Namjoon certainly, absolutely, 100 percent, unquestionably, positively, undoubtedly is not lonely. Regardless of what Yoongi said, either jokingly, or with that somewhat concerned voice he had.

 

“You just seem sad,” Yoongi said once, taking a sip of his ice coffee, “And I know you haven’t seen anyone ever side, well, you know..” We broke up.

 

Namjoon rolled his eyes. He knew Yoongi still felt guilty about it. Namjoon saw it coming enough that he was prepared before Yoongi even said, ‘I think we should see other people.’ Really, they weren’t boyfriends so much as best friends how had a sleepover every night.

 

“I’m not sad.” A pause, “And I’m over our breakup, dude. I have been for months.”

 

And he was! After Yoongi moved out, Namjoon kept the apartment. They stayed friends, or more accurately, stopped being boyfriends. Even after Yoongi introduced Namjoon to his new boyfriend, Hoseok, Namjoon didn’t even feel an ounce of jealousy in his body. AT this point, Namjoon was pretty sure that Yoongi was just scared of Namjoon withering away.

 

“You have five different blankets, seven pillows and two plushies on your bed.” Yoongi says pointedly.

 

Namjoon huffs, “Just because you want to be the temperature of liquid nitrogen when you go to sleep doesn’t mean that all of us do.”

 

“I’m just worried you’re lonelier than you let on.” Yoongi says, only honesty and concern in his voice.

 

“Yoongi,” Namjoon started, ready to repeat the same conversation they’ve been having for months now, “I’m not lonely, or sad, or ‘desperate for human interaction’. I’m just single now, and honestly? I kind of like it. I’m happy for you and Hoseok, but I don’t think that I need or want a relationship to be happy.”

 

“Fine, fine, whatever you say,” Yoongi always replies, waving him off, and for a few days, or weeks, that’s that. Until Yoongi comes over to Namjoon’s place to see him wearing pajamas ate three i the afternoon, holding a Ryan plushies and eating cereal out of a cup, then the conversation starts all over again.

 

Namjoon enjoys the perks of being single after five years. He likes sprawling out in the middle of the bed without concern of pushing anybody off, and he likes not having to worry about be too loud late at night or early in the morning because someone is trying to sleep, he likes picking his own meals based off purely whatever he wants, and getting to wear all the clothes that Yoongi hated on him and getting to see all the movies, concerts and TV shows that Yoongi refused to watch with him. Really, the pros outweigh the cons in all the respects.

 

But, sometimes, even though he’ll never admit it to Yoongi - especially after all the harping he does - when it’s the early morning, or a rainy afternoon, or after he’s seen a romantic movie, Namjoon wishes that there was someone next to him that he could hold. Someone who would pet his hair or boop his nose and giggle, cuddle with during the night and give him a hug before he left for work in the morning.

 

Namjoon considers buying a cat.

 

“Should I get a cat?” he asks.

 

“No.” is Yoongi’s reply, while Hoseok says, “Get a dog!”

 

“Why would you want to get a cat?” Yoongi asks further.

 

“I dunno. They’re soft-”

 

“Their claws aren’t!” Hoseok interrupts, earning a slap upside the head from Yoongi.

 

“And they make those cute little ‘mmrp’ noises, which I like. I really don’t like spiders and I heard cats will eat them.”

 

“Or maybe,” Yoongi starts, and Namjoon braces himself for the conversation he doesn’t want to have with Hoseok in the room, or with anyone, at all, ever. “You’re lonely and you’re turning into a crazy old cat man to fill the void.” Hoseok snickers, looking at his phone.

 

“Well, first off, I’m not lonely or an old man, so jot that down. Secondly, I can’t become a crazy cat man without a cat. Thirdly, just because I’m officially the Single Friend doesn’t make me lonely.”

 

“You wouldn’t have to be the Single Friend if you went out and met someone!”

 

“Okay, this is pretty high and mighty coming from the guy who slept with me purely because I was the only other gay male that he knew at the time.”

 

“Namjoon, I am two seconds away from choking you if you don’t-”

 

“How about-” Hoseok interrupts loudly, drawing both their attentions, “Namjoon goes on a couple of double dates with us and some of my friends?”

