April.

“Hi! Welcome to Cypher. What can I do for you?” Jimin can hear Taehyung call out from his studio even through the loud buzzing of the needle. It was a pretty chill day for them considering that April is the time most people decided to go and have their skins decorated with ink. He could still hear the buzzing as he was cleaning Seokjin’s new rib tattoo when Taehyung entered the door. “Someone wants to see you, Chims.” 

He smiled and thanked Taehyung before heading out. It was probably an old client wanting to get a touch-up or one of his friends wanting to get out and have lunch with him. What he wasn’t expecting was a neat looking boy seating in the waiting area, staring at the designs hanging on the wall. He was wearing a pressed white shirt and a pair of slacks that were obviously a size bigger than him. His black hair was neatly combed to the side and a pair of thick-framed glasses were perched on his nose.

“Hi. What can I do for you?” 

The boy snapped out from his reverie and turned to look at him. He took a deep breath, fists closing on his sides before speaking. “I want to have a full back tattoo,” he then took out a neatly folded piece of paper from his pocket and handed it to Jimin before continuing. “This is the design that I want. Is it doable?” It was a drawing of a pair of wings. The details were neatly drawn and there were a few notes written at the bottom of the paper. He looked at the boy in front of him, scrutinizing him from head to toe. 

“Look, if you’re doing this to rebel against your parents, then no. I won’t do the job. You have to find a new tattoo artist,” he said as he handed the paper back to the boy. Jimin turned to head back inside his studio, motioning for Taehyung to usher him out. 

- 

May.

Even though it was hot outside, Jimin was having goose flesh as he doddle designs in his worn little notebook. He was wearing his favorite muscle tee to casually show people his intricate rib tattoo that he got when he graduated from college. He would sometimes flex his arms, trying not to smile when he heard the girls in the waiting area squealing. But the chill inside the shop was slowly getting unbearable, so he unwillingly put on his jacket and scowled at the air-conditioning unit. 

"That won’t make the temperature higher, Jimin," he heard Namjoon from the counter. He turned around and scowled at the older instead. "You're so cute, Park Jimin. Even with your full-sleeved arms, you're so ing adorable." Jimin glowered at him and threw a crumpled napkin which Namjoon failed to dodge. 

He hmp-ed and crossed his arms across his chest, "For your information, Kim Namjoon-hyung, I am not adorable. In fact, I am very much a badass boss," and stuck his tongue out. The other was about to answer back when they heard the chimes rang. They turned to look at the customer, Namjoon automatically greeting the newcomer. "Hi! Welcome to Cypher! What can we do for you?" 

"I think I forgot to introduce myself last time," he looked at Jimin. "I'm Min Yoongi and I am old enough to have a full back tattoo. Can you please re-consider the design?" Namjoon looked at Jimin then back at the customer. "Please?" It was quiet for a long time. Yoongi was starting to feel his arms give out from holding out too long. 

Namjoon was about to take the paper from Yoongi when Jimin spoke. "Yoongi-ssi, I told you I won't do it," he sighed. "Are you even sure how much it would cost you for the design? Do you have any idea how long it would take for us to finish the design?" He can see Yoongi's face hardened. "I can do the design, but you're doing this out of spite," Jimin pointed at the paper he was holding, "and that is going to be on your skin forever. I don't want you to want it removed after a few years because you're regretting having it done in the first place." 

"Is that what you really think?" Yoongi looked at Jimin, void of any emotions. He put his hands down, slowly crumpling his design. "I have my reasons, Park Jimin-ssi." Yoongi stormed out of the shop, bumping into Seokjin as he was entering. 

It was quiet. So quiet for Jimin’s liking. No one said a word even when Taehyung entered the shop with a customer in tow. He wasn’t sure as to why he was feeling bad about rejecting Yoongi twice. Someone cleared his throat causing Jimin to snap out of his inner monologue. He looked around and saw his friends looking at him. 

