Work Text:
THUMP
THUMP
THUMP
Another THUMP rattles through the apartment, followed by the tinkling sound of a spoon shaking in the coffee mug that Namjoon is holding. On the other side of their small living room, Yoongi sits at the desk, a pair of headphones snug on his head. Lying underneath the monitor, head and paws peeking out, is their cat, Juliette, unbothered as ever.
With a sigh, Namjoon puts down his book and stands up from the couch. Yoongi twitches, as if he senses the shift of air brought on by Namjoon’s movement. Juliette looks up at the movement, but stays hidden behind the computer monitor.
THUMP
“Yoongi.”
THUMP
“I know you can hear me.”
THUMP
“Yoongi please, I don’t want to go over there by myself…” Namjoon is prepared to continue his argumentation of why Yoongi absolutely has to come with him to check out the loud noise. He’s stopped however, when Yoongi’s shoulders square up, his arms lifting to pull the headphones off.
Without a single word, Yoongi walks past him, grabbing his hand in the process, and dragging him along gently towards their front door. He quickly opens it to reveal the hallway of their floor and stops on the threshold, effectively causing Namjoon to bump into him. Already mumbling an apology, Yoongi pulls at the hand he’s holding before Namjoon can move back to give him space. Instead, Yoongi silently urges Namjoon to wrap himself around his shoulders so he can finally take a look outside and see what had made stop Yoongi in his tracks. Namjoon isn’t disappointed with the sight.
The apartment on their left has been vacant for a while, they never really talked to the previous inhabitant. Most of their neighbours keep to themselves aside from the awkward smiles offered when bumping into each other in the hallway or the elevator and Yoongi and Namjoon are more than happy to oblige to the silent social code of their building.
If the man hauling a stack of heavy looking boxes down the hall is their new neighbour however, Namjoon would be very much inclined to break the social code and get to know him better. Yoongi seems to have had the same thought process, as he nudges Namjoon to lean in so he can whisper in his ear.
“Seems like the new neighbour is moving in.” Namjoon swallows harshly, his mouth suddenly going very dry.
The mystery neighbour hasn’t noticed them yet, since they’re lurking just outside of their doorframe, plastered together to get a good view. Honestly, Namjoon thinks, the view can’t get much better than this. The man is wearing a loose fitting tank-top, leaving little to the imagination despite the stack of boxes obscuring most of his frame. As he reaches the door just left of theirs, he bends down – Yoongi twitches a little and Namjoon squeezes his hand in response – and puts the boxes down before knocking loudly on the door.
Finally, the irregular thumps seem to stop for a moment and the man looks up and straight at where Namjoon and Yoongi are practically gawking at him. In an instant, the man’s drawn eyebrows and tight lips shift into something else. Namjoon thinks it looks just like dark clouds breaking up to reveal a bright, shining sun. His eyes turn to crescents and the corners of his mouth lift up to reveal his teeth in a smile.
“Oh! Hi there, you must be my new neighbours,” the man lifts one hand in a short wave and Namjoon tries to reciprocate, accidentally lifting the hand that’s still holding Yoongi’s to do an awkward wave back with their fingers still intertwined. As he tries to fight off a blush and shrinks a little to hide behind Yoongi, the man laughs a little, “I’m Jimin, it’s nice to meet you guys!”
“I’m Yoongi, this is Namjoon,” Thank god for Min Yoongi, “Welcome to the building Jimin.” Before Jimin can respond, the three of them startle at the door swinging open.
“Jesus Christ, how are you gonna survive by yourself if you’re already forgetting your passcode.”
“Sorry hyung, I haven’t had time to change it yet,” Jimin squats down to pick up the boxes again, “I’ll see you around Yoongi-ssi, Namjoon-ssi?”
“Yes, of course, if you need any help let us know.” Yoongi says. Namjoon smiles at their new neighbour, not knowing what to say. With a nod, Jimin disappears from view and the door closes behind him, leaving Namjoon and Yoongi standing in the hallway alone, Namjoon still draped over Yoongi’s shoulders. Namjoon gently shifts them around and pushes Yoongi back into their apartment, closing the door behind them as well.
Juliette stares at them from her spot on the desk, where she's now perched on the edge as she looks on. Namjoon sighs and plops back down on the couch, Juliette jumps down and claims a spot in his lap while he gets back to his book. Yoongi glances over, a fond look in his eyes, before settling back down as well. They don't talk about the hot new neighbour, but Namjoon is sure that Yoongi is also thinking about him.
---
After that, Namjoon starts running into Jimin quite often. Almost every morning as he enters the apartment, or as he's returning from his morning walk, there's Jimin. Sometimes he bumps into him right as he's about to walk towards the elevator, looking like a modern Greek god in his running outfit, sculpted legs and arms on display. On some days, Jimin wears leggings, Namjoon always looks forward to those. Especially because on those days, Jimin will act like his shoelace isn't tied tight enough and bend over right in front of Namjoon.
Sometimes however, they cross paths right as Jimin comes back from his run. Those days are glorious as well. His black hair sticking to his forehead, cheeks flushed and chest heaving. There's always a big smile on his face though, a breathless “Hi” or “Good morning” on the tip of his tongue as he sees Namjoon.
One day, the short greeting he gets from Namjoon isn't enough for Jimin apparently.
“Hey so, I see you practically every morning before seven or eight, most people I know that are our age don't really get out of bed before that...” He fidgets as he walks beside Namjoon to the elevator, “Well, except for me then, but all my friends call me crazy for voluntarily waking up this early you know?” Jimin laughs a little, hand coming up to scratch at his ear.
When they reach the elevator, Namjoon pushes the button and looks back to where Jimin is looking down at his shoes. He takes the opportunity to appreciate Jimin's outfit and more importantly, his legs. Today, Jimin's wearing black running shorts, his usual running shoes and a black long sleeved shirt. When Namjoon looks back at his face, he finds that Jimin is already looking at him.
DING!
