(gif credit)

“Hyungs are asking what I’m up to,” Jungkook says just after I have sat down next to him. He had taken us to a small gaming arcade and we had spent the last hour just playing all kinds of games. At the end, he had dragged me into the karaoke box and made me sing a song of my choice. I was shy at first but ended up making him flustered.

Moving our heads closer as he had opened his front camera, I see him as always doing a funny face, and I mimic him. I laugh when he takes the shot and slap his knee. “I don’t think we ever take normal pictures.” Turning to me for a moment to grin, I then watch him send it to his Hyungs.

A few seconds later, I hear the Kakaotalk sound going off. Jungkook laughs and shows me the messages, I read them aloud. “‘Don’t do anything illegal’. 'Ah, so jealous!’. 'Woah, uniform looks really cool, school date is fun, right?’. 'Hi, _______!’”

“Cute,” I comment on their messages, finding it funny yet endearing.

“Even Yoongi-Hyung wrote something, he usually ignores us.” He shuts off the screen but his phone rattles again, this time continuously.

“Oh, they’re calling.” Jungkook accepts the call once I nodded giving him my OK.

As soon as the call goes through, I can already hear Taehyung and Seokjin talking. “—call them. Don’t disturb their school date, ya!”

I notice that it is a video call, so I wave. ‘’Hi, Oppa’s.’’

‘’Oh, ________-ah, hi.’’ Even though judging from his earlier words, Seokjin had been against the call, he now was looking into the camera excitedly. ‘’Ya, where are you guys?’’

‘’We’re at the arcade,’’ Jungkook responds.

‘’Ah, the arcade. Indeed the favorite date spot for students.’’

‘’How would you know, Hyung?’’ Jungkook teases him after seeing the know it all look on Taehyung’s face.

‘’I’ve had dates, too!’’ Taehyun’s loud voice echoes inside the karaoke box. ‘’You weren’t the only one back then that—‘’

Before Taehyung can finish his sentence Seokjin steps in literally shuts his mouth by slapping his hand in front, and tries to deflect from that topic. ‘’Are you two having fun?’’

Amused, I peer at Jungkook, who was playing around with his lower lip, disbelief clear in his eyes.

Since I was sitting behind him slightly, I put my chin on his shoulder and ruffle the back of his hair. ‘’Yes, it’s the first time for me at an arcade, so it’s especially fun.’’

‘’Ya, Jungkook always used to bring—‘’ Taehyung jumps back into the conversation with only one intention in mind.

‘’Ah, Tae!’’ Jungkook calls out in exasperation not able to hold it in anymore. ‘’Don’t lie.’’

Clapping my hands entertained, I throw my head back cracking up. ‘’Ah!’’ I wince when I bump my head against the wall, Jungkook looks over his shoulder and smiles at my pout, extending his own hand to join mine rubbing the spot. 

‘’Be careful.’’

‘’Aigoo, there they go again, being affectionate.’’ Seokjin coos like a parent.

Jungkook raises his hand with the phone, which he had dropped when he tended to my head, shifting so I was on screen as well. ‘’Then hang up, Hyung.’’

‘’Yeah, let’s do that before Taehyung ruins your date.’’ As much as it didn’t bother me it was funny how they still kept going back to that topic. Not so clever his Hyungs.

‘’________-ah, bye, enjoy the date.’’ Jungkook moves the phone so the camera solely focuses on me. ‘’Ah, pretty, I want to wear school uniforms, too.’’

‘’Hyung, you’re too old for that. Just stick to your Meokbangs.’’

I see Seokjin opening his mouth to respond, but Jungkook waves his hand calling out his goodbye and then ends the call. He sighs out heavily, rolling his stiff shoulders, then turns to look at me while holding out his hand. ‘’Let’s go.’’

‘’But you didn’t even sing,’’ I note but put my hand into his anyway.

‘’I just wanted to hear you sing, ________.’’ He leads the way through the arcade. ‘’I can sing to you anytime.’’

‘’So you can set the mood.’’ I nudge his side with my elbow.

In response, he releases my hand to wrap his arms around me. ‘’I don’t need to do that anymore.’’

‘’Wow, you sound so confident.’’ Pushing him away, I notice a familiar booth next to the exit of the arcade. ‘’Oppa, look. I haven’t been in one of those for so long.’’

