaked, and seriously, really it was just because the heat had dried his throat, not because he was nervous. He cleared his throat. “Yeah, I’m okay, just a little breathless,” he said.
The stranger frowned, and his afflicted face made Yoongi want to punch himself in the face for causing it. “I’m really sorry,” the other replied as he bowed at full 90° “It’s been a while since I was in the city, I forgot how careful you need to be around here,” he scowled while trying to smile. Yoongi caught a sight of the stranger’s bright perfectly lined teeth; everything was beautiful on this man.
Snap out of it, Min. “Ah, where are you from?” he asked, accident and responsibilities fully forgotten.
The angel in front of him smiled bashfully, showing Yoongi for the first time how his cheeks raised to make his eyes close almost completely as he did. “Born and raised in Busan,” and yes, now that he paid attention, Yoongi could barely catch the slightest trace of an accent in there. “My accent is mostly gone, though,” he continued, almost as if he had read his mind.
“If you look for it it’s there. You used it just now,” Yoongi teased, and this was so not him. What was going on?
The smile only grew on the other man’s face, making him even more attractive. “I guess old habits die hard.”
Yoongi nodded with fake seriousness. “Forever haunted by satoori.”
That got a laugh out of the stranger, who proceeded to look at him for a moment, apparently searching for something, and then he extended his hand. “Park Jimin.”
Yoongi admired the small fingers before him for a second. He wasn’t impulsive; on the contrary, he stuck to routines with a passion and despised any change of plans, but he decided to throw all that out of the window. He encased the offered hand with his own as he shook it. “Min Yoongi. I'm fucking melting here, want to go somewhere cooler?”
Jimin squeezed his hand once before letting go. “Sure, I’m free as a bird right now. Lead the way.”
“She is so beautiful,” Jimin cooed at the cat one he saw her. “What’s her name?” he asked curiously from his spot in Yoongi’s couch.
“The cat.”
“Yes, the cat’s name, what is it?”
“Cat.”
“Yoongi-ssi. We already know each other’s names, of course I mean the cat’s name!”
Yoongi huffed and crossed his arms from the other end of the couch, glaring at the cat that was currently purring under Jimin’s touch. “The cat’s name is Cat. And hyung is fine, Jimin-ah.”
Both Jimin and the cat looked at his direction, their expressions scarily similar. “You named your cat Cat, hyung?”
The older shrugged. “I took too long deciding a name when I first got her. Before I noticed, I called her “cat” more than any name I tried on her,” he explained.
Jimin sighed heavily, stroking the cat’s head. “Poor baby, it’s not your fault to have been disgraced with such an awful name,” he lamented as he fanned himself with one hand. “You promised me a cooler place to hang out,” he accused the older. “You lied.”
“My apartment is way cooler than outside, under the fucking shining bright sun,” he replied, grunting as he tried to find a comfortable position on the couch, moaning when his skin found a fresh patch of material on the couch. He closed his eyes jn bliss, enjoying the slowly warming material until the relief was over.. When he opened his eyes, he startled at finding Jimin’s gaze upon him, his eyes glinting with something that made Yoongi’s stomach flutter and his heart to quicken its pace.
“You know…” Jimin started saying, slowly leaning closer to Yoongi, the cat now forgotten. “If we’re gonna be sweaty anyways, I’m sure there are more enjoyable situations to be in,” he commented, licking his thick lips, his intention now clear as the sky.
This was it, and Yoongi knew it. He could either reject the invite and they would part as mere acquaintances… or he could risk it for once and see where this took him. To give it a chance, why not? In any case, everyone knew heat could make you act like you usually never would.
Yoongi cleared his throat and stood up, offering a hand. “You know,” he finally spoke. “I have an amazing ceiling fan in my bedroom that will cool us off in no time,” he kept his voice casual even if his whole being was thrilled and excited as he had never been before. “Want to test it?”
Jimin showed his biggest smile so far at that moment, nothing resembling joy, but more a fascinating mix of triumph, mischief and anticipation. “I thought you’d never ask.”
