Chapter Text
Jungkook exhaled noisily as he plunked down in the cramped window seat. As a world-renowned singer, he was not used to flying economy, but beggars can’t be choosers and this was the best that he could manage on such short notice.
He was supposed to be on a beach in Saipan enjoying his month long vacation. Instead, he was being called back to Korea by his annoying brother/manager, Kim Seokjin, to deal with some stupid plagiarism lawsuit. He was not aware of the details but apparently it was serious enough for Jin to get all hot and bothered.
Being a celebrity of his caliber, he was used to private jets but Jin had refused to charter one because he was pissed at Jungkook. He had every right to be as well since Jungkook had flown to Saipan on a whim all by himself without letting anyone know where he was going. To make things worse he’d turned off his cell phone, not wanting to be disturbed.
His brother had freaked out when he couldn’t reach him, terrified that he had been abducted or even worse. Jin had almost called the police to report him missing but when he checked Jungkook’s credit card history he saw the bookings that Jungkook had made at some ungodly hour of the morning. He’d immediately rung up the hotel Jungkook was staying at and shouted at him for a solid hour. That was the end of the undisturbed part of Jungkook's vacation as Jin called him everyday without fail to check on him.
Since it was just him and he was on his own time, the company wouldn’t foot the bill for a private jet. Jin being the cheap and petty bastard that he was, who would probably keep him on a budget no matter how rich he got, told him there was no way he was wasting that much money on Jungkook after the shit he’d pulled.
“You got there yourself so you should be able to get back on your own too” were his exact words if Jungkook remembered correctly. At least he didn’t freeze Jungkook’s credit cards and had graciously allowed Jungkook to spring for a first class seat. Jungkook had learned to be grateful for the small things when it came to Jin.
The airline, however, had fucked him over by over-booking the flight and since he would have had to wait for five hours to get a first class seat on another flight, he just sucked it up and roughed it in economy. He really didn’t want to risk any of his fans recognizing him. He loved and appreciated his fans from the bottom if his heart. He was grateful for their support but some of them didn’t respect his boundaries and he was always weary of being mobbed. He’d been mobbed many times and each time Jin read him the riot act as if it was his fault.
Technically it was usually kind of his fault for not informing Jin of his whereabouts or taking security with him. But he had hoped that his fans would respect his personal space, especially during his time off. He hadn’t even expected anyone to recognize him those times because he was dressed in over-sized black clothes, had half of his face concealed with his bucket hat, and the other half covered with a face mask. The only parts of his body that weren’t covered were his hands and his neck and he couldn’t even imagine how people figured out it was him from just that.
Just as he was about to close his eyes and try to get some sleep during the five hour flight, the passenger in the seat next to him arrived. Curious about the person he’d be sitting next to, and a bit nervous about being recognized, he peaked at the other passenger who was taking out a few things from his carry-on before stuffing it in the overhead compartment.
Jungkook could tell that the man was fit from the toned stomach he’d seen under the man’s t-shirt, which had ridden up a bit as he stretched to close the overhead compartment.
When the man finally settled in his seat he greeted Jungkook with a small smile and a quiet “Hello” before being turning his attention to his tablet. He had bubble-gum pink hair and equally pink lips. He had a few piercings on the ear that Jungkook could see and an intricate full sleeve tattoo on his right arm.
Jungkook hadn’t even realized that he’d been staring at the man until he heard a soft, “Do you need something or are just going to stare at me for the entire flight?”
“I-I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to stare at you, I just zoned out for a minute” Jungkook’s faced burned with embarrassment as he looked up to find the man’s eyes on him. From the way the man’s chocolate brown orbs widened he assumed that the man had recognized him and he was already bracing himself for the squealing that usually accompanied being recognized.
To his surprise, he man just huffed out a soft “Don’t worry about it” before continuing to do whatever he was doing on his tablet.
That was weird. Maybe the man didn’t actually recognize him. What a relief! He was not in the mood to entertain anyone for five hours anyway. He would have to deal with a lot when he got back and he just wanted to sleep as much as he could because he was not sure how much sleep he’d be getting once he landed in Seoul.
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He felt fingers gently prodding his shoulder pulling him out of his slumber “Hey, wake up, the flight attendant is asking if you want anything to eat or drink.”
When he opened his eyes he found both the flight attendant and the man next to him who had woken him up staring at him. The flight attendant whispered a small “Oh my god!” under her breath when she noticed who he was before her professionalism kicked in. She managed to school her face into a polite smile and recited the list of snacks on the menu. Jungkook settled for a chicken salad sandwich and some orange juice.
