Saturday…Sunday…

Nothing exciting happens to Jungkook during the weekends. He would wake up late in the weekends, do his homework and would spent most of his time playing computer games or doodling in his sketchbook. He didn’t really like to go out and mix with the crowds. The only time he would step out of his home would be for dinner with his family or when his brother was around in Korea when they would go out together, or for the occasional school activity or meet up with classmates. During the weekend, Jungkook had been a little distracted whenever he spotted Jimin’s headphones on his desk.

That idiot, he thought to himself. Why did he leave his headphones behind? It’s taking up too much space on my desk. I should just throw them away. Losers weepers. Too bad for you Park Jimin.

The memory of a smiling and sparkly-eyed Jimin listening to music at Jin’s clinic remained etched in Jungkook’s mind. He could still recall looking up to Jimin with a bright smile and ice cream cone in his hand. He could still remember the electrifying sensation when their lips briefly met. It still sent shivers to Jungkook. He could remember the boy piggybacking him to get a cab. The headphones were a reminder of what happened that day – a reminder of Park Jimin. It was as though the headphones were mocking Jungkook for letting his guard down to a stranger. He was exasperated with himself.

Why couldn’t Park Jimin just ignore me like the rest of the world?

He reached for his sketchbook and flipped to the last page. It was a sketch of Park Jimin relaxing on the sofa listening to music. It wasn’t perfect – he did not nail the features as perfectly as Jin’s. After all, he had just spent a few hours with Jimin. Jungkook shut his eyes and pictured the scene when Jimin held out an ice cream cone to him. He tried to sketch with his fingers in the air. When he finally opened his eyes, he quickly reached for his pencil and got down to work on the scene.

And Jungkook smiled when he finished his piece in about two hours.

Monday – the start of another week. Jungkook stole a quick glance at Jimin’s headphones before he left his room. Perhaps he should call Jin about it sometime during the day. The routine – wake up, shower, breakfast, his dad or mum will fetch him to school, attend lessons, walk pass the dance studio – it was rinse and repeat for Jungkook. Tuesdays and Wednesdays were a bit different. He had to attend English classes on Tuesdays and additional classes for Mathematics on Wednesdays. School finished a little early on Wednesdays to allow the students to participate in club activities. Jungkook joined the pop performance club – where some of the students will get together and sing. They get to perform at school functions.  Sometimes he wonders why he doesn’t have as much activities as the rest of his classmates. Jungkook remembers that his older brother probably had to attend more enrichment classes than he did even though he was already that much – perhaps his parents thought of Jungkook as a lost cause – he might die anytime at a young age – so there was no point investing so much money and effort in enrichment on him – since there would be no payoff – that was how he was allowed to attend an arts school instead of a prestigious high school. But they still wanted him to do well in the essentials so Maths and English was probably non-negotiable for either party.

Jungkook would normally head straight for home after school on Mondays, Thursdays and Fridays. His parents didn’t like the idea of him roaming the streets with a heart condition. Once in a while they did allow him to go out with his classmates, but giving that Jungkook wasn’t the social butterfly – the likelihood of him roaming the streets of Seoul with his friends after school was almost zilch.

Last Friday was a little extraordinary. Jungkook had to admit it had been a little nice break from the monotone of his life – meeting a stranger. He wondered if there would be any surprise for him at the end of Monday – something that might make the rest of the week less dreary and boring. And he could not be helped but feel surprised when he spotted a recognisable figure waiting at his school gate.

“Jeon Jungkookie!” Jimin greeted Jungkook brightly.

“Don’t call me Jungkookie. It makes me look…”

“Cute?” Jimin offered helpfully and broke out into a chuckle.

“Like a choding. And I dislike that. I’m a teenager, not some cute kid,” Jungkook scoffed. “By the way, why are you here? Or more importantly, how do you even know how to get here?”

“Google maps and GPS,” Jimin grinned.

“I don’t mean that,” Jungkook rolled his eyes. He could not tolerate the bright and cheery person in front of him with all his grins and smiles. “How do you know where to find me?”

“Google search,” Jimin joked.

“I’m serious,” Jungkook said with a hint of irritation in his voice.  

“I’m serious,” Jimin switched to a pensive look. “I know the name of your school. You were wearing your uniform when we met last Friday. I saw the name of the school on the school badge emblazoned on your blazer. Plus your school blazer is pretty unique. And I used Google to get the address and directions to your school.”

Jungkook scoffed. “Have you been waiting here the whole day?”