They step into the elevator and Jimin's cheeks have turned a pretty shade of pink. Namjoon can feel his own cheeks heating up at being caught checking him out.
“So yea, I guess I was just wondering why you're always up so early? What kind of work do you do?” Jimin says.
“Oh I'm actually a writer,” Namjoon looks over at Jimin, quietly gauging his reaction, “So I kind of work at home at my own hours.” Jimin's eyes widen slightly.
“That's so cool!” Namjoon feels his cheeks heat up even more.
“I- Uh... Thank you.” He looks down, “Not a lot of people think so.” An awkward laugh fills the space between them. They walk out of the elevator together, out of the building, while Jimin asks more questions about what he writes.
“So, why do you always go out so early?”
“Well, I just like to walk through the park in the morning. The fresh air helps clear my mind and I just love to enjoy nature around me you know?” Jimin nods eagerly and Namjoon heart skips a beat, “Plus, our cat Juliette always wakes up way too early for Yoongi, and he barely gets enough sleep as it is... So I always give her breakfast and then go for a walk.”
“Juliette? That's an odd name.”
“Well, she's a Chartreux and uh-” Namjoon scratches at his neck, remembering how Yoongi had - fondly - made fun of him for it, “She's French, so I didn't want to give her a Korean name and confuse her. Plus, it's Shakespeare, so it seemed appropriate as a writer.”
Jimin laughs loudly, making Namjoon feel a little stupid for his thought process. Yoongi had laughed at him too at first, but assured him that it made sense and that he loved him. He's embarrassed now that he explains it to someone else though.
“It's dumb, I know...” He tries to save himself.
“No, no! I love it! It's unusual, unconventional, but that makes it great to be honest.” Jimin smiles at him. They've reached the park by now, Jimin seemingly just walking along as Namjoon guided them to the nearest park.
With the sun filtering through the trees, Namjoon suddenly notices the dark, deep colour of Jimin's eyes. His irises are barely visible as he smiles brightly at Namjoon, but with the sun shining on his face, it almost looks like he's glowing from within.
“I should really be going now, I still have to shower when I get home and get ready for work on time, but it was lovely talking to you Namjoon-ssi.”
“Ah, you can call me hyung, but it was great talking to you too Jimin. Have fun on your run.”
“Thank you hyung!”
One last wave and Jimin is off, leaving Namjoon behind.
After that day, it becomes like a routine. Every time they see each other as they're both going out, they'll walk to the park together as they're chatting back and forth. Namjoon learns that Jimin works some kind of boring office job, something in sales. He didn't sound too excited talking about it, but he reassured Namjoon that it was fine, it paid the bills.
Jimin tells him about the dance studio that one of his friends owns. He gets excited and rambles about how he loves to join in with classes every now and then, when he has the time. Apparently, Jimin had been a dancer for quite some time, but had quit after college, in favour of getting a stable job. He doesn't sound too sad when he talks about it, happy to be able to still dance as a hobby. Namjoon thinks about Yoongi’s job, his music, and he thinks he understands.
In turn, Namjoon tells Jimin about himself, about his writing, about Yoongi. He sometimes feels like he rambles too much, like when he dives into his existential crises, or how he’d hoped that he’d be less terrified of the future after he finished college. Jimin reassures him every time however, with a small nod, or the hint of a smile, that he understands and lets him ramble.
Namjoon gets advice on his current work in progress. Which means that he rambles to Jimin about the plot until he reaches a eureka moment on his own. Those days, Namjoon always shouts a belated “thank you” as Jimin runs off into the green, always throwing a laughing “no problem” over his shoulder.
The days that he talks about Yoongi aren’t sparse per se, it’s just that Jimin always gets a little quiet if he talks about their relationship. Not in a bad way, at least he doesn’t seem annoyed or upset when he brings up his boyfriend.
It’s just that his eyes get a little sharper, always flitting back and forth as he studies every inch of Namjoon’s face. If he’s honest, it’s a little embarrassing. Lots of people have told him he looks like a lovestruck puppy at the mere mention of Yoongi’s name.
Speaking of his boyfriend, Namjoon knows that Yoongi has his fair share of interaction with Jimin as well. Apparently, the two have eerily similar office hours. In Yoongi’s words, they’re both simple slaves to big corporate devils of capitalism or something like that. Namjoon forgets the exact phrasing.
Ever since Jimin settled in the apartment next to them, Yoongi often returns home with a hint of a blush and a smile on his face. Namjoon is glad for it, Yoongi seems a little happier. If Jimin can be another listening ear for Yoongi’s office woes, then Namjoon is happy that he has someone who understands that a little better than he does.
Namjoon often wonders what the two talked about when they ride the elevator up to their floor together. He figures he’ll ask.
“Not much,” is Yoongi’s reply when Namjoon asks over dinner.
Namjoon nudges his leg with his foot, making Yoongi look up from his bowl of japchae. He offers a piece of beef from his own bowl. Yoongi bites it gingerly. As he chews, he frowns a little.
“He's a good guy. I like him.”
“I know, but what do you guys talk about?” Namjoon presses on.
“Not much really.” Yoongi takes another bite. When he looks up to see Namjoon raising his eyebrows at him he sighs. Namjoon swears he can see a hint of red at the tips of his ears. “We just greet each other and nothing else really, sometimes he asks me how my day was and stuff like that.”
His ears are definitely red now, he ducks down and takes a hurried bite of his noodles. Curiosity partially satisfied, Namjoon decides to let it go for now.
---
For the past few weeks, Yoongi has been significantly more excited to both go to work, and to go home at the end of the day. Despite his increased excitement, he still sticks to a tight schedule. A schedule that allows him to ride the elevator at almost the exact same time each morning and evening.
In other words, a schedule that allows him to see Park Jimin twice a day.
After their new neighbour moved in, Yoongi learned quickly that they work similar hours. Similar to him, Jimin works a semi-shitty 9 to 5 at some office in Seoul. Yoongi is proud to admit that he at least found a job at a big record label, despite it being a desk job involving a lot of paperwork. Jimin also works at some big company. Every time he explains it, Yoongi gets confused again. It’s something involving data collection and processing, he's pretty sure.