And then Yoongi took his hand and dragged him to the room at the end of the hall, the door closing with a loud slam as short snorts of excited laughter turned into gasps and moans of pleasure.
“You keep lying to me, hyung.”
Yoongi scrunched his face and opened one eye to look at Jimin. “Now what did I say,” he grumbled tirely.
Both men laid in bed, drenched in sweat. Neither knew how long they had gone at it; apparently both too long and not long enough, judging by the state of their bodies and no signs of nightime arriving anytime soon. They had tried to cuddle after sex, but gave up immediately after, feeling overwhelmed from the heat in the environment and their own bodies, unable to deal with another source of heat.
Thus there were Yoongi and Jimin, lying on their stomaches, resting their heads over their folded arms, letting the certainly powerful ceiling fan dry the sweat from the back of their bodies.
"You said your amazing ceiling fan would dry us in no time," the younger accused him, his fringe still damp with sweat. "I'm so sweaty, I feel disgusting."
"Well, it wasn't the brightest idea to have sex in the middle of the afternoon, you know?" Yoongi replied with a roll of his eyes. "I fucking hate summer exactly because of this."
Jimin giggled and hid his face under his folded arms. "We can have sex later and see how your fan deals with us after," he suggested with a flirty tone.
Yoongi sighed and reached out with one hand to caress the damp strands of golden hair. "Sounds like a plan," he agreed. Suddenly, it dawned on him that he didn't know much about Jimin besides his name, his apparent love for cats, the fact that he was younger than Yoongi and - even if he had tried to forget it - the fact that his stay in Daegu was merely temporary. "So..." he started lightly, taking his hand back to make a pillow for his head. "What do you do exactly?"
Jimin reappeared from under his arms and turned his neck to look at Yoongi. "I travel," he answered with a joyful smile. "I stayed in Busan just long enough to save money and get a career under my name before taking my bags and leaving for good."
"Did something happen in Busan?" Yoongi asked curiously, admiring how much fuller Jimin's lips looked after all the kissing they had done. "Why did you decide to leave?"
Jimin shrugged, the skin of his back tightening then softening smoothly. "I was very restless as a kid, and that restlessness only grew along with me, as I learned how much of the world is out there waiting to be seen," he explained dreamily. "I pictured my future and I only saw myself traveling, so that's what I did."
Yoongi was impressed, but also intimidated. "Don't you miss your home sometimes?"
"Not really, no," Jimin answered. "I'm always calling my family and sending them souvenirs to let them know I'm doing fine, and every couple of months I return to see them for a few weeks before leaving again."
"Wow." Yoongi felt another question at the tip of his tongue - 'what about being in a relationship?' - but forcibly swallowed it down. He suspected any reply he could receive wouldn't please him at all. "I don't think I'd be brave enough to travel like that." he confessed.
"Why?"
Yoongi breather in deep and then let the air out with a sigh. "I feel like I dig in roots way too fast, I guess. Can't imagine leaving Daegu for good." There was a comfortable silence after that, the only sound in the room being the soft buzzing of the fan engine working above them. "Tell me more about your trips," he suddenly said, smiling and letting his gums show. "What places have you visited so far?"
Jimin's face lit up and wasted no time delving into his several travelling adventures.
After an afternoon and night full of sex, Yoongi honestly expected Jimin to be gone come morning. For a moment he thought this to be true when he found his bed empty. He was proven wrong, however, when he found a note on the pillow next to him.
Left to bring some extra clothes!:)
I'll be back before noon with lunch
Also here's my number XXX-XXXX-XX
in case this really was a one-time thing,
let me know before I make a fool of myself
Jimin. x
Yoongi did text Jimin, only to tell him to bring extra food because all that sex had left him with an appetite. Jimin merely replied with a smiley face that unconsciously brought a real smile to Yoongi's lips.
They spent the next day together, as well as the next one. Yoongi soon lost count of how many times they had had sex already, considering Jimin's sudden libido at the least expected times and Yoongi's own weakness against his seductive advances.