“He doesn’t seem that bad, Chims,” Seokjin sat down beside him and placed a comforting hand on his thigh. He looked at the older and sighed. “He looked really determined to get that inked on his back. Maybe try giving him a chance,” he turned to look at Namjoon who was smiling at him, dimples full on display. He nodded, wanting the ground to swallow him because of the guilt he was feeling. 

“I... I don't know, hyung,” he said before he stood up and went inside his studio. 

- 

June.

Even through the loud buzzing of the needle from his and Taehyung’s studios, he can still hear whenever the chimes rang every time someone entered the shop. He looked up and tried to keep his face neutral when he saw that it was someone else and not the boy with neatly combed hair and slacks that are too big for him. He sighed before continuing with his work. 

Park Jimin, focus on your work.

And he tried. He tried really hard to let the person assigned in the counter greet the customer instead of looking up every time he heard the chimes rang. It simply became a habit and it wasn’t like he was waiting for someone to come in and look for him. Jimin knew he made his point clear the last time Yoongi came in wanting to get a tattoo. He is a man of his words. He would never take back what he said even if he would be given a chance to change it. 

"Still waiting for church boy?" He looked up from his desk to look at Taehyung and his -
eating grin. 

He placed his tattoo gun aside and sighed exasperatedly. Jimin looked at him, stopping himself from punching his best friend in the face. "Tae, what the ? Who the is 'Church boy'?" He said, making finger quotes. The chimes rang again, and he almost had a whiplash from turning his head away to look at the door. He heard someone snickering from behind him then an enthusiastic, "Welcome to Cypher! What can we do for you?" Jimin flicked Taehyung off before returning to work. 

- 

July.

Cypher had two weeks of normalcy and peace. Taehyung was manning the counter and was busy belting out to Fantine's I Dreamed a Dream when a doe-eyed boy (he guessed he's younger than him, considering how young the boy looked like with his wide eyes and adorable bunny teeth) barges in the shop like he owns it. The boy left wet foot prints on the floor as he walked towards the counter. He stood there for about a full minute, waiting for Taehyung to finishing belting out lines from the song. 

"Nice choice, man," Taehyung heard someone spoke from behind him. He cleared his throat and beamed at the customer before saying their usual spiel. He lowered the music's volume, not wanting the customer in front of him to yell through it. He was about to speak but was cut off with, "So, is there a Park Jimin here? Because Yoongi-hyung wanted him to do his tattoo- you know, huge wings on his back that he designed ages ago. He says it symbolizes something, but I don't know. He's old and grumpy. Do old people do that? Just be grumpy all day?" He smiled at Taehyung, bunny teeth and all, before continuing, "Anyway, I wanted to get a tattoo too." 

Damn, this kid just word vomited on him. "How old are you again?" He said, carefully trying not to sound like a huge douchebag. The kid looked like he was still in middle school and Taehyung was not going to get a child inked. He's pretty badass but he doesn't want to be in jail for tattooing a ing baby. "I'm 16." 

"Aren't you a bit too young to get tattooed..." 

"Jungkook. Jeon Jungkook." 

Taehyung cleared his throat. "Yeah, Jungkookie. I think you're a bit too young to get inked." He was ready to reason with this Jeon Jungkook if he insisted on getting inked. He has dealt with annoying and rude customers who are bigger and scarier than the boy in front of him. He sighed, getting ready to tell Jungkook that no, you're a ing child, when he was attacked with teary eyes and pouty lips. 

"I just wanted to get this really small tattoo that my hyung designed for me before he went away to study abroad," Jungkook sniffled. Damn Taehyung if he said he didn’t even have the urge to cry because this Jeon Jungkook just full-on attacked him with the biggest teary eyes he has ever seen in his life. 

If Taehyung was in a war against Jeon Jungkook, he would be lying on the ground right now with amputated legs and was probably bleeding to death. He knew he needed help. He won't win this battle on his own. He held a finger at Jeon Jungkook, telling him to just wait a sec there. The boy in front of him nodded, maintaining his kicked-puppy eyes at him "Seokjin-hyung! I need your help!" 

