Book 1: The Magic Shop | A Jeon Jeongguk BTS Fan Fiction (Completed)

A Nerve Uncovered

"Nira, What did I say about keeping your posture?" the customer said sternly behind her.  Nira turned quickly. She knew that voice very well. 

"Mr. Lee!" Nira was absolutely thrilled. Her former teacher chuckled. She came quickly from behind the counter and bowed before Mr. Lee. 

"It's been a long time, Nira." 

Nira was so happy to see Mr. Lee, her favorite instructor at the Busan High School of Arts. She held her hands up to her mouth. "Mr. Lee, how can you be here?"

"It looks to me like you have stopped conditioning yourself for dancing."

Nira blushed as if she did something wrong which was very silly. It had been so many years since she had left school. 

"We can't have that." Mr. Lee said gently, pushing his glasses up his nose with his index finger. 

Jimin, who was outside looking through the cafe window turned and lowered his baseball cap to cover his face before he left. Beneath his mask, he was smiling to himself. He called Mr. Lee some days before and made arrangements to bring Mr. Lee to Seoul. If there was anyone who could convince Nira to start dancing again, it was Mr. Lee. 

Jimin's phone suddenly vibrated. It was Nira. He clicked on the notification. He smiled at her message. It was a picture with Mr. Lee. "Look who came into the cafe!" It read. She had a big smile on her face. Cute, he thought. 

"Mr. Lee! Please tell him that Jimin says hello! Please tell him I wish him well and good health." Jimin wrote back. He zoomed the photo and looked at Nira's smiling face for a moment before putting the phone back in his pocket. 

He had asked Mr. Lee to help him find a place where Nira can go to practice. Mr. Lee thought it was very generous for him to shoulder the expense. Thankfully, Mr. Lee didn't ask why he would go through the trouble and agreed never to tell Nira he was behind it all.

He did it in service of an old friend, he justified to himself. Her smile though. Aaah, it was all worth it. When he got back to the dorm, he found everyone in the kitchen area fixing a snack. The older members were at the dining table. 

"Hey, where did you come from? I thought you finished hours ago." Hobi asked.

"Oh, I just took care of something," Jimin replied.

Minutes before Jimin arrived, Nira called Jeongguk and told him about meeting her former teacher. She was so happy about seeing Mr. Lee after so many years. Mr. Lee had invited her to join and pick up dance with former alumni who were now living in Seoul. There was also an alumni fundraiser and she was asked to participate.  She was so animated in the call that Jeongguk thought she was so cute. "That's great, honey," he said. She had a customer come in so they dropped the call. 

He joined the members in the kitchen to get a carton of banana milk when Jimin arrived. Jimin would normally be cheery and announce his presence, but when he arrived, he looked like he was concealing something. It was weird that Jimin was being elusive. Jeongguk quickly connected the dots, and it rubbed the wrong way.

"Hyung, did you have anything to do with Mr. Lee going to the cafe?" Jeongguk asked directly. The room was suddenly very quiet, taking an interest. Jin peered from behind a newspaper to see what was going on.

"Mr. Lee? From Busan?" Taehyung asked.

"Yes." Jimin replied tensely, "but she doesn't know that." Jeongguk tried to case Jimin's response.

"Wait... what?" Taehyung asked.

Jimin seemed irritated to have been asked. "I just didn't want her to feel like she owed me anything," he replied curtly. He didn't like how everyone was looking at him like he was being suspicious. 

To be honest, Jeongguk wasn't quite sure why he was not very happy about Jimin's thoughtfulness. It was making him feel conflicted, and the way Jimin responded hit an unfamiliar nerve. He decided this moment to not think anything of it.

"She was very happy to see him." Jeongguk smiled but it didn't come out as genuinely as he hoped it would. To extricate himself from the awkwardness of the moment,  he walked out of the kitchen to head to his room.

Jimin also left without saying a word to anyone else. He didn't mean to sound so defensive. He just wanted to help Nira see that it's not too late for her to go back into dancing, but did he overstep a boundary? His intentions were on the brink, he admitted this to himself, but he certainly did not want to complicate things with Jeongguk.

When both were out of earshot, the rest of the members looked at each other.

"What's happening?" Hobi mouthed silently.

Yoongi got up and stretched his arms above his head. Without a word, he headed the direction Jimin went. "Hey, are you going to talk to Jimin?" Jin asked after him.

"No, I'm going to sleep," Yoongi replied. He disappeared down the hall.

"This guy..." Jin said shaking his head. Yoongi was well known for his naps. 

Namjoon stood up and said, "I'm going to Jimin. Hobi, please go to Jeongguk and see what this is about."

Left in the kitchen, Taehyung and Jin looked at each other. "Do you know anything?" Jin asked. Taehyung shook his head. "Do you?" Jin also shook his head and they waited for their turn to talk to the two.

Hobi talked to Jeongguk about his feelings. "You know this, JK." he reminded their youngest. "Jiminah, Suga hyung, Jin hyung... all of us... we love you. And Jiminah, he's always looked after you. Never mind all the shipping, he didn't care about that at all. He always has your best interest in mind. Why would you begin feeling suspicious?"

Jeongguk knew Hobi was right. Hobi left him to work through his emotions.

Later in the evening, Jeongguk knocked on Jimin and Hobi's bedroom door. Jimin opened the door and stepped aside to let him in. 

"Jimin-ssi," he started as he stepped in. This made Jimin smile. Jeongguk turned to Jimin with his head low and said, "I want to say thank you for finding a way for Nira to start dancing again. I want to say sorry because I was wrong to feel jealous."

Jimin was a little startled by what Jeongguk was saying because he too was trying to muster an apology. Namjoon, their leader, reminded him of Jeongguk's possessiveness and insecurity. As an older brother, he needed to be understanding especially since this seems to be the first time Jeongguk appears to be serious about a girl.

Jeongguk bared his insecurity. He never had qualms doing that with Jimin whom he had always been able to confide with. "I know I'm in love with her, but I still don't know how I'm going to make her happy." Jeongguk continued. "And evidently, you do."

Jimin reached out his hand to shake Jeongguk's. He hugged Jeongguk and patted him on the back. "I'm sorry too." he replied, "I'm sorry for not being mindful of how you would feel."

Jimin invited Jeongguk to sit and talk. Jeongguk sat on Hobi's bed while Jimin sat on his. Jimin looked at the concern in Jeongguk's eyes. 

"Hyung, there's just a question I need to ask."

Jimin had been afraid of Jeongguk's sharpness. He had always been keen on everyone's emotions and easily reads people's faces. He braced for the question he feared, and Jeongguk did ask it.

"Do you like her?"

He put on the convincing face he had practiced in front of the mirror. "No, JK." he assured their youngest. 

Jeongguk sighed with relief. He leaned back and smiled at Jimin. "Good, because I don't think I will win against you, hyung."

"JK.." Jimin was completely surprised. "I would never..." he said looking at Jeongguk and making sure he truly understood that he wouldn't go against Jeongguk, especially in love.

Besides, he thought to himself, Jeongguk already won.

"Let's stick to the plan, alright?" Jimin said, putting his hand on Jeongguk's shoulder.