Work Text:
The gift basket of "Jimin's get well soon essentials" rests heavy in Jimin's hands as he stands outside the door to a certain rapper's bedroom.
He glances down at the basket which he'd made on his own while Yoongi was away at the hospital.
It looks good as ever, practically overflowing with some of the elder's favorite things. A colorful, handmade sign is taped to the outside of the basket and the handle is wrapped in silk ribbons.
Jimin knows it could be difficult for Yoongi to get some of these things himself, as he only just got discharged from the hospital and shouldn't risk slowing down the healing of his shoulder by moving too much.
A get well soon basket is a nice thing to do for someone who's just undergone surgery and Jimin is quite proud of his decision to make it.
All the other members have already spent some time with Yoongi and have surprised him with little get well soon gifts. Yoongi doesn't usually give or receive gifts from the members, but he was feeling much better after receiving them according to Namjoon. Now, Jimin is the only one left to give him something.
Jimin knocks tentatively on the door with his free hand and clenches the handle of the basket with the other. He really hopes Yoongi isn't sleeping.
After receiving no answer from the other side of the door, no hum or noise, Jimin turns the handle quietly and pokes his head inside the room.
The curtains are pushed back and sunlight spills into the room. Yoongi is sitting up in bed, pen in his right hand. his left arm is supported with a sling, gauze peeking out from underneath his white button-up t-shirt. It looks like he had been writing something in a notebook, but now he's just staring at Jimin. The singer almost sighs with relief because Yoongi is indeed awake and he hadn't disturbed him.
"Hi, Yoongi-hyung," Jimin whispers as he enters the room and shuts the door behind him. Yoongi's eyes flick to the basket in Jimin's hands, mouth agape.
"Ah, I made you something small while you were at the hospital," he smiles and walks towards the bed, "Jimin's get well soon essentials!"
Yoongi drops his pen and dramatically lifts his hand up to his mouth in shock, making Jimin giggle.
He notices the get well soon gifts from the other members scattered throughout the room. Flowers, a stash of snacks, bottles of iced americano. Most extravagant of all are the balloons with smiley faces and "get well soon" on them; most certainly Hoseok's contribution.
"Jimin-ah, you really shouldn't have gone through the trouble," Yoongi says, placing his pen and notepad on the bedside table.
Jimin can see lyrics scrawled on the page, words filling every corner. Some are crossed out darkly with pen. Of course he had been writing songs.
"It was really nothing, hyung! I wanted to."
Yoongi groans as Jimin walks over to the side of the bed and sits down. He places the basket in front of him to show Yoongi its contents.
"More importantly, why are you writing lyrics when you should be resting? Hyung, you already have so many songs drafted."
"I am resting though. What else can I do?"
Jimin sighs and shakes his head. His hyung is really a workaholic. Even when they went on that trip to the forest for vacation, Yoongi still stayed in the camper van or the main house and worked on music. A poetic workaholic.
"Well, for one, you could watch movies or anime," Jimin suggests, "We never have time for that anymore, might as well make the most of it."
The rapper chuckles and rifles his hand through silky, black hair. He adjusts himself in bed so that he's sitting up straighter, face scrunching up in pain. Oh.
Jimin's eyebrows tilt upwards at the sight. He knows that it hurts like hell right after surgery, obviously, but a piece of Jimin's heart still breaks whenever he sees any of the members in pain.
"I suppose you're right," the rapper replies, "It's been a while since I've watched a movie."
"We should watch some together, hyung. I'll make time for it!" Jimin exclaims and pats Yoongi's thigh. "Wanna see what I got for you?"
Yoongi nods, a small smile gracing his features.
The elder watches with interest as Jimin excitedly takes each essential out of the basket. Jimin takes his time showing Yoongi each and every thing inside and telling him what they're for.
There's a bushel of flowers. Daises, meaning hope. A little chimmy plushie because- why not? Yoongi laughs when Jimin shows the little stuffed animal to him. Some Advil and ibuprofen just in case Yoongi runs out and needs painkillers. A tiny vial of lavender essential oil for better sleep. Christmas themed fuzzy socks to keep warm. Peeled tangerines. Yoongi seems ecstatic at the sight of those.
The elder immediately snatches a tangerine with his right hand and plops the whole thing in his mouth with a nom. Jimin bursts into laughter at the sight of Yoongi's cheeks puffed with the orange citrus. Putting tangerines in the basket was definitely a good choice.
As Yoongi chews on the fruit, Jimin puts the rest of the items back into the basket. He's glad that Yoongi likes his gift and he genuinely hopes that the items are to his benefit.
Just as he's putting the last item back into the basket, he feels a warm hand cover his own. Jimin looks up with wide eyes.
Yoongi is reaching over with his right hand and smiling at him with dark, gentle eyes. Jimin's heart involuntarily beats a little faster at the sight, at the feeling of his hand atop Jimin's own.
