Work Text:
He doesn’t understand why Taehyung can’t just keep the waffle maker at home. Why does he need to keep it at the storage unit in their building? The very dark, very scary storage unit at that. And why does he have to make Jimin go get it?
Okay, it was Jimin who asked for waffles, but that doesn’t mean that he’s the one that has to go get the damn thing from the storage unit.
He keeps cursing Taehyung on his way down there and trying to hype himself up. What is the worst thing that can happen? Maybe he’ll run into a spider, maybe the spider will bite him. Maybe it’ll kill him. Great, he’s going to die in a dark storage unit, and it’s all because he woke up craving fucking waffles.
When he finally gets there he has to push the door with his whole body to get it to open. He can’t see a damn thing inside there, and the stale air makes his throat feel scratchy. He can tell no one has been down there since people took off their Christmas decorations and hauled them there to hide for the rest of the year. That was back in January and it’s already August, so it’s really damn smelly down there.
He grabs his phone and turns on his flashlight. How is he supposed to find their small blue waffle maker inside that mess? He knows it’ll take a while, so he starts looking around. Okay, honestly, he’s also snooping around a bit, the waffles can wait.
As predicted, he spots several Christmas trees and decorations. He can see multiple boxes stacked on a corner of the room, and there are also a few pieces of furniture that have obviously seen better days. He’s about to open a drawer to peek inside when he looks up and sees a flash of blue to his left. Right, he’s there to get the waffle maker, not to snoop in their neighbors’ belongings.
He walks over to where he saw the flash of blue and sees a basket full of random things, between which he can spot their waffle maker. He starts moving things around to get it out of there, and can’t help but snort at the selection of items in the basket. A shoe, two wine glasses, some random photo frames, and a can of insecticide.
He’s moving things around and just as he grabs the can, he hears a noise behind him. He turns around, insecticide in hand, and spots a big burly man holding what looks like an ax, standing right in front of him. He can’t help the scream he lets out at being scared by the man. And he’s about to say something to apologize when the man starts getting closer to him and reaches his hand as if to grab Jimin.
In a state of panic, Jimin uncaps the insecticide and sprays it right on the man’s face. And as the guy staggers back and howls in pain, Jimin drops the insecticide, grabs his waffle maker, and bolts.
❧
Jimin opens the door to their apartment and closes it quickly, as if the guy from the storage unit was chasing him, and he locks it for good measure. He’s just taking off his shoes when he hears a voice.
“What the hell took you so long?” Taehyung turns around as he’s reaching for the waffle mix inside the counter.
“I.. I was almost murdered?” Jimin’s still processing what happened. He takes the few steps to get to the kitchen and places the waffle maker on the counter absentmindedly. Taehyung turns around completely with a confused and worried look on his face.
“What do you mean you were almost murdered?” He walks over to Jimin and starts patting him and turning him around as if looking for injuries. When he sees none, he places the back of his hand on Jimin’s forehead to check his temperature. When he notices nothing is wrong with Jimin, he steps back and leans against their kitchen island. “I thought you only went down to the storage unit to get the waffle maker?”
“Exactly! I was minding my own business, totally not snooping on the neighbor’s belongings, by the way.” Taehyung scoffs. “Oh shut up, you would’ve done it too. So I was minding my own business and couldn’t find the waffle maker, couldn’t see shit, either. They need to add more lightning to that room, and maybe let it air out once in a while, it smelled awful.” Jimin starts rambling and Taehyung sighs.
“Jimin.”
“Right! Right. So I saw the waffle maker and it was inside a random basket next to some wine glasses and a can of insecticide. Who the fuck puts a can of insecticide next to a kitchen appliance?” Taehyung rolls his eyes at Jimin’s dramatic retelling. “Anyway, I had just grabbed the can when I heard a noise behind me and I turned around and saw this big ass yeti looking man standing there looming over me, with an ax. I swear he was huge and had crazy hair and a weird beard.” Jimin explains, gasping for breath after letting all that information out quickly. “And it was all okay until he approached me and tried to grab me! So I did what any sane person would’ve done and I sprayed him with the insecticide.” Jimin finishes proudly.
“You sprayed a poor random man with insecticide?” Taehyung says flatly.
“He was trying to kill me!” Jimin shrieks.
“Wait, you said he was a big man?” Taehyung stops him, and he looks as if he had just realized something.
“Yes.” Jimin nods.
“About this tall?” Taehyung raises his hand a few centimeters above his head.
“Yes.” Jimin nods again.
“Crazy blondish hair and uneven beard?”
“Yes.”
“Oh my god,” Taehyung says and slaps his hand on top of his mouth to physically hold back his laugh.
“What?” Jimin asks impatiently, he has no idea what’s happening and Taehyung doesn’t look willing to explain any time soon.
“Oh my god.” Taehyung repeats, “you sprayed Namjoon,” he says and finally lets it out, laughing loudly until he’s gasping for air.
“Who the fuck is Namjoon?”