Seokjin went out of his studio, scrolling through his phone. He stood just outside his door and said, "What the do you want, Tae?" The latter cleared his throat, wanting him to look at the problem at hand. "If you're sick, you can go home." 

"Hyung! Will you just stop looking at your stupid old phone and look here?" 

The oldest among the three sighed exasperatedly before turning to look at Taehyung and what seems to be a middle school student inside their shop. He raised his brow at them and pointed at Jungkook. "Am I missing something here? Is he your baby cousin or something?" Seokjin eyed him from head to toe. 

"I wanna get a tattoo." 

Seokjin blinked. Was there something wrong with his ears? "Excuse me?" He looked at Taehyung then back at Jungkook. "I wanna get a tattoo. A small one on my forearm." He pulled out a piece of paper with a nicely drawn picture of a bunny. One look at Seokjin and he knew he lost the battle between him and Jeon Jungkook. 

"Thank you so much, hyungs!" Jeon Jungkook walked out of the Cypher with a fresh tattoo of a pink bunny with uneven brows on his forearm and two new hyungs wrapped around his pinky finger. 

- 

August.

It was extremely muggy and even though the air-conditioning unit in the shop is on maximum coolness, Jimin can still feel the sweat trickling down his back. He's wearing a shirt that's more holes than an actual shirt. He was in a terrible mood that day that greeting customers who entered the shop is such a task that he had to have someone with him all the time. What's worse is that he lost in their usual rock-paper-scissors game and was sent out to buy iced coffee for everyone. 

"I still can't ing believe you gave 16-year-old a free tattoo," Jimin sighed, glaring at his friends before continuing, "just because he's cute!" Taehyung shrugged, smiling at his phone screen. Seokjin was leaning on to the door of his studio, ignoring the younger's rambling.
The door chimes causing the banter between the three to stop. A man with a dyed green hair and fresh ear piercings entered the shop. He looked around, squinting from the glare of the sun and the lack of his thick-framed glasses. His eyes landed on Jimin, squint turning into a cold glare. 

"Yoongi-ah? Nice ha-" Taehyung was cut-off before he can finish his compliment. He had taken a liking to the other after knowing that they’re both from Daegu. And being the persistent person he is, Yoongi let the other call him whatever he wants after a few times of lunch outs and ice cream. 

"Am I still unworthy of your services, Park Jimin-ssi?" He looked around the room before settling his gaze on Jimin again. "I am doing this for myself, not for others." 

Jimin stared. And he stared until he heard Seokjin clear his throat to ease the tension in the room even for a tiny bit. He knew Yoongi can just easily look for another tattoo artist- and there are a lot better than him. But he didn't. He kept on insisting that Jimin do his tattoo and it made him a whole lot confused and flattered at the same time. 

"I think you should really give him a chance, Jiminnie," he heard Seokjin say from across the room. 

His gazed locked on to Yoongi again before he spoke, "Give me your design then come back tomorrow so we can talk about the details." 

Something flutters in his chest. He ignores it. 

- 

September

Their first session started in the second week of the month. The air is starting to feel a bit cooler compared to the sweltering heat from last month. They spent a week discussing the design and their schedule for four sessions. Yoongi's hair was dyed pink and he had a few more piercings added. 

Jimin was manning the counter when Yoongi arrived for his first session. He was wearing a loose white shirt and a pair of jeans that are more holes than denim over his black boots. "Hey, ready for your first session?" He heard Namjoon said from his shop. The other nodded at him and meekly smiled before turning his attention to Jimin. 

“You can still back out if you want.” Jimin laughed when Yoongi stuck his tongue out at him, scrunching his nose in the process. “You won’t get rid of me that easily, Park Jimin-ssi.” 

Getting your first tattoo is not like getting your first piercing. There’s going to be a lot of emotions and no one is and will ever be ready for them. Yoongi was ecstatic when Jimin finally gave in to his request. He was grinning on his way to the subway until he was tucked in bed that night. When he came back the next day to discuss the design, he was flying in the clouds. Sure, this was going to cost him a ing fortune but it’s fine because he wanted this. He was feeling so good that his best friend, Hoseok, thought he was going insane with how much he was smiling. The wave of anxiety and the feeling of wanting to not go to Cypher hit him a few days before his first session. Yoongi even had Hoseok to talk to him about the things he had to do just to get the tattoo and his efforts will not be wasted just because he's a chicken. 

