5

A pang guilt coursed through me as my eyes drifted to a pile of cloth heaped pathetically in the corner. I was starting to consider Jungkook’s jacket mine now since there hasn’t been any attempt from him to get it back for weeks now. Hannah, on the other hand, was getting plenty of calls from Jimin and I could practically already smell the blossoming flowers of their relationship. Needless to say, Hannah was out of her mind and I was drowning in guilt, mostly because the jacket looked expensive too.

"I should really get you a phone if you're going to be staying here for the rest of the year," Hannah said as she poked her head into my room, phone in hand and the contact name 'ChimChim Baby' flashing.

"Why?" I asked, the contact name still managing to crack me up even though I've seen it dozens of times already.

"So Jungkook can call you," Hannah deadpanned. "I asked Jimin how he was doing and he said that Jungkook's been kind of down these past few weeks."

I shrugged waiting for her to get to the point. She yammered into the phone for a few seconds before turning back to me with a devious smile on her face. "We've been invited over to the BTS dorm and it's the perfect opportunity for you two to go out on a date!" she squealed and the sound of Jimin's laughing drifted to my ears.

I raised an eyebrow at her, a refusal already leaving my lips. Hannah immediately changed her course of action.

"If not, then you can just go return his jacket," Hannah said quickly.

"Or, you can just take the jacket with you and I'll stay back home to enjoy the last few episodes of my TV show," I said, tossing the jacket at her. Even if I did agree that I should get a phone sometime soon, visiting the boys again was not on the list of things that I wanted to do. Mostly because Jungkook would start pulling out his lame pickup lines again, which would probably lead to me having a constipated face half the time from holding back my blushing.

"If you don't go, then I'll ask Mom to let the Lees come over," Hannah grinned.

Before she even finished the sentence, I was already out of bed and throwing on clothes as fast as I could. Even Jungkook was better than dealing with Ashley and her parents. "You're evil. I hope you know that," I scowled as I folded the jacket in a bundle and tucked it under my arm.

"It's all part of the package," she sassed and strut down the stairs, her giggles echoing off the walls.

Please, please, please, let Jungkook be busy.

***

Walking out of the store with a new phone in my pocket made me feel slightly better, but that shred of happiness was dampened when Hannah sent my number to Jimin, who most likely transferred it to Jungkook.

From: Unknown number

Hey, it's your bias Kookie. Save my number and I'll grant you three wishes.

I couldn't stop the grin that appeared on my face when I read the text and decided to humor him a bit. I already had the perfect contact name prepared.

To: International Playboy

Wish One: Give me Taehyung's number.

Wish Two: Delete this number from your contact list.

Wish Three: Have a nice day.

From: International Playboy

The first two wishes are not possible because one, I don't like to share and two, I worked too long and too hard to get Jimin to spill. Wish three will only be granted if you come over and play with me.

His cheesiness made me cringe, but nonetheless, it was endearing.

Force down your blushing Michelle.

"Already texting Jungkook, I see," Hannah teased, wiggling her eyebrows when she glanced at my phone. "How did you know his nickname was International Playboy?"

I burst out laughing, saw Hannah's serious face, and laughed some more. "You're not kidding right?" I wheezed, trying to catch my breath. "That's really his nickname? On what grounds?"

Hannah grinned along with me and before I could come to my senses, we were already in the car and heading towards the boys' dorm. 'International Playboy' continued to spam my phone with texts but every time his contact name appeared, I broke into badly stifled laughter and decided to put off replying.

"We're here!" Hannah sang, bounding out of the car in her excitement, fixing her hair and smoothing the wrinkles out of her lacy white sundress. We headed into the apartment complex, where Hannah rang up Jimin. As the elevator rose painfully slowly, dread and excitement assaulted me. Dread at having to face all the boys again, and excitement to tease Jungkook and mess around with Taehyung. Dragging my feet, I followed Hannah, curling my hands into fists and crinkling the fabric of Jungkook's jacket.