At the end of their third full day together, Yoongi casually suggested maybe Jimin could leave his hotel room and spend the rest of his stay in Daegu in his apartment. When Jimin teasingly asked what was in it for him, Yoongi offered his born-in-Daegu expertise to show him around and Jimin readily accepted. They went together to pick Jimin's few belongings, christening the hotel's bed before checking out.
Yoongi was a man on his word, and every other day, when they didn't prefer to stay in to explore each other's bodies, Yoongi took Jimin out to explore the popular places around Daegu, along with a few of his personal favorites few people knew about.
The first time Yoongi showed Jimin around Banwoldang at night time, the man had been amazed at all the place had to offer, his mouth wide open in admiration; Yoongi had noticed how the colored lights reflected on his wide eyes and realized he would be crushed when he left.
Yoongi also took Jimin to his favorite place in all Daegu, a small cafe three blocks away from his apartment where he'd usually sit and listen to music while drinking the heavenly cups of coffee they made there. At first he had been worried that Jimin would find a simple cafe boring compared to the adventures he was used to, but he had just smiled with interest at the whole place, complimenting his beverage and ending with foam on his upper lip that Yoongi kissed away while no one was looking.
Without meaning to, Yoongi started looking at Daegu differently. Every place became a place that Jimin might like, every thought picturing Jimin's face at seeing what Daegu had to offer instead of the landscape itself. His heart pounded so fast and strong, his cheeks started to hurt from all the smiling he did and summer suddenly wasn't something to hate but something to embrace and wish that didn't end. All his view of the world was changing and Yoongi wondered if that was what falling in love felt like.
The day Yoongi confirmed that yes, he loved Park Jimin, he had cried during sex for the first time on his life. Everything had been going great, being with Jimin was never boring and it always made his heart fill with feelings and the slightest bit of hope. This time, however, Jimin had been especially vocal about his pleasure, expressing how much he loved Yoongi’s hands, lips, whole body, how he made him feel. That word, over and over. I love, I love, I love. It seemed like Yoongi’s heart took it on the most optimistic way possible and if Jimin loved so many parts of him in the throes of passion, maybe he could come to love him fully on a regularday. He felt hope settling inside him, and Yoongi let it happen.
It was a quiet day when he first felt it. After a good morning of sex and lazing around in bed, both men had gotten up to start their day, Jimin going straight to wash the dishes that they had forgotten the previous night, Yoongi taking a shower because he had fell asleep before Jimin had returned from the shower so he was sticky all over and feeling dirty. While cleaning his chest and stomach, he realized that the unrelenting summer heat wasn’t that strong anymore. A quick calculation confirmed that it was nearing a month after Jimin started staying with him. The air left Yoongi’s lungs in a rush. Had it really been that long? Wasn’t it too long?
Yoongi knew Jimin was a traveler, and he knew sooner or later he would leave Daegu to continue exploring the world. But a month already felt too long based on the stories Jimin had shared with him, retelling trips that lasted from a couple of days to a couple of weeks at most. Was Jimin delaying his departure? Why would he do that? Maybe he wanted to see more of Daegu, or maybe…
Maybe he doesn’t want to leave you.
Yoongi shook his head as his heart hurt. Of all possibilities that had to be the less likely one, right? Shower thoughts were always the worst. He quickly turned the shower off and wrapped a tower around his hips, leaving the bathroom and turning to his bedroom to change. He opened the door, hesitated, and then closed it again, suddenly in the mood of teasing Jimin to take him away from the dishes. He quietly tip-toed his way to the kitchen, frowning when he heard Jimin talking out loud, he looked from the doorway to find Jimin’s arms washing the dishes, his phone besides him, apparently on a call.
“…Daegu was that good,” the voice on the phone was saying.
“Well, what can I say, Daegu has a lot to offer, more than I thought,” Jimin shrugged as he said this, like the other person could see him.
The person on the phone laughed. “Could a guy be involved in this?”
Jimin laughed and then groaned. “Hyung, please don’t start,” he whined.
The voice laughed. “Again, Jiminie? I can’t believe you!”
“What?” Jimin asked, seemingly offended.
“Are you sure travelling is all that you do? I swear you leave a broken heart everywhere you go.”