“He’s new to the building, he moved in like a week ago.” Taehyung starts explaining while going back to preparing the waffle mix. “He spent like 6 months in the middle of the jungle working on a project. Something to do with animals, and I think he actually works for like, National Geographic or some serious magazine like that. I bumped into him two days ago while checking our mailbox. He’s actually really nice,” he pauses and lets out an incredulous laugh, “and you went out and sprayed him with insecticide, right on his face. Nice way of making a good first impression, Min.”
“Oh, shut up! How was I supposed to know that? And what was I supposed to do when it looked like he was trying to grab me?!”
“I don’t know,” Taehyung throws his hands up in the air incredulously, “maybe not spray him with some toxic shit? Who knows what it did to him. You could’ve blinded him for all you know.”
“You- you don’t think I actually blinded him, right?” When Taehyung doesn’t respond, Jimin goes up to him and grabs him by the shoulders. “Right?!”
“And how would I know?!” Taehyung exclaims while shaking him off. “It’s not like I can read his mind from all the way up here!”
“Well, you should! You totally should be able to! That way you’d tell me what he’s thinking and I wouldn't have to suffer about it.” Jimin shrieks and Taehyung lets out a laugh.
“You know you could just like, go down there and apologize, right? Actually, you should go do that, right now.” Taehyung explains slowly as if to make sure Jimin understands what he’s talking about.
“Shut up. I don’t want him to see me yet. I’m too embarrassed,” Jimin mumbles sheepishly.
“Well, I’d be extremely concerned if I were you, so I get it,” Taehyung says with a nod
“Gee, thanks.”
“I mean, imagine going down there to grab something from the storage unit and having a random silver-haired twink spray you with some toxic shit…”
“Ha, ha,” Jimin fake laughs, mentally shooting daggers at Taehyung’s back.
“And then just leaving you there while you suffer..”
“Stop.” Jimin whines.
“And then you try to walk upstairs to wash that thing off your face but you can’t see a thing because the spray got in your eyes and you trip… Oh no, what if he really tripped, Jiminie? What if he got injured?” He stops pouring the waffle mix for a second as if to think about something. More injured, I mean. What if he broke something?” he turns towards Jimin and lowers his voice when he speaks next. “Oh, what if he died?” When Jimin’s eyes go wide, he shrugs and turns around once again to finish working on the waffles. “Well, I guess there’s nothing we can do now. Can you grab the syrup?”
“How can you torture me like this?” Jimin splutters and Taehyung lets out a laugh, grabbing the waffles and putting them on the table next to Jimin.
“Look, all I’m trying to get you to understand here is that you should definitely apologize to him. Okay?” Taehyung looks at him with a serious expression on his face and Jimin sighs. “You don’t want him thinking you’re a rude person, do you?”
“Of course not,” Jimin pouts and Taehyung coos and pinches his cheek. He knows Taehyung is right, but that doesn’t mean that he likes to admit it. Jimin bats his hand away and reaches out to grab one of the waffles “You know I hate it when people assume wrong things about me,” he pauses, looking anywhere but at where Taehyung is, “but I really am embarrassed.” He soaks his waffles in maple syrup and takes a bite, he sees Taehyung grimacing from the corner of his eye. “And besides, I don’t even know his apartment number.”
“That can be fixed right now!” Taehyung exclaims, getting up from the table and grabbing Jimin’s hand “I’ll take you!”
Jimin yanks his hand back and stares at Taehyung incredulously “You know where he lives?” he splutters, and Taehyung nods frantically.
“He told me! He lives down on 312,” he grabs Jimin’s hand again and tries to make him get up, but Jimin stays put and refuses to do so.
“I’m not going right now! I look like shit!” Jimin exclaims, yanking his hand back once again and Taehyung looks at him incredulously.
“Jimin-ah, he literally just saw you like 10 minutes ago.”
“Well, it was dark! He couldn’t really see what I look like!”
“Why do you care about what he thinks? Honey, you sprayed him with insecticide, that ship has sailed.” Taehyung sighs after sitting back down and taking a bite of his waffles.
Jimin pouts, eyebrows scrunched down and everything. “I’ll go apologize right before going to work, okay? Now leave me alone and finish your waffles, I didn’t go through all that trouble for you not to eat them!”
“You were the one that wanted waffles! And I made them, not you!” Taehyung exclaims outrageously and Jimin lets out a giggle.
❧
Jimin regrets telling Taehyung he was going to apologize because he knows he isn’t going to let it go until Jimin goes through with it. The minute Jimin got ready to leave for work he heard Taehyung yell all the way from his room “I’ll be looking forward to hearing how your apology went!” and Jimin didn’t respond, just put on his shoes and walked out, pretending like he didn’t hear.
He clutches the handle of his briefcase between his fingers and prays that Namjoon isn’t home so he’ll have an excuse to go back later. He gets out of the elevator on the third floor and searches the door with the silver 312 on it.
Jimin’s nervous. Why is he so nervous? He just needs to knock, say sorry, and go on with his day. What’s the worst thing that could happen? I mean, maybe what Taehyung said was right, maybe the guy— Namjoon, got injured. Maybe the guy is angry. He’ll surely understand it was a mistake on Jimin’s part, right? He didn’t do it on purpose.