And so, he sat there, paler than ever, as Jimin buzz the needle to life. They were going to do the outlines today which, in Jimin's opinion, shouldn't hurt that much except for the areas around his shoulder blades and spine. "Ready, big man?" Yoongi smiled and nodded, regardless of the heavy feeling of rocks in his gut. 

On their final session, with Yoongi laying on tattoo bed, Jimin knew about his reason for the tattoo design. He was cleaning the tattoo and was humming to whatever was playing on the speakers when Yoongi spoke. He stopped for a moment and looked at the latter.

“Thank you, you know, for doing this. I know you’re still a bit reluctant about me doing this out of spite, but I swear I’m not. I’m doing this for myself because I wanted to fly. I’ve been wanting to pursue music but people kept on discouraging me,” he choked on his words, trying to calm the tears waiting to fall. “When I ran away from home, Hobi and his sister took me in. If it weren’t for them, I’d be out in the streets right now.”

Jimin can see how Yoongi was trying hard not to cry and he understood. He knew how hard it was to be the only one fighting for what you really want. He placed a comforting hand on Yoongi’s shoulder. He can feel his shoulder’s shaking and can hear the sniffles even with Yoongi covering his mouth. Jimin nudged him to slowly stand up to look at the finished piece on the mirror from across the room.

The tears that were threatening to fall all came barreling down when Yoongi stood in front of the mirror. His legs were weak and he was having a hard time keeping himself up and was putting most of his weight on Jimin’s support but after seeing his tattoo, he can feel all the weight on his shoulders disappear. His back hurts and he’s embarrassed for crying in front of his tattoo artist but he’s happy- happier than he’s ever been. Yoongi turned to look at Jimin and grinned through his tears.

“I can finally fly.”

- 

October

Yoongi returned to the shop after a few weeks of letting the tattoo heal. He was hanging out at the counter with Seokjin when Jimin entered, holding cups of iced coffee. He smiled at Yoongi as he placed the cups on the counter table. 

"You're early!" The butterflies in his stomach was going bat crazy. He tried calming them down by drinking his coffee in one go. It didn't work because when Yoongi smiled at him, they went out of their minds, wanting to go out and tell Yoongi how much he felt about him. 

"I actually have to go to Gwangju in a few hours," he briefly looked at Hoseok who was fixing his baseball cap by the mirror and pointed at him, "I'm going with that brat." 

As quickly as the butterflies went haywire, they were quick to disappear. The disappointment was evident in Jimin's face that Seokjin had to change the topic. "Maybe you should start with the appointment, so you won't be late for the bus ride?" It earned him a nod from Jimin. 

Jimin took his time checking up on Yoongi's tattoo. There was a few scabbing left and the swelling has died down a bit. "The tattoo wasn't really fully healed, but it looked like it. It may look a bit dull right now but that's because your skin is healing itself. It'll look good after a few months." Jimin removed his gloves and stood by his table. "If you experience something itching or whatever that looks like it's bad, give me a call immediately and don't pick on it. Doing something to it may make it worse." 

"Thank you, Jimin-ssi. You won't have someone bother you now that I'm done with my sessions," Yoongi smiled at him, eyes shiny with threatening tears. Jimin wanted to stop him from leaving. He wanted to tell Yoongi that he doesn’t really mind him visiting at the shop even though they were done with the tattoo. 

Jimin wanted to scream at him about how much he liked Yoongi. 

Instead, he ruffled Yoongi’s now bleached blond hair. “Take care, big man.” 

- 

November

Everyone in the shop hated the cold November air. It’s dry and cold and even with their heater on, they can still feel the chill from the outside air. As per usual, Jimin lost their rock-paper-scissors game and was sent out to buy extra hot coffee and donuts for the whole crew. 