As he ate, he noticed that the man was not eating anything, so against his better judgement, he asked, “How come you’re not eating anything?”
He should really listen to the voice inside his head, the one that sounded eerily like Jin’s, telling him to mind his own business and keep a low profile but that voice had never stopped him before so why let it start now?
“I ate before I boarded” was the only reply he got. He man hadn’t even looked up from his tablet.
“But it’s free and we boarded like two and a half hours ago” Jungkook pressed. This man intrigued him for some reason. He was not usually a chatty Kathy, he rarely initiated conversations with strangers like this, but he wanted to find out more about him.
“Plane food is pretty disgusting. I can wait till we land.”
Did this guy just not want to talk to him? Did he really not know who he was? Jungkook was definitely not conceited, even though he had every right to be, but he knew for a fact that some people would be willing to give their eye teeth to sit next to him and talk to him.
“This sandwich is actually delicious.”
“None of it is fresh, there are lots of additives, and it’s pumped with salt and fat to make it taste appealing.”
“Aren’t you a ray of sunshine?!” Jungkook muttered under his breath, not expecting his seatmate to catch it.
“Thank you, so I’ve been told.”
Jungkook’s eyes widened at the response. He didn’t seem to have made the best impression on the man and he was unlikely to see him ever again so he decided to throw all shame out the window and just ask what had been on his mind since the stranger sat next to him.
“Do you know who I am?”
“Of course I know who you are. I don’t live under a rock” the man huffed with a hint of annoyance, turning off his tablet and giving Jungkook his full attention. He had really beautiful eyes Jungkook noticed.
“Are you not a fan of my work then?” Jungkook was confused. The man knew who he was, but why wasn’t he asking for a picture or an autograph or something? Did the man not like his work?
“Some of your songs are nice. You have a nice voice.”
“Only some? How come you’re not more excited to be sitting next to me? I mean, you haven’t asked me for a picture or anything. Usually people would be freaking out.” Jungkook was definitely not conceited.
“Well I’m sorry I’m not fangirling enough to satisfy your ego. Your profession is being a singer. It’s just your job. Nobody goes fangirling after police officers, or fire fighters, or doctors, and those people do jobs that actually save lives, what makes your job so special?”
That had effectively shut Jungkook up. He’d never even considered it that way. At the end of the day, Mr. Grumpy Pants was right, singing was just his job. Sure, his job had way more perks than most others, but he didn’t really save lives on a daily basis. If he stopped making music, his fans would be sad, but they would eventually move on to some other singer. Sitting next to Mr. Grumpy Pants was a really humbling experience. It was definitely not good for his ego.
The rest of the flight went by quickly with Jungkook spiraling down a rabbit hole wondering if he was doing enough to make difference in the world. Yes, his company donated money to different charities on a regular basis. Yes, Jin made donations in his name to charities as well. But Jungkook realized that he, himself, never played an active role in making a difference. He never visited hospitals, he never spoke about any causes, he never volunteered at shelters, or anything of the sort. Even if he did, it was because his company or Jin had forced him to do it and he could guarantee that he probably complained the entire time. He would have to change this and try to make more of a difference. He’d find a cause that he was passionate about and he’d show Mr. Grumpy Pants that he played a significant role in society too.
He wondered what Mr. Grumpy Pants did for a living and what he did to make a difference in society that allowed him to look down on Jungkook from his high horse. He did not dare disturb his seatmate again though as he was glaring at the tablet in his hand, occasionally swearing under his breath, and Jungkook didn’t want that anger directed at him. He already had more than enough anger coming his way once Jin gets hold of him.
As the flight landed and passengers were given the green light to disembark, Jungkook decided that he wanted to stay in touch with the sullen man who’d managed to pique his curiosity and knock him down a peg or two in just a couple of hours.
He tapped the man lightly on his shoulder just as he was packing up his things, “So I don’t usually do this but you seem like an interesting person. Would you like to keep in contact? Maybe we could talk some more and get to know each other better. You haven’t even told me your name.”
“I’m Jimin, and don’t worry, Jungkook, we’ll see each other again before you even know it.” With that he zipped up his bag and hurried down the aisle towards the exit leaving behind a confused Jungkook. What did he mean? How were they going to see each other again? They didn’t even exchange contact details. Was he a crazy stalker? Did he work for Jungkook’s company? Was he a celebrity? No, he couldn’t be. Jimin was definitely attractive enough to be one but Jungkook knew everyone worth knowing in the industry and there was no way he’d ever forget a face like Jimin’s.
As he exited the plane, a barrage of messages flooded his phone, effectively breaking him out of his musing. He was back in Seoul now, he had to get back into work mode and deal with this stupid lawsuit.