A Beautiful Enigma (VMIN FF)

Holding Hands

The whole afternoon went by in a blur at the Kim Residence. Jin left for his home after breakfast. That left an extremely frantic Namjoon in the care of an almost-on-the-verge-of-losing-his-sanity Jimin while Taehyung was as calm as usual.

As the evening rolled in, Namjoon grew extremely nervous, chiding himself constantly for asking Jin out. He doesn't regret it per se, but the exponentially increasing anxiety was finally getting to him. To Jimin's extreme displeasure, Namjoon was now more clumsy than usual. He was constantly knocking things over and tripping on smooth surfaces. Jimin tried to ease his nerves by offering help wherever and whenever he could, but nothing seemed to calm the older down. Finally, Jimin completely lost it.

"Hyung! Enough of this nonsense. Now, I will speak and you will listen", Jimin yelled, gaining the attention of both the brothers, who frankly looked petrified.

"Jin Hyung likes you. Its so obviously written on his face. Have you seen the way he looks at you? He is totally whipped and so are you! And why would anything go wrong? You have known each other since you were toddlers. So pull yourself together and stop acting like a child!", Jimin was huffing and puffing by the end.

Namjoon and Taehyung stared with wide eyes, completely speechless by his outburst.

"Now, what's Jin Hyung's favorite flowers?!", Jimin asked with a hand on his hip.

"P-Peonies", Namjoon stuttered out, whereas Taehyung remained frozen on the couch, still experiencing the after shocks of Jimin's verbal attack.

"Okay. Now, I want you out of that door in the next five minutes. Put on the damn shoes we selected, text Hyung that you're on your way and buy the goddamn flowers on your way to his house. Got it?"

"Yes sir", Namjoon spoke up, already on his way to put on the shoes.

In the next five minutes, the older proceeded to follow all of Jimin's instructions in the order he mentioned. Shoes-text-flowers. Once he was done, he hugged Jimin and waved Taehyung goodbye and headed out.

"This Hyung!", Jimin sighed, facepalming himself. "TaeTae?", he turned around to check on the younger. Taehyung was still seated on the couch, looking at the opposite wall, hands fidgeting a little.

"You okay TaeTae?"

"MinMin m-mad?", Tae asked softly, eyes never leaving the wall.

"I could never be mad at you, my moon", Jimin stuck his pinky out and Tae intertwined with his. A comfortable silence shrouded the room and enveloped the two.

^^^^^^^^^

"So what do you want to do next?", Jimin slouched on the sofa, feeling bored. The coffee table was now littered with a bowl of strawberry stems, glasses with leftover juice at the bottom, a plate with the crusts neatly nibbled off from whatever sandwich they had and an abandoned sketch pad.

Taehyung was sitting uptight beside him. Jimin stared at him and it dawned on him that he has never witnessed the younger in a relaxed or comfortable posture. Whenever he has seen him, whether it is on the couch, the dining table or even at the cafe, he always sits with his back straight and shoulders tensed.

Though Jimin admits that his posture is perfect, but he couldn't help but wonder why couldn't Tae be more relaxed, even when he is, as of this moment in the comfort of his own home? L

"TaeTae?"

"Hmm", Taehyung hummed in response.

"Are you okay?", Jimin wanted to press Taehyung for answers but he knows it would do no good to either of them.

"TaeTae o-okay", he swayed back and forth in response, not making eye contact.

"Can I hold your hands?", Jimin blurted out and slapped a hand to his mouth. He shocked himself by voicing his thoughts. Can people strangle themselves to death?

He was observing the younger's hands. How Tae had his long, slender and beautiful fingers fisted into a ball almost all the time. He wanted to ease and hopefully some day, erase the lines of tensions on them. But what he didn't realize is that his desire was so strong that his brain couldn't keep it inside any longer and it just forced itself out of his mouth.

Taehyung stopped his usual movements of swaying and bobbing and was just sitting and staring at the opposite wall. Jimin was sure he has blown his single chance of knowing more about him (Tae).

"I am sorry TaeTae. I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable", Jimin apologized from bottom of his heart. He felt as if he stepped out of his line for voicing his true desires.

Tae sat motionless for a couple of minutes. Jimin's anxiety was reaching the ceiling.

"H-hold hands?" Tae asked. Jimin wasn't sure what to make of the question. Is he shocked or disgusted?

"No. No. TaeTae, we don't have to do that. I don't know why I said it. It's just-", Jimin stopped his rambling and gasped.

Tae extended his right hand out. Jimin was equal parts shocked and scared. Should he really touch him? Wouldn't that make him uncomfortable? How do I go about this? Do I just touch his hand with my finger tips or hold it like you shake hands or intertwine our fingers?

Shaking his head to free his brain of all the stupid questions piling up, he decided to do the most ridiculous thing to have ever been done in all of human history. He extended his hand too. No handshake or holding hands. Just two extended hands hanging mid air, neither one making a move towards the other.

Taehyung turned around and lowered his gaze at his own hand. Then he extended his hand further. Instead of holding, he took Jimin's hand and curled all of his (Jimin's) fingers except his thumb. Jimin felt a tingling sensation race down his body, making goosebumps erupt wherever it went. Once Tae was done, Jimin's hand resembled the thumbs up gesture that people do to congratulate of a job well done.

Earlier Jimin was high on self pity for his stupid action, now he was downright confused.

Tae then opened his palm, stretched all his fingers out and hovered it over Jimin's thumb. Jimin watched carefully. The younger pushed his palm gently down such that the tip of Jimin's thumb was now touching the center of Tae's palm. Then, he started moving his own hand in circle, which resulted in Jimin's thumb drawing circles in his palm. To say Jimin was lost of words is an understatement. Tae continued the action, making Jimin's thumb draw circles on his own palm.

Then, Jimin saw it happen. He saw the younger visibly relaxing. Tae's gaze was concentrated on their little point of contact, but his shoulders relaxed and his back drooped just a tiny bit.

Jimin just continued to stare in utter bewilderment at the little act his fortunate thumb was a part of. So this is how Tae relaxes himself? By drawing circles on his palm? But he must be doing it to himself then?

Then something struck Jimin's mind. So this act for Taehyung is what holding hands means for people? Pools of tears threatened to stream down Jimin's already reddened face. His heart felt heavy and his soul touched. He didn't what to say or what to feel.

That little point of contact between them was what anchored Jimin to reality.

People take so many things for granted. No one stops and stares at the little things that make up the world as we know it. Like the beautiful fluttering wings of a butterfly, like clouds lazily moving across the sky, like holdings hands and giving hugs. Now, he sees the beauty of it all. The beauty of that singularity, that single point of contact, where all the pleasures of Jimin's life are now concentrated. And in a long long time, he is truly happy to be alive.

_________

A/N:

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