“Chims, get extra sugar for the coffee because Namjoon-hyung likes to drink diabetes,” Jungkook said as he mans the counter. 

They have taken a liking on Jungkook after weeks of him going back to the shop and learn how to tattoo. He’s still too young for the job but being the persistent he is, they all let him man the counter once in a while when he’s not with them in the studio taking down notes. 

“I just want to remind you, Jeon Jungkook, that I am older than you.” It earned him a pout from the younger. The scarf around Jimin’s neck was not enough to warm him up from the weather outside, so he snatched Seokjin’s scarf from the rack and wrapped it around his neck. 

“Can you still see from all the fabric around your face?” 

“Tae, it’s two degrees outside. my vision, I need to stay warm.” 

The coffee and donuts were already warm when he came back in the shop. It was a pretty chill day in the shop and they’re all lounging by the counter while Namjoon blasted his Celine Dion playlist through the speakers. The chimes on the door rang and it took Jimin’s all to not look upset when he saw a new customer entered. 

He tried pushing down the sobs bubbling in his chest by chugging his coffee. It scalded his tongue and his throat, but he’ll do anything to forget about the boy with pale skin and wings tattoo on his back. 

- 

December

"A package for you, Jiminnie." Seokjin was holding a small brown envelope as he poked his head into Jimin's studio. He wasn't really expecting a package but took it anyway. It was nearing Christmas and this might be a surprise gift from one of his friends. He thanked Seokjin before taking the neatly wrapped package to his desk. 

There wasn't anything written on the cover except for his name and the shop's address. Jimin knew he would have recognized the handwriting on the paper if this was from one of his friends. He tore open the package and haphazardly threw the paper on the floor. He can still hear Taehyung and Namjoon singing to some Christmas song outside and smiled at his friends' off-key singing. 

"A mixtape? People still make mixtapes in this year?" A drawing of a pair of wings was on the cover. There wasn't anything written on the CD itself which made Jimin even more excited and confused about the sender. He quickly played the CD in his laptop, plugged his earphones in, and waited for the single song file to play. 

It was quiet for a few seconds before he heard the strumming of a guitar. Jimin wasn't familiar with the song so he decided to just give it a try and see if he liked it after. Then someone started singing. The voice was rough and raw, and he can hear a hint of lisping from the singer. 

Min Yoongi wrote and sang a song for him. 

He didn't realize he was crying until the third time he listened to the song. 

- 

January

This is Yoongi. Leave a message after the beep.

The first time Jimin’s call went to voicemail, he smiled at how ‘Yoongi’ his voicemail was. It was short and direct to the point. Yoongi’s voicemail prompt was more mature than Jimin’s mochichims is out. Leave a message after Taehyung’s hollering. Yoongi must have been doing something important and must have missed his call. He smiled to himself even with the deep sense of sadness settling in his chest. He took a deep breath to steady himself before pressing the call button again. 

The second time his call went to voicemail, he felt the growing lump of disappointment and hurt on his chest spreading through his bones. He can see himself smiling at the mirror which ended up looking more like a grimace. He decided on writing his message on his worn-out notebook in case he gets tongue tied when Yoongi answered his phone. 

The third time Jimin’s call went to voicemail, he contemplated on saying what he wanted right then and there. He wanted to talk to Yoongi after listening to the mixtape he sent last month but was too afraid to know what the other will say. 

The fourth time his call went to voicemail, there was a lump in his throat and tears threatening to fall from his eyes. He swallowed them, convincing himself that he won’t and will never cry because Yoongi wouldn’t want him to cry. He smiled, despite being alone in his studio before pressing the call button again. 

Jimin’s fifth call went to voicemail just like every other call he made for the past three hours. The nagging feeling of hurt and heartache that seeped into his bones were digging deeper into his body. He heaved deep breaths after deep breaths in an attempt to calm the threatening waves of tears. He choked on his sobs as he will himself to let go of his phone and the boy who sang about flying up high with his brand-new wings. 

