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“Oh my god — Would you hurry up?!” Jimin whisper screamed.
“I am! Anyway, you said Hobi-Hyung knows. What’s the big deal?” Taehyung answered in the same tone.
“Yeah, I still don’t think it would be appropriate for him to walk in on us naked, in the shower together!” Jimin retorted.
“Ugh fine! I’ll just put on your clothes and make a run for it” Tae said grabbing a towel and rushing out the door.
Jimin stood under the hot water, silently hoping that this was just another close call.
Jimin liked their relationship. He loved their private jokes, the hidden looks, and the secret touches when no one was looking. It made their little secret feel special, and it was. It was so special that he just wasn’t ready to share it with anyone yet.
They were about to embark on a trip to Malta for the third series of Bon Voyage and Jimin and Taehyung were looking forward to this trip a lot. The last two trips had been a bit tense. This time, however, they had confessed all their feelings and could enjoy the holiday as two boys happily in love — secretly of course.
Taehyung wouldn’t be able to travel with them, but he would meet them a few days later.
“Have you packed yet?” Jimin asked him the night before their departure, “Yes” Taehyung answered, acting as cameraman for Jimin while he rummaged around his wardrobe.
Jimin hummed as he put his clothes neatly in his suitcase. “I need a list,” he said wandering in and out of the room packing cheerfully.
“Jimin-ah can you bring your cleanser? Mine’s nearly finished” Hobi asked, Jimin tucked his favorite cleanser in one of the pockets and finally closed the overflowing bag.
Hours later, after all the cameramen had gone and only the seven members were left. Jimin fell on the bed next to Taehyung, who was lying facedown, propped up on his elbows playing a game on his phone. He slung his arm and leg over Taehyung’s back and snuggled into his side, sighing happily.
“God I love it when you make that noise” Taehyung whispered, his eyes never leaving his cracked phone screen.
Jimin giggled, and sighed again, seductively, making him drop his face into the pillow and groan. He loved to tease Taehyung, he especially loved to tease him when they were around the others and Taehyung’s hands were metaphorically tied.
The door was open and now and again someone would walk past, not really taking any notice of them but still, they could get easily get caught fondling each other if they weren’t careful.
He began by gently tracing little patterns on Taehyung’s bare skin under his shirt.
“Jimin-ah” Taehyung warned
“Mhm?” Jimin answered mischievously
“You’d better stop it or I’m gonna lock that door and make you scream, then we’ll have to tell everyone”
Jimin gasped, “Taehyung-ah! Don’t be so rude!” he scolded, “Anyway, maybe you’ll scream” he added suggestively
Taehyung chuckled, “Possibly, but my face will be buried between your ass cheeks so one will hear me. You on the other hand…Well… Shall we see?” he said getting up.
“No! Ok, I’ll behave” Jimin yelped
Taehyung laughed, and pulled Jimin into his arms, “You do know that one day, you’re gonna have to stop being a big baby and tell everyone?”
Jimin pouted “I don’t get why we have to make a big deal about it. I get that it’s a big deal because it’s us, but I don’t want to have a big speech about my feelings and stuff. It seems unnecessary” he huffed
“It would be nice to not have to pretend anymore though, even just at home. One day we should go on holiday just the two of us. We can sleep in a big bed together without having to sneak around in the middle of the night, we can have romantic dinners on a terrace with a beautiful view, and you can feed me grapes for breakfast, in bed…naked” Jimin fantasized a loud.
Taehyung laughed “You still want to go to Japan baby?”
“Yeah” Jimin sighed
After sunset, all the members bid farewell to Taehyung and were on their way, Jimin gave him a pat on the back as a ‘friendly goodbye’ before they parted.
“Shit — Sorry guys hang on, I’ve forgotten my wallet! I’ll be back in two seconds” Jimin said quickly jumping out of the van and running back upstairs to find Taehyung waiting by the door with the wallet in his hand.
“Did I tell you, you look insanely cute in those shorts?” he asked with a smirk.
Jimin laughed, before crashing into him, lips slotting together as perfectly as they always did. Jimin wondered if he’d ever stop feeling like this when he kissed Taehyung.
“I’ll miss you” he whispered into the kiss, Taehyung smiled “I’ll miss you too”.
One kiss later, Jimin reluctantly pulled away and began walking down the hall. Taehyung cleared his throat “Uh Jimin-ah” he called, Jimin turned to see him still holding the wallet up.
“Ahhhh, that would’ve been embarrassing” he giggled, blushing as he grabbed it, stealing just one last kiss before having to run down the hall.
The flight was going to be long and Jimin was shattered so he curled up and let his body rest.