Before he can get even more worked up about it, he takes a deep breath and knocks on the door. Jimin’s still hoping Namjoon isn’t home and he’ll have to come back later. That thought goes out the window the moment he hears some noise behind the door, and seconds later the door is opening.
“Can I help you?” Namjoon says, he doesn’t look annoyed, that’s good. That’s very good. Maybe Jimin won’t die at the hands of an angry yeti guy today. Jimin takes a good look at him and notices the baggy clothes, the uneven beard, and the messy hair. He’s really tall, he looks muscular too.
“Hi,” Jimin says, a sheepish expression on his face, “I’m the guy who sprayed you earlier.”
“I know.”
“I came here to apologize—” Jimin starts.
“Okay, bye,” Namjoon interrupts him and starts to close the door. Jimin lets out an indignant noise and stops the door from closing.
“I’m not done apologizing yet,” Jimin reproaches, and Namjoon raises an eyebrow at this, “I’m sorry I sprayed you, I shouldn’t have done it, but you gotta admit you looked a bit threatening holding that ax.”
“Okay,” Namjoon says, a straight expression on his face as he tries to close the door again.
“Wait!” Jimin shouts, exasperated. He puts his foot between the door and the frame to stop it from closing.
“What?” Namjoon looks annoyed now, and Jimin can’t even feel bad about it. He’s trying to apologize and Namjoon is being an asshole about it. It’s not fair.
“That doesn’t seem like a sincere acceptance to my apology,” Jimin says, and maybe he’s pouting a little, sue him. Namjoon is being rude to him and Jimin doesn’t like it one bit.
“Well, too bad,” Namjoon shrugs, “if you’ll excuse me,” he says and nudges Jimin’s foot away, “I have things to do.”
And with that, he closes the door and leaves Jimin out there, wondering what the fuck just happened.
❧
By the time Jimin gets home from work, he’s still angry about it. Namjoon didn’t seem like he was accepting Jimin’s apology, and that doesn’t sit right with Jimin.
You see, Jimin doesn’t like it when people don’t like him. It’s a problem, he’s well aware.
He’s too worked up about it, and maybe that’s the reason why, when he gets home, he closes the door with a little too much force. Taehyung peeks his head from inside his room, and when he sees Jimin fumbling to take his shoes off and dropping his briefcase next to the entrance with a touch of anger, Taehyung walks out and hugs him.
“What’s wrong, Jiminie?” Taehyung coos and Jimin instantly feels the tiniest amount better.
“I’m upset.”
“I can tell,” Taehyung giggles, “wanna tell me what happened?”
“I’ll tell you what happened,” Jimin says angrily, “I went and apologized to that Namjoon guy, who is an asshole, by the way.”
“Really? What happened?” Taehyung asks, guiding Jimin to the couch and sitting down with Jimin’s legs on his lap, “How did it go?”
“It went fantastic,” Jimin says, dripping with sarcasm, and Taehyung raises both eyebrows at the tone, “He’s an asshole.”
“I’m gonna need you to elaborate on that, Min.”
“First of all , he didn’t accept my apology,” Jimin huffs, thinking about the way Namjoon dismissed his apology and closed the door on Jimin’s face.
“What? Why not?” Taehyung says scandalized, and Jimin throws both hands in the air with exasperation.
“Exactly!” Jimin shrieks, “It’s not like I did it on purpose! I even went and apologized, most people would’ve just decided to forget it happened.”
“What did he do?”
“I said I was sorry for spraying him, and that I did it because he looked threatening holding that ax,” Jimin explains, “and he just said ‘okay’ and tried to close the door on my face!”
“Min…” Taehyung sighs, “You basically blamed him for what you did.”
“I did not, ” Jimin says defensively.
“You kinda did,” Taehyung explains with a grimace, “And what happened next?”
“I told him his acceptance to my apology didn’t seem sincere, and he said ‘well, too bad’ and closed the door on my face,” Jimin finishes with a pout and Taehyung lets out a laugh.
“You need to practice your apologies, Min.”
“Are you taking his side!?” Jimin whines, hurt.
Taehyung rolls his eyes and pulls Jimin onto his lap, “I’m not taking his side, I’m just saying your apologies need a little work. But I do agree, he was an asshole to you, and that wasn’t very nice of him.”
“It wasn’t,” Jimin pouts and Taehyung coos at him.
“He was really nice when I met him, maybe he’s having a bad day?” Taehyung says and Jimin huffs, he didn’t seem nice at all, “I hope the next time you two meet he’s nicer to you, otherwise I’ll need to have a talk with him.”
“Are you gonna defend my honor, Taehyungie?” Jimin giggles and Taehyung lets out a laugh.
“You know I would, Jiminie,” Taehyung says and pets Jimin’s head. “Now, wanna watch a movie and order some takeout?”
“Yes, please,” Jimin mumbles, already making himself comfortable on top of Taehyung. Jimin doesn’t know what he would do without him, he’s always there for him, and always ready to distract him whenever Jimin’s thoughts get bad.
Jimin rests his head on Taehyung’s shoulder, and as they wait for their food, he thinks about his interaction with Namjoon and wishes he doesn’t run into him anytime soon.
❧
Jimin’s wish doesn’t come true.
You see, Jimin has almost forgotten about the incident by now. Almost.