I walk over to it and push the curtain aside stepping in, feeling like a kid all over again. ‘’Lee and I used to go into these booths all the time.’’

We’d always spend most of our allowances on these tiny editable pictures.‘’Shall we take some photos?’’

I face him, delighted. ‘’Can we?’’

Jungkook smiles down at me. ‘’Of course.’’

A few minutes later we exit the booth, my own heart beating from being in such a rush to finish editing the photos within the time limit. '’Ah, that’s what I always hated. There was never enough time to do anything pretty.’’

After the pictures finish developing, I take them out of the slot thing and instantly burst out laughing, my breath getting stuck along the way.  ‘’Oppa, your eyes.’’ We truly never take ordinary pictures, there was only one where we were smiling normally, the others were weird faces, trying to make it as funny as possible.

‘’What the, I look like an owl.’’ His head shifts back and forth over the pictures. ‘’How come your eyes look alright?’

‘’What are you talking about, I look like an owl, too. It’s not just you.’’

Jungkook squints at me with suspicion. ‘’You didn’t edit anything, right?’’

‘’I can’t read Japanese that well, I don’t think there is even an option for that.’’ I start walking towards the exit. ‘’Your eyes are really big to begin with.’’

We step out into the brightly lit streets. Blinking from the stark contrast, I shield my eyes from the sun. ‘’Wow, how long have we been in here?’’ The streets have gotten much busier and as much as he told me not to worry, it was only normal for me to feel anxious in an instant.
‘’Where are we going next?’’ I ask him wanting to distract my thoughts, slipping my hand into the pockets of my cardigan.

‘’There are a lot of places I want to take you.’’ Seeing the many people himself, he reaches into his backpack and puts on his mask.

‘’No matter how much you’d disguise yourself, I think I’d still recognize you, Oppa.’’

Now only being able to see his eyes, they seem that much more intense. ‘’Well, I’d hope so. I’d feel slightly offended if you didn’t.’’

As we pass by a group of people playing instruments, I turn to Jungkook curiously. ‘’Do you play any instruments?’’

‘’For composing purposes, I taught myself some piano, but I’m nowhere near as good as you.’’

‘’You haven’t even seen me play before.’’ I think back to when I had last played. ‘’I don’t even remember when I last touched a piano.’’

‘’Will you play for me?’’ Jungkook halts and tilts his head cutely.

‘’How? I don’t have a piano at home anymore.’’

He steers me towards the subway station by the elbow. ‘’I know the perfect place.’’

~ ~ ~

‘’Is there anything that you can’t do?’’ Jungkook questions dully when the ball goes into the net. ‘’Yoongi-Hyung, would be so proud.’’

I rush over to get the basketball, dribbling it easily. ‘’Yoongi-Oppa? Is he a great player?’’

‘’Yeah, he is known for being a good basketball player.’’ When I look over at him, I see that he had sat down, his knees pulled up.

‘’He really is full of charisma.’’

‘’Excuse me, Noona.’’ I turn surprised to hear another voice. ‘’We’re going home now, can I have my basketball back?’’

I smile at the little kid, who had lent us his basketball, and bend down so I was on the same eye level. ‘’Thank you, bye.’’ I pat his small head and wave when he runs to his mother. A warm night breeze wafts through the grassy court, my hair flying everywhere.

‘’This is exactly how I first saw you, that day.’’ I push my hair back, looking away from the boy. ‘’You were dancing ballet.’’

It’s been a long while since I’ve seriously danced a ballet routine, but since I’ve done it for many years of my life, somehow it all comes back in an instant.
Pushing onto my toes as much as I can with these shoes I do a few simple pirouettes, without lifting my feet because I was wearing a skirt but then I remember that he had told me about me falling so I mimic that, too. “Like this?”

Once more pushing my hair away from my face, I raise my head to smile at him but when I see him thoughtfully looking at me as if in awe, I don’t know how to react. But I don’t have to because after just gazing at each other for a moment more he starts to sing.

‘’~Don’t think about anything, don’t even talk about anything. Just smile at me~’’

Whenever I listen to this song, a sudden sadness fills my body. Maybe it’s the lyrics, maybe it’s their voices that almost sound ghostly, so emotional. Whatever it is, the song became my favorite in an instant.

