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There are many moments. Yoongi tries to preserve each of them by translating them into words. But sometimes, he feels he is too slow, too inadequate, to ever accomplish this. Each moment spills over the spaces of every word, the emotions and weight of it bigger than the clumsy cursive he jots down. His penmanship is sloppy and leans to the right, as he tries to chase after the seconds that comprise each fleeting moment, each burst of feeling.
He looks up from his notebook, having crossed out a line he has written down. Jimin twirls Taehyung across the room. Their laughter echoes in the room, making it sparkle with joy. Taehyung leads and spins them in wide circles. He pulls Jimin close, one hand on his shoulder and the other on his waist. Jimin has his arms around Taehyung’s neck. They laugh some more. In between one second and another, Jimin looks to the side and catches Yoongi’s gaze. His smile shifts into something more playful, something more suggestive.
Yoongi tilts the corner of his lips in response.
There is an avalanche that falls from his heart down to the notebook settled on his lap.
*
“And how are we feeling?”
Yoongi is squatting close to the ground. He has his weight on his toes as he scans the bottom shelf. Jin has accompanied him to the bookstore. There is a book on modern day architecture that Yoongi is interested in purchasing. Jin has been looking for a reason to leave the dorm.
Yoongi looks up momentarily. Jin is acting as though he has not spoken. Instead, he is flipping through the book in his hands. Something about foreign resorts, judging from the cover and the title. He looks back at the shelves, eyes scanning the spines carefully.
“We are fine. We have been fine for almost three months,” he replies. No need to ask his hyung to elaborate. Yoongi knows Jin is asking about him and Jimin.
In some aspects, talking about it like this feels better than setting a date, time and coffee shop. This feels less calculated. Less intrusive.
“What’s the title of the book you’re looking for again?” Jin asks. Yoongi answers automatically, not putting much thought into it until he hears Jin’s triumphant aha!
“Can’t believe you couldn't spot it,” Jin says, laughing as he holds out the book. Yoongi flips him off, out of reflex rather than offense. He has come to accept that his friends have all come to outgrow him. Even Jimin, who had been the first to point out the centimeter difference between them.
Yoongi stands to take the book with thanks. He flips through it, just to be sure that it is the right book.
It’s only as they’re lined up at the counter that Jin brings back their earlier conversation.
“And do we believe we’ll continue to be fine for longer?”
Yoongi hates this kind of questioning. He knows that Jin is only looking out for both Yoongi and Jimin but that doesn’t stop the words from figuratively grinding his mind. Who knows what the future holds? Yoongi doesn’t want to think about it too deeply just yet because he feels that it is too soon to be thinking these thoughts.
Who knows, right? And yet.
“Who knows,” he starts. Jin raises an eyebrow but doesn’t interrupt Yoongi. “But I want to do whatever I can to make this last forever.”
*
The plan is to walk from the studio to a restaurant they’ve both wanted to try for a while. It is a few blocks away but they can spare the time.
However, it becomes apparent how tired Jimin is after a full day. He has an arm looped around Yoongi’s and his head on Yoongi’s shoulder. Neither are unusual things, especially when they have their face masks on and the hood of their jackets pulled up. What is unusual is the amount of yawning Jimin has been doing, as well as the way he stumbles with his steps.
Yoongi looks around. There is a cafe, small and discreet, across the street. He herds them inside and orders a pastry to go. The place is empty apart from a table at the back, where someone is quietly at work, their typing creating a distracting sound above the instrumental piece playing from the speakers. Jimin looks at Yoongi, a question on his face.
“Let’s go next time,” Yoongi says. “Let’s just stay in tonight and have something delivered.” He would cook but, now that they’re here, he can also feel exhaustion seeping into his bones.
“Sorry hyung,” Jimin says quietly. Yoongi reaches out with one hand to lace their fingers together.
“Yah, no apologies. The restaurant will always be there.” He runs his thumb over Jimin’s knuckles. “Sleep. I’ll book us a ride.”
He lends his jacket for Jimin to use as a pillow. They don’t have to wait long but Jimin still needs to be nudged awake once their ride arrives. Jimin nods sleepily and stands, movements still sluggish. Yoongi nods his thanks at the staff behind the counter. He guides Jimin, hands on his shoulders. Yoongi squeezes him reassuringly. Jimin hums his appreciation.