"Thanks, Jimin-ah," he mumbles.
"N-No problem, Yoongi-hyung." Jimin doesn't know why he stutters.
Yoongi's smile is delicate, lips somewhat chapped. He has absolutely no makeup on and his skin shines with a natural glow. Jimin can see small freckles scattered on his nose and cheeks.
He has a strange urge to reach out and trace them underneath his fingertips.
Jimin should be going now, all he'd planned to do was to give Yoongi the gift basket. But something compels him to stay. To spend some time with his friend and keep him company, at least for a little while. Jimin wonders if Yoongi would want that too.
As if his thoughts had been read, Yoongi suggests, "You can stay here for a while, Jimin-ah. I'm not doing much right now anyway."
Jimin smiles, more than happy to comply. "Okay."
The younger slides off of the bed to place the gift basket on Yoongi's desk. He smiles at the sight of thoughtful cards written by some of the members, scattered upon the desk.
"How are you feeling?" Jimin asks, walking back to bed and sitting on the edge.
"I'm feeling fine, it doesn't hurt much right now," Yoongi replies, looking at his bandaged shoulder. Jimin feels like that’s a lie but doesn’t comment. “I'm just glad that I finally got surgery. My shoulder was feeling weaker by the day and I couldn't enlist or perform like that."
Jimin hums in agreement. The rapper often denied having much pain in his shoulder, but Jimin could tell that his condition was getting worse every day. He couldn't move his arm as much and would bite his lip or hiss more often whenever he lifted with it. He had also been holding the mic in his right hand during a performance more frequently than usual. The staff noticed as well and the company ended up having a long discussion about what to do regarding the injury and how to move from there.
After Jimin noticed that Yoongi couldn’t even hold something as light as a water bottle with his left hand anymore, he realized that Yoongi couldn’t possibly go on without fixing his injury as soon as possible.
Jimin knows how hesitant Yoongi had been to undergo surgery. He didn't want to drag the team down or leave his waiting fans for a long time. Jimin knows the feeling well.
Jimin eyes the hand resting on Yoongi's lap and reaches out to take it in his own. It's warm and a bit calloused from practicing guitar for months before the surgery.
Jimin smiles to himself.
"Yoongi-hyung... I want you to know that this is not your fault. None of this is your fault," Jimin ensures softly, "I saw your apologies on weverse and I know that you feel like you're letting us and our fans down, but please realize that undergoing surgery was the best thing you could've done at this point. Your fans are much happier that you're recovering."
He squeezes the hand resting limply in his own. Yoongi squeezes back, gently.
"We're all happy that you're getting better, hyung. You're going to be just fine."
The elder suddenly sniffles softly and Jimin can see tears gathering along his lower lash line. He's not looking at Jimin, but at his arm carried by the sling.
He laughs in disbelief and Jimin can't tell if he feels bad or if he's thankful for Jimin's attempted words of comfort.
Either way, Jimin reaches forward with his other hand and swipes his thumb against the soft skin of Yoongi's cheek, wet from a small tear that had fallen.
His fingers linger there, over those endearing freckles that Jimin had so wanted to touch.
Yoongi makes eye contact with Jimin then, dark eyes grateful and adoring and- Oh no. Jimin had tried to hold back his tears this entire time he'd been talking to Yoongi, but that one look renders all his efforts useless.
The sunlight pouring from the window paints Yoongi's face with light, tears glittering. He's beautiful.
"Don't...please don't cry, hyung. You're gonna make me cry too," Jimin whispers, voice cracking with emotion.
"Sorry," Yoongi grabs the hand lingering near his face and holds it tight, "I'm just- thank you. For saying that. I didn't know how much I needed to hear those words."
Jimin nods, trying to blink his gathering tears away. "Of course. It's true after all."
They sit there for a while, comfortable in each others presence until a beeping sound suddenly cuts through the silence.
Snapping his head around, Jimin realizes that it's coming from Yoongi's phone.
"Ah, for the first week after surgery, my doctor set certain times for my dressings to be changed to avoid infection."
Turning the alarm off, Yoongi starts to lift himself from the bed, but Jimin is quick to sit him down again.
"Yoongi-hyung, I can do it for you. Please rest."
The rapper hesitates for a moment before nodding, "Alright. The incision can be cleaned with a wet wipe, but pat it for a minute instead of rubbing. New wipes and gauze pads are on the bedside table. I'll get this sling off in the meantime."
Jimin nods and grabs the items from the bedside table. He watches Yoongi lift the straps off of the sling and carefully pull it off. The elder hisses in pain and holds his arm close to his chest.
Jimin doesn't know much about the aftercare of shoulder surgery, but he's pretty sure Yoongi's arm should be supported without the sling. He immediately grabs a small pillow beside him and places it under Yoongi's forearm, allowing him to rest it there.