The other day, Namjoon had asked him what they talked about on their elevator rides. Yoongi had answered truthfully, they don't really talk at all. Not for lack of trying on Jimin's part however. It’s not Yoongi's fault that he just has a hard time making small talk in general, let alone with a hot guy in a well-fitting suit.
So, whenever they're on the elevator together, they exchange polite - if not hesitant - greetings. Some days that's all, they walk out together and wave as they part ways at Jimin's door. Other days they talk about office life, or the weather. It's not much, but it always leaves Yoongi with a smile on his face as he walks in to greet Namjoon.
Today however, he can't even look forward to seeing Jimin. His boss was in a shit mood for some reason and had decided that he should take it out on Yoongi. On top of that, he had to clean up after two of his co-workers who botched the numbers for an important report.
The last straw for Yoongi was when the printer broke. Someone must've put in the paper incorrectly again, causing a jam. Of course, he proved to be the only competent person in the entire building yet again. He was the one to fix it, but not after being chewed out by his boss for it.
Normally he wouldn't bat an eye at the treatment, but today it’s just too much. So when he gets out of the building and onto the metro, he's proud to say that he made it through the day without crying. Yoongi feels like he's on autopilot for the entire trip home. Getting out at his stop, moving with the crowd to the exit, then walking to the apartment building. It all passes in a blur.
It isn't until he steps into the elevator that he snaps out of it, as Jimin chirps a sweet “Hi Yoongi-hyung!” Yoongi can only nod in acknowledgement.
As he turns to face the doors, he sees that Jimin's hand was on the open doors button, now moving to press their floor number.
For some reason, he feels a pressure in his skull, right behind his eyes. Jimin presses the close doors button and Yoongi's throat feels a little tight. It stays silent as the doors close and the elevator starts to move. He can feel Jimin's eyes on him, but stares ahead stubbornly.
Jimin must have realised that something is wrong, but Yoongi is beyond grateful that he doesn't bring it up.
Usually the ride to the fourteenth floor takes about a minute or two, since the building, thus the elevator, is quite old. They're only a few seconds in, just reaching the fifth floor when Yoongi hears a loud noise. A few seconds later on floor eight, the elevator lurches and sputters.
Yoongi looks at Jimin, who's eyes are as wide as they can go, as he looks at the ceiling. He turns to look at Yoongi, who quickly evades his gaze.
The elevator makes it up to floor eleven before coming to a stop. Yoongi feels his heart beating against his ribs. Overhead, the lights flicker. It turns dark in the elevator. Yoongi counts the seconds under his breath. He's pretty sure he can hear the blood rushing in his veins when he reaches five, six, seven- and the lights turn on again.
Next to him, Jimin sighs suddenly, startling him. They share a look, but the elevator doesn't start moving again. A minute passes. Then two, three. Yoongi is still counting. Jimin clears his throat after three minutes and twenty-seven seconds.
“I think we should call for help.” Yoongi closes his eyes, grips the edge of his cardigan and nods. There's a third button next to the open and close doors buttons, it's red and has a little alarm bell printed on it. When Yoongi opens his eyes, Jimin is moving away from the buttons again and nothing has happened.
The pressure behind Yoongi's eyes increases and he tries to swallow around the lump in his throat. All he accomplishes is that his eyes begin to prickle and his vision blurs. He's blinking furiously at this point, but nothing is helping at this point.
“Hyung?” Yoongi grips the soft material of his cardigan harder, he stole it from Namjoon this morning because it was cold out. “Hyung, is- are you alright?” The way Jimin says it is so soft, hesitant but sweet, with so much worry laced into his tone. It's what pushes him over the edge.
At once he's sobbing. Once the dam has broken there's no stopping it really. Tears are streaming down his face freely now and he has half a mind to put his hand over his mouth to control the weird noises he’s making. His other hand still clutching the soft material of his - Namjoon's - cardigan.
He barely registers Jimin moving but then there's a hand hovering over his shoulder. Through his tears he looks up at Jimin, whose face is scrunched up with worry.
“Can I... Can I touch you?” Jimin asks, his hand still hovering, “I just, I don't want to without your permission,” Yoongi watches his Adam's apple go up and down as he swallows. “I'm not sure if you're having a panic attack or something and I don't want to hurt you or make you uncomfortable or anything because-”
Before Jimin can ramble on, Yoongi turns towards him and buries his head against Jimin's shoulder, effectively cutting him off. His shoulders are still shaking as he cries. Jimin stiffens for a split second, before wrapping his arms around Yoongi in a tight hug.
They stay like that for a while, Jimin rubbing circles on his back as his crying slowly dwindles until he's only sniffling a little bit. Jimin guides him to the wall of the elevator and down.
“C'mon, let's sit down for a bit,” He speaks with a gentle tone.
It takes some manoeuvring, but eventually they're sitting with their backs against the back wall. Jimin has one arm still around Yoongi's shoulders.
“I think we're gonna be here for a while, so why don't you tell me what's bothering you?”
Yoongi can feel his face heat up. He realises now that Jimin is right, they will be stuck here for quite some time. The weight of Jimin's arm around his shoulders feels very heavy all of a sudden.
“It's uh-” Yoongi clears his throat, hiding his hands in the too big sleeves of Namjoon's cardigan and ducking his head, “It's just been a shitty day at the office.”
In response, Jimin makes an understanding noise in the back of his throat and squeezes Yoongi closer for just a second.
“Wanna talk about it?” Yoongi looks up at Jimin. He finds that Jimin's eyes are already focused on him. It's a little disorienting to be this close to his face. Jimin's eyes are a deep, dark brown and Yoongi gets a little lost in their warmth. It's almost unfair, he thinks, even up close Jimin’s skin looks like he's glowing from the inside.