On his last call, Seokjin came in and saw him curled up on the floor, phone clutched in his is chest. There were tears on Jimin’s cheeks and he was crying so hard that he was having difficulties speaking coherently. The older hoisted him up and carried him over his tattoo bed. Seokjin was reluctant on leaving Jimin alone in his studio. “Why won’t he answer my calls, hyung?” was all it took for him to go back and hug the younger. 

- 

February

No one questioned Jimin when he asked Taehyung to do his new piece. No one questioned Jimin when he showed them a detailed picture of his new tattoo design- an intricate sketch of a pair of wings that they all thought looked familiar. No one questioned Jimin whenever they saw him crying in his studio, phone clutched in his hand. No one questioned Jimin’s decisions whenever he’s around. 

“We should do something. We can’t just let him mope around,” Taehyung pointed at Jimin’s studio. He can hear the other’s muffled crying even through the music playing inside. He’s been listening to Yoongi’s song on repeat for weeks after receiving the package a few months back. “I know he’s hurt but he can’t continue ruining himself like this.” He looked around the room trying to convince his friends to help him. Or Jimin. He doesn’t know anymore. Taehyung just wanted his best friend back. 

“Tae, we know what you’re trying to say here,” Seokjin sighed. He’s been taking care of Jimin since he saw him huddled on the floor, crying over Yoongi. “He doesn’t want us to help him.” Everyone knew how right Seokjin was. They’ve tried a lot of ways to lessen Jimin’s pain, but they would all be pushed out of the studio every single time. “We can’t help someone who doesn’t want to be saved.” 

- 

March

It took every will in his aching body to stand up and go out of his room in the middle of the night. Freezing cold air hit him as soon as he opened his door. Jimin doesn’t really give a single about getting a cold, so he stepped out of his apartment without any jacket on and went out to buy himself something to eat from the convenient store across the building. Taehyung and Jungkook has been bugging him to at least go outside once in a while to get some fresh air and a bit of sunlight.
“Are you trying to be a ing vampire here, hyung? You’re so ing pale and sickly and ewwy.” He heard Jungkook say from his kitchen when they all went over for some quality time. Taehyung agreed to him thus the lecture about him going out. 

His lips quirked up a bit when the cashier handed him his plastic bag full of groceries. He thanked her- Momo said her nametag- before heading out to go back home. It was dark, and he didn’t have neither his glasses nor his contacts on so when he saw a blur of familiar pink hair and pale skin passed by the street across him, he brushed it off as someone who he probably doesn’t know. He was doing good with forgetting Min Yoongi and he wouldn’t let something that small to take him back to the starting line. 

Jimin took a deep breath, convincing himself that it was not the boy from Daegu who raps about him flying. 

- 

April

“Hi! Welcome to Cypher. What can I do for you?” It was a chilly morning at the shop. Seokjin was plugging his phone to the shop’s speakers when they heard the chimes rang and the door open. Jimin, being on counter duty, greeted the customer. “Is Nams here? I need to check on him with something,” the customer smiled at them.

“Jackson’s here, hyung!” Jackson was mouthing the song playing on the speakers when Namjoon poked his head out from his studio and told him to come inside. There was a lull in their day as there were less customers going in to have their tattoos checked or place an appointment. He can hear Namjoon and Jackson laughing loudly even through whatever rap song Seokjin was playing.

Taehyung, after replacing Jimin on counter duty, was nearly dozing off when the chimes rang. He smiled at the newcomer and pointed at Jimin’s studio when he was asked where the latter was. He gave the man an encouraging nod before turning away and dozing off.

The knocking on the door woke Jimin up from his reverie. He wiped the imaginary drool on his face before opening it. “Wha- “ A man with blue hair and pale skin stood in front of him. Jimin’s words disappeared as he gaped at the familiar face smiling at him. Before he can speak, he was tackled in a hug.

“My wings brought me back here. Is it alright if I stay?” Yoongi said, voice muffled by Jimin’s shirt. He was answered with a nod as the hug got tighter.

“You can stay as long as you want, Yoongi.”