“Jimin, if you ask me one more time I swear I’m going to smack you,” I grumbled, steps uneven as Jimin continued walking sideways and bumping into my shoulder, progressively shoving me off the sidewalk.

“No you won’t,” Jimin replied in a gleeful, almost singsong voice. He pushed me once more, causing me to take one step off the edge of the path straight into a deep puddle of dirty water along the side of the road from the rainstorm earlier. I glared at him, but he just laughed at my now soaked shoe. “That’s what you get for ignoring me!”

I sighed, then quickened my pace so that I could walk a stride or two ahead of my currently-trying-to-be-annoying-and-succeeding boyfriend. I heard him call me from behind but I ignored him, groaning as I felt the water from the puddle squidging in my right shoe with every step. And we had just left my house too.

Jimin caught up to me and silently wound his arm around mine, dropping his hand so that it caught my swinging one. “Hey…sorry about your shoe, Kookie.”

I threw him a look that I hoped read something along the lines of ‘okay whatever’ and continued walking without speaking back.

“Seriously though, why don’t you want to go?” he asked me tentatively, probably hoping that he wasn’t using the same pushy tone from earlier that had annoyed me in the first place.

I shrugged. “I’m not feeling that energetic and clubs always require a lot of energy, so I just don’t feel like it.”

“You don’t even have to dance! I’ll do enough of that for the both of us,” he said with a grin.

“Why do you want to go so bad?” I asked, wondering where Jimin came up with all of his energy. Not that I didn’t have my fair share of it, but sometimes he seemed so impossibly happy and cheerful all the time that I had a bit of a hard time keeping up.

Now Jimin shrugged. “No reason, I just think it would be a fun way to spend the evening together.”

I looked sideways at him, reading through his seemingly calm and composed answer. There was something else written on his face…had he planned something? I’d been dating him for long enough to be able to see through him quite easily, able to guess when he was telling the truth or not.

Regardless, I decided to take the bait that he didn’t even know he had set. “Okay, let’s go.”

His face instantly lit up as though the sun had just peeked up over the horizon. I always enjoyed seeing Jimin happy, though whether or not I expressed that to him much, I’m not really sure. “Really??” he exclaimed, a new bounce in his step.

I chuckled, squeezing his hand a little to let him know I was serious. “Really. But only if you promise to take your hyperness level down a notch or two; you’re acting like a kid who’s eaten too much sugar at a party.”

He nodded, still grinning widely. “You know which one I wanna go to, right?”

“Have we ever gone to a different one?”

“True,” he laughed. He began happily swinging our hands lightly between the two of us, making it hard for me to not be affected by his ever-contagious excitement.

I peered at him closely. “So, why are you so eager today?”

He tilted his head, looking back at me with his happy, crescent shaped eyes. “I’ll tell you when we get there.”

“Mmk,” I answered, knowing that my lack of response would lead to him want to tell me more. The air was silent for a moment before Jimin sighed, loudly. Bingo.

“Well, if you have to know, it has something to do with us and today being special for a certain reason,” he said cryptically. I saw him glance at me then look away with a little smile. “Any guesses?”

“Nope.”

He deflated a little, my apparent lack of interest bothering him. He mumbled that he would ‘just keep it a surprise then’ as we flagged down a taxi and drove toward the dance club.

What Jimin didn’t know was that I already knew why he was in such a good mood, and I knew why today was special. How could I forget our six-month anniversary? I smiled to myself at the thought.

I had already decided something very important about today that I was going to keep from Jimin until I found the right time. I just hadn’t exactly planned on revealing what it is at the noisy, people-filled dance club, I thought with a sigh, staring out the window as rain began to fall from the darkening sky.

* * *

We arrived at the dance club around 8 pm, which happened to be right when the place opened. Since it was now full on storming, I wrenched the door of the taxi open and sprinted to the entrance, Jimin following closely behind. He and I were frequenters to this club – both of us loved music and loved dancing so it was the perfect place for just that. In fact, this dance club is where we first met, dancing late into the night to pulsating music and drinking probably one too many cocktails.