He's ready to clean Yoongi's incision, but...the elder still has his shirt on. It's a button-up top, making it much easier to take off.
Yoongi begins undoing the buttons himself with one hand and before Jimin knows what he's doing, he moves Yoongi's hand and replaces it with his own two ones.
"Let me," Jimin offers, voice gentle.
Yoongi says nothing as Jimin undoes the buttons with tiny hands, each one revealing a greater expanse of his pale chest. His skin looks smooth...like that of a porcelain doll. Jimin fights the urge to reach out and touch for a second time that day.
The singer can feel dark eyes watching him and he gulps a bit louder than normal. While it's usually Yoongi who can't maintain eye contact with Jimin, that doesn't mean the elder's stare isn't equally as intense.
The air around them is charged with something strange, something Jimin doesn't really want to comprehend. He mentally shakes his head to snap himself out of whatever trance he was just in and quickly undoes the rest of the buttons.
Jimin carefully slides the shirt down Yoongi's arm, revealing his bandaged shoulder. He looks up at Yoongi for permission, who nods, before gently removing the gauze pad from the healing incision.
The skin is a bit red and swollen with some stitches still in place. It doesn't look infected and seems to be healing well. Jimin inhales deeply. It must hurt so much, but Yoongi's been handling the pain so well.
He tries to be as gentle as possible as he places the wet fabric over the skin. Yoongi still winces in pain, but holds still as Jimin pats the area clean.
"Sorry, hyung..." Jimin whispers.
Yoongi shakes his head as if to say "its fine" and watches Jimin's face instead.
Jimin knows he shouldn't, but he can't help but think about how Yoongi has been dealing with this injury for practically eight years now. And he didn't want to undergo surgery and let anyone down. He actually thought he'd be letting them down.
Yoongi had been in pain for all these years yet still continued to smile and dance and do his best for everyone.
The mere thought brings tears to Jimin's eyes—he can't help it.
The elder notices and his brows furrow in concern.
"Jimin-ah, don't cry..." Yoongi utters. "I'm alright."
The black haired singer shakes his head and wipes his tears with the back of his other hand. For some reason, his words make Jimin want to cry even more.
He's doing it again. Saying he's alright like he always does when the members are worried. He's too selfless, too considerate. Jimin can't stop his tears from falling.
Jimin feels bad. He knows that worrying makes Yoongi hurt, but his best friend has been suffering for too long and Jimin has always known, but he'd never thought about it too much.
Right now, it's the only thing he can think about.
Yoongi has been through too much...he doesn't deserve any of the pain he's been through.
Jimin wipes his tears with his arm as best he can and puts the cloth aside. He takes a gauze pad out of the box and carefully applies it on the area. His touch is gentle as to not hurt Yoongi more than necessary. Yoongi surely notices.
"I won't break, Jimin-ah. Don't worry so much," Yoongi says firmly, low voice filled with concern.
Jimin nods with a sniffle. He carefully slides Yoongi's shirt back over his shoulder and pulls the buttons shut one by one. He helps Yoongi with the sling until it's snugly in place. Then he starts crying again.
"Aish, Jiminie..."
Yoongi groans as Jimin curls up into a ball and rests the side of his head in Yoongi's lap. The younger clutches tight to Yoongi's shirt as the tears roll down his cheeks.
Jimin didn't mean for this to happen. He was just going to drop off the gift basket and that's it. But now, his tears are spilling onto Yoongi's sweatpants and he's probably making the elder feel worse.
Yoongi is still underneath him and Jimin is about to pull himself together and part, but then he feels a strong hand rest on his head...and he's falling apart again.
Fingers thread through his hair comfortingly and Jimin nuzzles into Yoongi further. The tears don't stop for a while.
Yoongi is warm against him and his hand strokes Jimin's hair so gently.
"Hyung," Jimin sobs, "I-I don't want you to hurt anymore. Please don't hurt yourself anymore..."
"Shh..." Yoongi hushes and wipes under Jimin's eye with his thumb. "Don't worry about me, little one. I'm fine."
Jimin holds the hand near his face in his own and nuzzles his cheek into it.
"I love you, Yoongi-hyung," Jimin hiccups and presses his lips against Yoongi's palm gently.
He's sniffling so much that he misses the shuddering breath from above him.
Yoongi pries his hand gently away from Jimin's and instead rests it on the younger's back. He pats and rubs soothingly, causing Jimin's eyes to eventually fall shut.
It feels nice in Yoongi's arms, Jimin could stay there for a little while longer. Just a little while.
Jimin ends up falling asleep right then and there on Yoongi's lap, the warmth of his body and the pats on his back endlessly comforting. But he can still hear Yoongi when he whispers
"I love you more, Jimin-ah."