Once inside, Jimin tucks his face against Yoongi’s neck. His hands have already grasped Yoongi’s but his hold loosens as he succumbs to sleep. Yoongi stares outside the window but all he sees is their reflection.
*
Another dance practice. Yoongi’s muscles have been replaced by jelly, with the way they’ve been shaking trying to hold him up. He makes it to the wall before he slumps to the ground, thankful for its support. Jin and Namjoon have both chosen to just collapse on the floor from their position. Jungkook is already walking around, passing them water bottles. Yoongi shoots Jungkook a grateful smile and tells him he did good with that complicated turn he’s been practicing for weeks.
Taehyung joins Yoongi and lays his head on Yoongi’s lap. Yoongi doesn’t have the strength to swat him away. He lets Taehyung rearrange his legs into something that’ll be more comfortable for the younger man. Only Hoseok and Jimin remain standing, working through the choreography. They’re both conversing in hushed whispers, words too fast for any of them to catch. Yoongi has a sinking feeling that they will be reworking their steps after this break.
“I think they’re planning our deaths,” Taehyung whispers conspiratorially. Yoongi hums his agreement.
“What are our alternatives?” Yoongi asks. Hoseok turns and points quickly towards their direction. Taehyung gulps.
“If you’ve figured out how to turn into stone, now would be the best time to do it,” Taehyung says. Jimin turns to Jin and Namjoon, makes a comment and then turns to them as well.
“Tough shit. That only works on me,” Yoongi says. Hoseok claps his hands to get everyone’s attention. Jimin is already walking over to them while Jungkook pulls his other hyungs from the floor.
“Hyung, spare me,” Taehyung says weakly. Yoongi shakes his head.
“If I’m going down, you’re going down with me,” Yoongi whispers as Jimin stands in front of them.
“One last round. Hobi will guide Namjoon and Jin. I’ll help you two out,” Jimin says. He holds out his hand and helps Taehyung first. Taehyung groans but jogs to the center of the room. Jimin stretches his arm for Yoongi.
“We can do this,” Jimin says. He is soaked in sweat. It drips from his temples and stains his shirt.
“Kiss for luck?” Yoongi jokes as he takes Jimin’s arm to pull himself up. He ends up pressed close against Jimin. Jimin laughs.
“Will it be for you or for me?” he fires back.
“As if you ever needed luck on the dancefloor,” Yoongi says before he closes the gap between them to press a kiss on Jimin’s lips. He lingers for a second longer. “But that doesn’t mean that kiss wasn’t meant for you too.”
*
Yoongi likes this, the anonymity. Blending in and not being recognized.
It’s a quiet hour. Most people are busy elsewhere. It leaves the park nearly empty, save for a few adults bringing children to the playground. Given that their group works on irregular hours, Yoongi takes his break on irregular hours as well. There’s something about being confined in a small space when he knows the weather is good that makes him want to run. Not necessarily run away. Just to be outside, even for a while. Bask in it.
He has his headphones on, face mask covering half his face. He wears a baseball cap and a puffer jacket that’s one size too big (which he thinks belongs to Namjoon).
Sometimes, he finds inspiration in this. He has brought a book that he’s put off for a while. He holds a pen on one hand, jotting down annotations on certain pages. He also has his notepad by his side, in case he wants to write down ideas-- for melody, for lyrics. For things to do in the next few days.
Grey wind, orange leaves , he writes. I hear everything , he adds beneath, listening to the faint sounds of children shrieking. Or so I think.
Minutes pass by. His phone lights up as a text message comes in. Jimin asks if he wants to be picked up. Yoongi looks at the time.
Yes. Please , he replies.
Yoongi continues reading. He only looks up when Jimin stands before him, pressing his foot against Yoongi’s. Jimin holds two cups, one in each hand. He is already drinking from one. The other he offers to Yoongi. He smells the bitter hint of coffee.
“Thank you,” he says as he reaches out to accept the drink.
“Ah, but this cup comes with a condition, hyung.” Jimin’s eyes are already smiling. Yoongi raises an eyebrow.
“I’m not going to prank Jin-hyung again.”
Jimin laughs.