Little did either of us know though, that after that first strange, slightly unromantic meeting, we would begin going out and fall for each other a little more each day that went by.

We walked through the door, shaking our wet hair and peeling off our already soaked jackets, finding an empty corner to keep them in. I slipped my ticket into Jimin’s back pocket since I didn’t have anywhere to keep it as we headed toward the main event room.

Despite being comparatively early, the dance floor and bar were already filled, the air hot with the breath and bodies of people moving in time to the throbbing bass. The smell of sweat and liquor tinged in my nostrils, making me crinkle my nose a little – it was always like this when we first walked in. My initial instinct was to run away and hide at home, snuggled alone in a blanket with my own music jammed into my ears, escaping the wild mess of strangers dancing and drinking to insanity.

But Jimin’s grip on my hand always brought me back to reality, back to this room and this present time, reminding me that the whole reason I was here in the first place was purely for my love of dance, music, and now, him. I hadn’t told him any of that before though…

I had also never told him that the only reason I was there the night we had met because my friend had dragged me there, trying to get me to try something new and exciting. Not that a club was my idea of exciting, but she had seemed to think it would help me ‘branch out’ and ‘live a little’. I had been perfectly fine spending weekends alone, away from the craziness of college life and the students that came with it. But one weekend she had practically gotten on her knees to beg me to come with her to this club, since it had just opened and was having a buy one get one free ticket night and she had been already been dying to try the club and didn’t want to go alone.

So, I had reluctantly gone with her, planning on staying glued to my phone the entire time I sat at the bar, sipping a colorful drink – and I did just that…until someone caught my eye.

That someone was the person currently standing by my side, whose eyes were glistening in the neon blue and red lights that flashed, teeth sparkling as he smiled at me, the excitement clearer than day written in his features. Jimin had stood out to me from everyone else then and now as well. The way his body moved to the beat of the music, bending and twisting at just the right moments. The way he expertly moved his feet, so smooth it looked like the world’s most talented dancer had carefully choreographed it. His entire body, face, even aura had been mesmerizing, drawing me out from my safe seat of solitude and onto the dance floor in attempt to get closer to the dancer who had all my attention.

Jimin squeezed my hand again, shaking me from my reverie. “You okay? Looked like you weren’t here for a little bit right there,” he laughed, pulling me to the bar. He ordered a couple drinks and leaned against the counter, looking at me with a funny sparkle in his eye.

“What?” I asked, beginning to smile in response to his grin.

“Have you figured out why I wanted to come here yet?” he asked, eyes widening slightly as I shook my head.

As he opened his mouth to explain, I tilted forward, brushing my lips quickly against his before standing back and smiling once again. “Happy six months, Jimin.”

He giggled, though the sound was lost to the music surrounding us. “You little ! You knew the whole time, didn’t you?”

I nodded with a laugh, earning a jab in the ribs.

“Jerk,” I heard him huff, “For the entire day, I thought you had forgotten.”

I raised my eyebrows teasingly. “Why else do you think I agreed to come here?”

“Yah, I know you love this place as much as I do…even if it takes you a little while to settle in,” he countered. “Anyway, I have something for you.”

“You do?” I suddenly felt bad after realizing that I didn’t prepare anything to give to him. “I thought we agreed that we wouldn’t buy presents on-”

“Yeah well I didn’t buy it, I made it. Well kinda. I had it made by a friend of mine and he did it for free.” He suddenly looked defensive. “But it still holds a lot of meaning and I designed it so…yeah.” His voice trailed off as he reached into his pocket, bringing out a small wrapped object no bigger than the palm of my hand.

I took it from him, smiling gently. “Jimin, no matter what you got me, I know I am really going to like it so don't worry so much.”

He shrugged sheepishly. “Just open it.”

I obediently began to carefully unwrap it, worried that I would rip whatever was inside since it felt so small and fragile.

“Jungkook, it’s fine, it’s not gonna break,” Jimin said, obviously eager for me to see what it was quicker than the pace I was unwrapping at.

