Chapter Text
Jimin takes his headphones off his head as he decides on the track to be okay enough. He decides he can just double check it with Namjoon or Yoongi.
Speaking of the latter, Jimin remembers how Yoongi has become really busy for the release of his second solo album. He is impressed at how the elder keeps working and working without any break. It has been just around two months since they released their full album Map of the Soul:7.
What makes Jimin more intrigued is that Yoongi is learning sword dance for the title song of his album, Daechwita. It really doesn't help the huge crush he has on the male.
Checking the time, he finds the time to be only 7 in the evening so he immediately saves his progress, closes his computer and decides to pay Yoongi a little visit. And maybe swoon over his sword dance which Jimin is sure must look sexy.
On his way out, he peeks into Hoseok's studio, trying to inform him about his visit to the company building.
"Hobi yah!" He exclaims and when he doesn't get any reaction, he realises Hoseok has his headphones in, his focus solely on his laptop. Slowly, Jimin tiptoes to the other male. Grabbing one side of the headphone, Jimin lifts it up and yells, "Jung Hoseok!"
"Woah!" Hoseok jumps, his eyes wide with shock. He registers Jimin with a look filled with judgment as Jimin doubles over laughing.
"What the heck, Jimin! You scared me!"
"Of course, it was my intention after all." Jimin laughs off as Hoseok shakes his head in disbelief and drags his attention back to the monitor. "What's up?"
"I just came here to inform you that I'll be going to the company building for a while."
"Hmm? Why?"
Jimin flusters, caressing his left arm with his right hand. "Uhh, to see Yoongi hyung." Hoseok snorts.
"You're so damn whipped it's low key disgusting."
"Hey!" Jimin whines, offended. The other male chuckles. "Kidding, bro. Go and stare at him with heart eyes as he does the same to you. I don't understand why you two just don't confess and be together and shit."
Jimin rolls his eyes. "Because—Hobi hyung—two people have to like each other to be together and shit. And he doesn't like me that way. He just sees me as a cute little brother whom he can tease." He pouts.
"Yeah sure. Keep dancing around each other. Now go away and don't distract me! I want to get this tune right." Jimin nods and plants a quick kiss on Hoseok's head before storming off. He's sure he hears a fond "Disgustingly cute" before the door closes behind him.
Jimin skips and hums through the hallways, greeting people with a small "Hello!", as they pass by him, only one destination in his mind. Yoongi.
He can hear the amplitude of the music growing louder as he approaches their practice room. Sounds of Yoongi's rasp voice rapping wise words echoing through the corridor.
"Daechwita, Daechwita-"
Jimin slowly opens the door as the sound fills his ears clearly now, his head bobbing up and down on their own accord as the music hypes him up. He makes himself hide around a wall, only leaning to peek at Yoongi panting hard as sweat drips down his chin and drops to the cold hard floor below. Jimin notices he doesn't have a sword in his hand yet and pouts.
Yoongi wears a grey shirt with 'Fear of God' written on the centre. He chuckles remembering how Namjoon and Yoongi like twinning with their clothes. He doesn't really expect anything else from best friends of 10 years.
Jimin watches as Yoongi carefully listens to the sword dance instructor attentively, nodding his head and suggesting some moves himself. He laughs as he comes with a silly move and Jimin wonders what makes him the second eldest of the group. Not his personality at least that seems to resemble that of a baby.
Finally. Finally the time comes when Yoongi picks his sword up that was lying on the ground, a little far from them. He rotates the handle in his hand, tossing it and catching it gracefully as Jimin stares at him in awe.
If Yoongi is so good at handling a sword, he ponders how good he will be at a whole dance with it.
Jimin gulps when Yoongi and the instructor take their positions and the music starts, Jimin's eyes glued to the elder. Yoongi turns and moves beautifully, sharply pointing the sword into thin air as if cutting it, glaring at nothing as he gets into the character of his Music Video.
At some point, Jimin comes out of his hiding without realising it and stares at Yoongi with a gaped mouth. He feels his heart beating fast at how hot Yoongi looks dancing with a sword so effortlessly.