"Well, here we are," Hannah sang and waved her arm with a dramatic flourish. "We're standing at the staircase to heaven." I wasn't expecting there to be an actual staircase.

"Hannah," I groaned. "You know I hate climbing stairs. Why didn't we take the elevator?" Hanah just rolled her eyes and began to climb, the clicking of her heels a stark contrast to the thudding of my worn out sneakers. "I'm going to collapse like Po from Kungfu Panda and you're going to have to give me a piggy-back ride," I whined, already feeling out of breath from just looking at the stairs.

"Oh, quit whining," Hannah scoffed, shoving me up the stairs with her hands pushing against my back. "They live on the top floor and the elevator doesn't go that high."

I rolled my eyes and just continued to climb, the slow steady burn spreading up my thighs like a wildfire. We were both huffing and puffing by the time we reached the top, my irritation making my head pound.

Why does she even need me to tag along every time she wants to see them?

Hannah practically only had eyes for Jimin whenever he was around, so I didn't see the point. She would follow him like a lost puppy anyway. Hannah suddenly stopped in front of a plain white door and she glared at me for a second when I bumped into her. Fixing her hair and swiping a new coat of lip gloss on, she finally rang the doorbell, biting her lip nervously. The door opened and a warm yellow light spilled into the hallway.

"Hannah!" Jimin smiled, opening the door wider and ushering the both of us inside.

"Hey Jimin," Hannah said shyly, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.

So they're on first name basis with informal language now. She moves fast.

To describe to the dorm in one word, frankly, it would be messy. Shoes were piled in a mountain, completely disregarding the empty shoe rack, random knick-knacks lay scattered on the shelves, and socks were hanging over almost every available surface. Grimacing, I took off my shoes and entered the living room to find five of the boys lounging on the sofa and the floor, though only Green had the honor of laying down on the couch.

"Michelle!" Taehyung shouted, startling me, as he immediately sprang up and wrapped his arms around my shoulders, bouncing me up and down in a tight hug.

"Taehyung," I wheezed, patting his back "I can't breathe."

Taehyung just grinned and I mirrored his expression before he led me over and we plopped down onto the floor beside Jimin and Hannah, who were already giggling and gossiping with each other. I scanned the room, feeling that someone was missing, but I didn't now who.

"If you're looking for Jungkook, he's at the dance studio at the company," Seokjin said, eyeing the jacket draped over my arm. "It's right next door so you can go visit him if you want. I'm pretty sure he wouldn't mind your company."

Taehyung, Hoseok, and Jimin wiggled their eyebrows suggestively while Namjoon and Seokjin just laughed. Even Green cracked a smile.

"Hey Taehyung," I whispered, discretely casting glances towards Green. "What's that guy's name again? The one with the green hair."

"That's Yoongi-hyung and his stage name is Suga," Taehyung giggled, probably laughing at how I still didn't know all their names yet. In my defence, Yoongi was the only one I didn't know and it was already pretty hard remembering the other six. "He's really lazy and the second shortest in the group." Taehyung just had to add that last part in.

"By the way, where do I leave Jungkook's jacket?" I asked, standing up.

"You should go give it to him," Namjoon said, casting me a glance as he continued to scribble in his notebook. "It's pretty cold outside and I'm pretty sure he didn't bring a jacket in his change of clothes."

I sighed, already expecting something like this to happen.

What if Jungkook purposely didn't bring a jacket so I'd have to deliver it to him?

Even if it was unlikely, I wouldn't be surprised if Jungkook came up with something like that. Regardless, I was too nice of a person to let him freeze in the middle of March.

"Will they even let me in?" I asked, slipping on my shoes.

"Probably, if they don't, I'll give you my number so you can give me a call," Namjoon said.

I nodded and handed him my phone.

"Me too, me too," Taehyung jumped. "I want to have my number in Michelle's phone."

Hoseok followed his example and so did Seokjin, entering their numbers after Namjoon and Taehyung. I already had Jimin's number so the only one missing with Yoongi and it'd probably be a million years before he would willingly give me his number. I could tell that he still didn't trust me, so I didn't push it and only interacted with the members willing to interact with me.