‘’~I still can’t believe this. I think this is all a dream~’’ I shudder from the chills caused by his voice. ‘’~Don’t try to disappear~’’

‘’~Is it true, is it true. You, you, I’m scared because you are so beautiful~’’ It all feels so melancholy and somehow I know he isn’t just singing these lines for no reason. ‘’~Untrue, untrue, you, you, you~’’

‘’~Will you please stay here?~’’ Jungkook looks wistful, and for a moment I’m scared. ‘’~Will you promise me?~’’

‘’~If I touch you, would you fly off? Would you break? I’m scared, I’m scared, I’m scared~’’ His eyes and voice, the way he is looking at me, it’s so convincing that I can’t help and get emotional. ‘’~Can you stop time? When this time passes would this time become nothing?~’’

At the lyrics, he reaches out his hand and I move over to him, holding on firmly. ‘’~Would you forget me? I’m scared, I’m scared, I’m scared~’’ Suddenly the words he had spoken to me earlier come into mind, ‘you’re like a butterfly’  and just like that tears well up slowly.

Seeing my unspilt tears, Jungkook smiles at me sadly. ‘’Why do I see tears?’’

‘’Why do you look so sad, then?’’ I look up at the sky, blinking away the tears. ‘’It makes me worry.’’ I hear him chuckling softly at my defensive tone.
I sniffle and look at him seriously. ‘’Is that what you meant earlier when you said I’m like a butterfly?’’

‘’Hm.’’ His gaze drops to my hand in his.

Not wanting to see him somber like this with the combination of myself still feeling a little bit emotional, I scoot closer and wrap my arms around him in a reassuring hug. ‘’Oppa, I’m not going anywhere.’’

After a second his arms brace around me, I can feel him soften as he rests his chin on my shoulder. ‘’There is something I’m curious about.’’

‘’What is it?’’ I unwind, too, hearing his voice had returned to a more lighter tone.

‘’Earlier, what Tae-Hyung said…’’ I smile, already knowing what he was getting at. ‘’Why aren’t you asking me about that?’’
My shoulder shake as I laugh silently, he moves back. ‘’No really, you also don’t get jealous whenever I mention IU-Sunbae.’’

Now, that makes me giggle harder, hearing his almost offended voice. ‘’That is what you’re curious about?’’

‘’Eoh.’’ He confirms with resolve.

‘’Oppa is my boyfriend, right?’’ I wait until he nods before I continue. ‘’I’m your girlfriend, right?’’ He nods at me with such certainty that I want to just melt to the floor.
‘’It’s that simple. I already only get to see you so little, if I spend those hours worrying or asking you about these things, I’d lose time with you, Oppa.’’

Jungkook looks surprised. ‘’Woah, that’s it?.’’

‘’'That’s it’?’’ I was a little bit offended because it wasn’t really simple since it takes a lot of selflessnesses. I shake his shoulders, pretending to be upset.
‘’I was lying, I am curious. Jungkook-Oppa what was Tae-Oppa saying back then? How many girlfriends have you had before me? If you mention IU-ssi one more time I will kill you! Do you want me to be like that?’’

Laughing earnestly at my threat, Jungkook falls back on the grass field, holding his stomach.

‘’Answer me, answer, answer me!’’ I annoy him some more but stop when I have to laugh myself. ‘’You’re lucky I’m not like that.’’

‘’I really am lucky.’’ He searches for my hand and holds onto my index finger gingerly. ‘’You really seem like a Noona sometimes.’’

‘’You should call me Noona, then.’’ I shift around so we’re facing the same way and look at the starry night.

‘’I don’t want to, I quite like being your Oppa.’’ Yeah, me too.

After a while of just gazing at the beautiful stars, I look over my shoulder to peer at Jungkook. He had put an arm behind his head, dozing off comfortably. Settling down next to him I prop my arm on the ground, hand under my chin.

‘’You’re staring,’’ Jungkook mutters without opening his eyes.

‘’I’m admiring.’’ The corners of his mouth quirk up. ‘’Oppa, you’re really good looking.’’ I brush the back of my index finger over the edge of his jaw. ‘’Woah, so sharp.’’ I giggle at myself but continue.
‘’I really like your hair.’’ Leaning down some more, I analyze his face closely. ‘’Your skin is so nice.’’

‘’You are going to make me flustered,’’ Jungkook warns sounding more awake now.

‘’Oppa, your eyes are so pretty. Your nose is nice.’’ I continue to taunt him, playfully. ‘’Your lips are ni—‘’ I get interrupted when he puts his hand behind my neck and pulls me down, my lips brushing his jaw.

