-prelude-

We used to be perfect, ceteris paribus.

Park Jimin, a quiet, reserved and hostile junior in the dance club, with a sharp tongue and often looking down on people like they are not worth his time, but with skills to boost that pride. Park Jimin who is in poor relationships with his (sorry excuse of) seniors. Park Jimin who is isolated by his peers, and by himself - he doesn't particularly mind, because majority of the club were obnoxious stuck-ups who cared more for positions and less for the actual performance. Park Jimin who gives no sh*t about what happens around him, and cares for nothing but dance itself. Park Jimin who had to apply for a committee position in Year 3 only because it was mandatory and became a student instructor, grudging approved by the seniors, because despite Jimin's sh*tty attitude, it's undeniable that he could dance.

When Park Jimin meets Jeon Jungkook, all his resolve to stay within a shell comes crashing down, brick by brick. Jeon Jungkook who has a passion for both dance and the dance club, and had been actively helping even before becoming student instructor. Jeon Jungkook who managed to drag Park Jimin into this mess, means unexplainable till this day, working his perfectionist side for dancing into a principal of coaching members and juniors. Jeon Jungkook who pulled Park Jimin out of his world and him right into a fcked up reality.

The first event where they worked together was the 2012 Open House, where they had to put up a 10 minute performance on a week's notice. Technically speaking, it wasn't supposed to be planned by them, but all the seniors were anything but responsible, so somehow the burden fell on Jungkook. And of course, these very seniors were the ones to show up minutes before the performance started and began to point fingers. It may be because of how Jungkook's eyes were red when he turned around, lips thin and face pale, but Jimin, the uncaring Jimin who is less heartless than he tries to appear to be, shoved his own bottle of fanta grape into Jungkook's sweaty hands and pushed forward to settle logistics to give the boy a breather. Jungkook had joined him a short while later, neither talked about it; they worked in silence, and Jimin left straight after the event before Jungkook could catch him.

But despite so, ever since then, Jimin doesn't know how exactly, but he finds himself knee-deep in this black hole of problems named dance club. A few failed practice sessions later came the official handover, and following that their dance instructor resigned on short notice, and suddenly it was just Jimin and Jungkook struggling alone, with the occasional help of Hoseok, to hold the dance club together.

When Jimin thinks back, a lot of things had blurred as time flies by, and many details were lost in the span of two years, but one thing was for sure, that Jungkook had Jimin's back, and Jimin had Jungkook's. Jimin doesn't exactly remember how, but between 2012 and 2013, they made it through four showcases, three concerts, two flash mobs, one national competition and countless little events, all with relative success. By the time they stepped down at the end of Year 4, they managed to rebuild the dance club that was in shambles to about half its past glory.

What Jimin does remember, are the short five minutes that they would plead for Hoseok to manage, and run out of the suffocating room to a secluded corner in the music atrium to scream out all their frustration, cry and break down the way they can't when all the others are watching them - sometimes it's just one of them that's losing it, but the other always follows out anyway. And he remembers how Jungkook would grab his arms just before an important performance and fix him a long look with bright eyes until Jimin manages a small smile back. He remembers the long hours spent in the dance studio, before and after practice, going over the same move repeatedly to pick out the flaws, watching dance videos on YouTube sprawled out on the floor, experimenting with new moves, being there for the other when they sprained something, leaning on each other when they end up all sweaty and exhausted. He remembers locking up past 7pm and heading to the nearest MacDonald, ordering the same set meal, sitting at the same table, and staying there until nine. He remembers how they would meet up at the subway station before heading for morning practice during the holidays, how they were always in some sort of a "reach earlier" contest that Jimin tends to win more than half the time, and as a result they had to set a meeting time that's 45 minutes later than the intended time to not reach ridiculously early.

He remembers the long afternoon of each Tuesday spent on the top floor of White Sands, a shopping mall 20 minutes from Jimin's house (90 minutes from Jungkook's, but he'd always insisted on visiting his grandparents who live 20 minutes away in the opposite direction), talking away on a coach tucked out of view behind walls. He remembers calling each other at night even though they spent the whole day together, talking of things that were probably not important. He remembers bickering with Jungkook while perched on the table over the silliest things after school, teasing Taehyung together, getting called a married couple by Hoseok and responding with rolled eyes. He remembers how beautiful Korea was in December 2012, watching the sunset on the mountain together, sharing a hotel bed, and the peaceful look on Jungkook's face when he fell asleep on his shoulder on the flight back that stopped Jimin, who had a sensitive neck, from waking him up until food was distributed. He remembers staying up the whole night together, watching movies until the sun was up, celebrating their graduation from junior high. He remembers exploring Taiwan in November 2013 with Jungkook and Taehyung, all the delicious street food they shared, buying matching bracelets that ended up almost couple-like because Taehyung is lazy as fck when it comes to accessories, and watching the gorgeous sunset at the beach after spending the afternoon weaving between all the little shops littered in the town.

