Lawbreakers (YoonMin)

27

"Am I hot enough?"

"Too hot," Jimin mumbled without thinking.

Yoongi stopped still, surprised that Jimin would let that slip so easily. "Oh," he said, stuck for words now that it had actually happened.

Jimin tried to pull away, his cheeks flaming red once more. "Sorry, I didn't mean it like that," he laughed awkwardly, but Yoongi could see straight through the lie. Jimin made his way over to the other side of the pool again and pulled himself out to sit on the edge. Yoongi was still standing in the same spot in the pool, his face frowning in either thought or disapproval. Afraid of the latter, Jimin panicked. "Please don't misunderstand," he begged.

"What's to misunderstand?" Yoongi finally looked up at Jimin. "You like me, don't you?"

*

12th July (continued)

Jimin's mouth opened and closed rather like a guppy fish as he tried to come up with some believable excuse to deny that there was any truth to Yoongi's guess. He closed his mouth and huffed like a teenager. "No, I just... It's weird being so close to a guy," he shrugged, turning to face the door as his eyes uncontrollably filled with guilty tears.

Yoongi had just lost his girlfriend, an unborn baby that could have been his, his gang, and his freedom in one fell swoop, and yet here Jimin was selfishly falling in love with him. He could hear the water moving as Yoongi approached him, but he refused to turn and look or else the elder would know straight away that he'd lied.

"Jimin?" Yoongi tried to get Jimin to look at him but failed. He sighed and pulled himself out of the pool to sit next to the younger boy, who was beginning to form very distinct goosebumps from the cold air.

"What?" Jimin mumbled, trying to hide the tightness in his throat and finally turning to face the front, but looking down at his hands.

Yoongi sucked in a breath before answering seriously, "It's true, isn't it? I'm right."

Jimin shook his head to deny it, but Yoongi grabbed his arm and his reflexes took action as he turned to face him with a gasp. "Jimin, stop lying," Yoongi demanded, a little harshly. A small tear dropped from Jimin's eye and Yoongi sighed heavily as he saw it, letting go of his arm.

"I'm sorry," Jimin apologised quietly. "I've fucked everything up. I'm so selfish."

"Why do you think that?" Yoongi asked, sounding irritatingly like a psychiatrist. His tone made Jimin think he was going to get a lecture on why it was okay to like him but that he couldn't return the feelings.

Jimin frowned and slid back into the water, walking into the middle of the pool. He needed to be away from Yoongi so that he could breathe steadily again and so that his brain could function without going haywire over Yoongi's closeness to him - even if he was in a dress which made him look ridiculous. "You've just lost everything," he said evenly. "You need to heal and recover, but here I am, selfishly telling you I like you when I know you don't like me back and you're grieving for Soyi. It's selfish of me and I hate myself for it. I hate myself for liking you and I know you hate me too," he finished, allowing himself a moment to recover himself for Yoongi's reply.

Yoongi also dropped back into the pool and strode over to Jimin, taking him firmly by the shoulders. "Of course I don't hate you," he said, trying to get the younger to look into his eyes. "Look at me Jimin."

Jimin looked up, but then quickly down again when he saw how intense Yoongi's dark eyes were boring into his. Was he angry? Yoongi sighed again - he seemed to do that a lot with Jimin - and suddenly pulled the younger boy towards him, wrapping his arms around his shoulders.