I whack his chest and pull back, immediately blushing. ‘’Ya, I was speaking.’’

Opening his lids a bit, he smirks. ‘’You can continue now.’’

‘’I don’t feel like it anymore.’’ I glare at him one last time before I sit back up, cursing my stupid skirt in my head. It’s really inconvenient all the time.
Hearing Jungkook yawn, I turn my head in his direction. ‘’Don’t you want to return back to your dorm?’’

Unable to stop yawning, he stretches and sits up the same way I was. ‘’Do you want to go home?’’

I shake my head faintly. ‘’I like it here. There is no one at home waiting for me.’’

‘’Will you be alright when your brother moves to Tokyo?’’

‘’I think so,’’ I say quietly. ‘’I have to be for my brother.’’

‘’You’re very understanding.’’ I smile looking down at my hands. ‘’Just like at school earlier.’’ There was something different about the tone of his voice, making me face him. 
‘’Thank you, ________.’’ His voice genuinely thankful, I tilt my head raising my eyebrows in confusion. ‘’For always being so considerate.’’

‘’Ah, you don’t have to thank me.’’ I smile at him. ‘’Ask Lee, I’ve always been like that. She calls it a bad thing though.’’

‘’It could be,’’ my smile fades when I see his troubled expression. ‘’I could unintentionally hurt you…’’ Jungkook drops his head and begins fidgeting with his hands solemnly.

I face him completely. ‘’Oppa, I promise that if there is something really bothering me, that I will tell you. Call?’’

Lifting his head at my proposition he scans my face, then finally smiles again. ‘’Call.’’

For a while, we just sit there gazing at each other, but eye contact was never something I could hold for long, leading me to look away coyly. I feel him ruffling my hair as he chuckles lowly.

‘’Ah,’’ Jungkook blurts out as if remembering something suddenly. ‘’I have something for you.’’

‘’Huh?’’ I watch him searching for something in his bag, thrown off by his unexpected gift.

‘’Do you remember the earrings I used to wear? The tunnels that would change from black to silver.’’

‘’Yeah…’’ I answer hesitantly. As much as I liked them on him, I’m not sure they would look that great on me. There is also the fact that I literally can’t wear them.

‘’Here it is.’’ Pulling out his hand, he raises it high over his head in triumph, finally having fought it out of his bag. I grin widely captivated by his cuteness.
‘’I hope you like it, ________.’’ Jungkook holds out the small jewelry box, looking unsure and nervous.

‘’You could gift me a pack of rice and I’d still be happy.’’ I joke in an attempt to cheer him up, and it seems to work because he actually laughs.

‘’Open it.’’

Doing as I am told, I tentatively open the lid and can’t hold back the little gasp. Two round silver shapes each of them with their own set of long golden ears on top were stuck against the velvety black fabric. Two bunnies to be exact.

‘’It’s so pretty. Oh!’’ I call out amazed when I see the heads abruptly blending into the black color of the velvet. I tilt my hand back and forth several times, seeing them change back from black to silver accordingly. ‘’They are like Oppa’s.’’

‘’Yeah, I recall you liking that about mine.’’ I look up at him, grinning at him widely, surprised that he remembered that small detail. ‘’It was troubling to find normal earrings with that effect, so I had them customized.’’

‘’Aw,’’ I look at the pair of earrings again, immensely touched by the effort he put into the small but meaningful gift. ‘’I love it, thank you, Oppa.’’

He looks at me, his eyes full of fondness. ‘’Do you want to try them on?’’

‘’Shall I?’’ I smile excitedly when he nods his head encouragingly, feeling like the younger me who always couldn’t wait to try on whatever was given to me. 
Somewhat struggling, I frown focusing on one spot in concentration. ‘’I really should start wearing earrings again,’’ I mutter under my breath when I eventually successfully stick them in. ‘’How does it look?’’

‘’Pretty.’’ Jungkook takes his phone and signals for me to push my hair back. Tugging my hair behind my ears, he aims the camera at me. ‘’One, two, three.’’ Smiling into the camera, I angle my head a little so the earrings are visible.

Checking the image, I see that the color was silver because of the flash that was used. ‘’Like this, I’ll have Oppa with me all the time.’’

‘’Are you going to wear it?’’ He questions curiously.