Jimin’s walking into his apartment building when he remembers he should check his mailbox, so he makes a sudden turn left towards where the mailboxes are, and he bumps into someone.
“Sorry,” Jimin apologizes, and the rest of his apology dies in his throat when he looks up.
Because no, he doesn’t just bump into someone, he bumps into Namjoon.
At first, Jimin almost doesn’t recognize him, his hair is shorter now, and there’s no beard. Jimin notices how much brighter his eyes look, and how pretty his lips are. He shakes himself when he notices Namjoon looking at him with an unimpressed expression on his face.
“You must like to apologize a lot,” Namjoon says, and it almost seems like he’s mocking Jimin, which Jimin does not appreciate.
“Listen,” Jimin starts, “I already said I’m sorry. Besides, I explained that you looked really threatening and I got scared. If you had looked like you look right now, I wouldn’t have sprayed you.” Jimin explains, and he’s already tired of talking about this. He just wants to forget about the whole thing. Is it too much to ask? He made a mistake, he’s human, shit like this happens all the time. Well, he’s not sure that many people get sprayed with insecticide daily, but you get the point.
Namjoon nods and Jimin thinks this is the moment when Namjoon finally accepts his apology, but then he opens his mouth, “I get it, lots of people judge others based on appearance, it’s no big deal.” Namjoon says nonchalantly, and Jimin splutters indignantly.
“Excuse me!” Jimin says, outraged, “are you trying to call me superficial!?”
Namjoon laughs at this as if Jimin said something amusing. “I mean, look at you,” Namjoon says, gesturing at Jimin, “the suit, the shoes, the shopping bags…”
“And!? ” Jimin shrieks, “aren’t you doing what you’re calling me out for? How do you know if these aren’t clothes I plan on donating? Huh?”
“Well, are you donating them?” Namjoon raises an eyebrow and Jimin feels himself blush in embarrassment.
“Not… these ones exactly,” Jimin mumbles, and Namjoon laughs at him, “but the point still stands! You’re judging me based on how I look, which by the way I did not do with you.”
“Oh, please!” Namjoon scoffs, “you totally did!”
“I did not!” Jimin huffs.
“You did!
“Ugh! I can’t talk to you anymore!” Jimin shrieks, upset, “It doesn’t matter what I say, you’ll still think I’m the bad guy. Well, think whatever the fuck you want! I’m done with this conversation!” Jimin finishes and stomps away before Namjoon can say another word. And he forgets the mail he was supposed to get— well, he’ll make Taehyung get it later.
❧
Jimin hates Namjoon, really. He’s rude and condescending, and he smells nice, and he has pretty hair, and— wait. That’s not what he meant.
Jimin really hates Namjoon. He’s still upset as he rides the elevator up to his floor, and he’s still upset as he opens the door to his apartment and takes off his shoes and dumps his briefcase and shopping bags on the floor. He’s definitely still upset when he spots Taehyung’s shoes at the entrance, and he’s furious when he calls out Taehyung’s name on his way to the couch.
“Taehyungie!” Jimin yells, slumping down on the couch.
“Yes?” Taehyung asks as he steps into the living room, “What has you so worked up?” he asks when he notices Jimin’s deep frown.
“I ran into Namjoon.”
“Oh?”
“And he was being an asshole as usual,” Jimin whines, “Did you know he cut his hair? And he shaved, I didn’t know he had such pretty eyes, or lips…” Taehyung clears his throat, looking at Jimin with amusement and Jimin sits up on the couch, “Whatever, it doesn’t matter if he’s cute, he’s still an asshole.”
“Cute, huh? I did see him earlier, and he does look cute. He has a pretty smile, too,” Taehyung mentions, and Jimin glares at him.
So what if Namjoon didn’t smile at Jimin? Jimin doesn’t care, Jimin hates him anyway.
“I don’t care, I hate him,” Jimin tells Taehyung with a pout, and Taehyung pats his head softly.
“Jiminie, I think this situation became way bigger than it was supposed to get. I actually think that if you both sat down and talked about it instead of yelling at each other, you’d be friends,” Taehyung says as he cards his fingers through Jimin’s hair soothingly.
“I don’t wanna,” Jimin pouts, “He called me superficial.”
“That wasn’t very nice of him, I admit,” Taehyung grimaces.
“And he made fun of me, too.”
“I’m sorry, Min,” Taehyung coos, “I hope he realizes what a wonderful person you are and apologizes.”
“I just,” Jimin sighs, “You know I hate when people judge me based on what I do, or how I look. You know how many times people have judged me because they think I’m just a pretty face , and how much people doubted my authority at work because they didn’t think I was able to be head of my department just based on the way I look,” Jimin mumbles. And Taehyung does know, he was there whenever Jimin came back from work and cried out of frustration because no one at work took him seriously. Taehyung remembers seeing Jimin in college, sad every time a guy expected him to be just a pretty boy with no thoughts of his own, and how angry he got whenever he realized guys were all about his appearance and not as much about his personality.
“The world is just stupid, Jiminie, it doesn’t deserve you,” Taehyung says and places a soft kiss on Jimin’s temple.