"Alright then, I'm off," I said and stepped out the door.

"If Jungkook does something weird, make sure to give him a good beating," Taehyung called, his voice echoing around the hallway.

"You got it," I replied and closed the door behind me. Luckily, going down the stairs was easier than going up so I didn't feel like death when I finally reached the elevator. The elevator was thankfully empty, making me breathe a sigh of relief because there is almost nothing more awkward than being stuck in an elevator with a complete stranger. The doors opened and I rushed out into the streets, eager to get this over with. The Big Hit building was impossible to miss, with its bright blue and orange logo. I gulped nervously when I saw two burly men dressed in suits standing stock-still inside the lobby. Everyone's eyes seemed to follow me as I slowly made my way over to the receptionist.

"Hi, I'm here to return something that belongs to Jeon Jungkook," I said softly, gesturing to the jacket.

The receptionist sighed and gave me look. "I'm sorry, but do you have an appointment or ID?" I shook my head and judging from her expression, I wasn't going to be let in unless I gave Namjoon a call. "I'm sorry, but I can't let you in unless you have ID or an appointment."

Sighing, I pulled out my phone and dialed Namjoon's number, stifling a laugh when it was saved under 'Rap Moni Moni.' Better add a devil emoji to go with it later.

"Hello?"

"Namjoon-sshi," I began, noticing the receptionist sigh and shake her head. She probably thought I was just an obsessed fan and this was just another one of my tricks. "The receptionist lady is not letting me in."

"What's her name?"

I squinted at the little name tag pinned on her shirt. "Cho Soo Bin."

"Oh, her? Yeah, she's not going let you in. None of the company staff really like her either."

"So, what's the plan?"

"Hand the phone to her and let her check the number to prove that it's really me. If she still doesn't let you in and I'll say that Bang PD-nim is going to cut her salary or something."

Snickering, I passed the phone over to the receptionist who put it to her ear with a wary expression. I didn't even know if it was possible for someone's face to change colors that fast, but her's did and it was hilarious. Shaking, she handed me a company visitor pass and in high spirits, I glanced at the directory and headed over to the dance studios. Fortunately, there was only one in use and music was blasting out of the slightly ajar door.

It must be Jungkook.

A devious plan suddenly entered my mind. Creeping over to the studio, I peeked into the crack and grinned when the light switch was conveniently in reach. Slipping my arm through the door, I waited for the music to hit a before I flicked the switch, enveloping the room in darkness and had to bite my lip to contain my laughter when a shriek cut through the loud music. Giggling, I turned the lights back on, but my face fell when I saw an unfamiliar man, leaning against the mirrors, clutching his heart and breathing with shallow warbled breaths.

"Nice try," a familiar voice said and I scowled as I turned to face Jungkook.

"You probably would've screamed like that though," I grinned. "Which reminds me, I should go apologize."

Jungkook crossed his arms and shook his head. My heart thudded heavily against my will and my annoyance rose a little bit more. After a couple hasty bows and apologizing profusely to the trainee that was practicing, Jungkook lead me down the hall to a room in the back that I didn't notice. I grumbled, still a little upset that my prank didn't work, when Jungkook told me that this practice room was reserved for BTS.

"For your information, I'm the manliest out of Bangtan and little scary things like that don't get me. Hoseok-hyung and Jimin but not me," he bragged, puffing his chest out.

"Okay then, International Playboy," I teased, socking him on the chest.

"How'd you find out about that?" he said, pouted as he took a seat on the floor.

"I set it as your contact name, but I didn't know it was actually a thing until Hannah decided to let it slip," I grinned. "You don't live up to your nickname."

Jungkook huffed and refused to meet my eyes, but the corner of his lips was pulling up into a faint smile. I tossed him his jacket and grinned, his top lip disappearing into his teeth.

