Chapter Text
Since he can recall, Namjoon always had inventive dreams. Dreams about beautiful creatures, about enchanted places… his dreams were mostly Namjoon’s safe place, where he could be anything he wanted. There were no limits, there were no tradition nor this chaebol thing he was born in to.
He always got so involved in his dreams to the point he made an imaginary friend. It wasn’t like most of kids, who saw a friend in a place no one could see a thing. This peculiar friend only appeared in Namjoon’s dreams and they had the most amazing conversations.
Part of him thought looking forward to seeing someone in his dreams was weird, but the way his friend never judged him and were always eager to hear what Namjoon had to say made the boy nurture affection towards him. By the way, his name was Min. Maybe it was a nickname? Namjoon probably would never know, since Min wasn’t so open about himself.
He never forgot his first encounter with Min. Namjoon was 4, a scared kid with problems to make friends. Namjoon had never been too open with people. He was lucky to have Yoongi as his real-life friend, probably because their parents were friends already. He never knew how to approach people, so he learnt to live with his own company.
Namjoon opened his eyes and, believe it or not, he was on the moon. Literally. He always cherished the moon, he always found it intriguing and amazing. Even if he was only 4, he already felt a night type of person – he loved to spend nights awake reading books and, of course, admiring the moon. So, as a fan of Earth’s satellite, he was honored to have the chance to walk on the moon – even if it was just a dream.
In Namjoon’s mind, the moon was an enchanted place, full of mystic creatures and secret places. While exploring the place, he found a boy, just like him, with pretty eyes, dark hair, chubby cheeks and cute puffy lips. He almost looked like a doll (or maybe one of those kids that were models or actors). He was just too beautiful.
Namjoon’s first instinct was, of course, turn around and run. He wanted to approach but didn’t know how to do it and that frustrated him so much. He didn’t like to be the way he was; he wanted to have friends and play like the other kids, but he just couldn’t – or maybe he thought he couldn’t. The kid in front of him sensed his behavior and interfered.
“Hey, don’t go…” The little boy adorably pouted. “I don’t want to be alone here.”
“W-why?” Namjoon was hesitant. “This place is incredible.”
“Sure is.” The boy smiled softly. “An amazing place like this is better to be explored with good company.”
Namjoon wasn’t so sure about it, his insecurities speaking to his mind. He was just a kid and he already had so many thoughts… really tuff ones, by the way. But he felt that boy in front of him understood him perfectly. He talked like a grown up, but he still was just a boy Namjoon bumped into. For the first time he felt at ease with a stranger and that meant something. It meant that this was a safe place for him – it meant that the boy in front of him was a safe company. So, as a stunt of braveness, Namjoon approached the boy.
“My name is Namjoon.” He smiled softly, offering his hand for the mysterious boy to shake.
“Hi, Namjoon.” The boy opened the most beautiful smile ever while shaking Namjoon’s hand. “My name is Min!”
Namjoon always thought about the reasons Min appeared to him for the first time – they started only playing games and laying together admiring the amazing places Namjoon’s mind created for them to visit. With time, the boy felt more at ease to talk with his imaginary friend – and once Namjoon felt more comfortable, he found out how much he liked to talk with Min, especially because Min never judged him, never said he was weird. He was the most welcoming person Namjoon had ever met.
Through the years, they developed a great relationship. The thing was Namjoon never felt like he wasn’t real. Their conversations and other exchanges were to deep and meaningful to not be real. He ended up opening himself to his dream friend, maybe even more than with his real-life friends. Was it weird to believe so much about a reality that only lived in his dreams? Maybe, but Min was his safe place and he would never let go of that.
But it intrigued Namjoon the way he was so effortlessly open to his imaginary friend since Min was such an unknown territory. He realized he knew Min for so long but the only thing he knew was his name. Namjoon wanted to know more, he wanted his relationship with his imaginary friend two-way road, where they could both exchange experiences. He was decided to somehow confront Min and find out more about him. There was nothing wrong in that, right? But what if he got tired of Namjoon’s insistence? What if he disappeared because of his questions? He had to, at least, try.
This night, they were reunited in a forest, one of Namjoon’s favorite places… and Min appeared to him as a beautiful fairy, with wings in a beautiful and bright purple, his small but sharp features, his plump lips and his soft eyes glowing in this aura revolving him. This was probably Namjoon’s favorite look on his friend. Maybe Min was his fairy godfather or something.
“You never talk about yourself…” Namjoon played with a ladybug that was walking on his hand, avoiding Min’s look. “We talk to each other for years and I feel like you know everything about me, but I don’t know a thing about you.”
“It’s not that simple, Joonie.” Min smiled softly to him. “And I think we agreed after all these years that the dreams you have were made for you to unburden your mind, especially after you got older and more responsibilities were thrown at you.”