Jimin doesn’t say anything else as Taehyung continues to play with his hair, and when Taehyung starts talking about his date with Hoseok, Jimin pays attention like Taehyung always does when Jimin is the one speaking. They stay like that till dinner time, and when Jimin finally falls asleep, hours later, he doesn’t feel as upset anymore.
❧
Jimin’s glad when, the next day, Taehyung texts him to meet him out for lunch. He’s having an awful day at work, the collection they have been working on is turning out to be a pain in the ass, and as one of the head designers, all the responsibility is on him. Things are finally starting to work out when Taehyung texts him, and after having worked all morning, Jimin thinks he deserves a break.
So, he thinks his day is looking up when he walks into his favorite café, and he can’t wait to eat a slice of his favorite cake for dessert.
He looks up, looking for Taehyung inside the restaurant, and he can’t find him. He’s about to grab his phone to text him when he sees someone familiar out of the corner of his eye. He turns to his left and sees Namjoon sitting on the other side of the café, staring out the window. What a happy fucking coincidence.
Annoyed, he grabs his phone and sees he actually has a text from Taehyung.
From: taetae
are u there yet ?
From: jimin
yes, where tf are you?? i’m hungry
From: taetae
is namjoon there yet ?
From: jimin
????????????
yes??????
why is he here though??????
From: taetae
have fun ! see you at home 😋
From: jimin
??????????
tae????????
what the fuck am i supposed to do????
...
fuck you
Jimin puts his phone back in his pocket with a sigh. Fuck Taehyung and his need to have everyone in his life be friends.
He’s debating on whether he should order his lunch to go and leave when Namjoon looks up and makes eye contact with him. Jimin knows he’s fucked at this point and resigns to his fate. He walks over to Namjoon’s table and sits opposite him. Namjoon looks at him with a puzzled expression on his face and Jimin puts on a fake smile.
“Hello!”
“What are you doing here?” Namjoon asks, looking everywhere as if looking for an answer. Jimin laughs at his expression and Namjoon turns back to him with a glare.
“I suppose Taehyung told you he was meeting you for lunch?” when Namjoon mumbles a small yes, Jimin nods in understanding, “well, it looks like he tricked us both.”
“What do you mean?” Namjoon asks with a confused expression on his face.
“He told me he was meeting me here, too,” Jimin explains with a somber expression, “turns out it was just a trick to get us to talk to each other and stop fighting. You see, Taehyung doesn’t like it when his friends are not friends.”
“I didn’t think I was his friend yet.”
“It looks like you are, seeing as you’re here to meet him for lunch,” Jimin points out and Namjoon sighs, leaning back against his seat.
“Okay, I guess I am. But I still don’t get why we’re here.”
“I guess he saw how upset I was about our fights and he wanted to make it better,” Jimin admits sheepishly.
“Our fights?”
“You know, where I sprayed you with insecticide and you called me superficial, we’ve been over this already,” Jimin explains, and he sees Namjoon’s expression darken, “I told him how upset I was about you calling me that, and how wrong it was of you, and I guess he didn’t like that.”
“But you are superficial!” Namjoon says, slamming his hand on the table with an upset expression, “you saw me and my messy hair and messy clothes and because of it I wasn’t deemed good enough -”
“Listen, I don’t know what type of insecurities you’re trying to project onto me right now,” Jimin stops him with a confused expression, “but I literally just sprayed you because you were holding an ax and are taller than me,” Jimin explains in a loud voice and Namjoon closes his mouth, looking at the people around them.
“So you’re gonna tell me you didn’t spray me because of the way I looked? Bullshit,” Namjoon argues, lowering his voice. Jimin can tell that it’s something that bothers Namjoon, and he feels bad about it.
“Seriously! It was dark as hell down there. All I saw was you towering over me holding an ax and I freaked,” Jimin says, and he feels bad about the situation all over again. Jimin considers himself a peaceful person, he would never harm anyone unless it were to defend himself. And that’s what he thought he was doing when he sprayed Namjoon. He never intended to harm him, even less because of the way he looked. It was an honest mistake on Jimin’s part, and he really wants Namjoon to understand that, “Listen, I know I already apologized. But I’m really sorry about spraying you. I really thought I was in danger for a split second, and I reacted badly. It was never about the way you looked, it was about the fact that I was alone in a dark basement and I saw a tall guy with an ax walking towards me,” Jimin rants, and he sees Namjoon’s expression clear a bit.
“I think I overreacted too,” Namjoon admits, “I was hurt because I thought you were judging me based on my appearance and I got defensive. Sorry if I was rude,” Namjoon seems honest about it, and when Jimin makes eye contact with him, Namjoon even smiles. Taehyung was right, he has a pretty smile. A very pretty smile, it makes his eyes disappear, and he has dimples. Jimin almost sobs when he sees Namjoon’s dimples peek through.
“I think Taehyung is right,” Jimin giggles. When he sees Namjoon’s confused expression, he explains, “he told me the whole situation blew out of proportion, and if we were to talk we would realize it was all a misunderstanding.”
“I guess he was right,” Namjoon agrees with a nod and a smile, and Jimin returns it.
