Remember Me

Chapter 28

Jimin was much better at using his crutches now, and let up a normal pace as we walked together. We reached the restaurant at 1, and ran into Jin at the entrance. Upon seeing Jimin, Jin's face brightened up, and he walked up to him for a tight hug. Jimin was a little surprised, but was not the kind to deny people their hugs, so he smiled and hugged him back.

Jin smiled at me for a second and dove in to hug me too, sending a little jolt of surprise through me too. I smiled, glad that Jin was such a good natured person. The three of us sat at a table in a private area, and Jimin laughed when he saw the menu.
"Stay away from the artichoke dip, Jin. Zara and I have had enough nightmares about that."
Jin grinned, "Well then your palate's certainly changed. That's like your favorite dish on the menu."
I looked at Jimin skeptically.

"My favorite?" Jimin asked, a little flustered.
"Yeah. This is basically your favorite restaurant. Especially when you're stressed. You don't remember?"
I exhaled a little laugh. Tastes do change over time, huh.
Jimin cleared his throat, "It's cool that we're best friends now. I always looked up to you in high school."
Jin grinned, "Of course. We've been friends since you first got to college. I'm grateful the squad was lucky enough to meet when we did."
I jumped in, "Jin, I was hoping you could give a good summary of what his college life was like. And I can give you some privacy if you'd like, too."
Jin turned to me and shook his head, "Ever the businesswoman. That's fine Zara, you can stay."

"Ah, what can I say about college..." Jin proceeded to recount how the two of them had met shortly after college started, and all the fun things they'd done together. "For a while it was you, me, my friend Namjoon, and your best friend, Taehyung."
At that name, Jimin's smile faltered a little, but he kept listening silently.
"The two of you were fast friends, and probably are still the two closest in the group. Joon enjoyed hanging out with you guys, and roped us into joining a music club with him in your second year. That's where we met Yoongi and Jungkook. And, let's see, you and Jungkook joined the dance team, and met the captain Hoseok. He got into learning how to rap with Joon and Yoongi," Jin laughed, remembering fondly. "Want to see photos?"

Jimin slowly nodded. I saw an excited glint in his eye, which made me feel warm inside. To think Jimin had made such a great new dream with such a great group of friends. He deserved it; I had no doubt everybody in the group loved him.

Jimin nodded along as Jin pointed to each guy in the picture he brought up on his phone and described each of them with little anecdotes.
"Namjoon and Yoongi are rappers under the label. Jungkook is one of your best vocalists. You and Taehyung pretty much started the company together, though you handle very different parts of it. But you both perform too. You and Hoseok have a dance sub-label too. Hoseok almost didn't join the company, but I'm glad he did... look how well you guys are doing."
"And you? Are you taking over your dad's company or are you with us?"
Jin smiled, "As an old friend, I still feature in your music sometimes. I'm a large shareholder and help out with investments, though! But my job is my first love, and I wanted to take over the family business. Nothing like the fights you had," Jin laughed, but my smile fell. I remembered exactly how those fights had gone, and those were unpleasant memories indeed.

Jimin laughed nervously. "Were the fights really that bad? My dad still seems angry at me."
I raised my eyebrows, "Your dad is not angry at you..." but I looked over at Jin, who looked sad. "But yes, it was bad. I can... see why you would think he's mad at you."
Jin sighed, "It's in the past, anyway. Three years ago, you had a large fight with family about changing your major to do something you enjoyed. I don't know exactly what happened, but your dad was trying to stop you from working for a label. So you used your business experience to just create your own label very soon after. It was a difficult couple of years, but now your popularity has shot up."

Jimin bit his lip, "So I relinquished my position at dad's company...?"
I whipped my head to face him.
"That hasn't been officially decided yet."
Jin laughed, "but probably, right?"
Jimin nodded, and I took a sip of water for my dry throat. I didn't wish to interrupt and speak, though.

"Well then... can we meet the others?" Jimin asked suddenly.
"The others..?"
"Yeah. Our squad. I'm curious about them; I've heard so much now."
Jin grinned in excitement, but turned to look at me, as if for permission. I put a tentative hand on Jimin's arm, "Are you sure you'll be fine?"
"No," he smiled, covering my hand with his, "but we'll find out."
I pulled my hand from his quickly, but I shrugged and continued listening as Jin spoke about their college days.

After our meal, Jin asked me to follow his car.
"We're going to meet them now?" I asked.
"Well, when else?" He laughed.
I envied his carefree attitude; it was definitely something. I rolled my eyes and got in the car. Jimin almost immediately asked.
"Are you two close?"
I glanced at him. "Did we seem close?"
"I don't know. That's why I'm asking. Don't you think he's handsome?"
I blinked and paused. "I'm closer to him than your other friends... but it's not like I know him that well. He's definitely handsome, though."
Jimin gasped a little and got into a little pouty face. I opened my mouth to speak but closed it again.
"What-Are you... jealous?"
"No, why should I be jealous? He's obviously the handsomer one."
I rolled my eyes with a laugh. "It's all about preferences. To me, you're a lot more attractive. Why even be insecure?" I reddened when I realized what I said, but Jimin glanced my way a couple of times and then shut up, seemingly satisfied. I sighed and refused to look at him throughout the car ride. I realized we were headed to Jin's apartment, where the party had taken place a while ago. The memory of my humiliation was fresh, but it stung a little less now, probably since Jimin had been right beside me since.