His fingertips and his lips were burned from the cigarettes.

Not literally though, since that could lead to possible second-degree burns and he would need immediate medical attention because of that. He was so used to smoking these tobacco-filled cigs that he felt like at any moment, it would ‘accidentally’ burn his lips whenever he smoked through the filter. His stepbrother told him not to do that, but that didn’t stop Jungkook from doing so.

Rolling his second cigar against a small, metal ashtray he carried with once he stepped out of his apartment, he slowly inhaled. When he felt an icy sensation in the back of his throat, he exhaled with ease and stare at the smoke trailing out of his mouth. It looked cool in his eyes, but not everyone else’s.

Jungkook was a good student in terms of academic, behaviour and attendance. Never had he try to jeopardize his reputation at school by doing stupid things that'll eventually destroy his good-boy image; he’s polite towards teachers, his grades were mostly above GPA and he hung out with friends that weren’t attention-seeking s. All was good until he secretly stole a couple cigars from his stepbrother's bedside drawer during sophomore year and tried one on the balcony, purely out of curiosity.

He thought about this as he took another cigar from his pack of Marlboro Gold Lights and put it between his lips. Jungkook knew that this habit of his was a risk to be taken responsibly, so he only smoke around his apartment complex and never gone farther than the convenient store next to it. And when he’s lucky, his stepbrother would accompany him with his own stash of cigars.

He pulled out his lighter and was trying to light the end of the cigar, when he heard a door opening and closing on his left. When he turned around, his eyes went wide.

Park Chaeyoung – the super smart, Australian-raised student council president – was standing two doors away from where he’s sitting.

And to make matters worse, she’s staring right at him.

Of all the days that could ruin his life in an instant, it had to be today. It just had to be.

“Um...” Jungkook was the first one to talk after a moment of awkward silence.

Chaeyoung blinked a few times as she tried to think of words to say. “S-Sorry... I didn’t mean to, um... walk in on you.”

“Ah, ,” Jungkook muttered angrily, banging his head against the wall behind him repeatedly before hiding his face with both of his hands as he felt the world caving in on him. “, , , ...”

“Jungkook?” Chaeyoung softly called his name out – she and Jungkook were in the same class, acknowledging each other’s presense as ‘classmates’. But given the current situation at hand, their casual acknowledgement might change for better or for worse. “If it makes you feel any better, I won’t tell anyone about this.”

“Yes, yes, yes, please don’t!” Jungkook exclaimed, looking at Chaeyoung with pleading eyes. The latter looked at him apologetically; she knew Jungkook was a nice guy who never wanted to cause any trouble both inside and outside of school. The least she could do is to not be a and tell the whole student body that he smokes.

So, Chaeyoung smiled reassuringly. “Don’t worry, I won’t.”

Jungkook sighed in relief, trying to calm his heart from beating right out of his chest. “Thanks... seriously, thank you so much.”

Chaeyoung nodded, then inspect the empty corridor they were both in. “Is your parents home?”

Jungkook shook his head, taking the cigar that fell out from his mouth before. “Not exactly. They live back in Busan while me and my stepbrother moved all the way here to study. This here is our apartment,” he knocked at the door behind him and reached for his lighter, ready to light up when he noticed Chaeyoung still standing beside him. “Um, is it alright if I...”

Chaeyoung quickly shook her head. “Oh, no! It’s fine, go ahead.” She studied how Jungkook lit up his cigarette, how he took a painfully slow drag and exhale with a hint of pleasure and relaxation glinting in his eyes. He must’ve been doing this for a while now.

“So, yeah. Right now, Namjoon studies Engineering at SNU through a scholarship program so clearly he has bigger brains than me,” Jungkook shrugged.

“You’re doing not too bad yourself, you know,” Chaeyoung giggled which caught Jungkook’s ears by surprise. It was rather cute to listen to besides her unique accent.

Jungkook smiled. “Yeah, maybe I am.” He stood up, wiping some dirt off of his black shorts and grey hoodie. “I’m going up to the roof, you wanna join?”

“That’s funny, ‘cause that’s where I was supposed to go before I caught you huffing and puffing out here,” Chaeyoung smirked. “You’re lucky that it’s me who saw you and not a teacher.”

Jungkook groaned. “Please don’t ruin my mood.”

Chaeyoung giggled once again, locking her apartment door and walked closer to Jungkook. “I’m in. Through the emergency stairs?”

Jungkook nodded, putting his Marlboro Gold Lights and lighter in the muff of his hoddie. “Let’s go.” They were only walking a few feet when –

“Can I have one of yours?”

Jungkook turned his head sharply at Chaeyoung, taken aback at her request. “I’m sorry, what?”

Chaeyoung rolled her eyes. “Sometimes when I’m bored, I do it. So, can I use yours for now? I left mine in my bedroom.”

Jungkook blinked, then slowly nodded as he took out his pack and gave one cigar to Chaeyoung. He watched her casually placing it on while her other hand reached for a pink-colored lighter inside the pocket of her white shorts. She lit the rolled-up piece of tobacco and took a drag, looking in front of her as she exhale the smoke from her lungs.

Jungkook gulped. “I gotta feeling that you’re totally not what people thought you are just by looking at you.”

Chaeyoung winked playfully at him, holding the cigar with two fingers on her left hand while the right one went for Jungkook’s shoulder. “Looks can deceive, my friend. I’m sure we’ll get along pretty well – only if you don’t tell anyone, and I do mean anyone, about this.”

“Um, cross my heart and hope to die?” That sounded more like a question when Jungkook heard himself say it.

Chaeyoung smiled, throwing her arm around Jungkook’s neck to pull him closer. “Now, we’re best friends.”

A/N:

You guys probably don't know about this, but the themes and content of this story is based on my actual teenage life. The habit that both Jungkook and Rosé possess is inspired by my own personal habit. I wanted to convey a sense of realism into this story, and I hope that by implementing a snippet of my reality into 'this' reality, you guys can feel the same way as I feel when dealing with life.

This story is also inspired by the works of Frank Ocean, do listen to his songs whilst reading this story. It'll definitely heighten the mood up!

If you guys wanna come and chat with me (please do 'cause i'm super bored af like srsly), go hit me up on my Twitter DMs: @YDelinquent or maybe even follow me on Instagram: @aryamachdi