Day 1
They arrived early in the morning, already feeling exhausted by the time difference and the extremely long journey but everything was going well. No one had lost anything, and everyone was in good spirits.
They loaded up the rental cars and began the drive to their first destination. Jimin was the assigned navigator, and he wondered if giving directions was more stressful than actually driving, but after witnessing Jin’s parking skills (or lack thereof), his role seemed like the lesser of two evils.
Jin was always a good person to have around. It was like his mission in life was to make every person he encountered smile, and he rarely failed.
“Can this table seat seven people?” Hobi asked the waiter, and Jimin rolled his eyes. It was the fourth time one of them had forgotten Taehyung wasn’t there. Could they really not feel his absence?
“Taehyung isn’t here” someone muttered and Jimin automatically picked up his phone and sent him a selfie with a heart emoji.
They made the first toast of the season and Jimin made a point of saying that they would have to do it again when Taehyung arrived. He was already pining after him and they’d only just arrived.
Luckily, Namjoon distracted him by going all professor on them and explained the history of Malta until their food arrived.
The hotel they were staying in was very nice. It was more like an apartment, a lot more spacious than the places they’d stayed in before. Jimin ended up rooming with Jin and Yoongi, and although he’d hoped to have a room with Taehyung, of course, at least he didn’t have to share with Namjoon who snored like a lawnmower.
After a shower and a brief house party blaring their own music shamelessly, they boarded a boat on the majestic mediterranean sea. Jimin adored the ocean, and he loved being on a boat. To him, it felt like being truly away from the hype. It was peaceful.
“Wish Taehyung was here” Hobi pouted, and Namjoon shouted out to the universe, “Taehyung! How are you doing?”.
Jimin sighed, sitting on the floor feeling something similar to homesickness at the mention of Taehyung.
He figured Jin was his best shot if he wanted to cheer up, so he suggested they do the Titanic skit…Again.
Jimin’s phone pinged and vibrated in his pocket. Taehyung was at the airport about to board his flight. Jimin took a deep breath and grinned, already feeling like they were slightly closer.
“Let’s send a video message to V” he suggested to the others. He pressed record and smiled into the camera, running his fingers through his hair. They all greeted him with big smiles and loud Hellos.
“Everyone individually, Tell Taehyung you love him” Jimin ordered
First Jungkook, then Namjoon, Yoongi put up a predictable fight but surrendered eventually, Hobi’s voice went a few octaves higher than usual, Jin said ‘I love you’ in English, and finally Jimin’s ‘Saranghae’ was said with a heavy heart and a knowing smile.
- Have a safe journey, I’m missing you. -
At ten pm Jimin looked around to find nearly all of the members sleeping, only Jungkook was still awake.
The view of the night sky from the boat was breathtaking.
“I can’t believe they’re missing this” Jimin said
“They don’t appreciate the atmosphere” Jungkook replied
Finally, the cameras were off and they could relax. They sat on the bars at the front of the boat and Jimin sighed looking out at the stars.
“Cheer up Hyung, he’ll be here in two days” the maknae joked
Jimin’s eyes snapped up at him squinting questioningly, Jungkook chuckled and shook his head. “I know you’re thinking about him. You don’t have to pretend with me” he said.
Jimin took a moment to answer, “He’s my best friend” he said softly.
“Jimin-ah, Don’t feel like you have to talk to me about it. I just wanted you to know, I’m here if you do.” Jungkook answered
Jimin felt a lump in his throat, “Does everyone know?” he whispered
“I don’t know” Jungkook shrugged, “How long?” he asked
“Since Hawaii, maybe before”
They sat in silence for a while, “You guys are lucky” the youngest member stated, “I wish I had someone to miss, someone who looked at me the way you look at Tae”
Jimin felt as though the line he was supposed to deliver went something like: ‘Oh Jungkookie, don’t worry! You’ll find someone’ but their lives were far too complicated for it to be that simple, and they both knew it.
Jimin really was lucky.
“Do you want to tell me about it?” Jungkook asked, and finally, Jimin told him everything. It felt good to talk about it.
He told him about their first kiss, the times they’d almost gotten caught, about the times that Taehyung sung his favorite songs to him on the roof of their apartment building when they’d pretended to go out for food. He told him about the fights they’d had and Jungkook laughed at how silly they were.
He went on and on like an infatuated teenager. The rush of adrenaline that coursed through his veins felt wonderful as he gushed about all the things he loved about Taehyung.
“Thank you Jungkookie,” he said sincerely
“Ahh… Don’t think I’m giving up my big double bed for you when he gets here though!”