Suddenly, Yoongi's sharp gaze falls on him and Jimin feels his world halt. The gaze was so awfully familiar that it left a bitter feeling in his mouth. It felt so cold and distant as if Yoongi had been like that once.
Distantly, Jimin feels the vibrations of the music stop and Yoongi's voice calling his name in delight. But, he feels nothing but empty, sad, heartbroken, angry, upset and confused all at the same time.
Yoongi rests his sword on his right shoulder and smiles, approaching Jimin with a smile on his face. Jimin wishes he can smile back but there's bile rising in his throat and he wants to let everything out but he doesn't know what.
At that moment, everything just changes.
Instead of a practice room, Jimin finds himself standing in front of a large palace that seems royal. There are all sorts of people around him, wearing traditional hanboks and even some expensive silks.
But what really catches his attention is the blonde man in front of him.
It's the Min Yoongi he is familiar with. But at the same time, extremely unfamiliar.
The Yoongi he is seeing in front of him has his blonde hair tied in a bun on top of his head, prevented from falling by a pin. He has the coldest pair of eyes Jimin has ever seen on the eldest and Jimin wants to cry because this is not the Min Yoongi he knows.
But, what stops Jimin from breathing is the all too familiar sword on the blonde Yoongi's hand. Pointed at his own neck.
Then he hears the male rasp out an equally cruel sounding words as his eyes, "You never deserved to live Park Jimin."
It echoes through his head, Jimin feels his heart shatter.
"No," he whispers. Yoongi can't kill him. Yoongi, his Yoongi hyung can't do this to him.
But, his thoughts all come to a stop when the blonde Yoongi raises his sword, screaming out in rage and plants it right at Jimin's neck.
"No!" Jimin yells, falling down on the hard floor beneath him, his hands covering his ears. He doesn't feel pain in his neck and he realises with a start that he's still in the dance practice room.
He hears murmurs and chatters around him but he can only register a warm pair of hands wrapped around his torso.
Jimin blinks his eyes open, noticing the staff staring at him with a worried look in their eyes. He wants nothing more than the ground to swallow him. How embarrassing it is to scream and fall on his own in front of the whole staff!
"Jimin-ah."
Jimin looks over to the soft call of his name, spoke so tenderly as if it will break him if spoken louder. He doesn't know why a sudden inexplicable fear creeps onto him when he comes face-to-face with the person who tried kill him in his- in his--
He doesn't even know what that was. Was it a dream? Or an illusion?
Or memory?
But, he doesn't get too much time to think about it when Yoongi wraps his hands tighter around Jimin and he flinches, wanting nothing more than to be away from the man.
"Leave me!" He chokes out, tears rolling down his cheeks without a warning and tries to pry Yoongi's hands away from him.
"Jimin why?" He looks over to find Yoongi staring at him with eyes filled with concern but Jimin can't help but think it's all fake.
"Leave me please. No, don't touch me!" He sobs and thrashes around, not caring if people see him acting like this. He just wants to be freed from Yoongi and stay as far as he can from him.
Jimin feels the pressure around his body loosen and he immediately tries to get up and run away. But, before he could, all energy leaves his body, his eyes roll back and he falls, expecting the hard surface to hit him but instead he feels something soft engulf him.
He doesn't have enough time to register before he closes his eyes entirely and slips into unconsciousness.
☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆
Jimin huffed as his feet landed on the dirty ground below him. Jumping over the palace walls had always been too energy consuming and difficult. But, even then Jimin couldn't stop himself from doing it so as to have a taste of freedom he had never experienced before.
A crowned prince. That's what he was.
A crowned prince shielded from the eyes of the world outside the palace, whose scent was not allowed to leave the confines of his room, whose voice only echoed in the emptiness of his room.
Park Jimin was well protected by the guards, maids, eunuchs of the palace who were quite trustworthy, if not more. Everything was so strict around him that if anyone even tried to leak any information about him outside, they could get found immediately and exiled.