Yoongi froze and hid from Jimin’s view in case he suddenly decided to look out for him. His heart was pounding, but this time the sensation was awful. He suddenly felt like he couldn’t breathe. He felt a low buzz on his ears, now unable to hear the phone conversation.
You leave a broken heart everywhere you go.
So he wasn’t the first one, and probably wouldn’t be the last. He wasn’t a novelty.
He tried to breathe but he felt something was suddenly in his throat, making him choke. He wanted to cough, but that would alert Jimin of his presence, and a possible confrontation was the last thing he wanted to happen. He tried to breathe through his nose as deep as he could and then stuck his fingers down his throat carefully, trying to find whichever thing was stealing his breath. He caught a soft texture between his two fingers and pulled without thinking, thankful of his lack of a gag reflex.
Purple? What the fuck. He started to breathe more easily and stared at the thing, trying to make sense of it. It felt soft between his fingers, but the object was wrinkled, of a dark purple color. Yoongi hadn’t even eaten anything that color recently, not that he remembered. He kept frowning, an unsettling feeling in his gut when Jimin suddenly raised his voice and made him pay attention.
“Stop it, hyung!”
“What?” the other person was laughing. “What did I say?”
“You never know, hyung. For all you know he might be different.”
Yoongi’s breath stopped and he hoped Jimin hadn’t heard him.
“And is he? Different, I mean.”
Jimin huffed, closing the water tap. “That’s none of your business,” he replied. “I got to go; I’ll call you in a couple of days.”
Yoongi hurriedly took some steps back to the bathroom door, his heart beating again. He was different. It spoke for how gone for Jimin he already was that he could breathe a little easier after hearing that. Deciding to not let anything ruin his day after such revelation, he dropped the weird thing he had coughed into the trash and walked confidently to the kitchen again, making sure to make noise this time. When he entered the kitchen he noticed Jimin’s smile even if his back was to him still. The phone was nowhere in sight.
“Are you done?” he mumbled, circling Jimin’s waist with his arms from behind.
Jimin quickly dried his hands with a kitchen towel and turned around, slightly blushing at Yoongi’s state of undress. “Ready for another round?” he answered, quickly untying Yoongi’s towel to let it fall to the floor. Then he hugged the elder tightly, making sure to let their bodies rub together for a moment before pulling back. Jimin hummed in appreciation. “Bedroom?”
Yoongi smiled but shook his head. “I’m in a good mood. Let’s do it here.”
Jimin laughed and proceeded to kiss Yoongi senseless.
Two days later Yoongi woke up when he felt the bed jostling, Jimin leaving his spot next to him. He waited until the younger leaned on his bedroom window before getting up as well to stand next to him. For some miracle, the sky was cloudy, and there was a hint of light behind the dark clouds: the sun must be rising while they couldn’t see.
“It’s raining,” he marveled out loud.
“Summer is ending,” Jimin replied, staring outside with a weird expression on his face. Yoongi felt wrong.
“Finally, fall and winter are so much better,” Yoongi rolled his eyes. “You know I fucking hate summer.”
Jimin turned to look at him, the weird, unreadable expression still on his face. “Did you hate this summer?”
Yoongi gulped. “Not this one, no. I actually loved it.” At this Jimin sighed, his golden hair bouncing at the movement. “What is it?”
The younger smiled and shook his head. “Kiss me.”
Yoongi was caught out of guard. During their time together they had kissed plenty, mostly during or after sex, and the weird times it happened during the day, they were heavy make out sessions that eventually led to sex. Jimin had never told nor asked him for a kiss. Regardless, he obeyed, taking Jimin’s face between his face, letting his love show on his eyes for a second before taking the other’s lips between his.
Jimin sighed into the kiss, gripping Yoongi’s forearms like his life depended on it, their kiss intense but not sexual. They eventually ended up hugging next to the window, lips pressing together over and over before they pulled apart with light pants, their foreheads pressing together.
“I wanted to tell you something,” Jimin whispered.