They arrived back at the house and went straight to bed.
- Goodnight Taetae, I love you. -
Jimin knew Taehyung wouldn’t read it until the morning but it felt nice to send it anyway.
Day 2
Jimin woke up to Jin shouting in that squeaky tone ‘Do you know BTS?” to a random stranger from the window. “Jin-ah! What are you doing?” he asked, covering his face with a pillow.
Yoongi had already gotten up so Jimin rolled over and spread out like a starfish. Unfortunately, Jin was in a particularly annoying mood and decided to jump on the bed until Jimin got up too.
They were split up into three teams and all went their separate ways. Jin and Yoongi, Namjoon and Hobi and Jimin went out with Jungkook. The first thing on their minds was, as usual, food so they set out to find a restaurant.
After eating, they walked around the beautiful seaside town. They had until five o’clock so they took their time and explored while chatting and joking with each other. Jimin felt like they’d added a new layer to their friendship after the previous night.
He also made mental notes of places to return to when Taehyung arrived.
They both got henna tattoos and Jimin actually drew one of his on his own finger and was very proud of himself. Another thing he couldn’t wait to show Taehyung.
Ughh, pining was exhausting
Later that afternoon, while they were still wandering around, Jimin’s phone finally pinged again. He knew it would be him, he would’ve landed in Turkey by now and seen all of his messages.
He had two unread messages from Taehyung.
- Thank you for the video, I love you guys too! I will be boarding my second flight soon, I can’t wait to get there and see you all. -
- I hope you slept well, I miss you baby. -
There was also a video attached but the fucking network in this place was terrible, so he couldn’t open it until they got back.
They missed the cannon shooting by two minutes but got to witness Yoongi catch a fish which was actually a lot more entertaining. The crowd around them cheered like he’d caught some massive sea creature, and Yoongi even smiled for a picture with the tiny little fish— a real smile.
At dinner, Jimin was finally able to open the video message from Taehyung and couldn’t help but smile from ear to ear as he looked at his beautiful face.
It had barely been two days but it seemed like he hadn’t seen Taehyung for a week.
Later they were making arrangements for the evening ahead, and it was pissing Jimin off. The producers kept going on about this being a friendship trip.
“How is this a friendship trip with one member missing?” he questioned, “Taehyung needs to come for this to be a friendship trip. Until now we have been traveling freely. The friendship trip starts when Taehyung gets here”
Hobi giggled at his little rant and tapped his foot under the table where they were on garlic-peeling duty.
Jimin and Namjoon were paired up for the stupid ‘friendship’ themed evening, and Jimin was just thankful he didn’t have to walk around with Jin and Hobi who went out looking like a Korean version of The Village People. That and Jin’s personality were sure to make good T.V at least.
Namjoon was a nice person to spend time with. He was calm and made everyone around him feel at ease. Their evening consisted mostly of sightseeing, and Jimin added at least four new places to return to with Taehyung.
‘One more night’ Jimin thought to himself.
They stopped to have a beer, which was enormous but Jimin still downed his in almost one go when heard loud bangs in the distance. He jumped up and ran, hoping to see the cannons. He was even more delighted to see beautiful fireworks lighting up the night sky.
It was funny really. They performed on huge stages with the most impressive lights and pyrotechnic displays on a pretty regular basis, but seeing fireworks in this strange place made him feel like a child again. He even felt the need to describe them, making ‘bang bang’ noises to Namjoon who missed them by a few seconds.
- Hi Taetae, I spent the evening with Namjoon and I have so many places I want to show you when you arrive. I can’t wait! Jungkook busked but I didn’t see, Yoongi apparently went home early after getting drunk on Whiskey, so I hope he doesn’t vomit on me during the night. And Jin and Hobi… — I’ll send a pic.
I miss you so much.
Goodnight my love. -
Day 3
Finally, it was the day of Taehyung’s arrival. Jimin was the first to wake up and decided revenge was in order. He crept over to Jin’s bed and pulled back the covers before lying on him like a sloth. Jin was particularly hard to get one over on cause he always had something up his sleeve. He instinctively turned to Jimin and grabbed him, tackling him to the bed. “Oh, my beautiful… I love you so much! Kiss me” he joked making Jimin squirm and fought to free himself from the grip of the eldest member.
Well, that backfired he thought running out into the bathroom.
Jimin got distracted on the way to Gozo and lead them the wrong way, then he nearly bought seven sandwiches even though there were still only six of them and he even managed to put his wet suit on back to front. At least the training went smoothly and he didn’t drown while scuba diving in a swimming pool. That really would be embarrassing.