“Well,” Jimin sits up and checks his clock, “I still have a little over an hour left before I have to be back at the office and I’m starving, wanna get something to eat?” Jimin asks, already reaching for the menu, and Namjoon laughs, reaching for one as well.
❧
“So, Taehyung told me you spent like half a year in the middle of the jungle?” Jimin starts, he’s halfway done with his chicken and herbs panini, and the past few minutes have been silent except for the sound of them eating.
Namjoon wipes his mouth with a napkin before clearing his throat, “I was, yeah.” He nods eagerly, “I work for National Geographic, I went there to photograph ocelots. You see, there’s only a specific time of the year and region in which you can find this species, so I had to be on the lookout all day, every day. And once I was there, I decided to stay a couple more months, build my portfolio, get some more shots of other animals,” Namjoon stops to take a sip of his iced tea, before continuing, “It’s so interesting to see animals in their natural habitat. At first, I was worried about disturbing them, but I learned how to behave in order to blend in, and now animals barely notice me as I work around them…” Namjoon explains passionately, and Jimin is aware he’s looking at Namjoon with what probably looks like heart eyes right now, but he can’t help it.
He’s so immersed in what Namjoon is saying, that he doesn’t even notice his phone ringing in his pocket. He grabs it and sees Beomgyu’s name on the screen, “I’m sorry, I need to take this,” Jimin excuses himself before answering, “Yes?”
“Jimin-ssi,” Beomgyu says, and he sounds way happier than he sounded before Jimin left, “Seokjin-ssi was able to find a solution for the design problem we had, and now the outfit is working perfectly,” Beomgyu says excitedly and Jimin smiles at his enthusiasm.
“That’s great, Beomgyu-ssi. Is there a reason for your call, though?”
“Oh yes! Sorry! Yoongi-ssi came by and looked at the designs and he was really happy with them, he told us to get the rest of the day, so I called to let you know you don’t need to come back to the office and I can put your things away so that you don’t have to come get them, if you want.” Beomgyu gasps for air at the end of his ramble, and Jimin giggles at his assistant’s antics.
“That would be great, Beomgyu-ssi. I guess I’ll see you tomorrow, then.”
“See you tomorrow!” Beomgyu says enthusiastically, and Jimin hangs up.
Jimin walks over to their table and he feels lighter already, he was still worried about that design and was dreading going back to the office, and the fact that he doesn’t have to anymore makes him happy.
“I assume you got good news?” Namjoon asks when he notices Jimin’s expression.
“Yep, I don’t need to go back to the office anymore, I got the rest of the afternoon,” Jimin explains with a smile, and Namjoon smiles back at him.
“Does that mean you have time for dessert?” Namjoon asks with a hopeful expression on his face and Jimin giggles at the question.
“It does, yeah,” Jimin replies with a soft smile on his face, and he sees Namjoon focus on his lips for a second before shaking himself.
“Great, wanna share a slice of cake?”
❧
“So, what is it exactly that you do?” Namjoon asks while they wait for their dessert.
“I’m one of the head designers of Shadow. I basically overlook everything that goes on in the office related to the clothes we make,” Jimin explains shyly, “It doesn’t seem like much but-”
“It does,” Namjoon interrupts him, “You must be brilliant if you have that position at such a young age,” Namjoon praises him and Jimin can feel himself blush. At that moment the waiter appears holding their slice of cake and places it on their table with a smile. Namjoon nods at him with a smile.
“I don’t— It’s not that big of a deal,” Jimin says sheepishly, “the whole team is pretty young.”
“You’re still a head designer, though. That means you’re great at what you do, and it means people noticed.”
“I guess,” Jimin admits shyly, and he knows he probably looks like a tomato by now. It feels great knowing someone thinks that about him, Jimin still remembers the people he heard whisper about how he probably had fucked someone to get the position, he still remembers the first few weeks, back when he worked with a different team, when no one would take him seriously.
Namjoon must notice his change in demeanor because he puts down the bite he was about to eat and leans forward to get closer to Jimin, “Did I say something wrong?”
“No,” Jimin denies quickly, “I just— It’s nice to hear someone say that about me. Most people thought I got the job because I slept my way up.”
“They what?!” Namjoon asks incredulously.
“I guess they thought that because of the way I look, the only way I could’ve gotten the position of head designer was by fucking the boss.”
“God, that’s so fucked up,” Namjoon grumbles, and he looks furious, “I can’t believe people like that exist. I bet they were jealous of your talent,” Namjoon shakes his head as if to stop himself from getting worked up about it, and Jimin smiles softly at him.
Jimin’s glad things are better between them, he’s glad Namjoon no longer sees him as a superficial asshole. Jimin has been hurt by other people’s opinions about him many times before, but for some reason, he was extremely bothered by the thought of Namjoon thinking he’s a bad person.
“I guess they were jealous,” Jimin nods, “it didn’t make it any less painful to hear, though. I was lucky Yoongi-hyung— my boss— heard them talk about it once and got so mad he fired them on the spot,” Jimin giggles at the memory, he remembers the rage on Yoongi’s face when he realized people had been talking shit about Jimin, and he remembers the look of pure hatred his old coworkers threw his way when he walked by them as they were leaving the building after being fired, “Now I’m surrounded by people who value my work and believe in what I do,” Jimin mentions with a smile on his face, and he sees Namjoon’s face clear up.