Memory has failed Jimin in a lot of ways, but he remembers a lot of strange details. Like how Jungkook was the one who started calling Jimin by neko (Japanese for cat) - Taehyung was ritsu (squirrel) and Jungkook was kitsune (fox), but those names died out quickly and neko was the only one still in use. He remembers how Jungkook likes to pet his head and call him a kkomaengie (Korean for elementary school kids), and Jimin would smack his hand away complaining about how he's two months older and thus should be respected. He remembers how Jungkook sometimes calls him baby, whenever Jimin does something stupid, shaking his head and muttering "what am I gonna do with you" with this soft look in his eyes. He remembers how once they were bickering on the bus and randomly Jungkook proclaimed Jimin to be his packet, because "pet cat, get it", and Jimin had blushed and denied fiercely all the way, but Jungkook still took it up to call him by "my neko". He remembers calling Jungkook by "yah jeon" ever since they worked together, and occasionally he calls him cushion because gosh, Jungkook is so darn comfortable to lean on. He remembers how Taehyung and him used to call Jungkook jeonmama because of how much he nags, until one day Jungkook told him he doesn't like it when he does that, because "I want to be a friend, neko".

Jimin remembers little bits of his silly jealousy targeted at Hoseok, their fellow student instructor who was a close friend of Jungkook before Jimin and Jungkook grew close; how his heart wrenches a little when they address each other as the "jeon twins". Or how he was initially upset that being in the same class, Jungkook was stealing Taehyung away from him, the Taehyung that is Jimin's only friend since Year 1, then before he knew it, he was actually jealous of Taehyung because he spends lesson time with Jungkook when Jimin's a floor above them.

Jimin remembers a weird mix of things, one of that is a forever that Jungkook promised him, one random night spent in Macs talking about the future they envisioned, his head on Jungkook's shoulder. A future of quitting dance and all the stress together, joining photography club (another of Jungkook's passion), a trip to Bangkok after high school graduation, going to the same university in London, Jungkook for business and Jimin for arts, and backpacking in Europe while they're at it.

Jimin remembers that he used to be sure as hell that he will have Jungkook by his side forever.

Used to.

It was so long ago, that Jimin can hardly recall where that certainty came from, save for the empty promise made that night when they were both sick and tired of the stress dance piles on them.

It only took two years for Jungkook to become Jimin's entire world. Two years for Jungkook and Jimin to know every little thing about each other. Two years for Jungkook and Jimin to become a package deal, and to be known for it. Only two years.

And it barely took a month for Jungkook to move on from Jimin when senior high started, and Jimin was the only one to quit dance. Another six months for Jimin to finally get tired of always being the one trying. A full year for Jimin to move on from Jungkook. In just two years, there's no more Jungkook and Jimin, but Jungkook and his friends, and Jimin and his.

Two years can be a lot of things. It can be a Jungkook and Jimin joined at the hips, the closest kind of friends that would make anyone envious of the bond they share. It can be Jungkook and Jimin going separate ways, however reluctant and sluggish the latter was, and whatever regret the former discovers rendered too late. Two years is enough for White Sands to be renovated and their spot to cease to exist, let Macs no longer offer those set meals they always order, to have all traces of what they once were removed and erased from memories. Two years is enough to revert Jeon Jungkook from yah jeon to  jungkook, see Park Jimin go from broken to fixed, turn friends into once-familiar strangers.

Two years can be a lot of things, indeed. Would you listen to this story of Jimin's two years? One of friendships, comradely bonds and trust; of unspoken words, moving on and regrets; of struggles, unofficial endings and rueful goodbyes; of a mostly beautiful yesterday, a brightening today and a brand new tomorrow.

Do you want to hear a story? It's long, you know, I hope you can be patient with me. I'll tell you about the two years of Park Jimin, how he hurt, broke, cried, before learning to smile, trust and believe himself again.

Come, stranger, let me tell you a story. A story of Park Jimin. A story of me.

-TBC-