"It's been weeks. Why are you only giving it back now?" he said, folding it and putting it on the floor.

"Never had the chance," I shrugged.

"I was going to call, but then I remembered that I forgot to ask you for your number," Jungkook frowned.

"You were being all smooth too, back in that cafe. Plus, my phone only worked in America so I couldn't give you a number even if I wanted to," I teased, making him scrunch up his nose. "Well, let's see your dance then."

"Why all of a sudden?" Jungkook asked, but still standing up and walking over to the stereos.

"Well, we're in a dance studio and you're an idol so it's only proper that you perform for a devoted fan like me," I said. Jungkook snickered, hearing the sarcasm in my voice.

"I'll challenge you then. Hannah said that you dance too, so if I win, I get a kiss," Jungkook smirked. "If you win, I'll treat you out to a meal."

"Seems like a win-win deal for you," I said.

"You win too because you get to have a piece of this," he teased, pushing his hair back in an attempt to be seductive.

"I want barbeque then," I said, Jungkook's grin slipping a little bit as he contemplated the price of the meat.

"Deal," he said and we shook hands. "We'll record each other and send the videos to Hoseok-hyung so he can judge."

"You're first then," I said and he nodded. Judging from the expression on his face, Jungkook was pretty confident that he would win.

Prepare to lose, pretty boy.

"Do you know the Brian Puspos's choreography for 'Own It' by Drake?" Jungkook asked as he was scrolling through the songs on his phone.

"Yeah, Hannah showed me a video of you and Jimin dancing it and I thought it looked cool so I learned it," I said, leaning my back against the mirror, phone in hand and ready to record.

"Let's do that one then. Freestyle is harder to judge so whoever dances the choreography better wins," Jungkook said with a confident smirk.

"You're on," I smirked back and pressed record.

Jungkook started the song and the familiar voice of Drake floated from the speakers, but my attention was stolen by Jungkook, who began to dance. His moves were sharp, but they also looked relaxed and natural, a perfect balance that would take a dancer years of experience to achieve. Eyes closed and his body in perfect rhythm with the music, Jungkook looked completely relaxed. He was good and he knew it, and even people who weren't fans wouldn't have a hard time denying that Jungkook was good at dancing. The song ended too soon for my liking and I couldn't stop myself from clapping.

"I was good wasn't I?" Jungkook grinned, wiping the thin layer of sweat that formed on his forehead.

"Yeah you were," I said, handing him my phone so that he could see the recording. "But you're still going to lose."

"Oh really?" he said, voice low as we had a mini staring contest. I pulled away first, feeling as if I would combust into a pile of ashes from the intensity of his gaze.

"Try not to drool too much," I said as I waited for Jungkook to start the song.

I let my body fall into the familiar practiced moves, ones that I've performed over and over again until there was almost no possibility of an error. I too, closed my eyes to let the music guide my body without any visual distractions, but also because I feared that if I made eye contact with Jungkook, I would burst out laughing and make a mistake. This was a battle that I could not afford to lose. The music ended and the soft scuffles of my shoes against the wood floor stopped too, leaving the room drowned in silence. I lowered my head and waited for Jungkook's reaction. When nothing happened, I finally looked up and smiled when I saw Jungkook still sitting there, phone in hand and mouth slightly agape.

"I was good wasn't I?" I grinned, mimicking the words he said earlier.

"Amazing," Jungkook admitted, snapping out of his daze and clapping loudly. "Did you take lessons before?"

"From my first year of elementary school to my last year of high school," I said passively, grimacing when unpleasant memories flashed through my mind. Jungkook didn't notice.

"Did you take lessons other than your training here?" I asked, sitting down next to him and watching the video he recorded.

"I went to America to take lessons because Bang PD-nim thought my dancing was too emotionless," Jungkook said, leaning over to watch with me.

"Well look at you now," I said, ruffling his hair and wiping the sweat on his shirt. "Our little Jungkookie is making girls faint with his dancing."

"Yah, I'm not a baby," Jungkook pouted, slapping my hand away.