“I’m glad things are better for you now,” Namjoon’s voice is softer now, and he has a thoughtful expression on his face, “I’m also sorry for calling you superficial and pointing out the way you looked and-” Namjoon apologizes and Jimin stops him.
“I think we should both agree our first impressions of each other were wrong,” Jimin interrupts with a laugh, “I’m glad we figured things out, though. I have to admit I thought you were an asshole,” Namjoon lets out an outraged sound at this, and Jimin giggles, “I was wrong, though. You’re actually really nice.”
Namjoon smiles at him, his dimples making an appearance, and Jimin feels himself blush. “You’re really nice, too,” Namjoon admits as he makes eye contact with Jimin.
❧
They’re walking into their apartment building when Jimin realizes he doesn’t want whatever this is to end yet. He’s having a great time hanging out with Namjoon. Jimin realizes he was really, really wrong about him. Namjoon is nice, he’s funny, he’s so, so smart, and he’s the most attractive guy Jimin has met in like… ever.
So as they step into the elevator, Jimin tries to think of a way to continue spending time with him. It’s when he notices the elevator hasn’t moved and looks at Namjoon to find him staring at the buttons with a thoughtful expression, that Jimin realizes that maybe he’s not the only one who doesn’t want this to end yet.
“Uhm,” Jimin clears his throat, “It’s still kinda early…”
“It is,” Namjoon agrees quickly, and looks at Jimin expectantly.
“I was thinking maybe we could drink some wine?” Jimin asks, and looks at Namjoon’s reaction, when he sees him nod, he continues. “Maybe at yours? I think Tae is home by now...”
“Yes,” Namjoon agrees quickly, “that sounds like a good idea, I totally have wine somewhere, I think.” Namjoon rambles and Jimin lets out a giggle.
“Okay, lead the way then,” Jimin says, and Namjoon rushes to press the button for the third floor.
The way up is short and silent, only a few seconds go by before they’re standing in front of Namjoon’s door.
“I have to warn you,” Namjoon starts with a grimace, “it’s probably a mess in there.”
“No worries,” Jimin giggles, “I won’t judge you.”
Namjoon presses the lock on his door and types in his keycode, and then they’re inside. Jimin takes a look around the apartment as he removes his shoes. The floorplan is the same as his apartment’s but they couldn’t look more different. Where Jimin’s walls are a dark gray, Namjoon’s are a bright white. Where Jimin’s apartment is filled with art and editorial shots, Namjoon’s is filled with pictures of nature and plants. Jimin realizes they’re total opposites, but he likes it.
Namjoon clears his throat as he leads him into the living room.
“I’ll go grab the wine, get comfortable,” Namjoon mumbles as he rushes out of the room and Jimin smiles amusedly. He thinks Namjoon might be nervous, and that must mean something. The whole time they were sitting at the café Jimin kept wondering if this is going to go somewhere, or if it will only stop at them being neighbors and acquaintances who no longer hate each other. Jimin hopes it goes somewhere, he really hopes it goes somewhere.
The longer Jimin spends with Namjoon, the clearer it is that he might be developing a crush on him, and he really wants the feeling to be mutual.
“Here,” Namjoon pips as he walks into the room, handing Jimin a glass of wine, “It’s the only one I have, I hope it’s not too awful. My best friend Jeongguk bought it for me as a house-warming gift, and he’s not the most sophisticated guy,” Namjoon explains with a grimace, and Jimin lets out a chuckle.
“Don’t worry, I used to drink the worst things you can imagine back when I was in college,” Jimin confesses and takes a sip of the wine, “not bad— a bit sweet, but it’ll do.” He jokes and Namjoon laughs, joining him on the couch. Jimin can’t help but notice how close they are sitting, can’t help but look at their thighs almost touching.
“God, when you sprayed me with that shit I never imagined we would be here drinking wine a few weeks later,” Namjoon admits with a chuckle, and Jimin blushes.
“I can’t believe I actually sprayed you with insecticide,” Jimin murmurs, “And I’m sorry I called you a yeti,” Jimin confesses, holding back a laugh.
“What?!” Namjoon splutters, “Why on earth were you calling me a yeti? And when?”
“Because you’re huge!” Jimin gestures at him, “look at you, could probably step on me and break me in a second,” Namjoon coughs at this and Jimin sees him starting to blush, “And I called you a yeti when I told Tae someone tried to kill me.”
“I did not try to kill you!” Namjoon gasps, outraged. And maybe it was the wine, or maybe it was Namjoon, but Jimin couldn’t stop giggling.
“That’s not what I thought when I first saw you in that dark storage unit,” Jimin chimes, “Tae told me you probably got really upset that a silver-haired twink sprayed you when you were just trying to look for something, and I kept feeling bad about it all day,” Jimin blurts, embarrassed, and when he looks over at Namjoon he sees him staring at Jimin with a soft expression on his face.
