Chapter Text
park jimin never would have thought his best bet at earning money would be stirring cocktails for middle aged, rich, perverted (and probably closeted gay) folk.
his mother had always told him it was impossible to become anything without a degree in the 21. century and jimin had, still was, agreeing with her. that hadn't stopped him from dropping out, and his mother had told him he was a complete idiot.
which was true. jimin also had no intentions and no hope for himself, but that didn't change the fact that he knew he eventually had to take responsibility for himself. his mother insisted they move back to busan, where they knew people who could at least find him some pity-jobs, to leave their small apartment in seoul (which they only moved in to get away from his mother's quite tearful second divorce anyway) and see where they would end up.
jimin had entertained the idea for a split second before realizing no, there was absolutely no way he'd move back to busan. the small city in itself jimin loved to death, but the people he'd have to see again, fuck no. his ex-girlfriend, not to mention lots of friends who would laugh in his face if they saw him crawl back to their rich fathers for a job at a goddamn assembly line; no crazy clubs like seoul's, no crazy people, no fun. jimin was never quite sociable to begin with, or maybe he just hated those assholes, but he didn't want to go back to that life. he didn't want to go back to being that jimin, and to his girlfriend who probably just wanted him to put a baby in her.
and his mom didn't take it super well.
jimin had just waited for her storm to calm, and his mom left him in tears, admittedly he cried a little too. but he is 21, it was about time he lived on his own.
he sits at the train station after waving his mom goodbye, and deletes the numbers of every single person from busan and from his old university in seoul. no more.
after everything that goes down, jimin realizes he likes being and living alone. he also realizes one person isn't enough to pay the bills, especially if he is working the graveyard at the supermarket. he doesn't think anybody would voluntarily like to live in this rathole if they have another chance, but he is pretty sure at least one penniless college student like his old self would be desperate enough. he writes a short ad, his name, age, what he likes and dislikes which makes him cringe internally, for a local housing group on facebook and three days later he gets a message.
kim taehyung: yo
kim taehyung: r u still free bro
jimin blinks at the screen, and the bright red hair at the guy's icon. free? house, yes. himself, sadly, also yes.
park jimin: yes, its still free
park jimin: do u wanna come and look around?
the next reply only takes an hour.
kim taehyung: nah all good
all good? jimin sighs. of course the guy would find somewhere better. just as he stands up from his computer, thinking maybe he should just start sticking posters around the city or something, he hears a knock on the door. he feels his brow tick as he prays feverishly for it to be anybody else but his stupid fucking girl of a neighbor, who blasts only the billboard 100 chart and absolutely nothing else, then complains to jimin that he is taking showers way too late at night.
but no. at the door is the kid from facebook, who only texted him an hour ago, kim taehyung, in the flesh (and flesh colored hair). jimin shrieks and jumps back, to which taehyung only frowns.
"that's not how you say hi."
"i- what? you just told me you weren't interested!"
"no i didn't!"
"yes you did!"
"no i didn't!"
"i asked if you would show to have a look and you just said no! and now you show up here completely uninvited?"
taehyung clears his throat. "first of all, you just said you asked me have a look, which automatically makes me invited. second of all, i said i didn't wanna look, cause i don't care, i'm moving in."
jimin isn't sure if his head is spinning from confusion or just taehyung's bare energy. "im- i cant believe this. you're moving in with me, without even meeting me, without even having a look at your room?"
"yeah?" taehyung looks at jimin as if he's the idiot. "plus, i did look at your profile. cute dog, but i don't think he's here right now."
"he's not," jimin slaps his forehead as taehyung tries to peek inside. "don't normalize this! i mean i don't care cause i really need the money, but you honestly want to move in without knowing anything about me?"
taehyung looks tired. "yes. why wouldn't i do that? so i can look at a warm bed and say 'no thanks, i'd rather sleep in the gutter'?"
he raises a brow. "you got kicked out?"
"well, yeah. cause i got caught having a very gay sex session with my very gay boyfriend to my very homophobic homeowner."
jimin scrunches his nose, to which taehyung raises a brow back. "if you're like him i'll just take my box and go away. i cannot live without neither my boyfriend, nor the sex. or even my buttsex jokes."
jimin can't help the panic in his voice. "no! no, no, that was in sympathy for you."
taehyung instantly beams, balancing his box of belongings against the frame. "then can i come in? i obviously am not a serial killer, but even if i was i wouldn't tell you, obviously, and neither would anybody else who is a serial killer, so that you can't make sure of that with anybody anyway. obviously. plus, i won't crawl into your bed one night and wake you up to me awkwardly rubbing my dick against your hole, cause i already have my boyfriend to booty call. plus, my arms are kind of tired."
jimin finally can't help but laugh. "come in. i won't promise against rubbing my dick on you, though."
taehyung guffaws at that, and jimin can't help but feel they're going to get along just fine.
"so, where do you work? i need 400, stat."
taehyung disappears a few hours later to grab the rest of his stuff from his boyfriend's apartment, which he apparently shares with a guy from work. jimin finds out that taehyung himself is a student, second year in biology, and jimin tells him he just works the graveyard shift at the supermarket down the street.
"graveyard? is that like, important? is it cause it's scary?"
jimin doesn't want to say graveyard is named that because people would rather die than work at that hour, so he just shrugs. "i suppose."
taehyung nods with wide eyes. "cool. you should definitely meet my boyfriend then. he really likes spooky stuff."
