Jimin soon struck a natural friendship with Jungkook. Jungkook's open-book nature was so inviting, it was easy to warm up to him as a friend. To be honest, it was a relief to be able to talk to someone he didn't have to tread so carefully around and be so mindful with choosing his words. He was still en route to filling his Dad's shoes as CEO of the hospital, and sometimes that made him feel like he needed to contain himself. Talking with Jungkook made him feel a little more carefree, and the younger's abundant energy rubbed off positively on Jimin.

Jungkook is always welcoming when Jimin sticks around to chat if the lunchtime crowd had dwindled, or when Jimin returns at an unexpected post-lunch timing like right now.

"Jimin hyung! I was just about to take off." Jungkook grinned with a full row of teeth showing, and then noticed the takeaway box in Jimin's hands. "Is that an uneaten lunch you're holding?"

"Jungkookie, I just wanna know something... Why is there a banana sitting on my salad?"

Jimin popped open the lid of the takeaway box, and sure enough, an unpeeled banana in its wholesome form was peeking through a serving of leafy vegetables, crushing some romaine lettuce leaves and cherry tomatoes underneath it with its spellbinding curve of yellow.

"Oh man, holy !" Jungkook gave a little yelp of genuine surprise.

"It's not you then?"

"Hyung, for all the many times you've been looking over my shoulder and checking what I packed inside the paper bag, you should know it couldn't have been me right?" Jungkook shook his head with a chiding smile.

Jimin huffed with an upturned lip, wondering how to get to the bottom of this. "Who's behind this then... I'm really not keen on wasting food, and I'm pretty sure the portions are getting bigger by the day... First eggs, then apples, and now this." 

"Oh man... Someone must be trying to sneak these lunches past us. I mean, that freaking banana was totally meant to be hidden by the salad..." Jungkook hesitated and chose to complete his sentence, "...box."

Jungkook exchanged a tickled glance with Jimin, both of them in silent agreement that the banana called for too much attention with its obnoxious yellow smack in the middle of the salad, and would definitely have been noticed right away had it been packed outside of the box. It also meant that the person behind this - whatever this person's intentions might be - wasn't very thoughtful about food presentation at all. The whole point was probably for Jimin to eat whatever was served to him in that takeaway box, with no other considerations.

It was highly plausible that this person also knew that Jimin had been peeking inside the takeaway bag each time he received his order from Jungkook, and that was how the banana ended up hastily stuffed inside the takeaway box instead. This person clearly wanted to serve up an extra helping of fruit and vegetables whatever means it took, just as long as Jimin would receive it.

Just then, the kitchen door swerved open, and Jimin felt his breath getting caught in his throat because of who he recognized coming through the door. The person was half looking back into the kitchen to toss an apron aside before he stepped through the doorway, finally facing forward to address Jungkook.

"Kookie, I need to run for class, could you cover me 2 hours just for tom—" 

This person was none other than Kim Taehyung. Neither Taehyung nor Jimin made a sound as they looked at each other and suffered the ticking silence. Taehyung looked especially tired, his shoulders weighed down by a puffy army-green longline bomber jacket with a grey hoodie that was tightened snuggly around his neck. He was in black jeans and a black v-neck tee to match, but neither was very noticeable because of how he tightened his grip on his outerwear like fastening a life jacket. He also had a sling bag on his shoulder, and the half-zipped opening revealed course books and ring-bound dossiers.

Taehyung was studying and working part-time at this cafe now. Taehyung had managed to move on with a brand new life, while Jimin still found himself stuck with the same routine of feeling his heart ache for the skinny boy with the angular smile, who still looked so frail and guarded before him.

Did being a year apart make no difference for Taehyung?

Why did Taehyung have to furtively glance between him and Jungkook, somehow mistrustful and hurt by the interaction that had passed between them?

Jungkook had been smiling questioningly at the sudden tension in the air, and decided that the best thing for him to do was to respond cordially to Taehyung's half-formed sentence from earlier.

"Cover you for tomorrow right? Yeah sure! You have the end-of-term assignment to submit tomorrow yeah? Consider it done."

____

Author's Note A/N: 

 Ahhhhh I'm so pumped up to write on, but I've already skipped on some sleep to write this. Be back v v soon with the continued chapter.

Readers who left me a comment and any sort of sign that you're liking and following this, you give me lifeu. I appreciate it so much. Pls continue to leave some hearts? Hehe. I'd BRB