 

“Why would I do that?” Namjoon whines.

 

“‘Cause if you don’t Yoongi won’t stop annoying you-” (“Hey!” Yoongi squaks.) “And you get free meals, or movies, or whatever we do if you come along.”

 

Namjoon thinks critically about the offer. It would cut into his free time, but free food and movies sounds pretty good. Maybe if he goes on enough dates Yoongi will help him pick out a cat.

 

Taehyung is cute and nice, but from only a few minutes of conversation, Namjoon can tell they wouldn’t make a good match. The waitress has to shush them four times before an hour is even up, and Namjoon knows that means they hype each other up too much. They exchange numbers, but Namjoon is pretty sure they’ll just meet up to play videos games as friends, not go on dates together.

 

“So, how do you think it went?” Yoongi asks, driving Namjoon home.

 

“I think he’ll be a good friend.” Namjoon says, leaning his head against the window.

 

“Just a friend?” Yoongi asks, lips pursed.

 

“Yes, mom, just a friend.” Yoongi rolls his eyes, and the rest of the drive is silent. When Namjoon gets home, he looks at the local cat shelters adoption page.

 

Jimin is also cute, but Namjoon feels like it’s mostly hero worship that Jimin has for him, for whatever reason. He’s bubbly and kind, and Namjoon can’t help but say, “Oh my god, look how small your hands are!”

 

Jimin gives him a hug after the movie the four of them went to see is over, and not so subtly grabs his .

 

“Jimin’s cute, isn’t he?” Hoseok asks, smiling, as him, Namjoon and Yoongi walk to the subway. Namjoon shrugs, “Yeah, I was worried I was gonna break him if I leaned on him too much, though.”

 

“I think he liked you a lot.” Yoongi comments. Namjoon just hums.

 

Him and Jimin do go on a few more dates, just them, but after spending half of their third date pointing out other cute guys to one another, it isn’t a surprise to them when they decide that they won’t be dating each other any time soon.

 

Namjoon bookmarks his favorite cat on the shelter’s page. His name is Beans.

 

Jungkook is probably the best suited for Namjoon. They have a similar sense of humor, they interrupt and listen to each other in equal amounts, and in general he’s physically attractive in a way that Namjoon likes. He would be perfect except -

 

“Hoseok, I’m really not comfortable with dating .” Yoongi grumbles next to Hoseok and mutters, “Told you so.”

 

Namjoon refreshes the cat shelter page daily.

 

It’s a friday evening, Namjoon walking home, debating with himself whether or not microwave popcorn is a suitable dinner, when the thought of I really don't want to go to an empty home crosses his mind. Namjoon pauses for a moment, unsure what to do with this realization. He had known that he was a little lonely - he didn’t miss dating Yoongi in the slightest but he just missed missing someone throughout the day. After a few seconds of thought, he pulls out his phone and looks for directions to the cat shelter.

 

The place smells of, well, cats. He can hear faint meowing from behind the front desk. For a second Namjoon almost loses his nerve, but continues to walk forward. No one seems to be working, but there’s a sign that says ring bell for service. He rings the bell for service.

 

From the back room, out walks a man so pretty Namjoon swears he almost dies. He’s holding a fluffy black persian cat in his arms and is covered in cat fur. He smiles.

 

“Hi, can I help you?”

 

“Uhhh,” Namjoon says elegantly, “I was wondering if I could look at cats?”

 

“Sure,” the man says happily, “Is there any cat in particular, or are you just looking at any?”

 

“There was a cat on the website named Beans?” Namjoon says uncertainty. He didn’t check if someone adopted him yet.

 

“Sure! Just follow me.” he nods his head towards the back room. Namjoon follows him carefully, forces himself not to look at the of a stranger who’s leading him towards his future Cat Love.

 

“Beans is kind of old,” the guy says, not looking at Namjoon. The fluffy persian looks at him over the man’s broad shoulders, “so I hope you aren’t looking for him to be a kitten. He has at least five good years left in him, more if you decide to adopt him and take good care of him.”

 

Namjoon nods, then hums to let him know he’s listening.

 

They get to an enclosure and Namjoon can see the cat of his dreams, Beans, a long ragdoll cat with cross eyes. The man opens the door and walks in, motions for Namjoon to follow.