“Yeah, I know… I know.” Namjoon sighed, finally looking at the man in front of him. He remembered the cute little boy he was when they first met – in his dreams of course. They grew up together and, even if his real-life friends said this was all just part of his imagination, Namjoon was positive his mind couldn’t create something so beautiful as Min. To him, he was real. “But you have to admit it’s a bit frustrating.”
“Well, it’s part of life isn’t it? But enough with this small talk Joonie, it’s time for you to rise and shine!” Min’s laugh rang in Namjoon’s ears. What started as the sweet sound of his friend’s voice slowly changed to the shrill sound of his alarm, warning him to wake up. Real life was waiting for him.
And real life to him was a scary mess of responsibilities and formalities. Namjoon liked his job, he was good at it and he knew life was easy to him. He knew growing up in a wealthy family was something just a few people had the chance and he was grateful. But seeing every inch of his life being so open to the public eye was something overwhelming for a reserved person like Namjoon. That was the consequence of being the heir of one of the biggest conglomerates of South Korea. He felt like his life wasn’t really his.
And so, he started his day mechanically, just like he did every day. Waking up, taking a shower, getting ready, eating something and leaving to work. His routine looked like a checklist. Namjoon thought about all the possibilities he could have if his life was different while watching the city passing through him in the way to work. His mind was full of ‘what ifs’ when people demanded him a lot of certainties.
“Hyung!” The deep and happy voice of his little brother was like a beam of light on his cloudy morning. They were a little more than a year apart, it wasn’t much, but Taehyung was Namjoon baby. The older would do anything to see Taehyung happy and to please all his wishes. His best friends said he was whipped for his brother.
“Taehyungie! You look really happy today!” Namjoon smiled, showing his dimples in all its glory. Taehyung could help but poke his dimples, laughing softly. “What’s the reason of such good mood?”
“Well, maybe we have somewhere to go today…” Taehyung have Namjoon a smug smile, making the older chuckle. Tae always appeared with those crazy places for them to visit. He could only imagine what was his newest brilliant idea. “A contemporary dance recital! Exciting, isn’t it? The most prestigious dance company in Seoul will present this beautiful spectacle!”
“May I know what is about?” Namjoon kept smiling, genuinely liking his brother’s idea. He loved art in all its forms, so watching a dance show was actually a great idea. Taehyung clapped with excitement, giving small jumps while following Namjoon to his office.
“Angels! Different, right?! It’s about an angel who falls in love with a human and they decide to have their forbidden love.” Taehyung gushed while sitting on the guest chair in front of Namjoon’s desk.
“Angels? You know I’m atheist, right Tae?” Namjoon sighed. Taehyung rolled his eyes. The younger always thought the idea of not believing in a force bigger than us was something odd, so he never understood Namjoon’s ideas about this matter.
“It’s not like you have a choice in this hyung… Hobi hyung is part of the show, he plays the human who falls in love with the angel. We have to go and appreciate his effort.” Taehyung smirked. He knew how Namjoon was faithful to his friends. Even if the subject wasn’t his cup of tea, the older would still go just to make Hoseok happy, especially when he knew how much his friend practiced to get a big shot like this in a spectacle.
“Blackmailing Namjoon again, Tae?” a man with piercing cat eyes entered the room. Yoongi was Namjoon’s best friend and, coincidently, Hoseok’s fiancé. He was the older of the group and a type of advisor they could run to when they had problems.
“Well I was just saying how important it is for us to go to Hobi hyung’s dance recital tonight… by the way, hyung, how could you not know about this? Hobi talks about it every day!” Taehyung frowned.
“Come on, Tae, you know how Namjoon’s memory works… better, how it doesn’t work!” Yoongi chuckled while placing Namjoon’s to do list of the day. Besides being his best friend, Yoongi also was Namjoon’s reliable man, responsible to make sure Namjoon wouldn’t lack on his responsibilities.
“I’m right here, you know? Making fun of me in front of me isn’t funny.”
“Wrong, it makes everything even funnier.” Taehyung was laughing loudly, his boxy smile gracing his face. “I’m going to leave the nerds alone. Being president of a company seems like something boring, that’s why I’m the vice president. You get to do all the work and I only have to look cute in my beautiful office.”
“Brat!” Namjoon chuckled.
*******
By the end of the day, Namjoon was trying to find excuses so he could miss the dance recital. He had the most hectic day, he was tired. As much as he loved art, he just wasn’t in his best mood. But he knew he wasn’t going to get rid of Taehyung that easily and, most importantly, he couldn’t handle with disappointing Hoseok.
