15

To say I was shocked was an understatement. I was doing fine until Namjoon came in.

“No offense Joonie,” I said between the wheezing gasps of my laughter. “You kind of look like an acorn.”

“She’s not wrong,” Yoongi snickered, hand over his mouth in a failed attempt to hide his laughter. “Green hair just doesn’t work for you.”

“It’s not really the hair color though. It’s more of the haircut,” I said, Namjoon’s expression eliciting more laughter. “Who styled your hair again? I’m going to have to have a talk with them.”

Namjoon just grumbled, something about a lack of respect, but the corner of his lips were quirked up into a repressed smile. “Anyway, Hannah’s dropping by later,” I announced, laughing when Jimin’s excited squeal pierced my ears.

“Now that I think about it,” Seokjin began. “It has been a while since she last visited. What has she been up to?”

“She had a bunch of school assignments to catch up on, plus a trip to France,” I said. “That reminds me, she told me that she got you all presents so look forward to that.” The boys all smiled and drifted off into little groups, talking amongst themselves. Just as I was about to sit down, I felt a hand latch onto my arm and hold me in place. Jungkook gently dragged me over to a discreet corner of the room.

“What are you planning to do?” I joked, ruffling his hair, but he wasn’t laughing so I lowered my hand, a feeling of apprehension rising.

“Are you okay?” he asked, sitting down and tugging me down to join him.

“Yeah,” I replied, confused as to why I wouldn’t be. “Why?”

“I don’t know, but I keep getting this weird feeling that something bad is going to happen,” Jungkook sighed, ruffling his hair in frustration. “It’s stupid, I know, but it’s been bothering me since yesterday.”

Frowning, I shook my head as a faint twinge of Jungkook’s unease infected me. I thought back to all the events that transpired yesterday, but nothing in particular stood out. Just a few glares and insults from Ashley and disapproving looks from Mr. and Mrs. Lee.

I don’t want to brush him off.

Sund Deuk walked in just as I was about to say something, calling the boys to resume practice. Sighing, Jungkook offered a weak smile and rushed to join his hyungs who were already getting into position. Deciding to put the matter off for now, I joined Sung Deuk, watching the boys run through the dances for their comeback stage.

Jungkook was still quiet by the time practice ended, occasionally muttering monosyllabic responses to show that he was following along with the conversation. No one was fooled but they decided to let it go. As I followed the boys out of the practice room, I was pulled to the side by Taehyung and Jimin.

“Is there something wrong with Jungkook?” Jimin asked, making suring that Jungkook was out of earshot and kept busy by Seokjin’s chatter. “He’s been like this before but he always manages to pull it together when we’re practicing. It must be serious this time.” Taehyung nodded in agreement and both turned to me hopefully, but deflated when I gave them a helpless shrug.

“I don’t exactly know what’s bothering him,” I sighed, leaning against the door of the studio. “I don’t think he knows either because when I asked him about it earlier, he just said that he had a bad feeling about something. He didn’t offer anything specific and even then, he seemed unsure.”

“Let’s go then,” Taehyung sighed, ruffling his hair. “I’m pretty the hyungs are wondering where we are right now. Jungkook will figure it out. He always does.”

I frowned at Taehyung’s words, but pushed it to the back of my mind.

A feeling is just a feeling. It shouldn’t be too serious.

Hannah was already waiting for us back at the dorm, surrounded by her gifts for the boys and various other little trinkets that she brought back.

“Hannah!” Jimin cheered and immediately wrapped her in a hug, lifting her off the floor.

“Jimin, you’re cutting off my circulation,” Hannah wheezed, laughing when Jimin flushed in embarrassment and set her down. “Alright then, I’ll give everyone their presents.”

The repetitive choruses of ‘thank you’ faded into the background as I stared Jungkook, relaxing when he smiled and began to participate in the conversation. Pursing my lips, I forced a smile on my face and pretended to listen to the conversation, still glancing at Jungkook.

“Did you travel to France to vacation?”

“Oh, it was part of a school trip. I’m majoring in fashion design so France was basically a must-go.”

“What made you go into fashion design?”

“Oh, my mother is in the industry too so naturally she pushed me to do the same.”

A small smile flitted across my face when I saw Jimin trying to discreetly wrap his arm around Hannah, who jumped with a startled, but pleased smile when he did. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Namjoon staring intently at me and I raised my eyebrow in confusion. He jerked his head slightly towards the hallway and stood up, under the excuse of looking for something in his room. Still confused, I stood up too.