“I actually thought you were beautiful,” Namjoon admits in a soft voice and avoids Jimin’s eyes. Jimin chokes on his spit at the comment— he can feel himself blushing like crazy and he tries to cover his face with his small hands.
“Really?” Jimin whispers, stunned.
“Yeah,” Namjoon nods shyly, “I think the reason I got so upset you sprayed me is because I thought you were cute, and… well you know what I thought had happened,” Namjoon mutters and rubs the back of his neck in embarrassment.
But Jimin can only focus on one thing, “Thought?” Jimin asks, and Namjoon turns to look at him with a confused expression.
“What?”
“You thought I was cute?”
“No, I still think you’re cute,” Namjoon admits in a whisper, and if they weren’t sitting as close as they are, Jimin’s sure he wouldn’t be able to hear him.
“Despite what you might think,” Jimin whispers back, “I actually think you’re the most attractive guy I’ve ever seen.”
Namjoon blushes at this and looks down at his lap, “I’m not—”
“Oh, but you are,” Jimin interrupts him, “You have such pretty eyes, a breathtaking smile,” Jimin lists, “and god, your thighs, ” Jimin blurts out, and he slaps a hand over his mouth in embarrassment. He can’t believe he just admitted to checking Namjoon out, that’s what happens when he drinks alcohol.
“Thank you, I never skip leg day,” Namjoon informs him with a proud smile and Jimin lets out a laugh at his expression. He laughs so hard he falls on his side and ends up half on top of Namjoon.
Jimin looks up from his position and finds Namjoon staring at him with a thoughtful expression. Jimin knows he’s blushing again, and he’s about to straighten up and apologize when he feels Namjoon’s hand cup the side of his face.
“Uh—“ Jimin stutters out.
“You’re so beautiful,” Namjoon whispers, and is he getting closer? He’s totally getting closer, “tell me to stop and I will.”
Jimin can feel the warmth radiating off Namjoon’s lips, can practically taste him already. He whispers a soft don’t stop and in less than a second, he feels Namjoon’s lips on top of his— so, so tender and sweet.
Jimin has kissed lots of people before, but nothing has ever felt as good as having Namjoon’s lips brush softly over his. He holds back a moan when Namjoon bites his bottom lip and then licks over it sweetly as if apologizing. Jimin realizes he hasn’t been contributing much to the kiss and decides to take control for a second. Jimin guides his hands to the back of Namjoon’s neck and brings him closer, closer, closer. One of Namjoon’s hands— the one that’s not cupping his face— drops to his waist and tugs him against his chest. Jimin is practically on top of Namjoon’s lap by now, and Jimin debates on climbing completely, but it’s too soon.
Namjoon hums into the kiss and Jimin takes it as his cue to do something. He drops tiny pecks to Namjoon’s bottom lip before biting on it softly, and Namjoon groans at the action. Jimin tries to inch back to get a good look at Namjoon, but as soon as he tries it, Namjoon moves forward and locks their lips together again.
Jimin gets lost in the kiss he has no idea how long they’ve been kissing for, he just knows he’s happy. It feels like hours but also seconds later when they finally separate, and instead of moving away from Namjoon, Jimin lays his head on Namjoon’s shoulder.
Jimin doesn’t know what this means, he wants to know what it means. He debates whether he should ask Namjoon or not, but then Namjoon speaks.
“Does this mean… you like me?” he mumbles, and he sounds cautious. Jimin decides he needs to look at him, so he straightens up and sits next to Namjoon, face to face.
“It depends,” Jimin starts, “do you like me too?”
“I do, yeah,” Namjoon confesses with a blush, and Jimin smiles softly at him.
“I guess that makes this our first date, huh?” Jimin asks and Namjoon lets out a giggle. A giggle, “God, you’re so fucking cute.”
“Stop,” Namjoon says, embarrassed, and this time he’s the one to hide his face but he does it on Jimin’s neck. Jimin raises his hand and threads his fingers on Namjoon’s hair.
“I won’t stop anytime soon,” Jimin states with determination and Namjoon lets out a groan, sitting up.
“Fuck, you’re a menace, aren’t you?” Namjoon asks and Jimin giggles, “you totally are, ” Namjoon says reproachfully and Jimin starts full-on laughing now.
“I’m sorry, I guess this is what you’ll have to deal with now.”
“I guess it is,” Namjoon sighs, and wraps his arm around Jimin to pull him to his side.
They stay like that for a while, and somewhere along the way, they lie down side-by-side on the couch. Jimin’s enjoying the silence, thinking about Namjoon, feeling glad they were able to fix things, feeling happy about the development of their relationship, when Namjoon starts laughing.
“What are you laughing about?” Jimin asks in confusion, but Namjoon can’t seem to stop laughing, going as far as sitting up and holding his belly.
“It’s just-” Namjoon starts with a chuckle, “who would’ve thought I’d be happy about you almost blinding me with that insecticide?” Namjoon asks and Jimin slaps his arm.
“You’re never gonna let this go, are you?” Jimin asks with a resigned sigh, and Namjoon shakes his head.
“Never,” Namjoon assures and he lets out a laugh when Jimin slaps him on the arm again.
Jimin doesn’t admit it, but he’s happy he sprayed Namjoon with that insecticide too.