So, when he realized, he already was sitting in the audience. VIP seats, the best view in the theater. The spectacle began with Hoseok solo. The guide talking about showing the different sensations a man would go through, the hardships of living with the crazy routines we had nowadays and how we felt so big in our individuality. Part of Namjoon felt like it was about him, because that was how he felt all those years.
The way Hobi’s body moved was outstanding. It was mind-blowing how he could portrait all types of emotions with simple dance moves, combine with his facial expressions. Namjoon felt entranced by the dance, with the fluid and sharp moves combining and how amazingly Hoseok blended with the other dancers.
Hobi was again alone on the stage, transitioning from the first to the second act. In this part of the spectacle, the man meets the angel. There was when Namjoon stopped breathing. When the angel entered the stage, it was like all the other amazing dance moves he saw were just mere average. This dancer moved like water. It was angelic – and no pun was intended. But there was something familiar in him – his body features, his hair, the way he moved… Namjoon felt like he already seen all of that in one of his dreams – and he couldn’t be more right about this. When he finally could see the dancer’s face, he was looking at his imaginary friend from his dreams. The dancer was Min.
He couldn’t take his eyes of that dancer… that looked exactly as his imaginary friend. There was something about his aura that was irresistibly inviting, almost magnetic. Namjoon didn’t know if it was the way he danced, or the fact he was his imaginary friend twin, or if this power was something inherent of that dancer. He felt trapped, he felt spelled.
*******
The rest of the show felt like a flash. Namjoon could only see Min – or maybe a man that looked exactly like his “friend”. It wasn’t possible, right? How could that be? And, mostly, how could such a perfect human being exist?
After the end of the show they went backstage to congratulate Hoseok. The dancers were celebrating a successful spectacle. Namjoon walked the corridors looking for his friend doppelganger and found him, coincidently, with Hobi.
“HYUNG, THAT WAS AMAZING!” Taehyung jumped and cheered with excitement, hugging Hoseok tightly.
“Ah, Taehyungie!” Hobi flashed his beautiful heart shaped smile.
“You were amazing, babe. I never thought it was possible, but your performance was better than the last show.” Yoongi gave a beautiful roses bouquet to his fiancé, who stole him a quick kiss.
“Thank you so much, my loves!” Hobi finally noticed Namjoon’s presence, throwing himself in his arms. “Namjoonie, I can’t believe you came!”
“I couldn’t miss this, hyung! I know how sad you were because I couldn’t make it to the last spectacle.” Namjoon laughed, hugging his friend tightly.
“Since you’re all here, I need to present you to the star of the show!” Hoseok jumped happily, picking someone by the hand and bringing him closely to the group. “Guys, this is Jimin! He played the angel!”
Namjoon finally could look closely to Min’s double and he couldn’t be more mesmerized with the resemblance between them. It was like he was looking to his imaginary friend. He watched the man greeting his friends and was so entranced by the person in front of him he didn’t notice the silence. They were all waiting for Namjoon to introduce himself. The man quickly recovered himself and greeted Jimin.
“Hi, I’m Namjoon!” Namjoon gave his signature dimpled smile.
“H-hi, I’m Jimin.” The man smiled softly but Namjoon could see something different in his eyes. Maybe Jimin was recognizing him? Namjoon shook this thought out of his mind – it was a crazy idea.
“I’m sorry I can’t stay to celebrate with you, but my roommates are waiting for me.” Jimin bowed and left with two other man who looked as beautiful as him. It was like they were a different brand of people – or maybe they weren’t even humans.
*******
The group decided to celebrate Hoseok’s successful dance recital in their favorite way: busting their lungs on the karaoke. They filled the small room and ordered tons of delicious food and drinks – what Namjoon and Yoongi would certainly regret in the next day. But, for Namjoon, something was off. He couldn’t focus on the celebration they were having. Not even Yoongi’s screams and Hoseok’s falsettos while singing a SNSD’s song could take him out of his thoughts.
He didn’t want to ruin the party, but his thoughts were controlling him. It was like Jimin had bewitched him, filling his mind in a way it never happened before. The resemblance with his imaginary friend made everything even more intense. He was sure he never saw that man in real life before. Jimin… or, Min were only a part of his dreams. They grew up together, his mind made that all up. How was that even possible?
There weren’t plausible explanations for this event – or maybe Namjoon couldn’t come up with a good excuse. He only could think about Jimin’s eyes. They were haunting him, like his own personal ghost. He felt something familiar in him, he felt like Jimin also recognized him.
“Hyung! Come sing with us! It’s ‘Bang, bang, bang’!” Taehyung jumped with the song, pushing Namjoon closer to the TV. “You always sing this song with us!”
Namjoon decided to focus a little bit on his friends. He was there to enjoy the moment with them, after all. He could think about Jimin later, maybe in his dreams. Maybe his dreams would explain to him a little bit more of this mess.