"When's your birthday then?" I challenged, confident that I was older judging from his baby face.

"September 1st, 1997," he said, smiling when he saw my face fall. "You're younger than me aren't you? When's your birthday?"

"December 25, 1997," I grumbled, ignoring his obnoxious grin.

"You're born on Christmas!" Jungkook laughed, ruffling my hair. "That's really cool."

"Not if you only get one present for both your birthday and Christmas," I pouted, Jungkook's laughter echoing through the room.

"Well, I'll make sure to give you double the presents then," he said.

"Excuse me, are you saying that we'll still be friends by then?" I said, feinting shock.

"You never know, we might be more than that," Jungkook winked and I clenched my fists from the cheesiness and fought my blush.

I hope I don't look constipated.

"You should respect me since I'm older you brat," Jungkook said patting my head.

"Being physically mature doesn't mean you're mentally mature so I'll consider you the same age as me, maybe even a little younger," I teased, Jungkook crying in outrage while I laughed.

"Let's send the videos to Hoseok-hyung and head back to the dorm," Jungkook said and stood up, offering me a hand and pulling me up.

"I'm just saying, you'll lose," I said as we walked down the hall together and into the lobby, attracting the stares of some of the staff.

"Not likely," Jungkook said cockily, slipping his jacket over his thin T-shirt. "What detergent did you use? It smells nice."

"Lemon and tropical breeze," I replied, pulling my own jacket tighter around me when a cold blast of air rushed to meet us as we exited the building. "Is it that strong? I washed it a few days ago so I thought that the smell would have faded by now."

"It probably did, but I'm sensitive to smells so it's still pretty strong to me," Jungkook said, sniffing the collar of the jacket.

Shivering, we ran into the apartment building, waited impatiently for the elevator, and scrambled up the stairs before finally entering the dorm. All eyes turned to us, along with a few mischievous grins.

"So, how was dance practice?" Jimin asked, eyes flitting between the two of us.

"Depends on whether I win the dance battle or not," Jungkook shrugged. "Hyung, did you get the videos?"

"Yeah, but I didn't watch it yet because you guys weren't back," Hoseok said, holding his phone up. "Come on guys, let's watch Michelle dance."

The next few minutes were filled with whistles of appreciation and amazement, along with Taehyung throwing compliments every two seconds.

"Wah, Michelle, that looked really cool!"

"Did you see that? That was amazing!"

"Jungkook, you should take some lessons."

Jungkook finally had enough and shoved Taehyung on the shoulder. "Hyung, you're supposed to me supporting me!" Jungkook whined.

"Sorry Jungkookie, I'm supporting my new best friend," Taehyung giggled and wrapped an arm around my shoulder.

"So who do you think won Hoseok-sshi?" I asked, already tasting the mouth-watering bulgogi that Jungkook would pay for.

"I've got to admit, Michelle won this one. Sorry Kookie-ah," Hoseok said.

Jungkook was about to say something but he was interrupted by a screeching Taehyung who launched himself at me and squeezed my lungs out in a hug.

"Taehyung, release," Namjoon and Seokjin shouted at exactly the same time, making Hannah giggle. I would've laughed too, if not for the koala latching onto my limbs. Taehyung released and shot me his boxy grin.

"So Jungkook, I guess you owe me some beef," I said, wiggling my eyebrows.

"It's a date then," Jungkook declared, looping his arm around mine.

That was close, My blush was almost revealed.

"Can we tag along?" everyone chorused, looking to Jungkook at the same time.

"No-"

"Yeah sure, why not. Jungkook's paying," I said, cutting him off with a sweet smile. "Right Jungkookie?"

His wail of despair was lost among the cheers of the boys.

~

I procrastinated so much while I was writing this chapter. I feel bad for leaving Yoongi out, but I promise everything will work out soon enough. The chapters might seem like drabbles right now, but I need to establish their friendship first so please be patient. It's not like you're going to be friends with seven people that you've only met a few times. Enjoy.