Then, Yoongi is staring at his lips, they look so soft and pink. He wonders if they feel as soft as they look. Then, one corner lifts up into a smirk. His eyes snap up to Jimin's eyes again, before he ducks his head down again. Still, his ears warm up and betray his embarrassment.
“I- uh… I just get a little overwhelmed sometimes, you know?” Jimin hums and nods. “Like, my boss is an absolute dickhead-”
“Aren’t they all?”
“They really fucking are!” Yoongi exclaims, “Not to mention my fucking co-workers, most of them can’t even do basic math.” He throws his head back in desperation, knocking the back of it into Jimin’s arm that’s still weighing down on his shoulders. It’s a nice feeling to have Jimin grounding him like that.
Before he can think too much about how nice it feels to be surrounded by not only Namjoon’s presence in the form of his cardigan, but also by Jimin’s strong form, Jimin launches into a story.
He tells Yoongi all about a guy he used to work with, who couldn’t do simple additions and somehow fucked up weeks’ worth of paperwork. Every few sentences, Jimin laughs at his own story, throwing himself closer and closer to Yoongi. He can’t say he minds.
They sit there together for quite a while as they wait for help. Yoongi has no idea how long it takes. Jimin keeps telling stories, ranging from stupid colleagues to even stupider college friends and so on.
Yoongi doesn’t have a lot to tell. He’s thankful that Jimin doesn’t seem to mind. And maybe, if every time Jimin laughs, Yoongi tucks himself a little closer into his side, then nobody has to know.
Except for Namjoon of course. Because well, once they’re finally saved from the elevator of death, they jump apart with burning cheeks and awkward smiles. So when Yoongi finally opens the door to their apartment, he’s immediately engulfed in a familiar embrace.
Once he tells Namjoon what happened, it’s only natural that Namjoon teases him to the point where he’s so flustered that he has to resort to kissing Namjoon to shut him up. This of course leads to an interesting conversation. And maybe, if Yoongi moans Jimin’s name when Namjoon sucks him off a few minutes later, then nobody has to know.
---
“Honey?” Namjoon calls out. A bored hum is all the response he gets. “I think I messed it up.” He hears Yoongi stumbling onto his feet from the living room.
“I just tied it, how did you manage to mess it up again?”
“No it’s not that…” Yoongi knocks on the bathroom door, “It’s not locked- I think I messed up with the eyeshadow.”
He usually never wears makeup, neither does Yoongi, but he’d gotten interested after Jimin said he’d look good wearing it. That day, when Yoongi got home from work Namjoon had asked for his opinion. His eyes went comically wide and he started sputtering. Namjoon could barely make out that Yoongi thought that yes, that would be a very good idea.
So now he’s fumbling around with a palette he borrowed from Jimin earlier today. After looking at some tutorials on youtube, he felt fairly confident. Now however, when his eyelids are smeared with nude colours, a hint of dark green and a gold glittery shade, he isn’t too sure.
Turning away from the mirror, he looks at Yoongi who is now standing in the doorway. As soon as he goes to face him, Yoongi shows him that odd little smile of his. Namjoon has figured out long ago that it’s an endeared smile, Yoongi looks at him like that whenever he stumbles over his words during a rant about his writing. Or when he trips and grabs Yoongi to steady himself. Or when he apologises over and over because, it just broke, I don’t know what happened, I’m sorry. Or like just now, when he manages to almost choke himself with his tie.
“It’s not bad, you’ve got a good colour palette going on at least.” Yoongi pushes off the doorframe and laughs when Namjoon makes a face at him.
“Aren’t you supposed to praise me and tell me I did amazing?”
“Well, I don’t think you did amazing, would you rather have me lie to you?” He reaches up to push down on Namjoon’s shoulders. He goes down easily and sits down on the closed toilet lid.
“I guess not, you’d be a lot nicer if you actually told a white lie every now and then though.” Namjoon scrunches his nose. In return, Yoongi boops it with the brush he’s taken out of Namjoon’s hands.
“Oh please,” Yoongi swings his leg over Namjoon’s and sits down on his lap, “You like it when I’m mean to you,” He grins. Namjoon grips his thighs to steady him as he settles down. Maybe his grip is a little tighter and closer to his ass than necessary, but Yoongi doesn’t seem to mind.
Before Namjoon can think of something snarky to say back to Yoongi, he’s forced to close his eyes. Yoongi approaches the application of eyeshadow as he does everything, straightforward and without hesitation.
It takes them a little longer than expected, but eventually they’re out of the door. Apart from some stolen kisses as a distraction, Namjoon had patiently let Yoongi figure out the eyeshadow for him. Afterwards, when he looks in the mirror, he’s a little stunned at his handiwork.
With a last confirmation that, yes, they both look hot as fuck, they finally leave the apartment only to run into Jimin immediately. He stands in the elevator as they walk towards him.
“Jimin, can you hold the door?” Yoongi shouts ahead.
Without looking up from his phone, Jimin sticks out one black boot. Namjoon hadn’t been looking ahead, until Yoongi had spoken. Then, however, his gaze slowly travels up from that polished black boot – god, Namjoon kind of wishes Jimin would step on him with those boots. He squeezes Yoongi’s hands. Jimin’s legs are also clad in black. Shiny black. Jimin was wearing black leather pants. Namjoon squeezes even tighter and feels Yoongi’s shoulder nudging him.
Jimin’s outfit is finished off with a sheer white shirt that looks extremely expensive. The hands holding his phone are adorned with clunky rings and in his ears are long dangling earrings. Namjoon feels the air get tangibly warmer as soon as they step into the elevator.
“Hey hyungs,” he says, without taking his eyes off the screen. Yoongi chimes a quick greeting and thank you for holding the door. Thankfully, it takes Jimin a few seconds to look up at them. It gives Namjoon the time to gather himself and stop thinking about how he can basically see Jimin’s nipples through his shirt and – wait, are those piercings? – “Woah, you guys look uh… you look really nice.”
