Length: 1.1k
Author's Note: this is actually a part of my 19-drabble challenge to myself on ao3 so i wrote this on a whim hahaha. and i was so sleepy when i wrote this smh good thing i have my sister

Namjoon knew there was a reason why he didn't like family reunions or celebrations. It wasn't because he was a data processor and was rarely available, nor was it because he hates his family.

No, it became very clear to him why when they got back from the beach that weekend.

It was because Namjoon's family had a tendency to - how could one phrase it - not care.

Don't get him wrong; his family was open to everything so sometimes when things might be getting weird or when other people think something's already wrong, Namjoon's parents brush it off and let their children be.

Being the moody ("emo" was what they'd call him when he wasn't around) teenager growing up, it was a bit of a relief for him. He didn't have to explain why he dressed up the way he did, or why he listened to the same kinds of songs on repeat and on max volume, or even his ual preference because nobody even asked. (The worst he had to go through was the whole Birds-and-Bees talk that his mother insisted on giving to him. It took them 2 hours of properly discussing the anatomy of the male and female bodies before Namjoon blurted out that he was gay and that was that.)

As an adult now, however, his views upon the matter may have slightly changed.

The weekend that Namjoon's family planned to go out to the beach was, coincidentally, the only weekend he was free for a month. So, with much pestering from his mother and begging from his little sister, he agreed to come. He went home and they packed their things for the beach the night before so leaving early in the morning wouldn't be such a hassle for them anymore.

The bad omen Namjoon had seen was that he couldn't find his own sunscreen lotion. He usually had it on the dresser because he only usually went home to his parents' house whenever there was an occasion, but it was gone. He searched all over his room but couldn't find it. He'd asked his mother, of course, if she'd seen it, but she said that they don't really touch or even go into his room much. He sighed and asked if he could just borrow hers the next day before retreating to his bedroom and dozing off to sleep.

Clear blue waters, beautiful skies, and the cool breeze coming from the ocean was what greeted them when they arrived at the beachside the next day, and Namjoon was starting to actually enjoy the whole thing. A grill was set up for them (a few of his cousins came along) and the kids were playing around near the shore. It was a sight to see, but Namjoon wanted to finish reading the book he started a few days back. So he set up an umbrella and laid down a blanket on the sand, warning everyone that if he sees anyone try to bury him, they're going to be next.

A few minutes later, he feels the sun creeping up on his back and calls out to his sister, asking her to put sunscreen lotion on his back. His sister tells him to wait and he resumes his reading. After a while, though, he felt his eyes starting to droop.

And that is why Namjoon had to call in sick at work after that weekend.

He woke up hours later, sunscreen lotion either having miraculously evaporated like water on his skin or was never there in the first place, with an intense sunburn on his back. Annoyed, he told his mom that he'd be going back to the city earlier than expected and drove home that very night, careful not to lean back on his car seat.

The dilemma he faced the morning after (he slept facing down and half-, no biggie) was that, though he had a fully-stocked medicine cabinet in his kitchen, he didn't have any aloe to put on his burn.

Groaning and wincing as he struggled to put on the thinest shirt he owned, he walked ever-so slowly to the nearest convenience store.

Air-conditioning is a blessing from up above and everyone knows it. That first woosh of cool air that greeted him when he entered the store was like heaven.

"Hi, um-ow-do you-ow-happen to, um, ha-oow-have aloe here?" Every step Namjoon took was like hell for his back. He couldn't imagine just how he'd even gotten down to the lobby of his apartment complex and around the corner to this store.

The (cute, small) man behind the counter wearing the uniform blue and yellow vest with a name tag reading 'Park Jimin' looked up at Namjoon's voice and saw how bad the burn must have been hurting. "It's somewhere there," he pointed to somewhere along the back of the store.

Namjoon was about to groan and start his journey to retrieve the aloe, but Jimin piped up and said, "I should probably get that for you." Namjoon thought the guy was an angel. He slid out from behind the counter, past Namjoon (letting him get a good estimate of their height difference), to the back of the store, and returned quickly with a small jar of aloe in his hand.

Jimin quickly scanned the item and put it in a bag for him. He handed the guy a few bills and struggled to put his change back in his wallet, oblivious to the sympathetic wincing Jimin was doing from behind the counter.

As Namjoon made his way to the door, he looked back and saw Jimin looking at him with the (cutest) most concerned face he'd ever seen. Giggling to himself (because he can't even breathe without moving his back, let alone laugh), he painfully raised a hand, smiled through the pain, and said, "Thanks a lot!"

Jimin froze and blinked a few times before going slightly red and answering him, "I hope you feel better soon!"

"I will, thanks to you." He hoped Jimin understood none of that as he hurried (as hurried as he could possibly hurry) out the door and back to his apartment because it would just be weird to suddenly have a crush on the cute counter guy the first time you meet, right?

Namjoon thought so, until he saw the back of the receipt of his purchase as he stepped inside his apartment.

a little help goes a long way. call me when you need it ^_^
010-XXXXXXXX - btw i'm Jimin

He couldn't believe he actually managed to enjoy the family outing after all.