- Jimin-ah, I’m here. I’ll see you at lunch, please order for me if you get there first. I’m starving. -
They took their places at the table and ordered as much food as they possibly could, Namjoon always seemed slightly embarrassed when ordering the obscene amount of food for them all.
Jimin was buzzing, and Jungkook kept teasing him when no one was listening. Taeyhung was only moments away and Jimin couldn’t sit still. He barely remembered what he’d ordered, in fact, he wasn’t even hungry — that’s how bad it was.
“Taehyung is here” he heard Jungkook say.
Jimin stood up, looking for him in the crowd, on his tippy toes searching desperately for him over the heads of faceless strangers.
And then, more beautiful than ever before, he appeared and Jimin felt like his heart was going to burst.
Jimin waved one arm in the air and grabbed his own hair with the other, just to have something to hold onto. It was physically painful to not be able to run to him, to hold him and make him promise they’d never be apart again. Jimin almost wanted to throw caution to the wind and do it anyway, but he didn’t.
Taehyung made his way to the table and Jimin just stared at him. The others all greeted him, hugging him and shaking his hand but Jimin just continued to stare looking spaced out.
“Hyung, you’re being creepy” Jungkook whispered nudging him in the side. Jimin took his seat next to Namjoon, but he simply couldn’t take his eyes off of Taehyung. Jimin wondered if it was possible that he’d become even more handsome over the last few days.
They all told him that they’d missed him and that they were happy to see him.
“We felt your absence so much,” Jimin said holding his hand out to give his best friend a high five. Taehyung took his hand and held it a few seconds too long for it to be a simple high five.
Namjoon was sitting in between them and that may have been a good thing. If not Jimin was positive he wouldn’t be able to stop himself from kissing him, hugging him, and overall just touching him. He missed the comfort of Taehyung’s arms too much. He reached around Namjoon’s back, to hold his hand again, just for a second.
Lunch was too long, Jimin was itching to get up from his seat and embrace Taehyung. He felt like he was going to implode if he sat there any longer.
“Are there any vacant rooms?” Taehyung asked after the food arrived
“No”
“Once you open the door, it’s yours” Jungkook informed him
“At least, tell me what they look like. Which one’s the biggest room?” Taehyung asked
Jimin replied “The one upstairs” at the exact same moment as when Jungkook said, “We can’t tell you”.
God, it was like he had absolutely no control over what came out of his mouth.
Yoongi had to leave, and return to Korea for business and after lunch, they all bid him goodbye.
Jungkook seemed to have bonded with the rapper a lot over this trip, they had some sort of new friendship thing about an Irish Baam. It made Jimin smile.
Lunch was finally over and as soon as Jimin could, he hugged Taehyung. Not the way he wanted to but it was still like a breath of fresh air to his lungs.
Their day was so packed Jimin barely had time to speak to Taehyung.
Something seemed to have shifted and he couldn’t let his guard down for a second without giving himself away to the others. Watching him ride a horse with the sun setting behind him, for example, was simply too much and Jimin couldn’t stop himself from blurting out how beautiful he looked, and for the first time, he didn’t care who heard him.
They arrived back at the hotel and Taehyung ended up picking Jungkook’s room, which was annoying but Jimin figured he was sleeping alone now that Yoongi had left so Taehyung could sneak up to his bed during the night like they usually did at home.
Jimin was standing shirtless, in front of the mirror in the en-suit bathroom about to dry his hair when the door flew open and Taehyung burst in making him jump, nearly dropping the hairdryer on the floor.
Taehyung looked like a starving man who’d just found a banquet of all his favorite foods. He practically pounced on Jimin and wrapped his arms around him so tight he could hardly breathe.
“Finally” Taehyung breathed in his ear, then began to kiss his face, his cheeks, his eyes, his nose, and at last his lips. Jimin sighed and let himself melt into Taehyung’s arms, feeling slightly emotional at the intensity of the kiss.
“I thought you were doing that reverse psychology thing when you said you were staying upstairs. I want to sleep with you!” Taehyung whined
Jimin smiled at him with shiny eyes, “I’ll message you when Jin-Hyung falls asleep and you can come up to me. Be warned though, he has original ways of waking us up in the morning. So you’d better keep ‘Little Tae’ in your pants” he said, gently palming him between his legs.
Taehyung groaned and pushed himself up against Jimin’s hand making him stumble back into the wall. Jimin giggled, “You really did miss me huh?”
Taehyung answered with a cheeky smirk, then slipped his hand down Jimin’s loose pajama bottoms and wrapped his large hand around him. Jimin whimpered softly and clutched onto Taehyung’s shirt.