Namjoon averts his eyes quickly. Instead of staring at Jimin’s chest, he looks at his face. Jimin’s eyes roam up and down both their bodies. He can practically feel the goose bumps form on his skin as Jimin’s gaze shifts up and down and up again, then does the same to Yoongi. As soon as he looks up again, Jimin meets his eyes. Suddenly Namjoon notices a pretty pink dusted onto his cheeks.
“Thank you,” He replies, “You’re obviously a lot better at makeup than me, you look great too.” His eyes are lightly dusted with a champagne colour that catches the fluorescent lights overhead in a pretty shimmer. On his lips, Namjoon notices, he’s applied a nude lip gloss as well.
Jimin waves a hand, “No, no, you look great. The eyeshadow looks really pretty on you.” Next to him he can practically feel Yoongi gloating.
“Well, it didn’t look so good at first, Yoongi did it for me.”
Jimin’s eyebrows shoot up, “You did?” He addresses Yoongi, who nods and squares his shoulders a little. “Well, props to you, I know how hard it can be to blend that shit properly.” A tinkling laugh fills the elevator. Namjoon can barely keep his mouth from falling open in awe.
After a little more small talk, they make their way outside of the building. There’s sweat and heat clinging onto where Namjoon and Yoongi’s hand meet, but Namjoon tries his best to ignore it.
“So where are you guys headed dressed all fancy?”
“Oh, right! We’re celebrating tonight, big night and stuff.”
“Celebrating?”
“Yea, Joonie here,” Yoongi lifts the hand that is still intertwined with Namjoon’s, “finally sent his final draft to his editor.” A big grin forms on Yoongi’s face as Namjoon shrinks into himself. Despite his embarrassment, he can’t stop smiling.
“That’s great hyung! Congratulations!”
Namjoon waves the comment away, “It’s nothing, Yoongi just likes having an excuse to dress up and buy expensive food.”
“That’s not true!” Yoongi interjects.
“It is and you know it,” Namjoon lifts an eyebrow, “Remember that time you wanted to go out to celebrate because it was the first year anniversary of the first letter addressed to both of us?”
“It’s a big deal Joonie,” Yoongi says solemnly, “It means we’re a unit, we’re a duo to be reckoned with, even when it comes to the mail.”
Jimin laughs softly at that, “You really are a duo to be reckoned with…” He scratches his neck and makes a big show of checking his phone. “Ah, I really should go now,” He glances up at them for a brief moment, “I’m supposed to meet a friend, going out and stuff... You know the drill.”
This time his laugh doesn’t sound as genuine as earlier. Namjoon and Yoongi can barely get out a quick goodbye before Jimin speedwalks off.
“Was it just me or was that a little odd?” Namjoon asks.
“A little, yea,” Yoongi shrugs, but his eyebrows are furrowed together and his shoulders look tense, “We should get going, our reservation is pretty soon.”
---
It seems like there is a shift in the air whenever Namjoon walks with Jimin now. At first it always felt calm and soothing, like rustling leaves. But after Yoongi and his most recent date night, his walks with Jimin are buzzing with an anxious electricity.
Namjoon hasn’t felt the need to walk as often in the mornings now that he has finally sent his manuscript to his editor. It’s gonna take a little while until he gets it back for revisions. Still, he keeps in the routine of going on his morning walks, not just because Juliette keeps him awake otherwise.
The only thing is, that Jimin doesn’t always make it outside at the same time as him anymore. On the days that they do cross paths, Jimin seems no different than usual, it’s just a general feeling of something being off.
Where last time, Namjoon had asked Yoongi about Jimin, this time it’s the other way around. Apparently something feels off between them too. At least, Yoongi always seems a little off put when he comes home, only relaxing when Namjoon hugs him at the door. Some days are worse than others.
Over their time together, Namjoon has gotten used to Yoongi’s bad moods. He hasn’t gotten those as often since Jimin moved in though. So, Namjoon gets back into the habit of waiting for Yoongi to come home with a cup of his favourite tea, soft pyjamas and a Ghibli movie ready to play.
They’re okay. They always have been and Namjoon is sure that they always will be, he genuinely thinks Yoongi and him are meant to grow old together. Still, now that they have gotten a taste of something more, it’s hard to go back.
One night, Yoongi is feeling particularly bad – or, icky, as he calls it – so they talk about it.
“Isn’t it weird,” Yoongi mumbles from under a baby blue blanket. His nose and mouth are pressed right into Namjoon’s neck, so he feels more than hears him speak. He hums after it’s been quiet for a while. “Like, it’s almost like we’re recovering from a fucking breakup, that’s a little pathetic isn’t it?”
Namjoon snorts. It makes Yoongi lurch uncomfortably which earns him a half-hearted slap on the chest and an annoyed cat who makes sure to step right on the soft part of Namjoons stomach as she stalks off.
“Well, yea, maybe it is a little pathetic,” Namjoon says and Yoongi lets out a breath of air that sounds particularly offended. “At least we’re pathetic together then, right?” Yoongi nods.
“Right.” He doesn’t seem very satisfied.
“Look…” Namjoon thinks for a moment, he stares at the tv where Ponyo is still playing with neither of them really paying attention, “This is going to be a little sappy, is that okay?”
“Sure.”
“You know that I love you right?” Yoongi nods, “and I know that you love me, right?” another nod. “So, who cares if we’re both a little blue now. In the big scheme of things, we’ll always have each other and that’s so much-” He’s searching for words, Yoongi stays quiet but starts rubbing circles on the back of his hand with his thumb.
“What I’m trying to say is that… I want to experience everything with you. If that’s falling in love with a third person together, then so be it. If that means going through some weird kind of heartbreak over said person, then that’s cool too, I guess. Do you get what I mean?”
Yoongi nods again.
“So basically, what you’re saying is,” Yoongi mumbles, “We’re both dramatic bitches who love each other and are too sensitive to deal with anything even remotely identifiable as rejection.” Namjoon can’t help but laugh at that. He presses a kiss on top of Yoongi’s head and hears him say, “Like you said, we’re just a little pathetic, but at least we’re pathetic together I guess.”