‘’Of course, it’s a gift from you.’’ I’d probably even wear them in my sleep. ‘’As I said if you would’ve given me a pack of rice I would have carried it with me every day.’’ The only thing I get as a response is his cute laughter.
‘’Thank you so much, Oppa.’’ I look at him still very much moved. ‘’Since it is my first time receiving a present from a guy, this will be very memorable to me.’’

Jungkook’s face slowly transforms from a sheepish smile into my favorite, where his entire face grins. Eyes, nose and lips.
He touches his hand to his chest. ‘’Somehow hearing that makes me even happier.’’

‘’That you are the first?’’ I confirm amused, grinning too because his smile is so contagious. ‘’Let’s take a picture together.’’

Scooting to his side, I get ready to pose to the camera and feel him putting his arm around my shoulders, but instead of lifting his phone, he keeps it on his lap. Confused, I turn to look at him and have to snicker immediately when I see him holding out his cheek expectantly.

Reaching up, I do give him the quick peck on the cheeks he’s waiting for.

‘’Ah, wait, I haven’t taken the picture.’’ I crack up, in disbelief that he was going to pull this stunt. Relenting though, I move and kiss his cheek again, waiting for him to take the stupid picture. ‘’Argh!’’ He groans while frowning. ‘’The phone is so heavy.’’

Shifting away, I glare at him. ‘’Ah, ya!’’

‘’OK, OK, I’ll take the picture now.’’ Happy that he got what he wanted twice now, he tugs me close.

I cross my arms and pout. ‘’I don’t want to anymore.’’

‘’I’ll really take the picture this time.’’

‘’If you don’t, I’m going to hit you.’’

‘’Call.’’ Jungkook doesn’t sound scared at all. Of course not, his body is all the armor he’ll need.

Finally this time he lifts his hand with the camera and waits for me to get into position. Sighing loudly, I stretch my neck and press my lips against his cheek one last time, when I hear the sound of the camera going off, I inch back right away.

‘’Our first normal picture.’’ Since the front camera was used, the picture wasn’t as clear, but that made me like it even more.

I had my lips against his cheek with my eyes closed while he had his one arm around me, his eyes closed tight in that crinkly smile that he does sometimes, baring his teeth in a bright grin.

‘’Well, not really that normal. But it’s a good start.’’ I joke and smile at his contented expression. ‘’We should take more phot—‘’ I stop mid-sentence as he yawns broadly. His yawn lasts for a long time as he tries to shake it off by rattling his head and blinking.
‘’Aigoo, is it past someone’s bedtime?’’

Unable to stop yawning he stretched his arm above his head. ‘’Seems like it.’’

‘’Oppa, let’s go. You should get some rest.’’

‘’OK.’’ The next thing I know, my head is on his chest, with his arm under my head. Jungkook had pulled me down on the ground next to him.

‘’That is not what I had in mind.’’ My heart races and I wonder if he could feel it since we were so close. Straightening my legs from the cross position, I readjust the cardigan.

Next to me, Jungkook shifts a little. ‘’This is my kind of resting.’’

‘’Are you sure you don’t want to go home? It’s much more comfortable.’’

‘’Hm,’’ I hear the sound vibrating through his chest and I freeze when I feel his heartbeat against my head. ‘’I want to spend as much time with you as possible.’’ He was probably talking about the mini-tour he was going to be on for the next few weeks.

‘’If you would have been in Japan a week later we could have met up.’’ My brother was scheduled to move during the second week of the break, but Jungkook and the rest were going to be in Japan during the first week.

‘’Hm,’’ he agrees, his words were getting quieter. ‘’I guess that means I will have to stick to you until I leave.’’

‘’Yeah, Oppa, let’s stay here until we have to meet up with class tomorrow.’’ I joke playfully.

Going along with it, he tugs me closer, his leg brushing mine. ‘’Yeah, let’s do that.’’

I smile and twist a little so I was lying sideways, my cheek now flush against his chest. Concentrating on his strong and steady heartbeat, quietly we lie there as he dozes off. I follow suit soon after as his chest moves up and down having the same effect as a rocking chair, his heartbeat like a lullaby to my ears. 



~~~
btw sorry guys for being gone this week... I've been busy fangirling and screaming myself to death.... basically the norm whenever bts comes back haha.... I hope you liked it <3 I know I still need to respond to some of you, I'll get it to it soon, sorry for the delay!!