“Seems like you missed me too” Taehyung mumbled, and Jimin could hear his smug grin.
It wasn’t exactly the most romantic thing in the world, but it was the only way to feel close at that moment. Their lips never parted as they touched one another, knowing each other’s body so well that it took only a few minutes for them to reach their climax together.
“Taehyungie…” Jimin whispered still panting, “I missed you so much”
“I know, I’m here now sweetheart”
And for the first time in three days, Jimin felt whole again.
Dinner was simple and they all went to bed early. Taehyung slipped into Jimin’s bed just after midnight and they slept soundly in each other’s arms.
Day 4
Taehyung woke up before Jin — thank god.
After giving Jimin a soft kiss, he ran back down to his room before anyone else woke up and got into bed with his head at the wrong end and pretended to be asleep.
They were leaving the accommodation for a night to go camping, so they packed an overnight bag and were on their way.
The two boys fell back into their usual roles of being the best friends of the group. It was the first full day with Taehyung in Malta and Jimin was excited.
The day was less hectic than the previous one, they only stopped once to go swimming and fishing of course — the new obsession.
By the time it was dark, Jimin knew something was wrong. Taehyung had been quiet since they got to the campsite but there were cameras everywhere so he didn’t want to put him on the spot.
“Jimin, we have salt in the fridge. Please get us some” Jin asked and Jimin went to fetch it wondering, why on earth was the salt in the fridge?
When he returned Taehyung was no longer sat with the others, he scanned the area and spotted him sat facing the other way.
“What are you doing?” he asked, “I am looking at the night sky” Taehyung answered and Jimin could feel the uneasiness in his voice.
Jimin approached him, looking up into the dark, and said, “I saw the Big Dipper and Cassiopeia. Not here but it was awesome on the boat, it was pitch-black and the moon was red! That’s why I wanted you to join us on the boat. The night landscape was amazing, you would've shed tears”.
Taehyung looked up at him with those big innocent eyes and asked “Why can’t we see the stars now?”. Jimin felt his heart shatter into thousands of pieces. He wanted to wrap Taehyung up and hide him away, safe and protected from the rest of the world.
“Because of the lights, if we turn the lights off you will see the stars well”
He caught on that the members were teasing Taehyung, and he didn’t like it. Perhaps it was because he was so in tune with his ‘best friend’, but Jimin couldn’t fathom how the others couldn’t sense that he was upset.
“Taehyung!”
“Taehyung, Come here!”
“If you don’t come now there will be no beef left!” Jungkook threatened
Jimin scowled at the maknae and marched over about to pick Taehyung up, chair and all, and carry him back but luckily Taehyung decided to come without a fuss.
Jimin watched him throughout dinner, and he seemed to brighten up when Namjoon, uncharacteristically, decided to play the clown. It was a rare sight to see him be the silly one, but that made it all the better.
“Taehyung please sing at the special dinner” one of the staff suggested
Everyone cheered and Jimin’s eyes lit up, “Yeah! Taehyungie”
Taehyung agreed without much thought and Jimin admired his confidence.
After cooking for the staff and cleaning up, suddenly Jimin saw the red moon again.
“Taehyung! Come here” he called, “This is the red moon I wanted to show you”
They gathered along the fence to admire the blood moon, Jimin took out his phone and played the song they had listened to that night on the boat when he had missed Taehyung. Jimin got lost in the beauty of the flaming moon and the melancholy notes of the song that played in the background.
“Taehyung is crying,” a staff member said quietly in his ear
He followed the man’s gaze and ran, “My baby” he cooed, “Stop filming please” he said to the crew and they all stepped back and lowered their equipment.
“Come take a walk with me” he whispered, tugging at Taehyung’s hand.
“What happened?” Jimin asked as soon as they were alone, “You’ve been quiet all evening”
“I just, I’m such an idiot. I don’t know how to do anything, I can’t drive, I can’t cook, I can’t even get the groceries right”
Jimin sighed as he listened, rubbing circles into his hand with his thumb.
“This morning I was talking to a staff member and he told me that he felt homesick; I didn’t even know what that word meant and he had to explain it to me. Everyone must think I’m just a stupid Idol that can’t do anything”
Jimin cocked his head to the side
“You are not an idiot! I hate that.
Maybe you don’t do some of the things that the others do but no one does the things that you do! You are kind and friendly with the staff, enough that they confide in you.
You heard me say my pants were too big and bought me a needle and thread, just…because”
Jimin looked up at him and pinched his chin, “You are wonderful Taehyung!”