They go to bed early that night. Yoongi uses the excuse of being tired from an entire week of hard work, but Namjoon is pretty sure he just wants extra time to cuddle in bed instead of on the couch before he falls asleep.
When they do fall asleep, it’s with Yoongi lying half on top of Namjoon who in turn has wrapped his arms entirely around the smaller man.
---
THUMP
THUMP
THUMP
It’s still dark when Namjoon wakes up. The noise that had startled him from his sleep continues rhythmically. Yoongi and him had moved apart as they slept, which happens a lot. They’ll fall asleep tangled together and wake up in completely different positions.
THUMP
“For fuck’s sake.”
THUMP
With a sigh, Namjoon rolls over to sit on the side of the bed. He checks his phone to see that it’s like, ass o’clock in the morning, the screen is too bright so he can’t really tell to be honest. The thumping next door continues.
It takes a minute for Namjoon to realise it’s coming from Jimin’s apartment. He spares a glance at Yoongi, who looks absolutely ethereal as the moonlight shines on his face through the window. Or well, Namjoon might be biased. There’s drool drying on the side of Yoongi’s face and his mouth is hanging open awkwardly. Adorable really.
With a fond smile on his face, Namjoon stands up. The loud thumping continues and for a second, Namjoon is a little scared that Jimin has a guest over. However, the noises don’t seem to be coming from inside of Jimin’s apartment.
All things considered, it’s at least a little suspicious to him. Naturally, Namjoon bravely decides to check it out. He collects Yoongi’s baseball bat from under the bed and walks out of the bedroom and to their front door.
When he opens the door with shaky hands and peeks around the corner, he goes from scared to worried. A few meters to his left, on the ground, is Jimin. Turns out the banging noise is Jimin rhythmically banging his head against his front door.
“Jimin?” He rushes out the door, towards him, “Jimin, come on stop that, you’re going to hurt yourself.”
Jimin stops, opens his eyes and looks up at Namjoon. For a split second, Namjoon feels embarrassed about his Ryan pyjamas, until he notices the state Jimin’s in.
He’s wearing an all-black outfit that seems appropriate for a night club, except for the fact that it kind of reeks of alcohol, sweat and vomit. It’s not a nice combination. Aside from his outfit, Jimin doesn’t look so great either. With heavy bags under bloodshot eyes, he’s definitely seen better days.
“Namjoon hyung?” Jimin’s voice is a little rough, like he’s been screaming all night. It doesn’t help that his words are slightly slurred together.
Namjoon crouches down in front of him, “Hey buddy… Is everything okay?”
A long groan comes as a reply and Jimin lets his head fall back against the door with a loud thud.
“This is so embarrassing…” Jimin whispers to himself, Namjoon cocks his head to the side and lifts an eyebrow. “Stop that, don’t mock my pain.”
“Sorry, I’m not making fun of you, just wanna see if I can help.”
“Promise?” Jimin holds out his pinkie finger. Namjoon hooks his own around it.
“Promise.”
“I can’t remember my passcode.” Jimin honest to god pouts at him. If he hadn’t looked like he’d been chewed up, swallowed down and spit up again by Satan himself, Namjoon would’ve almost said he looked adorable. Now he just looks very cute and also very sad.
“Have you tried calling a friend who might know it?”
Jimin shakes his head and holds up his phone to show that the battery is dead.
“Kook left with his sugar daddy or some shit and I had to use Naver maps to find my way back from that stupid fucking club in fucking Gangnam of all places.” He drops his phone into his lap, “Who even goes out there? Only rich people go there, I’m not rich. I’m just drunk.”
“I can tell.”
“Did you know that a simple gin and tonic costs like, fifteen euros in that club? If it wasn’t for Kook’s sugar daddy I would’ve never gotten this drunk. If it wasn’t for the two of them I wouldn’t have even gone to fucking Gangnam.”
“What’s done is done, no turning back time. Just try and work with what you’ve got.” Namjoon pats his knee awkwardly in an attempt to console him.
“I’ve got absolutely nothing.” Jimin laments. Namjoon can’t quite tell if he’s being serious or not.
“You’ve got me.” Jimin looks at him, “And Yoongi.” He waits for a reply, but it doesn’t come. The silence is tense for a while, or maybe Namjoon just feels tense. Jimin seems fine, but he’s drunk – god, he could use a fucking drink too right now.
Instead, he stands up. “Come on then, you can sleep on our couch for tonight.” He holds out his hand. Jimin stares a little more, until Namjoon can’t take the awkward silence anymore and decides to hoist him up himself.
Turns out, Jimin is quite a bit heavier than he looks. As Namjoon lifts him from the ground, he feels hard muscles everywhere. Finally, Jimin seems to get it and tries to stand up on his own.
He’s still swaying a little, so he gladly grabs onto Namjoon for balance.
“I like your pyjamas.” He slurs into Namjoon’s ear.
“Thanks, Yoongi gave them to me.”
“Cute.” Jimin buries his head into Namjoon's shoulder as they slowly hobble into the apartment. “Were you gonna like, defend your house and Yoongi's dignity or some shit?”
“I- uh, what?”
Jimin flails his arm around towards were Namjoon is still carrying the baseball bat.
“Oh! Well, Yoongi has no dignity to defend if we're being realistic, but technically you could say so yea,” Namjoon giggles a little at his own joke, if Yoongi were awake, he'd be getting punched in the shoulder now. Instead, Jimin just bumps his head against his shoulder, like a very soft punch, with his forehead. Namjoon counts it as a win.
“Hmmm,” Jimin hums. The vibrations give him goose bumps. “That's hot.”
Jimin says it barely loud enough to hear, but since he's currently trying to climb Namjoon like a tree he's able to make out the words. Of course, this makes his entire body heat up immediately. He's barely able to stammer another response and is eternally grateful that Jimin is probably too drunk to remember this in the morning.
