“H-hey Yoongi?” Hoseok stuttered nervously, shifting in his seat on Yoongi's black bed sheets. His best friend's hand stilled over the paper on which he sketched tattoo design ideas and he slowly turned, raising a questioning eyebrow and blinking rather innocently at Hoseok.

“What's up?” he asked, quickly taking notice of Hoseok's anxious demeanour. Hoseok reached into the pocket of his dark jeans, fingers closing around the small orange pieces of card that could grant them entry to Taehyung’s set that night.

“Are you busy at all tonight?” he replied with a shaky breath, hand still encased by denim.

“Not as far as I know,” Yoongi hummed, joining the other on the king sized bed and lolling his head to the side. Hoseok was then all too aware of the close proximity of their faces, Yoongi's eyes scanning his for any emotion once his face fell and his breathing hitched in his throat. Hoseok shuffled away awkwardly, cheeks burning as he hoped he wasn't being too obvious. “Why?” Yoongi prompted after the uncomfortable silence became too much for him to bear.

“Well…” Hoseok tried to piece together words to form sentences despite still being flustered to the point of feeling overwhelmed, heart racing as he played back that moment in his mind. All he could think about was how badly he wanted to kiss Yoongi then.

“Are you okay?” he was brought back to reality by Yoongi's voice, laced with concern, as was his expression. Hoseok coughed and nodded frantically, eyes widening when he realised how long he'd left Yoongi in suspense.

“Yeah, right, sorry… Jungkook has this friend, right? And he is a musician and he's playing a set at Greenhill tonight, you know the one…” When Hoseok's spluttered words began to fail him he decided to repeat Jungkook's explanation yesterday. “And he gave me two tickets and I just wondered if maybe you wanted to go… together?” he stared at the sheets beneath him the whole time, ragged breathing tormenting him as he willed himself to stop being so nervous. It was his best friend, they made plans all the time! But then again, Yoongi had a way of turning casual moments fond, or at least he did for Hoseok, who was easily made bashful.

“Sounds good, when is it?” Yoongi smiled at Hoseok and he trembled slightly as he drew the tickets from his pocket, hand clammy with how long it had been there and his current state of being. He handed one to Yoongi who wiggled his eyebrows amusingly, reading the details carefully. “We have an hour yet. Nice, I'm sure we'll have fun.” Yoongi's eyes drew up into crescent moon shapes, surrounded by kind wrinkles that accompanied his warm grin. “Make sure to thank Jungkook for me!”

“Oh believe me,” Hoseok sighed in relief, soft smile decorating his lips. “I intend to.”

~

None of them saw reason to dress up, providing they were only going to an acoustic gig at a pub they went to together often, Hoseok staying in his red and black plaid shirt and blue jeans and Yoongi only changing his tee to a more recently washed one. Dressed completely in black, with a black leather jacket covering his frail upper frame and a black beanie flattening his black hair over his forehead, Yoongi was a total contrast to Hoseok, who's excited demeanor partnered well with the colours he wore. Even his shoes were white with orange details whilst Yoongi had settled for the same old thick boots which were, of course, midnight black in shade.

“Aren't you cold?” Yoongi asked quietly as a wind rustled their hair and clothes, goosebumps raising on Hoseok's tanned skin and making his friend frown.

“A little…” he admitted sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck with a sorry smile. “But it's only down the road. I'll be fine.” Yoongi tutted and rolled his eyes.

“Yah, I don't need you getting sick!” Yoongi cried out, face falling quickly when Hoseok reeled in surprise. “I mean…” he muttered, pulling his thick coal coloured scarf from his neck as he tried to explain. “You're a nightmare when you're sick. I have to take care of you and you end up so whiny and-”

“Hyung,” Hoseok interrupted him with a small smirk, eyes focused on the wool in Yoongi's large hands. “Thank you for caring.” Yoongi scoffed as if Hoseok's words were simply outrageous but said nothing more, instead wrapping the scarf snugly around Hoseok's neck and shoulders and looking forward as they walked on in silence. He didn't look at Hoseok but he could feel how flustered he was, not needing to glance over to know his cheeks would be tinged a light pink and his eyes would be constantly flickering over to see his expression.