“No, I don’t think so. Once was enough.” They both shudder at the memory of Jin’s genuine anger when he found out what they did to the spice rack. He didn’t lash out at them but he treated them with a level of civility they hadn’t had since they were trainees. To be treated once more as if they were acquaintances where things like boundaries mattered-- that was an experience they didn’t dare repeat.
“I only want you to come home earlier,” Jimin says. Yoongi lets out a sigh as he considers that. There’s so much that needs to be done. He promised Jungkook he’d look through his first set of samples. Hoseok’s song still needs some tweaking. He promised to get back to Namjoon with a list of, of what-- he can’t even remember-- by tomorrow.
Jimin raises an eyebrow back at him.
“You don’t have to be back early.” Jimin shrugs. “Just earlier than your usual hour.”
Yoongi opens his mouth to tell Jimin all the things he needs to get done. It’s not like Jimin won’t understand. Before he can say anything though, Jimin continues. “It’s just that. You’ve been coming back past midnight. It’s been a week.” Jimin scuffs the ground with this shoe.
Cloud of dust, uncertainty , Yoongi wants to write. Has it really been a week already? Time has blurred the days into one long stretch.
“All right,” Yoongi agrees. He stands. Jimin takes his book and notepad so that Yoongi can slip an arm around Jimin’s shoulders. “Come on, let’s go back so I can finish early.”
*
“Do you still think about it?” Namjoon asks.
Yoongi blinks from where he has been staring at a spot on the ceiling. He sets the beer he has been nursing on the table. It’s eerily quiet in the dorm, given that it is only ten in the evening. Jin has gone to sleep early while the rest has insisted on a karaoke night.
(“But, hyung! Karaoke!” Taehyung clung to Yoongi from behind, tucking his chin on Yoongi’s shoulder.
“Be careful of his joints!” Jimin had joked, laughing at the glare Yoongi threw his way.)
He taps a finger on the table, thinking about his answer.
This is a conversation they used to have often, when they were younger and unsure of the directions of their lives. It was a question they asked late at night, when everyone was fast asleep. Or when it was just the two of them in the studio, playing their samples loud enough to drown their voices. Or at the back of the van, on their ride back from some event.
It has been a while since this conversation was brought up.
“What brought this on?” he replies while he tries to think of his answer.
“Nothing, really.” Namjoon also seems to be contemplating his words carefully. “These days, there’s no reason to ask it, honestly. It’s not about doubt as it is...about just a general wondering.”
In some way, Yoongi supposes he can understand that. Seeing them succeed, sometimes he wonders where else he would have succeeded at. If he had gone down the path his parents wanted. If he had remained in the underground scene.
If he hadn’t met Jimin. The comfort the spaces between his arms offers. The calm Yoongi finds whenever they look at each other before the start of any performance. The promises implied from the delicate way Jimin circles his fingers around Yoongi’s wrist.
“Well, is there anywhere else you’d rather be?” Yoongi asks and he knows Namjoon understands the thousand other words he means behind his reply. Namjoon grins and shakes his head.
*
They are allowed to take two days off. Everyone lets out a collective sigh of relief. Jin, Jungkook and Hoseok make plans to go shopping. Namjoon gives them a list and says he’ll cook them dinner. Taehyung declares that the person to wake him up before noon will face doom.
Yoongi and Jimin share a look. A smile slowly makes its way across Jimin’s lips. Yoongi traces it with his eyes, wishing he was tracing it with his fingers.
The next day, Yoongi wakes up first. Jimin is pressed against him, chest against Yoongi’s sweating back. He shifts but Jimin’s arm around him tightens. Yoongi bites the inside of his cheek. Much as he would rather stay, his bladder keeps kicking him to get up.
“Bathroom,” Yoongi whispers. Jimin whines as Yoongi slides his arm off. He cards his fingers through Jimin’s hair as an apology.
He doesn’t really go back to sleep after that. He never can, once his body clock wakes up.
Instead of going back to sleep, he raids their fridge for a bottle of coffee. He prepares a glass by filling it with ice cubes. It’s hot enough that he’ll allow himself cold coffee. He pours the drink into the glass and puts the bottle away for recycling.
He can hear someone go inside the bathroom, the squeak of the shower being turned on, the spattering water against the tiles. Someone’s alarm cuts the silence, followed by hushed cursing.