“Bathroom break,” I said before following after Namjoon in the hall. Wordlessly, he lead me to the room he shared with Jungkook and sat down. I took a seat next to him, still confused as to why he called me out.

“There’s something bothering you,” he began and I opened my mouth, but was interrupted. “And I’m pretty sure it’s not because of Jungkook.” I shut my mouth.

“I don’t understand what you mean,” I said, wondering why a sudden rush of dread flooded me, leaving me feeling as if I had been caught doing something wrong. Namjoon sighed and ruffled his hair in frustration.

“When you left for that party yesterday, you mentioned that your foster parents were throwing it,” Namjoon began, holding his hand up when I opened my mouth. My confusion grew along with my nervousness, but I didn’t know why. “Why did you seem so scared? Your fist was clenched, but it didn’t seem like it was out of anger.”

Panic flooded my mind and I squeezed my legs together to keep them from shaking.

How did he notice? Hannah didn’t even figure it out.

“I know I’m not in a position to interrogate you about this so I won’t pry,” Namjoon said and I almost sighed in relief. “You have a reason for hiding it so hide it better. If anyone sees they’ll worry. Be careful.” Namjoon smiled softly and ruffled my hair before heading back out to join the others. I sighed in relief and rubbed a hand over my face, assaulted by guilt, anger, and fear.

I’ll wait a little longer. Just a little.

Plastering a smile onto my face, I pushed open the door and sat down next to Jungkook, avoiding Namjoon’s furtive glances. Jungkook furrowed his eyebrows when I sat down so I shot him what I hoped was a reassuring smile. Luckily, he turned away, but the crease between his brows didn’t disappear. The smile dropped from my face, but quirked up again when I felt the sensation of Jungkook’s fingers slotting in with mine.

***

Jungkook’s beanie was pulled over his head and a teddy bear mask covered the lower half of his face. Swinging our joined hands back and forth, he smiled, eyes turning into crescents though the mask covered his mouth.

“Comeback next week right?” I laughed, kicking the pebbles that littered the strolling path of the small park. “I can’t believe it’s been more than a month already.”

“It feels like we just started dating a few days ago,” Jungkook replied, voice slightly muffled. “We’ll be busy once the promotion period starts. It’s only a week but we have concerts and tours lined up for the next few months. Are you going to come along?”

“I can come along for the domestic performances and concerts, but I’m not sure for the oversea ones,” I sighed. “If you guys are going to America I might come along.” A pang coursed through my chest as I thought of the lonely months ahead.

Maybe I just need to get better at making friends.

“Don’t be so sad, Michelle,” Jungkook smiled, poking a finger softly into my cheek. “It’s not like we won’t talk at all. We can always text and call.”

“Yeah, but it’s not the same as seeing you in person,” I pouted, bumping his shoulder as we walked, weaving around kids playing tag and people walking their dogs. “I’ll miss messing with your hair. By the way, what conditioner do you use?”

“That’s what came to mind? My hair?” Jungkook gasped, ruffling my hair with a teasing grin on his face. “I’m hurt. I use Herbal Essences if you’re really that curious.”

I laughed when Jungkook huffed in frustration and shouldered my hand away petulantly when I tried to wrap an arm around his neck. “Don’t be like that,” I said, trying the stop the laughter leaking into my voice. “Your hair is really fluffy and I’m jealous.”

“Well you should be,” Jungkook said, tilting his nose snootily up into the air. The corners of his eyes crinkled with amusement. A child holding a stuffed bunny and an ice cream cone toddled past us and a soft smile found its way to my face.

“Let’s go get ice cream,” I said, searching around for a shop. A small shop nestled between countless others caught my eye and I pointed Jungkook in that direction. A flag waved lazily in the breeze, the picture of a chocolate ice cream cone rippling in and out of view. “My treat.”

“Are you sure?” Jungkook asked, already reaching inside his pocket for his wallet. “I feel bad.”

“It’s just ice cream,” I groaned, grabbing his hand and tugging him towards the shop, his shoes catching in the gravel, making him stumble slightly. “It’s not that big of a deal. I’d feel bad if you paid for everything too.”

“Fine,” Jungkook said, rolling his eyes. I smiled in victory and continued walking. The warmth of his hand left mine and just as I turned around to look, a heavy weight dumped itself onto my back, knocking the air out of my lungs and nearly making my legs collapse.