So I tore the packaging off, leaving a bracelet sitting in my hand. It was made of a smooth, twisted, faded brown leather and was a little warm from sitting snuggly inside Jimin’s pocket for who knows how long, and it still had the long, untrimmed edges of the braided leather as the way to tie it.

I stared at it, getting a strange prick in the back of my neck that the bracelet seemed familiar but I brushed the feeling aside instantly. “Jimin…wow, it’s beautiful.”

“Do you like it?” he asked, eyes disappearing behind his cheeks as he smiled widely.

“I love it,” I breathed. Something about it made it feel homey and Jimin-y if that makes any sense. “Can you put it on for me?”

Jimin nodded, taking it out of my hand and tying it gently around my outstretched wrist. When he was finished, he gave it a little pat and looked back up at me with a little grin. “There, now you have a little piece of me to be with you wherever you go.”

I cringed. “That’s so cheesy.”

“Oh shut up,” Jimin retorted, then looked down, running his fingers over my wrist and over the bracelet, sending little shivers up my skin at his touch. “It looks good on you.”

I grabbed his wandering hand and leaned forward, placing a soft, lingering kiss on his puffy and slick from alcohol lips that tasted of fruit. I then pressed my forehead against his and smiled, though my eyes were closed. “Thank you Jimin.”

He murmured that he loved me, then kissed my lips quickly once more before standing and grabbing my hand. “You’re welcome Kookie, I’m glad you like it.” He began pulling me away from the bar as he walked backwards, eyes smiling. “Come dance with me.”

I offered little resistance, still touched by the simple yet beautiful gift he had given me.

We wove through the crowd of people, trying to find a place to dance that wouldn’t result in us being stepped on by the mass of moving bodies on the dance floor. When we finally reached a relatively open spot, I grabbed Jimin by the waist, pulling him back first so that his entire body pressed flush against my own. I began swaying us to the beat, Jimin and I moving our hips together in perfect unison, as I my hands up and down his sides, feeling his head lean back against my shoulder as we melted into the music.

It was then that I decided was the perfect time. I had been thinking about it for a long while, but now that this day had finally come around, I was horribly nervous and excited at the same time. I had decided that today would be the day I tell Jimin I love him.

I know that may not sound like such a big deal to anyone else, and it certainly isn’t to Jimin, considering he started telling me he loved me back in like month one or two of our relationship. But to me, it’s terribly important. So important, that I have never spoken those words to anyone but my mom, dad, and brother. I had dated a few times before meeting Jimin, but none of the relationships had ever really gone anywhere past a few casual make out sessions or the lonely . Hence the reason I had not used up those words on anyone I didn’t mean it with yet.

But now there was Jimin. I felt more myself around him than I did even when I was alone; I could spend hours with him and not grow sick of the time; I could look into his eyes and see care and dedication written in every expression, every look that he would give me. I knew he was who I belonged with and I knew in my heart that I loved him, even though our six months together, when compared to my entire life, were very short.

However, I realized now that it wasn’t time that determined how my heart felt. Be it a day, a week, a month, a year, or longer, love is love.

And I was ready to tell him.

As Jimin’s head lolled back against my neck, his eyelashes fluttering gently against his cheeks, I turned my face and kissed his jaw softly, then trailed my lips against his skin up to where his ear was. I leaned my face closer so that he could hear me over the blaring music. “Jimin, I want to tell you something.”

Without opening his eyes, I could feel his throat hum in response.

“I…” I looked away for a moment, the words suddenly stuck in my throat, hesitant to finally come out. “Jimin…”

He tilted his head and opened his eyes a little to look into mine, encouraging me.

I swallowed hard and leaned in one more time. “Jimin. I…I love you.”

Strangely, Jimin then turned his head and looked at me, eyes wide, looking almost afraid. He opened his mouth to speak, but all that came out was a single letter said in a blank, lifeless tone. “R.”

I stared at him. “What?”

Then, I blinked.

* * *

            After my eyelids had gone through the process of closing then reopening in a blink, a process that only takes a third of a second, the sight in front of me was not what it had been just that third of a second before.