Yoongi looks through their fridge and their cabinets to see what he can cook for breakfast. They aren’t heavy eaters, not in the early hours of the day. They’ve gotten used to getting by in the morning with coffee, cups of cereal (sometimes without milk), toast and spreads and fruit. But maybe he can cook something for them.
Yoongi pulls out ingredients for kimchi pancakes. His lips quirk as he remembers their last attempt at this. Meal prep passes without trouble. Jin walks into the kitchen just as Yoongi spreads the batter on the pan, the oil sizzling slightly.
“Smells good,” Jin says, grabbing water from the fridge.
“I tried the mix you linked me to,” Yoongi says as he adjusts the heat on the cooker.
Jin stays for a while, chewing on a banana from the counter top. He watches but doesn’t interfere, though he does bring up the game they’d been playing last week. “We need to go another round!” Jin exclaims.
“Later, if you survive Kookie and Hob-ah,” Yoongi teases.
Jin leaves him alone, off to have his shower. Yoongi doesn’t mind. He keeps cooking until he’s scrapped off every bit of batter in the bowl. The pancakes are a messy pile on the largest plate he could find. He places the pancakes in the middle of their dining table.
As he is cleaning up, Jin reappears, this time with Jungkook and Hoseok. The two light up at the pancakes, grabbing a couple of paper towels before getting a piece each.
“Thanks hyung,” Jungkook says in between bites. Hobi forms a heart with his fingers, too busy chewing. Then, he tears off a piece and feeds it to Yoongi. Yoongi grunts his thanks.
“The seasoning’s perfect, hyung,” Yoongi says. “It’s mild-- good for Taehyung.” Jin nods.
“I’ll look for the link again so I can save it too,” Jin says, fingers dancing across his phone. He frowns and then looks up. “All right my children. The car’s around the corner so say good-bye to your Yoongles and make sure you have your phones.”
Yoongi waves them off, attention already back to the dishes. As he’s finishing, Namjoon enters, wearing only his boxers and a loose shirt, feet bare. He’s scratching his stomach as he yawns.
“There’s pancakes on the table. Make sure to save a piece for Tae and Jin,” Yoongi says.
“Good morning to you too,” Namjoon says. He’s already grabbing a plate and a fork
Yoongi takes a smaller plate and piles his and Jimin’s pancakes on it. He takes a glass of water as well, balancing everything carefully.
When he returns to their room, Jimin is lying on his side, scrolling through his phone. The blankets have been pushed to the side, apart from the small corner still draped across his chest and his stomach. Jimin looks up as Yoongi closes the door.
“Hyung,” Jimin says. One small word, except he makes it sound like: I woke up and you weren’t here and I missed you and now that you’re here, I need you to be right by my side. Yoongi is not an expert on languages. But he manages to interpret what Jimin wants to say nonetheless.
He places the plate and the glass of water on the bedside table and easily slides beside Jimin.
“Jiminie,” is all Yoongi says, placing a kiss between his eyebrows. He takes his thumb and runs it on the crease between Jimin’s eyebrows, brushing it until Jimin stops frowning.
“Hyuuung,” he whines again but this time throws an arm around Yoongi’s waist.
“Yes, I know. I’m here.”
*
There’s a knock on his door. Yoongi doesn’t hear this immediately, the headphones he’s wearing blocking out the noise. It takes a particularly loud bang to get his attention. Yoongi startles and nearly throws his headphones.
“Hyung! It’s me!” Jungkook calls from the other side of the door.
“Yah, don’t you have my passcode anyway?” Yoongi asks as he opens the door. Jungkook holds up a paper bag and winks. He slips inside, sliding onto the couch.
“I didn’t just want to barge in,” Jungkook says. “You said you’d be working on your collab.”
He has been working on the mix. It’s his first time working with this artist as well. On a professional level, of course Yoongi doesn’t want to make a mess of it and ruin any potential for future projects. On an artistic level, Yoongi hasn’t felt challenged like this in a while-- the sound that the artist has in mind clashes with the ideas Yoongi had when he first read the lyrics and discussed what the message of the song was going to be about. They’re trying to find a middle ground; Yoongi is trying to adjust the beats closer to what the artist prefers while the artist is working on tweaking the chorus according to Yoongi’s suggestions.
“What’s this?” Yoongi asks, poking the paper bag Jungkook has on his lap.
