Love Story Short | Jikook/Kookmin

Chapter 3

It has barely been a week since Jimin stepped into the office, and Jungkook's team loves him. They don't adore him the way Jungkook used to once, but they love him for his laid-back working style and friendly demeanor in general. Jimin doesn't rush answers and lets the team work their tasks comfortably. He lets them take at least two breaks every meeting, phones Jungkook at each meeting to send over snacks, or more snacks depending on the day. He has ready schedules and deliverables but he isn't afraid to flip the charts and take a spontaneous approach if the team isn't responsive enough for his expectations.

By the end of two weeks, Jungkook has a team member knock on his door every day asking to book a dinner for them to get acquainted outside of work. He knows it is a perfect idea for team-building but he also knows that he will have to be there no matter what, which is not exactly what he wants to do.

He loves going out for dinners with his teammates on a normal night of the week. He loves how comfortable they have gotten with each despite the varying age and personality assortments in their little group. His hesitance this time, as guessed correctly, has to do with Park Jimin being there.

Jungkook had been more active in their proposal project the first week before he got assigned a group of fresh interns to supervise. He isn't eminently involved as the general coordinator but he has been busy planning their on-boarding and assigning the right people to guide each intern. Amidst it all Jimin has been a music in the backdrop, playing in a corner of Jungkook's mind even when he is out of sight. They haven't had too many interactions but the thought of his presence manages to distract Jungkook enough. 

He is still not used to having Jimin around. He still startles when Jimin drops in his office without notice and asks Jungkook if he is free to chat a little. Jimin does it mostly during his meeting breaks, though he stuck around one two times after he was finished for the day and offered Jungkook to do something for fun together, catch up and all that. His latest attempts have been at convincing Jungkook to do the team dinner, the only one of his many wishes that Jungkook seems to have no choice but to grant.

Jungkook doesn't want to be a party-pooper, but he still doesn't know how to feel around Jimin. He thought he was over him completely. Then he questioned whether he had lingering feelings. But the residue doesn't resemble a crush or attraction as it unravels in his system— this is some type of anxiety mixed with confusion. Maybe it is not Jimin that he is troubled by, but his own experiences of heartbreak, a piece of his youth that always stayed a secret resurfacing...? 

Jimin was the first person to make him question his sexuality, but he has come to terms with it since long ago. He used his emotional experiences with Jimin to make sense of his preferences and explored them a lot more by dating a few people. While he moved on with his life, Jimin remained a mere call for awakening. His final resolution was gratitude towards Jimin for making him feel so many butterflies and gifting him good memories. 

In the retrospect, at least.

Seeing him again makes Jungkook feel like five years aren't long for their past to be considered retrospect. Past gratitude, he remembers how the butterflies had broken wings and how bittersweet their memories were. He is lost on how to patch up this wound that is slowly opening up without his permission.

...

"To a successful proposal!"

Glass shingle in the air. Everyone drinks their beers and Jungkook sips on his Kombucha lemon tea. He is not tempted to have a glass like he used to before (he quit drinking for two years now), and all credit goes to Kombucha for becoming his comfort drink. Hell, if he is not addicted to Kombucha now. Jungkook filters the thought by aggressively sipping on his juice.