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Sometimes Namjoon forgets that regardless of what happened with Jimin, his friends are still his friends.
Pre-Jimin Era consisted of meeting Seokjin every week at his apartment, only to sit on his carpet and play with his dog. (Dog was named after Seokjin’s dog, their bond will always run deep) After hearing so much about the eccentric being that is Namjoon, Seokjin’s group of friends collectively asked to meet him.
He doesn’t really remember where they met or what he said but he managed to win most of their hearts within an hour. Emphasis on most of their hearts. Namjoon thinks almost all of them were too drunk to realize how incredibly spaced out he was.
(Which is most likely why he doesn’t remember anything about the night other than being pulled into a hug by Taehyung while he commented on how adorable he was (Jeongguk wasn’t too happy about that (Neither was Jimin)))
The only one not entirely charmed by Namjoon was the effortlessly beautiful Jimin, who grimaced every time Jeongguk and Taehyung were in each other’s proximity— which happened to be the entire night.
Jimin’s bad mood caused him to not see the big idea about Namjoon, who looked into the distance often and chimed in when he finally came back to Earth. It wasn’t as if he was contemplating space, time, and the universe. Namjoon simply liked being in his own head.
No one expected the two to get along. Namjoon and Jimin wasn’t a pairing that meshed well, which is why it made sense that Jimin wasn’t entirely fond of him in the beginning of their relationship. Namjoon didn’t care that much and took a liking to Jimin, finding his obvious attempts at being civil humorous. So entertaining that he played a game to see how long it took for Jimin to crack.
Namjoon slides his head next to Jimin from behind, causing the smaller to jump, clutching his chest at the sudden intrusion. “Did you know Mount Everest isn’t the tallest mountain in the world?”
Jimin sighs, continuing to stock the shelf in front of him while making an attempt to block out the elder’s rambling. “It’s Chimborazo. A stratovolcano in the Andes Mountain Range. Chimborazo is the furthest point of the Earth’s center, so it’s the highest in distance.”
“Did you memorize that from a website?”
Namjoon pouts, moving from around Jimin and leaning against the shelf with his arms crossed. The frown on Jimin’s face deepens with Namjoon now directly staring at him and disrupting his concentration. “Maybe.” Jimin snorts, glancing up at him while continuing his organizing. “Are you amazed? I can tell you about weird things people did in the 1800s— I didn’t read a website about this.”
He sighs, “Namjoon, why the fuck are you at my job?”
“I’m buying something.”
“And what exactly are you buying?”
Namjoon stares at the ground for a moment before grabbing the item in Jimin’s hand and holding it up. “You’re… buying pads?”
“It’s for an art project I’m working on.”
“Oh my god, get out. Get out, get out, get out. Take your fucking pads and leave me alone.”
He smiles slightly at Jimin, dimples just barely appearing, and walks away whistling. Not before thanking Jimin for the pads. (Namjoon ended up buying them, sticking them onto his knees and elbows when he went roller skating with the group (Everyone laughed except Jimin, who rolled his eyes (Namjoon ripped them off after Jimin reacted, fully satisfied)))
Before Namjoon managed to make him explode, Jimin had a mental breakdown with the stress of Taehyung’s new engagement, rent being due, and the aggressive customers around Christmas time. No one manages to notice except Namjoon, which is surprising considering that Taehyung was his best friend. (he doesn’t blame him though, his attention at the time focused solely on Jeongguk and getting married) Despite his decreasing sanity, Jimin still attended outings in hopes that it would distract him.
However, it backfired and things got too much one day. Jeongguk introduced his best friend Yoongi to them, who stared at Jimin the entire time. (Apparently he was informed of Jimin’s feelings) That same night, Taehyung clung more than ever to his new fiancé and everyone but Namjoon was too interested in Yoongi to notice Jimin’s mental state slowly deteriorate until he was on the brink of a full on panic attack.
Before he reached that stage in front of everyone in the restaurant, Namjoon stood up and put enough money on the table to cover both of their meals and blinked slowly, all eyes looking up at him. “Nice to meet you, Yoongi. It’s going to rain and Jimin is the only one with an umbrella.” With no further words, Namjoon had grabbed Jimin’s hand and tugged him outside. He didn’t stop until he reached his apartment. Namjoon let go of his hand only when he was gently sat on the bed. Namjoon had left and came back with water, kneeling in front of Jimin and making him do breathing exercises and drink the water slowly.
When color returned to his face, Jimin was handed some of Namjoon’s clothes that he could barely fit and crawled into Namjoon’s bed with him. They didn’t speak, but as he cried himself to sleep, Namjoon carded his fingers through his hair and hummed “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” until he fell unconscious.