The workers awed when he walked through the corridors with so much grace that unwillingly brought the words, "A prince indeed," to their mouths.
Jimin hated it. Staying in the palace for more than 20 years was like a torture to him. When he mentioned going out to his parents, the King and the Queen, they would sternly reply "The palace is big enough for you to wander around. There's absolutely no need for you to go outside."
Jimin understood where they were coming from. He really did. He knew how many enemies the royals had outside. Especially the rebels who wouldn't blink an eye before killing a royal, innocent or guilty.
But, that didn't mean he didn't crave for his freedom. He always ached to go out and explore the world he was always restricted to. He wanted to smell the scent of nature, watch the crowd bustling, and hear the loud calls of the shopkeepers.
So he did. It was a secret between him and his close friend, also a part of the royal kitchen, Kim Taehyung. After numerous pleadings, Jimin convinced Taehyung to sleep in his place sometimes during the night and those nights he would especially tell the eunuchs to not disturb him at all no matter what happens.
Jimin dusted his clothes that looked far from royal, picked his bag where he put random necessities and made his way to the midnight market. Some liquor shops and kisaeng parlours were open at this time of the night and since Jimin knew he wasn't really fond of women as he was of men, his only destination was the liquor shop surrounded by some other shops.
He dropped his bag on the bench and sat down. "A vial of liquor, please!" Jimin ordered with his respectful and polite voice. The owner of the shop, who he had got to know these past few days, immediately got him one and smiled at him.
"Jimin-ah! You came early from your trip this time," the old man rasped in his gruff voice. Jimin had lied about him being a trader and said he always came back to that city after every visit.
"The journey this time was shorter and trade didn't go that well." He said and gulped the liquor from the earthen vial. A few minutes went by with Jimin just sitting there and observing the citizens, laughing and enjoying themselves in the beautiful darkness of the hour.
He was so distracted that he jumped when another body sat beside him on the bench. Jimin shifted his gaze to his left, finding a man, his blonde hair tied into a pony and falling over his face, obstructing Jimin's view of the said man.
Jimin's eyes traveled down to the long scabbard he held in his hand that was digging the earth underneath.
"Oi!" He called, voice gruff as if it hadn't been used for hours. "Give me a drink!" The shop owner raised his brow at the disrespectful mention but did nothing about it. Instead asking, "What kind?"
At that moment the man sighed and turned towards Jimin and it was then when the prince noticed the features of the man.
The blonde had a button nose contrasting his sharp facial features, lips thin and turned into a frown, an eyebrow raised in amusement and then Jimin saw his eyes.
Eyes that seemed nothing but hollow. A mystery deep inside, a burning anger masking the feelings inside his heart.
"Give me the drink this guy is drinking." He ordered, eyes never leaving Jimin's own. The latter gulped, suddenly feeling exposed under the piercing stare of the broad looking man. Hesitantly, he turned away, his hands shaking as he took hold of the neck of the vial and brought it to his lips.
"You don't seem to be a villager."
Jimin choked on his drink, coughing and stared at the man beside him in bewilderment. "Excuse me?"
"I mean," the blonde signaled to Jimin's body with his hand. "You don't have a scar or any sign of hardwork on your body. Not even a speck of dust. Your hair even seems cleaner than most people, almost like..."
Jimin's eyes turned curious as the man trailed off.
"Like a noble."
Jimin scoffed. He swept the other vial of drink and took a quick gulp. "I'm a trader, kind sir. I do have lots of money to spare and take care of myself well enough." The man stared at Jimin for a while before nodding and turning his head.
The prince sighed in relief as the blonde seemed to believe his made up lie. They stayed quiet for a while before the man beside him broke it.
"I've never seen a villager so beautiful, is why. I apologise for my assumption." Jimin turned a dark shade of red at the indirect compliment and discovered the blonde man eyeing him with eyes filled with amusement.
The rest of the time was spent with both the men not engaging in another conversation again and just silently drinking their liquor with thoughts muddled deep in their mind.