They stumble through the apartment, bumping into walls and furniture along the way. At one point they almost trip over Juliette, who then settles on one of the big comfy chairs. When Namjoon finally manages to safely set Jimin down on their couch, he looks up to see Yoongi standing in the bedroom door.
He looks absolutely adorable wearing an oversized black shirt and Namjoon's boxers. He's rubbing his hands against his eyes and yawns. On the back of his head, some strands of hair are standing upright.
“G'morning babe, or well, goodnight I guess,” Yoongi croaks out, “Might I ask what the fuck you're doing at four in the morning on a Saturday?”
Before Namjoon can answer, he finally seems to spot the boy currently flopped face down on their couch.
“Is he breathing?” Namjoon checks quickly, pulling Jimin up in a sitting position.
“Jimin? C'mon you gotta wake up.” He shakes Jimin a little bit, until his eyes open blearily again. “Honey can you get me some spare blankets or something? He forgot the code to his apartment.”
Yoongi shuffles away with a noise that probably means something along the lines of: “Sure babe, I would do anything for you even if you wake me up in the middle of the night with a drunk neighbour on our couch.”
At least that's what Namjoon imagines he meant.
A little while later, Namjoon has convinced Jimin to take a shower – he’s sure Yoongi wouldn’t let him on the couch stinking of vomit - and change his clothes. He seems significantly less drunk when he comes out of the bathroom.
“I’m really sorry about this hyung,” Jimin smells and looks a lot better, but his eyes are still bloodshot and the dark circles are still there.
“Don’t worry about it, a good neighbour is worth more than a distant friend right?” He then motions to a big glass of water on the table in front of the couch, “You should drink some water.”
Yoongi and him had transformed the couch into a makeshift bed while Jimin showered. Afterwards, Yoongi shuffled into the kitchen to make them tea while Namjoon sat down on one of their comfy chairs.
Now, Yoongi is sitting in Namjoon’s lap instead of the other chair – Juliette is still occupying it, washing herself with the most unbothered and uninterested look ever – Jimin is on the couch in front of them. The two of them are sipping some tea. Jimin drinks his glass of water dutifully. Sets it down when he finishes it. Then promptly bursts into tears.
Namjoon feels Yoongi stiffen in his hold. He holds his breath and can only watch when Jimin hides his face in his hands. Yoongi sits up, takes Namjoon’s mug from his hands and sets it down with his own.
“Jimin? Is everything okay?” He asks hesitantly, slowly standing up and moving to the couch. Jimin hiccups, which Namjoon feels a little guilty for finding cute. “Can I touch you?”
“Please don’t I-” Jimin hunches his shoulders, “I’m okay, I’m sorry.”
Yoongi retracts the hand that was hovering near Jimin’s shoulder, but decides to sit next to Jimin on the couch regardless. After some hand motions and silent communication through facial expressions, Namjoon decides on his own that it’s a great idea for him to sit next to Jimin too.
“Don’t apologise and don’t lie,” Namjoon says, “Crying and not being okay is fine, it’s not something to be ashamed of or sorry for. Besides, Yoongi-hyung doesn’t it like it when people lie to him and you’re obviously not okay.”
Jimin lifts his head up just enough to look at Namjoon, then Yoongi.
“Then I’m sorry for lying?” He voices it like a question, even tries to throw in a little smile to sell it.
“You don’t have to apologise,” Yoongi lifts his hand again, then hesitates and pulls it back. Instead, he asks, “Do you want to talk about it?”
Jimin shakes his head and starts rambling, “I don’t know, I’m not sure if it’s the right time… I’m pretty sure I’m still drunk, maybe that means it’s the perfect time? No, no, not after I’ve been a dick to you for the past two – or three? Fuck what day is it even – weeks. I think I just need to sleep it off.”
“Hold on-”
“What was-”
Namjoon and Yoongi share a look behind Jimin’s back, Yoongi gives a small nod.
“Ok so, lots to unpack there!” Namjoon says a little too loudly. He claps his hand together to relief some of the tension, but it doesn’t seem to work very well. Jimin doesn’t seem to notice the interruption and keeps talking, mostly to himself at this point.
“Maybe I should just talk about it, maybe that’d be easier.”
“Jimin-”
“Like, just getting it over with and then accept that you will probably hate me-”
“Jimin-”
“And then I’ll have to move out again and find something new. Oh god, that means I’m gonna have to ask for Jungkook’s help again and last time he-”
“Jimin!” Yoongi spoke with such authority that it made Namjoon clamp his mouth shut in tandem with Jimin. “First of all, what the fuck are you talking about? You haven’t been a dick to us-”
“But,” Jimin tries to interrupt, but Yoongi holds up a single finger to shut him up.
“Yes, you’ve been a little more distant, but you have been nothing but your kind and wonderful self to us.”
Namjoon nods in agreement, “Is that what this is about? Have we done something wrong?” Namjoon asks.
“No, no, it’s nothing like that I-”
“Second of all,” Yoongi interrupts him again, “If what you say is true and we haven’t done anything to upset you, then why would we hate you? Why would you have to move out?”
It’s quiet for a while, the only sound being Jimin’s silent sniffling.
“I don’t really know how to say this, but I guess I have to now,” He starts, his voice is a little shaky.
“You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to,” Namjoon offers gently, he aches with the need to touch Jimin, to comfort him in some tangible way. From the way Yoongi is fidgeting with the hem of his shirt, he feels the same.
“It’s okay hyung, I guess in a way I want you guys to know…” He clears his throat and wipes his eyes quickly, “At least now I won’t be smelling like vomit.” He giggles, cheeks flushed and stained with dried up tear tracks. It makes Namjoon smile too, albeit a little more uncertain.
“Ok well, here we go,” Jimin sits up slightly, “I uh- Remember when you guys went out to celebrate that Joonie-hyung had sent in his manuscript?” They nod in unison, “Well, apart from that day I moved in, that was kind of the first time I saw you guys being an actual couple, you know?”
“Did that make you uncomfortable?” Yoongi sounds defensive.