 

“You can go up and pet him.” he says, and Namjoon excitedly complies. Beans in laying on his side, so Namjoon crouches down, puts his hand a few inches from Bean’s face, before petting the cat’s head.

 

Beans makes the ‘mmrp’ sound that Namjoon really likes. “Can I hold him?” Namjoon asks.

 

“Yeah, go ahead. He’s actually really docile, he’s such a bit older, so most people pass over him when looking for a cat.”

 

Namjoon happily scoops up the cat, says ‘aww’ when Beans rearranges himself in Namjoon’s arms to get comfy again.

 

“So, what’s your name?” the employee asks.

 

“Namjoon.” he says, scratching Beans behind the ear.

 

“I’m Seokjin,” the man, now identified as Seokjin, says, “So, you’ve ever had a cat before?”

 

“No, I’ve always had dogs, but I really like cats.”

 

“You thinking of adopting Beans?”

 

“I think so.”

 

“If you do, you need to bring him back to visit sometimes. He’s Princess Deathmetal’s best friend.” Seokjin says, nodding his head towards the cat in his arms. Namjoon laughs at the name, and from there he and Seokjin make small talk; what does Namjoon do for a living, what’s it like working in a cat shelter - oh, you're a volunteer? Well, what do you do for a living then? Wait, Princess Deathmetal is your cat, did you name her?

 

Until Seokjin looks at the clock on the wall and says,

 

“It’s getting pretty late. I haven’t gone over the adoption stuff with you yet, and we usually like people to come in and hang out with the cats a few times before we send them off, so you’ll have to come back another time if you want to take Beans home.”

 

Namjoon pouts, gives Beans one last pet, before laying him on the pushy cat bed on the floor. Seokjin tells Namjoon that he’ll be working again on Sunday, if Namjoon wants to stop by.

 

Namjoon can’t even bring himself to be upset when he realizes there’s white cat fur all over his black work pants when he gets home, mind full of his new Cat Love and his possible Human Love too.

 

After three visits with Beans, all on days that Seokjin is working, Namjoon is finally allowed to bring Beans to his apartment. He signs on every light, dots his I’s and crosses his T’s, and (quite unmanly and embarrassingly) squeals when Seokjin places Beans into his arms, with the words, “Enjoy your brand new cat, Namjoon.”

 

Namjoon is about to leave, when he realizes that he probably won’t see Seokjin again. He doesn’t need two cats, he thinks, (‘Well-’ one half of his mind says, ebfore the other says, ‘Shut the up you do not’) and he doubts he’ll run into Seokjin again. Namjoon deicdes, it, he’ll put all his eggs into one basket.

 

“Hey, Seokjin?” he asks, tentatively.

 

“Yes, Namjoon?”

 

“Do you maybe want to, I don’t know, have my number?” then he chickens out, “So that we can let Princess Deathmetal and Beans can have Cat Play Dates.” There’s a blush on Namjoon’s cheeks despite him trying to keep calm.

 

Seokjin smiles softly, “Sure. I would love to have a Cat Play Date with you.”

 

Namjoon’s phone buzzes a few hours later, with a text that says, “Hey Namjoon!💖 It’s Seokjin !💖” and he nearly crushes Beans with the excited hug that he gives.

 

Yoongi hates Beans.

 

“I hate Beans.” he says, while Beans naps on Yoongi’s legs.

 

“Well I love him so he’s saying.” Namjoon says.

 

Yoongi groans, “I can’t believe you really became a crazy cat man, who is now in love with another crazy cat man!”

 

“Seokjin isn’t a crazy cat man.” there’s a pause, “and neither am I!” another pause, “And I’m not inlove with him!”

 

It takes five Cat Play Dates until Seokjin kisses Namjoon. It’s soft and gentle, just a press of their lips, but it makes Namjoon’s heart skip a beat.

 

Seokjin pulls away, a slight grin on his face, and says, “So, can I ask you out on a Non-Cat date?”

 

Namjoon nods, a smile slowly forming on his face, as he pictures a future of early morning hugs and late night kisses, of petting hair and boops on the nose during movies, and he can’t bring himself to mind that they’ll both be covered in cat hair for all of it.