No, instead I was standing outside in the middle of the sidewalk, staring in the same direction I had been looking before I blinked – to the right, just over my shoulder where Jimin’s face had been.

But Jimin was gone. Nothing left of him but the cold bite of the wind that blew into me where he had been standing. Not his scent, not the sound of his sweet, tenor voice, not the feel of his touch lightly grazing my thigh like it had just been.

I felt dizzy, nauseated, like I had just been on a ride at the county fair that I hadn’t wanted to go on, and the back of my neck was prickling again, almost like the strange feeling you get when someone’s watching you from far away, hidden in the shadows.

I whipped my head around, trying to find the source of the feeling, but there was no one there except an old couple, walking hand in hand down the street from me. I heard music dully thumping, as if it were playing loudly but from within an enclosed space. I turned slowly, the feeling of dread creeping into my belly, and faced the buildings that were along the sidewalk.

Immediately, I felt twice as sick as I had before and leaned into the poor garbage bin that happened to be nearby and threw up anything that had previously been in my stomach. I staggered, trying to hold myself up against the bin as my eyes fell on the building in front of me once again.

It was the same dance club that Jimin and I had just been in not even one minute before, but there was something very, very wrong about it.

Pinned to the door was a sign that read “Grand Opening Deal! Dance Club: Buy One Ticket Bring One Guest Free, all opening week! Ages , October 17-22.”

I swear on my life that my heart stopped beating when I read that sign. I read it over and over, trying to make myself believe that it couldn’t be real…how could it? I pinched myself, thinking that maybe I had too much to drink with Jimin and was now passed out, dreaming up all that was before me.

But I was wide-awake. No matter how hard I pinched myself, stomped my feet, or slapped my face, I was still standing there, shivering in the cold autumn night. I then began to deny that Jimin and I had even walked in yet and he was somewhere behind me, still walking up the street to meet me… but wait, it had been raining. And it was April now, not six months ago in October. Not the day…I swallowed thickly, resisting the urge to burst into tears. Not the day that I met Jimin.

For some reason, I happened to look down at my hands. When I did, the sob about to make its debut stopped halfway up my throat, freezing in place. Wrapped around my wrist was the bracelet that Jimin had given to me just a few minutes ago! That must mean that all this is was my mind tricking me and that he is still inside, waiting for me to come back in to him. Maybe I accidently took some sort of drug that was causing me to hallucinate?

I laughed without humor at myself as I made my way to the door of the club. When I reached for the handle, the sane part of my mind began doubting my new resolve, but I shoved all doubts to the back of my head as I swung the door wide, nearly running inside before smacking into the bouncer who stood by the door. Huh. I didn’t remember him being there when Jimin and I arrived.

“Can I see your ticket please?” He asked, sounding bored as hell, like he wanted to be anywhere but standing there by that door.

I composed myself, trying to remember where my ticket was as I searched my pocket. I then realized that I had given mine to Jimin after we had made it to the bar since I had forgotten to put it in my jacket pocket. “Oh. I was actually in here before but I left my ticket with my boyfriend since I needed to get some air,” I explained, cursing myself for sounding so out of breath.

The bouncer raised his eyebrows. “Really? I don’t remember seeing you come in.”

“Honestly, I don’t remember seeing you either,” I admitted, wondering where the heck this guy had been when we had gotten here earlier. “Was someone else checking the tickets before?”

The man shook his head. “Nope, I’ve been here since we opened.” He was making no move to let me pass so I searched through my head, trying to think of another way I could get this guy out of my way so I could return to Jimin, who was probably beginning to wonder where I was.

“Look, I promise I have a ticket. Can I just take you to my boyfriend so he can show it to you? That way you know I’m telling the truth,” I asked, trying to sound slightly cute but cringing when it had no impact on the big bouncer.

He rolled his eyes. “Fine, lead the way gay boy.”

The small slur churned my insides a little, but I had gotten used to it over time, so I ignored it and lead the way into the main room, stopping briefly to search for Jimin in the area we had been dancing in before.

My heart sunk to the floor when I realized he wasn’t there anymore. Beginning to panic, I scanned the entire place as best I could with the bouncer practically breathing down my neck.