Yoongi’s heart raced. “Me too,” he whispered back. “Let’s say it on three, okay?” He felt Jimin nodding against his forehead. “One”
“Two”
“Three.”
“I love you.”
“I’m leaving Daegu tomorrow.”
Yoongi staggered back in shock. “Y-You’re leaving?” he stuttered.
Jimin grimaced, and Yoongi felt his heart shatter when he found something akin to pity on his eyes. “You knew I would leave eventually, hyung.”
“B-But you never said when,” he exclaimed weakly. “I thought we had more time!”
Jimin walked closer to him, placing one hand on his shoulder, and Yoongi felt like the breath was leaving his lungs little by little. “You never asked. I didn’t want to mention it out of nowhere.”
“Like you did just now?” Yoongi laughed bitterly. “Fuck.” He didn’t even know why he cursed, maybe a mix of the devastation coming his way and the feeling of slowly running out of air.
Jimin took his hand back and stepped back. “I understand if you don’t want me to stay here anymore. I can return to the-”
“Stay,” Yoongi cut him off. This was how it worked, right? They loved each other, Yoongi could just ask and Jimin would stay. “Please, just… stay with me, don’t leave. I love you. You said I was different.”
Jimin was now surprised. “What?”
“The other day… at the phone,” he wheezed out, angry at feeling tears forming in his eyes. “You told that person I was different.”
Jimin froze and lowered his gaze to the floor. The silence said everything. He was not loved back. And what Jimin said next was another nail on his coffin. “They were just words, Yoongi. I’m sorry.”
His air finally ran out and Yoongi gagged, asking for air. Jimin approached him, concerned, but Yoongi waved him away. “I’m going to be sick,” he managed to let out, turning to run to the bathroom. “Don’t fucking follow me.”
He ran to the bathroom, his shoulders slamming against the walls on his haste to arrive before throwing up. He made sure to close and lock the door before letting it all out. It hurt a lot. Yoongi had thrown up before and knew this wasn’t what it was supposed to feel like. It kept hurting and hurting, even tasting blood amidst the chaos, until he finally was done. A look at the toilet showed him at least two dozens of the small purple things he had seen two days before, and now recognized them for what they were, and Yoongi knew he was done for.
Because throwing up flower petals could only mean one thing, everybody knew it, and Yoongi, as much as he hurt for Jimin’s actions at the moment, knew that he wouldn’t be able to move on and stop loving him even after he left. After seeing Jimin’s pity directed at him for being stupid enough to fall in love with him, he knew mentioning what he just found out would make Jimin stay out of a sense of obligation at best, and make no change at worst, worsening his condition and quickening the rate at which he would decay.
Decided, he rinsed his mouth several times, until the water he spit on the sink stopped coming out red or pink, and then flushed the toilet, making sure no trace of the flowers was left behind. After that, he opened the door and went to face Jimin once more.
Despite the mess that had happened, Yoongi allowed Jimin to spend his last day at his apartment. Things were awkward, as they should have been the day they met, and really, Yoongi hated knowing he wouldn’t be dying if he had stuck to his common sense. He hated even more that he would do the same all over again if he could turn back time.
Jimin was scheduled to leave in the early morning, so he decided to say his goodbyes before they went to sleep; Jimin on the couch (as he should have) and Yoongi on his bed, probably trying to avoid letting out petals, as he had done the whole day.
“I’m sorry for how we’re leaving things, hyung.”
“Don’t mention it. Sometimes these things happen,” he replied dryly.
Jimin boldly took his hands and Yoongi stupidly didn’t reject him. “You have to know this,” he said with urgency. “I’m sorry I can’t love you back now, I know we didn’t have enough time for falling in love,” Yoongi snorted at the irony but Jimin ignored him, “but I might return to Daegu and we can continue with this, what do you think?”
Yoongi smiled weakly and nodded. “Sounds good, Jiminie. I’m sorry for making things awkward, I guess I tried to move too fast,” he lied. It had been natural for him, it’s just that luck had it for him to be ruined on this one.