Taehyung bit his lip to stop it from wobbling, “I’m sorry, I’ll be better company tomorrow”
Jimin smiled at him and wiped away his tears, “Sweetheart, there is nothing to better. It’s okay to feel sad sometimes, I do too — and you’re always my shoulder to cry on”
Taehyung nodded gloomily
“Come on, let’s go back before Hobi comes looking for us like a mother hen” Jimin added, leading Taehyung back to the campsite.
The cameras began rolling again, but Jimin couldn’t bring himself to care. He kept his arms around Taehyung, he wiped away his tears and when they looked up at the glowing moon he held him as if they were the only two people there.
“Do we really have to sleep on the floor in those tents?” Jimin asked, scrunching up his face. “Can we not pretend for the cameras, and go sleep inside?”
Hobi laughed and a staff member wiggled his finger at him.
“Ok, but Taetae stays with me”
Hobi looked at him with a smile, “Yes Jiminie, although I think Jungkook is already in your tent. Good luck with that!”
Luckily the youngest member was already curled up on the far side, Jimin crawled in and Taehyung sandwiched himself in the middle. The tent was small and the three could barely fit without touching each other so snuggling wouldn’t be a problem that night. Taehyung put his arm around Jimin’s waist and sighed softly.
“Guys I love you and all, but if you start making out I’m gonna fart on you!” Jungkook warned sleepily
Taehyung’s eyes widened and Jimin burst out laughing, “Oh right, I forgot to tell you. Jungkookie knows” he informed Taehyung. “He guessed, I don’t know how”
Jungkook snorted, “Tae for all our sakes, if you ever have to travel alone again, please, oh please, give Jimin a pair of your dirty socks or something to comfort him. I swear he’s been whinging like a puppy since we left.”
Taehyung chuckled and squeezed Jimin’s hand
Day 5
“What are you doing?” Jimin asked, approaching Taehyung in the kitchen
“I’m making jam sandwiches”
Jimin ran his fingers through the other’s hair, “Oh, you’re sweet. Let me help you”
Jimin stuck his finger in the jam pot to see what flavor it was, but Tae grabbed his hand and wrapped his mouth around the jam covered finger and sucked on it, then shrugged innocently “It’s orange marmalade” he said as if he hadn’t just given Jimin a boner in the middle of the kitchen.
Jimin looked down at his crotch and muttered “Thanks for that”
Taehyung winked, “Anytime” then walked away leaving Jimin to squirm.
The group went gift shopping that morning, and Jimin got paired up with Jin, but his new carefree attitude meant that by mid morn he had already broken away and was wandering the streets with his favorite person.
He took Taehyung to an alley he’d seen on the first day of their arrival, he’d wanted to take a picture there, but he’d also wanted Taehyung to take it.
“What are you wearing tonight?” Taehyung asked
“Just my yellow t-shirt and shorts, I’m not worried about getting dressed up. I just want to enjoy myself with you”
Taehyung patted him on the bottom as Jimin walked around in just his briefs “You look nice in yellow”.
“Thank you” Jimin smiled, “I have so many places to take you”
“Jiminie, Do you think I should sing somewhere tonight?”
Jimin crooked his head to the side, “I always think you should sing Taehyungie. Where would you like to sing?”
Taehyung puffed air from his nose and twitched his lips from side to side, “I don’t know, I was talking to Jungkookie and he said it was fun. He said it was so different to singing on a real stage, I just thought maybe I should experience that too”
Jimin smiled proudly, “Then you should sing!”
“Will you come with me?” he asked looking so sweet, Jimin felt that weird instinct to want to hide him again (What was that even about?).
“Absolutely! Now, let’s steal Jin’s underwear before he gets out of the shower. The menace has been wearing the same stripy t-shirt as me for two days, I want revenge”
They set off, and Jimin was on a mission.
“Do you like fountains?” he asked Taehyung
Taehyung was holding the selfie stick and Jimin put his arm around his waist as they walked.
When it came into view, Jimin turned to see Taehyung’s reaction, and, as always, he didn’t disappoint.
“WOW”
“It’s beautiful, isn’t it? Another good thing about coming at this time is they turn the lights on” Jimin was thrilled that his best friend was enjoying his little tour.
They walked around the perimeter of the colorful fountain and threw a coin in making a wish. Jimin closed his eyes, and actually wished for something. He peaked to his left and Taehyung had his eyes closed too, Jimin giggled and made a note to ask what he wished for later.
“I saw this place the other night while I was out with Namjoon, come!” Jimin said excitedly, pulling Taehyung along behind him.
They sat at the candlelit table, in the pretty bar, and if it wasn’t for the fact that they had to keep their cameras on the table next to them recording everything they say and do Jimin would have found the setting extremely romantic.