Jungkook grins and takes two boxes out, handing one to Yoongi. Jungkook’s is labelled DB w extra J . Yoongi’s is labelled extra O, BBQ S . Yoongi lifts the cover. The burger is still warm. His stomach growls on cue.
“Jimin texted. He said you weren’t replying and that you haven’t eaten all day.”
“Oh,” is all Yoongi says. His eyes flit to his desk, unsurprised to see that his phone isn’t on it. He places his food on the desk and starts patting his pants and then the pockets of his jacket. His phone isn’t there either.
“Here, hyung,” Jungkook says, handing it to where he’s apparently left it on the couch. It must have slipped from his jacket when he woke up from his nap.
Yoongi opens his phone to six notifications: one calendar invite from Namjoon, booking their meeting with Hoseok and PDogg-nim tomorrow. One from Jin, asking the group chat if anyone was going to have time to do grocery tonight. Three from Jimin-- oh.
Hope you woke up! Remember, you can do it, reads the first message, sent five hours ago.
Have you eaten? Need me to book a delivery? reads another, sent two hours ago.
Kookie said he’ll check up on you. I asked him to bring you some food. He’s not leaving til you eat it. reads the last, sent forty three minutes ago.
The last message is from Jungkook, sent fifteen minutes ago, to tell Yoongi that he’s on his way to his studio.
“Thanks Kook-ah,” Yoongi says. Jungkook raises an eyebrow, sitting there with arms crossed, box of burger on his lap. Yoongi huffs and but relents. He takes his food and sits himself beside Jungkook.
“Happy?” he asks as he lifts his burger and takes a bite from it. Jungkook grins and nods. He sits up, knocking their knees together as he takes out one last item from the paper bag. It’s an order of criss cut fries, which they spread on a bunch of napkins. Yoongi lets Jungkook talk about his progress with his solo mixtape. Namjoon has been helping him with some lyrics. Jin and Taehyung have been lending their vocals for some adlibs.
As they’re eating, Jungkook insists they take a selca. Yoongi scrunches his nose but lets him take their photo. Jungkook puts up his fingers, forming bunny ears. Yoongi has some sauce on the corner of his lips. Later, he gets a text from Jimin. Cute , is all it says.
*
Sometimes, it’s Jimin who has a tendency to stay late in the studio. Yoongi had already left earlier, having promised Jin and Namjoon an evening of beer and fried pork belly. He tells them to go on back ahead to their dorm; he had forgotten his hard drive. He doesn’t plan on working (somehow Jin always knows when he breaks his promises) but he felt more secure knowing that he had it with him.
After making even more promises that he was, in fact, only going to get his hard drive, Jin and Namjoon wave him off. They take the car while Yoongi walks back, reasoning that it’ll be good exercise to digest his dinner. It’s not often that he eats heavily but being with more than one member of the team always leads to more food intake. He supposes it’s because everyone tries to feed everyone.
True to his word, Yoongi steps out of his studio in less than ten minutes, hard drive securely in his bag. Now that he isn’t distracted, he becomes aware of the faint sounds coming from the dance studio, along with the vibrations that come when the volume is turned up too loudly.
Yoongi frowns. It’s nearly ten pm. He can only think of one person who would still be practicing at this hour but he had told Yoongi that he’d be at the dorm early today.
Jimin doesn’t notice as Yoongi opens the door. He has his eyes closed. It’s part of his routine: step one is to practice with the mirror. Step two is to practice without looking at himself. He says it helps his mind connect the steps with his body and the beat. Step three is a repeat of step one. Sometimes, it takes Jimin a while to get to step three because he’s usually unsatisfied with step two.
The vibration inside the dance studio is stronger. Yoongi presses his palm against the wall. He feels like he could be knocked off his feet at any time. He watches Jimin dance. Yoongi thinks he looks perfect. His choreography is in sync with the beat, the lines of tension matching the mood of the song. But Yoongi also sees the creases between Jimin’s brows and the hesitation he made right before jumping into the chorus. He knows Jimin wouldn’t believe Yoongi if he told him he did well.
Yoongi lets Jimin finish before he interrupts. It rains but that’s not why the sky is grey. The sun shines but that’s not why the sky is blue , he mouths along. It’s the verse right before the bridge, an overlap of Taehyung’s and Jimin’s voices.