Jimin sighed in relief and hugged him once, very quickly, before letting go. “Don’t worry, hyung,” he smiled widely, and Yoongi hated himself for lying to him. “As soon as I return to Korea I will come straight to Daegu, that’s a promise.”
After more awkward goodbyes, they finally went to sleep – separately, still. When Yoongi woke up the next morning, his pillow was full of purple pansy petals and Jimin was gone from his life.
Jimin got off the train and went straight to wander the streets with a smile on his face. He was surprised to find he had missed Daegu more than he’d imagined.
Meeting Min Yoongi had certainly been an experience. The man had been intriguing and their time together had been amazing and hard to forget. It certainly beat all the affairs he had had on previous cities, but it hadn’t been enough to make him stay. Jimin’s heart belonged to the world and its places; it always had and probably always would. Dealing with Yoongi’s untimely confession had been awkward and threatened to cut the bond they had formed over a month, but they had somehow managed.
As promised, after a pleasant visit to Jeju, Jimin had made his way back to Daegu to meet Yoongi once again, after almost a year, considering summer was barely starting at the moment.
Jimin looked at the string of texts he had sent Yoongi after he’d left Daegu. The first ones had been answered with short but friendly replies, which Jimin guessed was Yoongi’s attempt to transmit the way he talked to his writing. About six months ago he suddenly stopped replying to Jimin’s anecdotes and occasional jokes, after which he assumed Yoongi had to change his phone number, since for once he hadn’t said anything to mess things up.
Luckily he still remembered Yoongi’s address and it took no time to reach his apartment building, bypassing the landlord near the entrance and running up the steps to the apartment he still remembered. He knocked three times and waited, a excited smile on his face. When the door opened he frowned, seeing a man with a confused expression. “Can I help you?” the man asked politely, only a little wary.
Jimin shook his head and quickly bowed. “Sorry to bother you, but do you know where Min Yoongi is?”
“I’m sorry, my wife and I moved to this apartment four months ago, we really don’t know anything about who lived here before.”
Jimin’s mood deflated. “I see. Thank you!” he bowed again and ran back down the stairs, this stopping before the landlord. The older man squinted his eyes and then paled.
“Don’t I know you, kid?”
Jimin blushed and nodded. “I guess you do. I spent a couple of weeks here, with Min Yoongi?” he tried.
The man tensed but nodded tersely. “Ah, I remember now,” he simply said. “How can I help you?”
“I went up and just found out Yoongi doesn’t live at his apartment anymore.” Jimin frowned. “Do you know by any chance where he moved to?”
The man stared at him for a moment. “I thought you knew Min Yoongi. Didn’t you know?”
“Know what?”
The man sighed sadly. “I hate bearing bad news, kid,” he warned. “Min Yoongi passed away half a year ago.”
Jimin froze and felt a chill running through his whole body, his eyes instantly filling with tears because of the shock. “W-What?” he whispered.
“His family contacted all relatives and friends as far as I heard, I thought you knew,” the landlord explained.
Jimin shook his head, some of the tears starting to fall. “N-No,” he sniffled. “No one really knew about me, I guess.” The other man raised an eyebrow but remained silent. Jimin couldn’t help but ask, “do you know how he-?” He couldn’t say the word to complete his question. He was sure the man understood anyways as he quickly grimaced.
“I don’t like remembering, you know? I was the one that had to-” he made a gesture. “find him. It was the middle of winter and hadn’t heard of him, nothing weird since Min used to isolate himself during the season,” he recounted. “But suddenly one day I noticed he hadn’t turned on the heating the whole day, I have to constantly check on those things, right?” The man sighed. “So I went up to check on him, I had a feeling. By the time I used my key to enter it was too late. I found him dead on his bedroom floor, choked to death, his poor cat meowing like crazy beside him”
Jimin took a stuttering breath, his face ruined by tears and hands trembling as he wiped his eyes. “H-How…?”
He sent Jimin a knowing yet accusing look, hurting Jimin before he proceeded to say the words that would break his heart. “Purple flower petals,” the landlord stated dryly. “Family said doctors told them he probably got Hanahaki’s near the end of the summer and was in love enough with the person to go through with it until the very end.”