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what it is isn’t that he saw jimin for the first time and knew, like breathing, like seeing, like hearing, that it was him. that it couldn’t be anyone else. what it is is that the first time he saw jimin, something locked into place and he knew that it would be him.
jimin’s got his head pillowed on his arm and the numbness is settling in but taehyung wouldn’t even dream of pulling it away. this is nothing, really, and he probably sounds lovesick but he is, happily so. they're not swamped with upcoming tests or assignments or papers for once and taehyung's always enjoyed every second spent with jimin, but they mean that much more when jimin choses to spend them with him. just them, lying in taehyung's too narrow bed, jimin's legs entangled with taehyung's.
“you know how namjoon-hyung tripped in the cafe today?” jimin asks, head tilting so he can look at taehyung more thoroughly. taehyung blinks, body curling toward jimin on it’s own.
“yeah?” he answers after a beat, carefully tracing the arch of jimin’s cheekbone with his eyes. he's already memorized it, but taehyung could never refuse another glance.
“it wasn’t an accident,” jimin says solemnly, looking not even slightly guilty.
taehyung’s eyes widen. “what do you mean?”
“i tripped him,” jimin whispers, tone conspiratorial, grinning and his cheeks look like they might hurt from the sheer force of his smile. “he bumped right into yoongi-hyung! i had to, he’s been making love eyes at hyung ever since they met.”
taehyung grins, leans in closer, can’t help it. “when’d you take up playing cupid? i mean, you definitely have the cute baby cheeks for it.” he pinches one of jimin’s cheeks, gets his hand swatted away for his trouble.
“i don’t have baby cheeks,” jimin huffs, but he’s turned to face taehyung properly, the glow in the dark stars stuck to taehyung’s dorm room forgotten.
“you kinda do,” taehyung disagrees, patting jimin’s cheek as he puts on a show of looking very put out for having to inform jimin of the news. “but it’s okay, they’re very cute.”
jimin rolls his eyes, sighing. “you think everything’s cute.”
“untrue. jeongguk isn’t even a little bit cute.”
jimin smiles and taehyung’s heart bursts like it always does, his eyes crinkling into little crescents as he covers his mouth, laughing. “you spent all day yesterday cooing over him.”
“he failed his math test! i was being supportive.”
“next time, let mina do the supporting.”
taehyung raises an eyebrow. “you really are trying to be cupid.”
“no,” jimin denies. “i just have eyes.”
“um, jimin, i don’t know how to break this to you but,” taehyung places a hand over jimin’s eyes, already chasing jimin as he tries to pull away, “i can’t see these eyes of yours anymore. are you sure you have them?”
“taehyung!” jimin laughs, pushing at taehyung’s hand and he’s really not trying hard enough because taehyung’s not even using a fifth of his strength, but as jimin tries to roll away, taehyung follows. “taehyung, please!”
“please what?” taehyung asks, practically on top of jimin and like this, jimin can’t see the way he stares at his mouth, can’t see the want in taehyung’s eyes, unbridled and desperate.
“may i please have my eyes back?” jimin asks, pouting. jimin’s mouth is centimeters away. taehyung could just —
“hmm, i guess i’m feeling pretty generous,” taehyung hums, hand creeping away slowly. there’s a pink tinge to jimin’s cheeks that taehyung really likes.
“you’re too kind,” jimin says dryly, grinning when he shoves taehyung off of him. “and heavy. god.”
“excuse me?” taehyung affronts, grabbing jimin by the wrist as he gets off the bed. jimin only tugs him up, too. they’re supposed to meet jeongguk for dinner. “what’re you trying to say park?”
“that you’re a giant.”
“there are other giant parts of me, you know,” he grins, eyebrows waggling and jimin groans, pushing taehyung away.
“gross,” he mumbles, but the pinks darker now and taehyung drinks it up. “stop trying to ruin my appetite.”
“which appetite are we talking about?”
“oh my god, stop!” jimin smacks his arm, grabbing their dorm key before leading taehyung out of their room. he’s got this goofy smile on his face, looks like he’s glowing and taehyung gravitates toward it, toward him, moth to flame.
the human body contains five litres of blood and taehyung wonders how every red blood cell in his body has learned to thrum in tandem with jimin’s heartbeat. he wonders if jimin knows they only have one set of lungs between them, one heart, one heartbeat.
taehyung knows he can wait for him to find out.
it's really not that taehyung knew but that every day since, he sees jimin and he knows. that it’s him. that it couldn’t be anyone else.