When the song fades out, Jimin finally opens his eyes. Yoongi clears his throat and makes eye contact through the mirror.
“Yoongi-hyung,” Jimin rasps and Yoongi wishes he had brought a bottle of water.
“Jimin. It’s late.” Yoongi means to sound stern but comes off as worried instead. Jimin shakes his head, using his shirt to mop the sweat from his face. Yoongi automatically traces his eyes on Jimin’s stomach, skin slick with sweat. Yoongi focuses on the letters tattooed along his chest. Jimin sometimes does this on purpose, when he wants to distract Yoongi. He refuses to let it work this time.
“You said you’d be home early,” he reminds Jimin. Jimin huffs. He rolls his shoulders and stretches his neck.
“I told Hobi-hyung and Kookie to go ahead. I’m not done yet.”
“Are you sure about that?” Yoongi asks with a raised eyebrow. “Because I think you are.”
“Yoongi,” Jimin says, voice taking a sharp turn. “I’m really not.”
The two stare at each other, refusing to relent. They’ve both proven how stubborn they can be. Finally, it is Yoongi who sighs, shoulders slumping.
“Fine,” Yoongi says. He drags his feet to one corner of the room. He takes off his jacket, bunching it up until it resembles a makeshift pillow. Jimin still looks pissed off but Yoongi shakes his head.
“I won’t stop you but neither should you be left alone.” He says. He takes out his phone, sets a timer. He holds it up for Jimin to see. “One hour,” Yoongi says. “And then we go home.” Jimin looks like he wants to say more but settles for nodding. Yoongi’s eyes soften at the hard line Jimin’s shoulders form. He walks up to Jimin and embraces him, one arm around his shoulders, another around his waist.
“You always work so hard. And we trust you to deliver. But it doesn’t mean you have to get it perfect all the time, and certainly not at once.”
Yoongi feels Jimin’s hands on his back. They both ignore the fact that they’re shaking.
When Yoongi takes a step back, Jimin gives him a small, careful smile. Yoongi smiles back. He swipes his thumb across his cheek, pretending that he hasn’t also wiped away some of his tears.
“One hour,” Yoongi reminds him. “Wake me up if you finish sooner.” He walks back to the corner of the room. The floor is vibrating with music already even before he puts on his earphones.
When Yoongi wakes, Jimin is holding his phone to his face, alarm ringing. Yoongi curses as Jimin giggles and helps him up.
“Time to go home?” Yoongi asks, still groggy from sleep. Jimin nods, brushes his bangs from his face and plants a kiss on his forehead.
*
Hoseok lays his head on Yoongi’s shoulder. Their noona is setting up her workshop. The table is already lined up with the usual make-up products and brushes. Today they will be shooting an episode of Run BTS, which means Yoongi needs to conserve energy. He knows Hoseok does too. It’s easier for Hoseok to shift into a burst of energy but he tends to need a moment to himself before joining the chaos. Somewhere, Jin is also likely napping while they fix his hair and make-up. He had stayed up late with Namjoon about their schedules for the following month. In the background, Yoongi can hear their dongsaengs making the noonas laugh.
“Are you ready to have your ass kicked?” Hoseok teases, though his voice is still heavy with sleep.
“The disrespect!” he scoffs but he’s smiling as he says it. Hoseok giggles.
“Sorry-- I meant: are you ready to have your ass kicked, hyung?” he amends. They were shortly briefed yesterday. Nothing too specific: just that it was going to be an individual challenge, that it was going to be sponsored and that it was going to be done at a theme park. They had gone over the brand guidelines and the areas that would be left open for them to explore. After the briefing, there had been a lot of jokes about who was going to win and who was going to suffer the penalty.
“Not me,” Jimin had declared. Jungkook had taken one look at him and burst out laughing-- until Jin reminded him of his own spectacular loss recently.
Somehow, in between Namjoon almost tripping over the wires taped on the ground, Hoseok spending a suspicious ten minutes in the bathroom and Taehyung insisting Jungkook give him a piggyback ride, they are ready.
They breeze through the introductions, pretend they're surprised that it isn't a team challenge and chirp the sponsor's bullet points. The excitement is genuine, as is the competitive tension. As they move to split up, Hoseok slinks right beside Yoongi.
"Are you going to tell me you're the spy?" Yoongi stage whispers. He's trying to read the clue he got while trying to keep it away from Hoseok.