It felt like the closest thing to a real date that they had ever been on.
“Try eating more elegantly” Taehyung teased, halfway through their drinks as Jimin popped a cherry in his mouth.
Jimin felt just the tiniest bit tipsy and flirtatiously glided his now-sandaless foot up Taehyung’s leg as he used a knife and fork to cut the cherry. Taehyung began to laugh, and Jimin didn’t know if it was caused by his cherry cutting skills or the foot that was now more than halfway up Taehyung’s thigh.
“Is it okay?” he asked suggestively and the blushing boy answered, “It’s good”.
After more flirting, and drinking — Jimin and Taehyung set off looking for buskers.
Jimin loved listening to Taehyung sing, he wasn’t very confident about his own voice but Taehyung’s, in his opinion, was like velvet. It was full and soulful, and Jimin often asked him to sing when they were alone. He had a whole playlist of songs that he requested from time to time and Taehyung knew them all.
It didn’t take long for them to find live music, and Jimin could feel the nerves radiating from the gorgeous boy that walked beside him. They sat on a step watching the performers. Jimin was still feeling the buzz from the cocktails and he ran his fingers through Taehyung’s soft, blonde hair fighting the urge to kiss his beautiful lips.
“I am here to hear your song that you want to sing Taehyung”
Sunday morning rain is pouring
Still, some covers share some skin
Clouds are shouting us in moments unforgettable
You twist to fit the mold that I am in
But things just get so crazy
Living life gets hard to do
And I would gladly hist the road, get up and go if I knew
That someday it would lead me back to you
That someday it would lead me back to you
Jimin could almost feel his heart expand to accommodate the love that was growing inside of him. It seemed almost impossible to love Taehyung anymore, but watching him sing, looking so vulnerable, singing a song that he’d sung for Jimin so many mornings, was almost too much to handle.
Jimin saved the best till last.
“Close your eyes!” he said for the fifth time, knowing Taehyung was sneaky. He held him close and escorted him, “Don’t open your eyes”
Taehyung frowned “I’m not!” he whined but definitely had an eye open — cheeky bugger.
“Hey, you!” Jimin scolded him playfully, “Ten meters, five meters… Ok you can open them now”
“WOW”
“I know it’s beautiful, isn’t it? You like night views so I wanted to bring you here” Jimin said like it was the most normal thing in the world, and for them it was.
They stood there for a long while, just watching the stars and the city below them.
Taehyung turned to the only cameraman still with them and said, “We’re just gonna go back to the hotel after this, why don’t you turn in for the night? We’ll get the rest”
The staff member smiled politely, “You sure?”
Taehyung and Jimin both nodded and the older man smiled, “Goodnight then” he said turning to leave and at last they were alone.
“Jiminie, Can I hold your hand?” Taehyung asked
Jimin giggled and maneuvered himself so he was in front of Taehyung with his back pressed up against the other’s chest, he slid his fingers between Taehyung’s, wrapped himself up in his arms, and let his head fall back to rest Taehyung’s shoulder.
“This is what I’ve been waiting for” Jimin sighed smiling so wide his cheeks were on the verge of aching.
Taehyung placed a delicate kiss on his temple, “Thank you for waiting for me” he whispered.
Jimin squeezed his hand and replied “Always”
They stayed until way past curfew, and walked home, giggling tipsily and holding hands the whole way.
Day 7
“Jimin!” Jin’s voice unwelcomely invaded his slumber
Jimin groaned and screwed up his face, was it morning already? And was Jin’s voice actually squeakier this particular morning? Jimin could feel the gentle headache of a mild hangover, and he took a second to gather himself before actually opening his eyes to wake up.
“You two are gonna miss the ferry!” Jin said walking out of the room
He was lying face down in the room he was currently sharing with the oldest member, but he felt the familiar warmth of a certain someone lying next to him. More specifically, the large hand that had found its way down Jimin’s pants and rested lazily on his bare bottom. He was used to it now and it felt natural, Taehyung usually did this in his sleep and Jimin loved waking up with him like this, but this morning they’d overslept.
“Taetae!” he whisper-shouted, “Taetae wake up! Everyone’s already up and I’m pretty sure Jin saw your hand down my pants”
Taehyung pouted “Don’t care”, Jimin giggled and traced his lips with his finger — maybe he didn’t care either.
Jin never said a word.
Their last full day passed in a flash of food-sharing and flyboarding, and soon it was time to write their usual, end-of-trip, heartfelt letters. This brought back memories for Jimin, and his heart ached when he thought of how their last trip had been. Taehyung had been struggling so much and it had been their letters that had brought them back together.