“Jeon Jungkook!” I yelled, jumping up and and a few times in attempt to shake him off. He only wrapped his his legs tighter around my waist as his arms clung to my neck.

“That’s oppa to you,” Jungkook said into my ear, body shaking with laughter. “I would’ve been happy even if you called me Jungkookie or something.”

I huffed and began to walk towards the ice cream shop, ignoring Jungkook’s encouraging comments and childish urges for me to go faster. Jungkook pushed the door open for me, the tinkling bell attracting a few weird stares from passerby. Depositing him into a booth, I gasped and slid into the seat across from him.

“Did you gain weight or something?” I said, shooting him a glare. “You were definitely heavier than last time.”

“You insult me,” Jungkook rolled his eyes. “But let’s talk about this later. First, we have to get ice cream!” The big buckets of ice cream, ranging from Rocky Road to peanut butter, were a welcome sight as we peered into the glass freezer.

“Two scoops of vanilla in a large waffle cone please,” I said and nudged Jungkook to place his order.

“Three scoops of butter pecan, also in a large waffle cone please,” Jungkook said, nose wrinkling when I shot him a disgusted look.

“Did you seriously just get butter pecan?” I scoffed, gesturing for the cashier to hurry and paying before Jungkook could react. He squawked in indignation and tried to make a grab for the cash but I smacked his hand away.

“And you got vanilla. What are you? Fifty?” Jungkook retorted, flipping his nonexistent hair dramatically. “What wrong with butter pecan?” A gasp involuntarily tore itself out of my chest and I smacked him on the arm.

“How dare you insult vanilla!” I said in outrage. “I’ll have you know, it’s a classic!” Jungkook was about to retort when the cashier handed us our ice cream, each with an extra scoop.

“Excuse me, but we didn’t pay for this much,” I said, gesturing at the extra scoop at the top of the tower.

“I know, but you guys are cute together,” he laughed gesturing at Jungkook and me. “It’s on the house. Enjoy.” He winked at shooed us away towards the booths.

“I think I just fell in love,” I sighed, staring at the cashier. He laughed as he watched us slide into the booth before returning to work. “How nice of him.”

“It’s not that big of a deal,” Jungkook pouted, tugging on my arm to get my attention. “I could’ve gotten you three scoops.”

“Yes, Jungkook, I’m aware you could have,” I said, turning back to him and ruffling his hair. “I was just teasing.”

“Well stop making me jealous,” he whined. “You know I can’t compare to anyone who works in an ice cream shop.” I laughed against and leaned forward to eat his ice cream, making him gasp and jerk it away from me.

“How dare you!” he said, glaring at me though his eyes shone with amusement. “Eat your own boring vanilla ice cream. Only I can have my delicious butter pecan!”

“How selfish,” I scoffed, at my ice cream. “I’m not going to let you experience the true magic of vanilla ice cream then.” Jungkook laughed and his ice cream, constantly stopping to clear away the excess that coated his upper lip.

“By the way, what did you and Namjoon hyung talk about?” Jungkook asked and I stiffened in surprise.”I know you didn’t go to the restroom. The timing was too convenient for that.”

I should’ve waited longer before going.

Jungkook must have seen the look on my face because he immediately drew into himself. “It’s okay if you don’t want to talk about it,” he said softly, using the ice cream to cover his face. “I just couldn’t control my curiosity.”

“I’m sorry Jungkook, but I just don’t think I can tell you right now,” I sighed apologetically, grasping his hand in mine. “I will eventually, but I’m not brave enough to tell you right now.” The mood turned somber, but Jungkook looked up and smiled, though the smile was a little forced.

“Let’s keep going,” Jungkook said, standing up and offering hand to me. “Sorry for bringing it up.”

He’s too good for me.

I smiled and took his hand, the warmth traveling up my arm, making feel slightly better. Jungkook didn’t say anything as we walked out of the ice cream shop, a comfortable silence hanging between us. Crowds of people milled around us, carry shopping bags and containers of street food. Jungkook finished the last of his waffle cone and pulled the mask over his face. Grabbing my hand, he pulled me to the side and we continued to walk against the flow of the crowds. Suddenly, ‘Run’ replaced ‘Call Me Baby’ and I raised my eyebrows at Jungkook, who blushed and looked down. My eyes followed the direction the music was coming from and I grinned when I saw the countless band posters, photocards, and school girls wandering around inside.

