Jimin was absentmindedly picking at his food during lunch when a carton of chocolate milk was placed in front of him, he looked up and saw Jackson smiling at him.
 

"Hey now, where's the smile I like so much?" he asked as he took a seat across Jimin.
 

"It's not in service today." replied the latter as he went back to picking at his food, his mood had gone down again when he remembered how his mom had given him the cold shoulder that morning.
 

"Why?" asked Jackson in concern as his brows furrowed.
 

"Personal reasons." said Jimin without looking up.
 

"Oh... I won't insist, then." said Jackson while nodding, he wasn't one to pry if the other person wasn't willing to talk on their own.
 

"Thanks." said Jimin, his eyes still on his tray, he then gave a startled jump when he felt a hand over his own.
 

"Jackson..." said Jimin a bit wearily as he looked up again.
 

"I know you said you already have a boyfriend, but I hope you can see me as at least a friend, Jimin. I meant it when I said I care about you." said Jackson with a small smile.
 

"It can be hard to pretend to be happy when you're going through a tough time, but just know that things get better... Maybe not right away, but they eventually do." he said.
 

Jimin was touched by these words and nodded as a tiny little smile appeared on his face. Jackson then started telling him silly stories about his friends and the havoc they would cause and Jimin felt grateful that Jackson was trying to subtly distract him from his troubles. During the conversation, Jimin found out that Jackson and Jaebum are actually friends and since both have a crush on Jimin, they made a deal to fairly try and get his attention.
 

"But I guess neither of us will ever succeed, huh?" said Jackson with a good natured laugh as he scratched the back of his head.
 

"No." said Jimin in amusement as he shook his head, amazed that this situation wasn't affecting their friendship.
 

"Ahh... it was worth a try, anyway. At least now we can rest easy knowing we confessed to you." said Jackson as he stretched his arms above his head.
 

"Um, c-can I ask why you and Jaebum hyung l-like me?" asked Jimin rather shyly.
 

"Oh, that's easy!" said Jackson with a big smile as he rested his elbows on the table and leaned forward a bit.
 

"Well, I like you because you're smart, fun to be around, and very talented. I like that when you smile, it makes people smile too, even if they're having a bad day. Jaebum hyung says he likes you because you're cute, kind of shy, and because you're always looking after your friends." explained Jackson, making Jimin's face grow warm at the compliments as he sheepishly looked down.
 

"We see how you're always scolding Taehyung to get to class on time and how you nag at Jungkook to do his homework. You help them be better people and we really admire that about you." said Jackson with a fond look in his eyes.
 

"You and Jaebum hyung make me sound so... so..." said Jimin, trailing off when he couldn't find the proper word.
 

"Perfect? Flawless? A gift from the heavens?" suggested Jackson while wiggling his eyebrows teasingly.
 

"You're so cheesy!" said Jimin while laughing as he playfully reached out to swat him on the arm.
 

"There it is! There's the smile I like!" exclaimed an accomplished Jackson with a broad smile of his own as he pointed at Jimin's smiling face.
 

Jimin had to admit, it felt good to smile like this again after his disagreement at home. He looked up when he heard a displeased noise and saw Taehyung hurrying towards them with Jungkook trailing behind, the latter had an amused look while Taehyung had his piercing eyes on the back of Jackson's head.
 

"Hey! Are you bothering Jimin again?" demanded Taehyung as he reached the table and gave Jackson the stink eye.
 

"Um, no... we were just talking." said Jackson as he fidgeted in his seat, feeling a little uneasy since Taehyung's actions can be a bit unpredictable.
 

"ChimChim, yes or no? Jackson's head, toilet." said Taehyung in his own language, which made Jackson look at him like he had gone crazy.
 

"What?" he asked in complete confusion.
 

"He wants a confirmation from Jimin hyung or else he's gonna shove your head in a toilet." explained Jungkook, a little evil grin on his face.
 

"O-Oh... wait, what?!" exclaimed Jackson with a horrified expression, he tried to get up from his seat, but Taehyung put a hand on his shoulder and sat him back down.
 

"Jimin, yes or no?" repeated Taehyung, his narrowed eyes never leaving Jackson.
 

"Yes, Taehyung, Jackson and I were just talking." confirmed Jimin with a face palm, he sometimes felt second-hand embarrassment being around these two.
 

Taehyung nodded and let his hand drop from Jackson's shoulder, who let out a breath he didn't know he was holding.
 

"Your head gets to stay dry another day." said Taehyung, his voice coming out much lower than before.
 

Jungkook had to lean his forehead on the back of Taehyung's shoulder to cover up the urge he had to laugh, but his shaking shoulders gave him away. Jackson looked at each of them before looking back at Jimin and let out a somewhat amazed laugh.
 

"Is he always this intense?" he asked, referring to Taehyung.
 

"He can be worse." admitted Jimin with a grimace, making Jackson laugh again as he shook his head.
 

"You guys remind me of my own friends, we always have each other's back when we see someone new around." he said, he then let out a pleased sigh and got up.
 

"Well, I'll take my leave now." said Jackson, he then lightly nudged the chocolate milk towards Jimin.
 

"See? Things get better bit by bit." he said with a playful wink and a smile before walking off.
 

Jimin watched him go, then looked back at the milk before an easy smile spread across his face while Taehyung and Jungkook took their seats across him. Taehyung was still grumbling under his breath, saying something along the lines of 'If I see him around here again, I'll shove his head in a toilet that's not flushed.'
 

"So, how did things go at home, Jimin hyung? Have you told them yet?" asked Jungkook, looking at Jimin intently and breaking Taehyung out of his thoughts of what he could do to Jackson.
 

"Y-Yeah, I told them last night. But, well, I only got to tell my dad about dating Jin hyung." said Jimin as he looked down at his long forgotten food.
 

"How come?" asked Taehyung, his brows furrowing as he reached out to put his hand atop Jimin's.
 

"When I came out to them, my dad didn't have anything bad to say. So, when I told him I was dating Jin hyung, he still didn't have anything bad to say." said Jimin with a small smile which quickly turned sad.
 

"But... m-my mom didn't take it so well." he added, his voice growing softer as his hands clenched into loose fists.
 

"S-She said if I insisted... b-being this way... then I could forget she was my mom." said Jimin, his breathing was becoming uneven and he could feel the prickling sensation in the corners of his eyes.
 

Taehyung let out a soft and shocked gasp as his eyes grew big and covered his mouth with his other hand in disbelief while Jungkook just rolled his eyes with a scoff.
 

"What the