Jimin had quite a high alcohol tolerance but he could still feel himself getting a bit tipsy. That was when he noticed the first rays of the sun peeking from behind the clouds and Jimin cursed under his breath for being late. He was sure Taehyung was going to bite his head off.
Hastily, he got up and paid the owner full from the rather large pouch full of coins and wobbled his way outside. Suddenly, he felt something tugging his arm and he stopped and looked at the blonde man who had his palm wrapped around Jimin's wrist.
"Leaving already? I wish to get to know you better."
Jimin cleared his throat, looking away from the attractive eyes of the other male. "I'm going to be here tomorrow night too. Meet me again here if you really want to know me." He said before forcing his arm out of the other's hold and speed walking the way to the palace. If he got too late, he might get in too much trouble and the chance to get to know the mysterious man would fly away.
The prince wouldn't try to indulge himself with outsiders. He'd always stay secluded so that no one tried to get too close to his comfort zone. He didn't understand why he was letting a stranger inside his life when he knew it was no use. Even if they did become friends, everything would go down the drain as soon as Jimin became the King.
Too deep in his thoughts, Jimin didn't notice the sound of footsteps getting closer to him at a fast pace. He got caught off guard when there's suddenly a kick thrown to his back, making him fall on the dusty ground.
Panicked, he looked up to find two men who he had seen drinking in the liquor shop just minutes ago. They had knives in their hands, eyes in a threatening glare as their lips formed the words "Give us all the money you have."
Jimin stared at them in disbelief. All those for money? Money was nothing for a royal like him. But, if he acted too carefree, he'd let himself seem suspicious. So acting scared, Jimin shook his head in denial.
"I won't. It's the only way of living for me."
"Well, you can die for all we care. Either way, you'll die if you don't hand over the coins right now." They threatened before moving closer. Jimin jumped up from the ground and tried to run but was caught immediately by the other two.
It was not like the prince didn't know how to fight. He did. Infact, he practiced with their General Namjoon everyday. It was just that he didn't want to waste any more time with the thugs and just wanted to pretend to put up a fight so that the two male could get what they wanted and he could run back to the palace.
Jimin was thrown against the wall as one of the two hovered over him, face pinched in suppressed anger. "Yoy fucking bitch!"
Jimin's eyes widened when he saw the man raising his fist to land a punch on his face. He closed his eyes and ducked his face a little, waiting for the impact which never actually came.
When he opened his eyes back, Jimin found the two men lying on the ground and groaning in pain as the blonde man from before kicked them mercilessly.
Jimin just stared at the man in child-like wonder, how he hurt the thugs with growls emerging from his gritted teeth, how his blonde hair swayed with each movement and how he chased them away with an angry yell of "If I ever see you hovering in this town again I'm going to tear your insides!"
The man turned to Jimin then, eyebrows furrowed in concern and approached him. "Are you okay?" Jimin nodded with a gaped mouth, just then noticing the light scars decorating the man's pale face. Scars that indicated struggle against the cruel ways of life.
"Who are you?" Jimin asked despite his mind sending warning bells that that wasn't a good idea at all. The man's lips turned upwards a little, a slight smile the prince saw for the first time on him.
"Min Yoongi at your service, good sir." He replied back almost in mocking respect. "What about you?" Yoongi asked back and before Jimin could stop himself he blurted out.
"Park Jimin."
There was a sudden and drastic change in Yoongi's expression and then Jimin realised his mistake. He revealed his true name which the whole kingdom knew, despite not seeing his face.
There was only one Park family in the entire kingdom. And that was the royals.
Spluttering, Jimin informed Yoongi to catch up with him the next day and ran off to the palace, realising it was already very late and it'd be a miracle if he didn't get found out.
On the way back, Jimin allowed his mind to wander back to Min Yoongi, the way he spoke, the way he moved, the way he stared.
He remembered how Yoongi's eyes turned hard and sharp at the mention of his name. Jimin saw the anger resurfacing and the tightening of Yoongi's jaw.
He hoped it was just the sudden realisation of meeting with the Crowned Prince of Joseon and nothing else.
Jimin prayed it was nothing else...