Jimin looked down at his phone, desperate. Minjoon hadn’t responded in the longest time; in fact, the last time they had a long conversation was three weeks ago. He twiddled his thumbs, sighing. He had never been so worried in his life. He understood that the other boy might have tests and homework, but that really wasn’t that big of an excuse.

                “He probably needs time to adjust to his schedule,” his mother had reassured him, but he sat on his bed, staring at the empty phone screen, praying that it would light up. Which it did.

                From Yoongi: Quit moping around. It’s May, that’s when all kids have tests. I can’t even see you and I can feel your anxiety. Anymore of this sad and I’ll come to your house.

                Jimin laughed. Yoongi always knew when something was up. The older boy had been hanging around him, watching his dance practice videos and showing him snippets of the music he worked on. Jimin looked up to him, for he had never met someone so passionate about what he did.

                From Yoongi: I’m working on some music. I’ll show you tomorrow at lunch. I think you’ll like it. :)

                The next day, Jimin stayed after school at Yoongi’s request, making his way into the large library on the first floor. Hardly anyone was on the computers at that time, and Jimin tucked himself into a chair near the window that looked out at the courtyard. The chair next to him shuffled on the ground, and Yoongi took a seat, pulling a USB and a set of headphones out of his bag.

                “Did you bring your headphones?” he asked. Jimin nodded, pulling his own set out.

                “Take a listen,” Yoongi said, and Jimin plugged in the headphones into the computer. A soft piano played, layering on top of the electronic synths that droned in the background. It was only a snippet, but it was something that he could dance to. Something that he would like to dance to.

                “How long did it take for you to make it?” Jimin asked, voice quiet with awe.

                “Not too long, but you made it longer since you were being all depressed,” Yoongi replied, closing the file. “If you want a copy, I can put it in your USB if you have one.”

                Jimin nodded, and as Yoongi transferred the little song snippet into his embarrassingly pink USB, he asked, “When will you finish producing the song?”

                Yoongi raised one eyebrow, pulling out the two USBs and giving back Jimin’s. “Depends on how busy I am. Don’t rush me when I’m doing this stuff; it takes time for the creative juices to kick in. Why?”

                “I had an idea, but you can finish it first and then I’ll tell you,” Jimin replied, taking his bag off the ground and walking towards the exit.

                “See you tomorrow Yoongi!”

-----

                In dance class, the whole class was getting ready for a summer dance performance. Jimin wanted to do really well, he had been practicing his parts whenever he had free time and he wasn’t going to let the money that his mother put into sending him to class go to waste. He was in charge of a solo act done at the very end of the performance. He had coordinated with Ms. Lee to try and get the choreography as perfect as possible without it feeling left out from the other acts.

                The other students stared at him as he practiced. Jimin could feel their green, jealous stares piercing through his body. But he reminded himself daily that he was going to make his mother and Minjoon happy.

                Currently, he was trying to get his aerial flip right, the one similar to a cartwheel but without the hands. Under Ms. Lee’s watchful eye, Jimin tried over again and again, but each time was met with failure and the snickers from the other students. His body became sore from falling on the mat so many times, and he finally collapsed, his legs giving in to exhaustion. His bangs, slick with sweat, stuck to his forehead, and he swore he could feel a bruise starting to form on his back. His thighs stung and quivered.

                “Jimin, take a break. You’ll hurt yourself if you’re not careful,” Ms. Lee said, pulling Jimin up into a sitting position and handing him a towel and water bottle. Jimin took the water bottle and towel, wiping down his face and taking a swig from the bottle.

                “I need to keep practicing,” Jimin said after a moment. “I need to do it for Minjoon and the others.”

 -----

                “So, why is Yoongi not here today?” Jimin asked, nibbling on a sandwich.

                “He has a competition to attend and he’s going to rapping there,” Namjoon explained.

                Jimin never knew that Yoongi rapped. The older boy had only shown him songs that he produced, but never had he ever shown him his rapping.

                “Why didn’t Yoongi tell me that he could rap?” Jimin asked.

                “He’s a bit insecure of his rapping, that’s all,” Namjoon said, putting a kimbap into his mouth. “I can rap too, it’s just that we don’t think we’re up to the level of the really high level guys, but once we get to that level or better, we’ll make sure to show you.”

                Jimin nodded, finishing his sandwich. He had suspected that the two might have been interested in things other than composing, so it made sense just by the vibes they gave off and their voices. And then he remembered something that Yoongi had told him at the library. Something about a new song.

                “Is Yoongi composing a new song at the moment?” Jimin asked tentatively. Namjoon had finished his lunch and was now scrolling through his phone.

                “Yeah, he is. I think he showed you a part of it, but I really don’t know what he’s doing with it,” Namjoon said, shrugging.

                Jimin nodded in agreement. He, too, was curious about what Yoongi was doing in his spare time, but now wasn’t the time to pester him about it.