“Let’s go inside,” I said pulling Jungkook, who pulled the other way.

“Why do you want to go there?” Jungkook whined, digging his heels into the pavement. “If you want photocards I can just take a couple selfies and send them to you.”

“But it’s not fun that way,” I protested, slowly gaining ground as we got closer and closer to the front entrance. Jungkook turned an even deeper shade of red when he saw the countless BTS merchandise that filled an entire window display.

Jungkook continued to grumble and cover his eyes as we walked into the store. “Look Jungkookie, you look so manly in your police uniform,” I giggled gesturing to a large poster of the boys standing in a red elevator with their ‘Dope’ music video costumes.

“Stop, it’s embarrassing,” Jungkook pouted, swatting my hand away and ushering me away from the shelves. “I didn’t get much sleep before the shoot and the makeup noonas had to cake my face. I look so oily.”

“Should I buy one then?” I teased, messing with Jungkook’s beanie. He frowned and pulled it firmly over his hair.

“No, because I want you to have pictures of me that no one else has,” Jungkook said, nodding his head. “So if you want pictures just ask me. I expect you to make them your lock screen.”

“Yes, yes, whatever you’d like Jungkook-sshi,” I laughed offering him a little bow. “Let’s look around some more then. This is a good opportunity to learn about other bands because I don’t know any besides you guys.”

“Fine, but I think I deserve a kiss for this,” Jungkook said, crossing his arms and staring me down, eyes crinkling with laughter.

“Maybe,” I said, smiling when Jungkook’s eyes widened in surprise.

“Really?” He said eagerly, jumping a little in his excitement.

“I said maybe,” I smiled, patting his head. “Don’t be make me take back my words.” Jungkook immediately fell silent after that.

This boy.

Jungkook shrunk in embarrassment again when I immediately head back to the BTS section, complimenting a few of his pictures just .

“Wow Jungkook, you look like a fairy,” I said, staring at a picture of Jungkook under a blossoming tree. “It’s really pretty.”

“I remember the stylist dumped a bucket of water on me and sprayed so much hairspray to get the natural wet hair look,” Jungkook laughed.

After a lengthy lecture about Big Bang by Jungkook, who was absolutely aghast that I didn’t know who they were, I decided that my brain needed and break and exited the store, Jungkook breathing a sigh of relief. Ticking off the last few names and fun facts in my mind, I looked toward Jungkook to find him waiting eagerly, somewhat resembling a puppy.

“Yes Jungkook?” I said, feigning ignorance and avoiding his eyes.

“I think you owe me something,” he said, grasping my hands and pulling me closer to him.

“Really?” I said, my lips twitching as I held in my laughter. Jungkook frowned, fidgeting from side to side and playing with my fingers. “What do I owe you?”

“You know what you owe me,” Jungkook muttered, now refusing to meet my eyes.

“Then tell me what I owe you?” I said, giggling at Jungkook’s shyness. He finally answered, so softly that I had to lean in to hear through his mask.

“You said that you would give me a kiss,” Jungkook whispered, turning red and tightening his grip on my hands. “Please don’t take it back.”

“I guess, since you asked so nicely,” I said, cursing inwardly when my heart melted into a glob of goo. “Take off your mask then.” Jungkook hurriedly tugged on his mask until it bunched under his chin and puckered his lips in anticipation. I laughed and leaned in, pressing the softest of kisses against his lips, marveling at how soft they were.

Click.

I pulled away immediately and looked around, fear and apprehension filling me as I searched for the source of the camera click. “Did you hear that?” I whispered to Jungkook who nodded.

“I think it was that tourist over there,” Jungkook said and gestured towards a man in the middle of the street who was taking a picture of the stores with his phone.

“I think I just lost a few years of my life,” I sighed in relief, shoulders sagging. “You weren’t covering your face then so anyone could’ve seen you.”

“Does that mean I get another kiss then?” Jungkook asked, imaginary tail wagging. “Since we were so rudely interrupted.”

“Nice try, lover boy,” I laughed and pulled his mask back up, tapping the teddy bear snout printed on the front. “Maybe next time.”

~

I am so late, but that's pretty much a regular occurrence now so please have mercy on me and my poor brain that's suffering from writer's block. I'm kind of bitter since the semester just started but I'm already swamped with work so please be patient. More drama in the next few chapters. Enjoy.