(When Jimin had woke up, he found Namjoon sitting cross-legged in front of him, playing his Nintendo (After coughing slightly to get his attention, Namjoon paused his game and handed him a poptart. Jimin ate in silence as he lazily talked about wanting a cat))
It became an unspoken routine after that, and each time they grew closer until they could communicate without speaking, much to everyone’s surprise.
The karaoke room is lit with bright smoldering neon lights dusting the walls and the chairs don’t feel comfortable but Namjoon is there anyways. He hasn’t gone out with everyone for a long time, opting to attempt working when not around Jimin. Guilt is the only reason Namjoon is sitting on the floor in the room— the chairs hurt him —silently observing everyone around him. Nothing much about them as changed, their dynamics are the same despite Jimin not being around them for months. Namjoon doesn’t know if he feels grateful or upset that they seem normal after the wedding. Taehyung, however, does steal glances at him because Namjoon’s the last connection he has to Jimin. They all are laughing at some joke Jeongguk made when his phone buzzes.
11:40 Jimin:
are u coming over to mine after
11:41 Namjoon:
-.-- . …
The door knocks and a waitress brings in the dessert they ordered.
11:43 Jimin:
stop typing in morse code
11:45 Namjoon:
i can teach you
11:45 Jimin:
oh my fucking god
its a yes or no question
Taehyung and Jeongguk start a love duet that Namjoon’s never heard before and everyone around him cheers and laughs.
11:51 Namjoon:
if you knew morse code you’d know
11:52 Jimin:
u frustrate the hell out of me
yes or no
Arguing ensues over who goes next.
11:55 Namjoon:
only if you let me teach you
Somehow the argument ended in a realization that he still hasn’t went, but when everyone looks at his direction, he is already deep in his head, melting ice cream in front of him. Yoongi offers in his steed.
He only comes back when Seokjin slides next to him on the ground and asks the question Namjoon hoped he wouldn’t be asked for the night. “How’s Jimin?” His tone and eyes are soft, worry slightly woven into it, but it’s too loud. His soft tone bounced too heavily against the walls and suddenly everyone stills, looking in their direction.
“Good.” Namjoon goes back to picking at his ice cream, sliding the spoon back inside of his mouth and letting it melt. He waits for the next question, knowing that once the conversation was brought up, it wouldn’t stop.
11:58 Jimin:
one lesson, 30 minutes
take it or leave it
“He should join us soon. Or at least answer our calls and messages,” Hoseok adds. It’s an attempt to seem lighthearted but the topic is too serious for him to succeed.
Namjoon’s eyes slide over to Taehyung as he speaks, “If Jimin wanted to, he would’ve.” He watches as Taehyung winces, face crumbling. Namjoon looks back at his ice cream, spooning more into his mouth. “I have no control over him.”
“Is he at least happy? You said he is good, but what about happy?” Taehyung’s voice sounds strained and desperate, Jeongguk squeezing his hand in to comfort him.
“I think everyone has different versions of happiness.” He ends the conversation with a shrug, eating more ice cream. There was a finality in his words that tells everyone to not press the matter and there is a long pause of someone scrambling to start a new conversation. It’s Hoseok who succeeds, selecting a popular girl group song and performing it in the most comical way he can. Everyone laughs, that’s all they can do is laugh. Their laughter is what masks the missing seventh presence that usually lingers near the corner. The seventh presence that they haven’t seen or heard from, that they don’t know if they ever will again.
Namjoon had thought this was normalcy originally but now listening carefully at each individual laugh, he feels it. He feels the guilt of Taehyung, the shame of Jeongguk, the pity of Yoongi, the helplessness of Seokjin and Hoseok. He feels it all and is grateful his laugh doesn’t match their own. Grateful that he doesn’t have to laugh to hide the missing figure.
In the corner of his eye, he sees Taehyung’s eyes prickle with tears and the veins in his wrist bulging from how tightly he is holding Jeongguk’s hand.
12:07 Namjoon:
deal, omw
12:07 Jimin:
stop and get me chocolate
12:07 Namjoon:
k
Namjoon stands and dusts himself off before placing enough money to pay for his ice cream. Everyone stops laughing and turns to look at him and he blinks slowly. “Sorry for leaving so soon. It’s going to rain and no one here has an umbrella. Let’s go to zumba next time.”
By the end of his sentence, he is already outside of the door, letting it slowly close behind him. He walks in the direction towards his home and pulls out his phone.
12:07 Jimin:
do u know what kind?
12:09 Namjoon:
i know all your favorites
12:10 Jimin:
doubt it
When Namjoon opens the door to Jimin’s apartment, he is laying on the couch with Dog on his legs and Cat on his stomach. “I took your cat.”
“I see.”
“How was it?”
He hums, handing Jimin his favorite candy bar and smiling slightly when he sees the shocked look on his face. “Would’ve been better if I had an umbrella.”