I let out a sigh of relief when I finally saw him. He was in the middle of the crowd, currently in the middle of a dance battle with some other guy I had never seen before. I turned to the bouncer and pointed at Jimin. “He’s over there, I’ll get him and bring him over here, okay?”

The bouncer looked skeptical but nodded. “Quickly then, I don’t have all day.”

I turned and hurried over, pushing through the loudly cheering people as they watched my boyfriend execute the same dance moves that had drawn me to him the same night we had met. My heart swelled with pride as I reached him, proud that he was mine and no one else’s. I felt a little bad breaking in and ending the battle, but I knew he wouldn’t mind once I told him what had happened.

I finally squeezed myself to the inner ring of people closest to the dancers, waiting for a moment before trying to catch Jimin’s eye to motion that he come with me. Annoyingly, he didn’t see me, apparently too focused on his dancing. I sighed, then walked into the middle of the group and grabbed his hand right as it flew up into the air in the middle of a dance move.

I did not expect the look that he gave me just as I was about to walk away with him. His eyebrows furrowed, lips tightened and he looked at me with…anger?

He wrenched his hand out of mine while glaring at me like I was crazy. “Uh, excuse me, can I help you?” he asked sarcastically, making me flinch from the uncharacteristically cold tone in his voice. “I’m kinda busy here.”

I stared at him for a moment, too surprised to be able to think of words to say in response. He gave me a look of disbelief before turning away, just as I yelled out over the noise, “What the hell Jimin? This isn’t funny!”

The dance battle had continued on without him as he slowly turned back and looked at me, the far away look in his eyes sending a chill down my spine. “Sorry, I’m not sure how you know my name, but I don’t know who you are,” he said, watching me carefully. “Have we met before?”

My face must have crumpled then because he was suddenly looking very apologetic. I could feel the hysterics building in my chest as I began to sob in the middle of the dance floor, unable to think of a reason why any of this could possibly be happening.

His hands began to flail around almost comically. “Wait, I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to offend you…” his voice trailed off as he looked at something behind me.

Just as I was about to turn to see what it was, I felt a hand grip my shoulder a little too roughly for comfort.

The bouncer. He glanced down at me scornfully before boredly looking up at Jimin. “Yah, is this guy your boyfriend?”

Jimin’s head tilted to the side, eyes jumping from me to the bouncer and back. “…No?”

My tears instantly stopped falling as the shock from his answer sunk in.

“Thought not,” the bouncer replied, turning both of us around and walking toward the door. “You’re gonna have to try harder than that,” he said snidely.

I twisted myself out of his grip and ran back to where we had just been, finding that Jimin had began to dance again. I grabbed his hand desperately, staring into his confused eyes. “Jimin,” I gasped as the bouncer grabbed me again and started to pull me away. “Jimin I have to know! Do you really not know me?”

Pain ripped though my heart as he shook his head, eyebrows furrowing.

“Give it up kid,” the bouncer grunted as I fought his iron grip. “You’re not gonna win this one.”

I ignored him but allowed myself to be dragged away as I kept my gaze focused on Jimin as he watched me with curiosity, shrugged, then disappeared back into the crowd.

I found myself standing outside again, the door being pushed closed in my face as the bouncer told me to just buy a ticket like everyone else next time. I stood there numbly for an extended amount of time, contemplating whether I should try and sneak in again.

Part of me was still furiously resisting the notion that Jimin didn’t know me. How couldn’t he? He and I had just been having the celebration for our first beautiful six months together. How could he deny me so easily and straight to my face?

Tears began spilling down my cheeks once again, but this time with heartbroken bitterness weighing heavily on my shoulders.

I turned away from the door and hobbled blindly down the steps then began walking home, away from my love who claimed he didn’t know me and back to where I thought I liked being the most. But now I realized that it wasn’t my house that I liked anymore, it was being with Jimin.

I clenched my jaw, swallowing my tears. I would get Jimin to recognize me, no matter what it took because I knew now, even if this was all really some elaborate joke, that I couldn’t live without him.