“No! No of course not, I literally just came back from a gay club it’d be a little hypocritical to be uncomfortable with that,” He pauses and laughs dryly, “Anyways, it just kind of put things in perspective for me… I see you guys separately so often, then seeing you together. Of course I knew you guys were a couple, you literally won’t shut up about each other,” Namjoon blushes, “It’s adorable but also extremely frustrating.”
“I’m not sure I understand,” Namjoon says.
“Well,” Jimin’s eyebrows knit together, he swallows harshly, “I guess what I’m saying is that I kinda fell in love with you two separately and then got slapped in the face with the fact that, not only are both of you off limits, you’re also dating each other,” He laughs that dry, empty laugh again and drags a hand over his face, “It’s like a personal torture method or some shit.”
“Anyways, that’s why I started avoiding you guys. I thought I could get over it, clearly I’m not that good though.”
Namjoon sits frozen, not sure how to proceed from here. The only thing he knows is that Jimin deserves the world and well, not to be sappy, but Yoongi is his world, so it only makes sense that the two of them fit together. He looks over at Yoongi, who is similarly frozen in place.
“Well Namjoon was right, there’s lots to unpack there.” Yoongi croaks out. He takes a quick sip of his forgotten tea and pulls a face when he realises it’s gone cold. Namjoon stares at his own mug left on the coffee table.
“It’s fine, you don’t have to let me down gently. I didn’t expect you to like, break up or whatever for me.”
“That’s not the only option though,” Yoongi mumbles, “I mean, Namjoon and I haven’t really talked about it that much-” He pauses, Namjoon can hear him swallow but he’s not sure if he’s drinking the gross cold tree or just having trouble, “But I’m fairly certain to say that I speak for the both of us when I say that uh- we think you’re a pretty neat person.” Namjoon snorts at that.
“What Yoongi is so eloquently trying to explain,” Namjoon finally looks up at Jimin, who’s looking back and forth between them with wide eyes, “We’d really like it if you would maybe go on a date with us?”
“Are you- You’re not kidding right?” Namjoon shakes his head.
Slow but steady, a smile starts to form on Jimin’s face. Namjoon can feel the corners of his lips rise at the same time and when he looks over at Yoongi, he’s hiding a grin behind his cup.
“I’d really like that.”
“Great, that’s really awesome. Thanks!” Namjoon claps his hands together again and feels his face and ears heat up.
“Thanks? Really, that’s what you’re going with Joonie?”
“You’re the one who said we think he’s a pretty neat person!”
Jimin laughs and it’s finally the good kind, where he throws his entire body around. He only stop when Yoongi steadies him. The latter throws a quick glance to Namjoon which makes Jimin look too. He smiles at the two of them, putting as much love into the one smile as he can.
“All jokes aside, since Joon got to be the one to ask you out- can I kiss you?” Jimin smiles widely and Namjoon can see his cheeks lifting beautifully from this angle.
“I’d be offended if you didn’t.” He jokes, before practically throwing himself onto Yoongi, who laughs brightly until he’s cut off by Jimin’s lips on his.
Namjoon feels a little awkward, watching his boyfriend and his neighbour kiss. It’s weird to think of it like that no matter how hot they look together, but before he can fall too deep into his own mind Jimin interrupts him.
“Hyung?” Jimin is facing him now, one leg folded underneath his body. Namjoon looks him in the eye and is a little floored at how bright and lively they seem, despite the still slightly red sclera. “Can I kiss you too?”
“What was it you said again? I’d be offended if you didn’t?” Jimin grins at him.
“Yea, that’s what I said, now you’re supposed to throw yourself at me,” Namjoon doesn’t move however, because suddenly one of Jimin’s hands is on his cheek. His skin feels cold where Jimin’s rings make contact with his cheek.
Jimin slowly leans closer, until Namjoon can’t take it anymore. He closes the gap and feels Jimin smile into the kiss. His other hand finds its way onto Namjoon’s shoulder, gripping it tightly.
Kissing Jimin is very different from kissing Yoongi. Where Yoongi is a fan of lazy, soft kisses, Jimin presses their lips together eagerly but expertly. Maybe it’s because it’s their first kiss, but Namjoon already knows he can’t ever get enough of this. His lips are just as soft and sweet as he’d imagined, maybe even softer and sweeter.
The couch stays empty for the remainder of the night. With Jimin pressed tightly between Namjoon and Yoongi, the three fall asleep together. But not after Jimin had properly made up for ‘all those weeks he could’ve been kissing them if he wasn’t such an idiot.’ In Jimin’s words.
In the morning, they decide to go out for breakfast as a date. Jimin and Yoongi agree that talking out the more technical stuff that comes with a relationship of three people is much better over pancakes. Namjoon follows suit, because who would say no to Yoongi, Jimin and pancakes.
At one point there’s powdered sugar on Yoongi’s cheek and Jimin grabs Namjoon’s hand, getting it sticky from syrup. Namjoon thinks the three of them fit together nicely, even though the booth they’re in is a little cramped. When he says this out loud, Yoongi gets red and leans back in his seat, but nudges their feet together. Jimin on the other hand, gives him an even stickier kiss on his cheek.
The next time Yoongi thinks of an anniversary to celebrate, it’s the anniversary of Jimin moving in next to them. Namjoon isn’t sure how many days Yoongi said it was. He remembers it being some weird uneven number that definitely doesn’t have anything to do with the fact that Namjoon has recently gotten his first payment of royalties from his newest book.
Instead of fumbling around with the makeup himself, Jimin carefully puts some on for him. After they’re all done dressing up, Yoongi makes Jimin go back to his own apartment so they can pick him up together, flowers in hand.
Jimin knows the deal by now and does an amazing job of acting surprised. As soon as the flowers are safely put away, he squishes himself between his two boyfriends in a tight hug. It feels warm, happy, joyful, all the good adjectives Namjoon can think of as his stomach fills with butterflies over and over that night and every consequent night they spend together. Most of all, from then on, they feel complete.