"Why does everyone always accuse me?" Hoseok asks, faking his surprise. His lips morph into a mischievous grin. "Would you believe me if I told you I know how we can get immunity?"
This gives Yoongi some pause. He can't trust Hoseok but neither does he want to do more work than he has to. He narrows his eyes.
"We're going to have to sabotage someone won't we?" he asks. Hoseok nods.
"The spy. I can pick someone to help me. They get my perks too," he says.
"Sounds like a lot of work," Yoongi grumbles.
"What if I told you the spy's name rhymes with Bark Shimin?" Hoseok asks and laughs, knowing that that's enough to spark Yoongi's competitive spirit. Yoongi and Jimin have both been in the bottom lately. The others were starting to joke that they were vying for last place.
"I'd say you just found yourself a partner in crime."
They shake on it and pretend to be chasing after Taehyung and Jin to throw Jimin off their scent. When he ends up stuck at the topmost point of the ferris wheel with Namjoon, Yoongi and Hoseok share a high five.
*
“Yoongi-hyung, let’s go for a drive.”
Yoongi looks up from the book he has been reading all evening. To be honest, he hasn’t been reading it so much as staring at the words, watching them blur into one entire paragraph. He hasn’t been able to concentrate, tapping his finger against the spine and clicking his ballpen over and over. He has been feeling restless all day. His mind itches; energy thrums low just beneath the tip of fingers. At first, he thought he had been struck by inspiration. But when he got to his studio, he had done nothing but sit down for the entire afternoon.
In front of him, Jimin dangles the car key. The ring of the keychain is hooked on his finger. He jangles it.
“Uhm,” Yoongi says.
“Come on, hyung. You can drive.” Jimin tosses him the key. Yoongi fumbles and nearly drops it.
“Careful,” Yoongi snaps. Jimin rolls his eyes.
"Yoongi. You've been tense. I know nothing else has been helping."
Yoongi sighs, feeling defeated. He closes his book and stands. Jimin smiles as Yoongi walks over. He takes Yoongi's hand and squeezes it in comfort.
"I’ll grab our jackets," Jimin says.
The jackets that Jimin grabs are both Yoongi's. One of them is padded, which Jimin hands over to Yoongi. Jimin also slips on fingerless gloves. For Jimin, he slips on Yoongi's leather jacket. The one he was wearing when they--
Yoongi flushes.
"How come you get to look cool while I look like a dumpling?" Yoongi complains.
"You're my delicious dumpling," Jimin says, moving to pinch Yoongi's cheek. Yoongi ducks out of the way.
"That doesn't even make sense," he says but doesn’t lean away from the kiss Jimin smacks on his nose.
This isn’t the first time they’ve taken to driving around the city. They slide in, making sure they’re buckled safely. Yoongi pulls out of the garage without activating the GPS. That’s the point of these drives-- that it is mindless, without a destination in mind. They have the windows rolled down because the late night wind is cool and so that they can let their thoughts dissipate into the city. They have the radio turned off because they invite the sounds of Seoul, drowning out any lingering thoughts that refuse to leave.
Beside him, Jimin is mostly quiet. He has his elbow propped against the door, chin on his curled fist. He is facing the streets but his other hand is resting on Yoongi’s thigh. The wind plays with his hair. Yoongi steals a look every now and then, consumed with a small desire to tuck Jimin’s hair behind his ear.
Yoongi’s grip on the steering wheel loosens as he feels some of the tension slide from his shoulder. They don’t have a destination in mind but they’ve done this often enough that muscle memory takes over and leads them around his usual route.
“Thank you,” Yoongi will say later, once they’ve returned. They will sit in the car for a few moments. Jimin will not say a word but he will brush his knuckles against Yoongi’s, on the hand gripping the stick shift.
*
“What are you writing about?” Jimin asks.
You , Yoongi wants to say. But not yet.
“This and that,” Yoongi murmurs instead. He looks at the dimple on the corner of Jimin’s smile. He crosses out a word on his notepad. He makes an asterisk above it. Crescent moon? he writes.
“Sounds like a lot,” Jimin says.
There are many moments , Yoongi wants to say. But, again, not yet.
“I don’t mind,” Yoongi replies and realizes that he really doesn’t mind. That he would have too many moments than too little of it at all.