He thought back over the last year.
Countless kisses, the wonderful, indescribable feeling he got every time they kissed. The private jokes, and not-so-innocent touches when no one was looking. The way they had become so comfortable with each other, true soulmates.
Jimin looked up at the boy he had fallen hopelessly in love with and smiled as he watched him, thinking how incredibly handsome he was.
Jimin began scribbling his letter to himself, and it was hard. Writing a letter to someone else was so simple in comparison, you could say nice things and compliment them. But Jimin wasn’t very good at ‘loving himself', he found it hard not to pick at his flaws or focus on what he considered his faults.
‘Stop being a kid’ he wrote. As soon as he saw the words written there, in front of him he knew it was time to grow up and stop pretending, or as Taehyung so kindly put it ‘Stop being a big baby’.
He knocked on Namjoon’s door and waited, psyching himself up.
“Jimin! I thought it was a staff member, why did you knock?” Namjoon asked curiously when he opened the door to find him
“Sorry, I just…” he shook his head and blushed nervously, “Can I come in?”
“Of course” the leader walked back into his temporary room and sat on the bed, “Is everything okay?”
Jimin fidgeted, not really knowing where to start
“Jimin-ah, has something happened?” Namjoon asked sounding worried
“No. Well, yes. But not anything bad…I mean I don’t think it’s bad. I just…” he stopped and took a deep breath.
‘Stop being a kid’ his own voice told him in his mind
“Namjoon, I am in love with Taehyung”
The older member, waited to see if he was going to elaborate but after a few seconds of silence he said “I know”
Jimin bowed his head, almost looking guilty
“Are you asking my permission for something?”
Was he? Could he stop loving Taehyung if the answer was no?
Jimin straightened up and took a deep breath, “No”
The smile that emerged on the leader’s face was kind and understanding, “I hoped you would say that. I’m sorry to break it to you but I’m pretty sure we all know.”
Jimin laughed feeling absolutely liberated, “Really?”
“It’s cute that you think you’ve been discreet” the rapper laughed, “At least Taehyung tries, but you” he rolled his eyes, “you pine over him even when he’s right there!”
Jimin rolled on the bed laughing hysterically
“Thank you for telling me. If you felt you needed my approval, please know you’ve always had it. But promise me you’ll never ask for anyone’s permission to be in love!” his tone was now serious and Jimin sat up straight and looked him in the eye.
“I promise”
The Special Dinner
“Are we really going to eat on that?” Jimin asked looking up at the sky-high dinner table, already feeling his tummy flip uncomfortably.
“Hyung we’ve done bungee jumping, this is nothing! And the night view will be incredible” Jungkook said encouragingly.
They took their seats after watching yet another safety video and signing contracts that basically stated that if they died up there, it was their own fault.
Jimin squealed and held onto Taehyung’s hand as they rose into the sky. He felt the swarming butterflies in his tummy, it was a mix between excitement and nerves.
As predicted the others’ letters were great, but something stuck with Jimin about Namjoon’s. He wondered if he was feeling particularly fond of their incredible leader after their earlier conversation but he felt truly moved by his words, and having to read his immediately after seemed like a cruel joke.
In true Jimin style, he giggled and fidgeted the whole way through his letter, feeling silly and wishing he could simply disappear. But Taehyung’s hand on his thigh was grounding and he carried on, knowing that he never thought Jimin was stupid, and in Jimin’s heart nothing else mattered a great deal.
As they were lowered back to earth, Taehyung sang a song so beautiful, Jimin had to hold back the lump in his throat. It wasn’t one he’d heard Tae sing before and he wished he knew what the lyrics meant. He turned his seat to face him with his temple leaned on the headrest, while the others squirmed and looked away like it made them cringe. Jimin watched him sing every single word.
He wondered if perhaps nobody truly saw Taehyung, maybe only he could see Taehyung so pure and rare.
The thought made Jimin happy.
Jungkook poured the traditional Maltese spirit into six glasses as the boys sat around the table for the last time, “To another successful trip, and a safe journey home tomorrow” Namjoon toasted.
They all clinked glasses and sipped the sweet liquor, Jimin let his head rest on Taehyung’s shoulder and slid his fingers through Tae’s long ones.
Taehyung turned to look at him with curious eyes, Jimin smiled sweetly and kissed his cheek, “I love you” he whispered, then sleepily nuzzled his face into Taehyung’s neck.
“I love you too”
There was no need for big speeches or declarations of who he was or how he felt. Jimin wouldn't hide anymore but at the same time he felt like nothing would really change at all, and finally, the immense weight lifted from his chest and he was truly free.