Jimin shook his head. “I figured classes will end around 3.30 to 4.30. So I tried my luck waiting for you to show since 3.30.”

“Why are you here?”

Jimin broke into a sheepish smile, “Well…um…I think I had left something important at your house on Friday. My headphones…I was hoping to get it back. And since you have no way of contacting me and I am no way of contacting you, I decided to show up at your school.”

“What makes you think I have it? And even if I have it, what makes you think I have it on me?”

“I remember leaving them at your home.”

“Are you sure? Maybe you might be senile or something.”

“I ‘m pretty sure of myself. My memory is pretty good.”

“Says an old man,” Jungkook mumbled but Jimin caught it.

“So you finally admit that I’m older than you!” Jimin clapped his hands. “Call me hyung.”

“Hell no, Park Jimin,” Jungkook shook his head. And then a smile creeped up Jungkook’s face, “Or should I say Park Jimin-ahjussi.”

“Hey! I’m not all that old!” Jimin protested. “It’s hyung. Jimin hyung.”

“What’s with the hyung calling ? Whatever,” Jungkook said dismissively. “You did leave your headphones at my home. But I don’t have it with me right now. You could come by another day to get it from me or I could drop it off at Jin hyung’s clinic since you know him pretty well and we don’t get to see each other again. How about that?”

“Well…um…I was hoping to get it back from you today.”

“Is that your only headphone?”

“It’s not that. It’s just that the headphone means a lot to me. It was a birthday gift from my best friend,” Jimin explained.

“You shouldn’t have been this careless,” Jungkook chided. “So what do you propose we do then since you seem so eager to get it back and I don’t have it with me right now?”

“If you’re heading home right now, I could follow you to your home and pick it up from you. Then you do not have to pass to Dr Jin…”

“Or you come back again another day…”

“But I miss the headphones. It has a sentimental value to me…It has been with me every day since I have received them. They may not be the most expensive or carry a brand name, but those are the headphones which my friend saved up to purchase as my birthday present. I cherish it more than anything else,” Jimin pouted. His sparkling eyes were crestfallen and lost their shine.

“I don’t want you anywhere near my house.”

“But I’ve been to your house. I helped you on Friday.”

Jungkook wanted to tell Jimin off that he never requested for Jimin’s help but that would sound rude and ungrateful. And looking at Jimin getting pouty and sad about the headphones, Jungkook relented, muttering something that Jimin was lucky that Jungkook had nothing on that day.

And so Jungkook and Jimin got on a taxi all the way to Jungkook’s house. The ride was silent. Neither of them spoke to one another, and Jungkook was surprised that Jimin was able to stay quiet throughout.

Maybe he does really want the headphones back badly. He’s someone who cherishes things but how could he have been so careless as to leave them at my home? Ah, since he’s willing to come and retrieve it from me, saves me the trouble of calling Jin hyung and stop by his clinic to drop it off, or bring it to school for him to collect it from me.

“Ok. Just wait outside for me. I’ll bring the headphones for you. I won’t be long,” Jungkook said dismissively as they alighted from the taxi.

Jimin stared at Jungkook, “You’re leaving me on the street? Aren’t you going to invite me in?”

“Told you, I don’t want you anywhere near my house,” Jungkook smirked and quickly entered the house. 

Jungkook trudged up the stairs and towards his bedroom. He opened the door and inched towards his desk. He gingerly picked with the headphones with a sigh.

“I should return you back to your owner. He seems to miss you every much. After that we won’t have anything more to do with one another,” he mumbled. Yet he paused and remained rooted the spot with the headphones in his hand.

That was what he wanted, wasn’t it? To cut off ties with the stranger named Park Jimin. But why was he feeling a little reluctant to return the headphones to Park Jimin.

“Maybe I should just tell him that I can’t find the headphones yet, and I’ll search for it and return to him another day. I could ask him to come by the school,” Jungkook thought as he put the headphones back on his desk. 

Why is he wavering? He never let anyone into his life – apart from those that were necessary – like his classmates – so why is his heart shaking now? Why does he want to remain somewhat in contact with Park Jimin?

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This chapter originally had 5K words, but I decided to split it up into two.

My exams are coming soon (first Monday in August), so the post might be a bit slow and the inspiration might drop a little, but I'll do my best to update at least once a week, if not once in every two.

I seriously like JK's character - a little sassy and tough on the outside, but has a pretty soft core within. Do you think JK is slowly falling for JM's charms? Will JM succeed in getting JK to love him?

Do continue to shower me with your comments, upvotes and your subscription if you like what you read. Statistics do make me really happy as well as comments.