"where is he now?"
"he must be getting ready for work. he works at this super exclusive night club as a bouncer. very proud of him."
"didn't you say he was 20?"
"but he's strong! plus, he's also having like a year off or something," taehyung waves a hand dismissively, "i can't keep up with bureaucratic stuff for my life."
jimin looks unsure but nods anyway. "yeah."
they fall into a small silence, and jimin thinks it's finally the quota for two strangers to find things to talk about, when taehyung suddenly jumps on the sofa. jimin feels the cushions rise and fall with the boy and makes a note to never let taehyung sit on his bed. but weirdly, he doesn't even feel surprised anymore. "yes?"
"you and i should go to the club tonight! i know everybody there, so they always give me the best time ever! and i never pay because they just cut it off jungkookie's salary!"
"that doesn't sound fair," jimin shrills but it's too late, taehyung looks like his mind's been made up for good.
"we're going! i'll tell kookie right away!"
"hey- wait- taehyung!"
but taehyung escapes jimin's desperate attempt at a clutch and exits the apartment, yelling jimin about getting his slutty clothes from his boyfriend's place and promising his best makeup palette, which puts jimin into the position he is now, biting his lip and ringing his manager at the supermarket for an urgent shift change. the back of his mind lightly questions his choices, he really needs the job and the money and he has little to no qualification for another and he is risking it at the expense of going out with taehyung. he already knows the answer, but admitting it makes him feel like a big loser. a friend. he really wants to get along.
he promises his manager he'll be there at 10 am sharp tomorrow and the guy hangs up in his face, probably calling his coworker to know he's going to be alone in tonight's battle. he likes the poor kid, but he really wants to be selfish right now. he'll drink two cocktails at most and come back early, he'll make it to his shift no matter what.
jimin pretends he hasn't been showering and scrubbing himself clean of probably months' old of dirt when taehyung starts banging on the door like a madman. "sorry," he smiles sheepishly, "i forgot to grab the keys when i left."
taehyung dives into jimin's room like he's been living there since forever and jimin still feels a little off looking at his red hair darting back and forth, but he did say he accepted him and he's not going to be an asshole to the one person he feels close to ever since he moved to the big city, so he just lets taehyung wreck his closet.
"that's it!"
jimin looks at himself in the bathroom (its the only full-body one, sadly) and feels a little giddy, taehyung has put him in his white (fake but anyway) satin shirt, which is missing its first button but shows more of him so jimin likes it just fine. the boy slides next to him in the mirror and puts a bandanna over his forehead. "looking good, huh?"
jimin just shrugs but smiles, and taehyung replies by smiling much wider.
"what time do you think we should leave?"
"dunno, i usually go around 11. what time is it now?"
jimin feels his eye twitch. "seven half."
taehyung laughs again and jimin regrets his decision just a little then, but he's never watched the rerun of his favorite gameshow in silver chains and eyeliner anyway, so maybe then he regrets it a little less.
they end up getting in line just around eleven, and taehyung tells him how he likes going in just when things are getting heated, not earlier and not too late, how there are some "big fish" ("cause they're a catch! if i can just fuck one of them me and jungkookie would prosper for like, ten years!") inside that do all sorts of gambling and all other sorts of illegal things.
"why does he work at a place so dangerous?"
"why?" taehyung blinks. "cause we both like jin-hyung."
jimin doesn't ask, but finds out later that "jin-hyung" is the owner of the club, the youngest son of one of the city's big players. jimin vaguely draws a map, connecting himself to the big boss, and finds it concerning how suddenly close it feels. "jungkookie used to cut me in line," jimin registers taehyung babbling, "but jin-hyung told him not to. meanie."
jimin shakes away the mental image of taehyung strutting in the club with his red hair and lanky arms, passing right next to the big players, and suddenly feels a sympathy for jin.
they finally make it to the door and jimin sees only two bouncers. the taller one of them is jungkook, jimin realizes from the way taehyung is doing heart eyes at him, but he doesn't even budge. the shorter one, just eyes the both of them before turning to jungkook. "and?"
"in," jungkook says sternly, and jimin feels kind of taken aback. someone like taehyung could not be possibly dating a wall like this.
"stretch out your arm," the shorter bouncer calls to jimin and he takes an involuntary step towards him. the guy looks between jimin and his clothed wrist before pushing his sleeve up with a sigh. jimin feels lost as the blonde presses a cool stamp on his skin. he feels his fingers lightly squeeze and the silver rings all over them makes him shiver as they brush against him. the bouncer drops him arm.
"your ticket isn't to watch me. next."
jimin feels his neck flare up as he scurries next to taehyung who's waiting for him right at the gate. "what took you so long? you got id'd?"
"i- no," jimin furrows his brows and wants to say he looks at least 5 years older than taehyung but swallows it instead, "who was that bouncer?"
taehyung gapes. "jiminie, you didn't notice? i kept telling you jungkookie works here!"
jimin wants to slap either his or taehyung's forehead but holds it back at the nickname he used for him. "no, i meant the blonde one." he doesn't want to mention how jungkook feels colder than a freezer just yet.
"him?"
he nods, anticipating for taehyung's reply. "i dunno."
"what!?" jimin's body rotates involuntarily to follow taehyung's disappearing back into the club. "but i thought you knew everyone here! hey! kim taehyung!"