 

They reached Greenhill within minutes, and after utilising their tickets they headed inside, both sighing happily at the refuge it provided from the newly falling drizzle. Yoongi removed his jacket and placed it over the back of the chair he sat on at the bar, relaxing against it as heat flooded his body and his muscled untensed. Hoseok seated himself next to his crush and ordered beer for them both, keeping Yoongi's scarf wound around him for he found security in the warmth and the smell; musky like Yoongi's cologne yet fresh like it had been washed recently. Yoongi raised an eyebrow when he noticed; it was rather warm in the pub, but he didn't mention it, instead feeling a gentle smile tug at his lips as he accepted his drink and took a sip as soon as the cold glass was in his hands. Hoseok followed suit and stared at the amber liquid, blowing the froth on top around and watching it separate and rejoin, all too fascinated by the small movements.

“So when does this Tae-” Yoongi's question was abruptly cut off by a deep voice testing the mic at the back of the room not far from where they were, the musician in plain sight of both of them despite the establishment being rather crowded. He was handsome, skin tan and small face chiseled marvelously. His almond shaped eyes bore a kind glint and they scanned the room quickly before focusing on Hoseok, form visibly faltering when they did. He came to his senses and chuckled inwardly, bringing the mic stand closer and tuning his guitar a little more before introducing himself.

“Hello everyone and thanks for coming tonight. I'm Kim Taehyung…” Hoseok rested his cheek in his palm as he watched Taehyung, elbow propped up on the mahogany wooden surface of the bar and a light sigh falling from his lips. He'd brought Yoongi out here, they had drinks, they were watching the musician, but. He still hadn't thought about when and how he would confess. He'd just decided to go with the flow, which he now regretted, as his palms started to sweat slightly and his heart beat increased. He grimaced at the palpitations and took another swig of his drink to calm himself, looking back at Yoongi who was now intently listening to Taehyung’s self written song. A sweet melody contrasted sad lyrics detailing loss, a rather generic topic but a nice song when paired with his sombre, timbral voice. Hoseok felt his heart and expression soften as he watched Yoongi thoughtfully, the man hanging onto Taehyung’s every word as he took in the sound. Yoongi had always been passionate about music, his childhood dream was, for the longest time, to be a pianist. That ambition soon spiraled into becoming a rapper, but his parents constantly pushed him to study and so he majored in art and design. He opened the tattoo shop at only twenty despite his mother still disapproving, though he found the profession enjoyable.

 

“Why do you keep watching me more than the singer?” he enquired in a hushed voice as the second song drew to a close and his beer was pretty much gone. Hoseok blinked rapidly as he tried to find the right words to explain, mind whirring with the things he wished to respond but knew he couldn't. Because you're beautiful. Because you're amazing. Because I lo-

 

Before Hoseok could actually come up with a reasonable explanation a loud voice exclaimed behind them, Yoongi's name sounding cheerful.

“Fancy seeing you two here!!” Hoseok's brows furrowed into a deep set frown as he whirled around with so much vigour he nearly fell from his chair, coming face to face with none other than Jimin.

“And what are you doing here?” he asked, trying to keep his bitterness and annoyance from showing in his tone. Jimin piqued an eyebrow and smirked, planting a hand on his hip and shifting his weight to the other foot.

“I happen to be friends with Tae over there,” he chuckled almost smugly, jabbing his finger in Taehyung’s direction as he sang his third song of the night, much more jolly and good natured than the other two.

“Just my luck…” Hoseok murmured, both Yoongi and Jimin cocking their heads at him.

“What?” Yoongi hummed as he ordered another round of beers, Hoseok chewing on the inside of his cheek with his sullen expression beginning to show on his features. He didn't even care that much anymore.

“Nothing,” he sighed, chugging half of his beer in one go with a small, inaudible snarl. Yoongi and Jimin got to catching up, Jimin constantly playing with his candyfloss pink hair and laughing at Yoongi's sarcastic jokes as if he were the funniest man to ever exist. Hoseok felt as if he could vomit just through listening to his poorly concealed flirting, completely confused as to how Yoongi remained oblivious to it. Either that or he pretended to be.

~

After a good hour of admittedly wonderful tunes and Taehyung’s reverberating voice he announced a small intermission as he felt like a drink, setting his guitar down in its stand and bowing to the audience as he headed for the bar. He found his eyes wandering back to Hoseok's now solemn looking face, finding the seat next to him empty and a boxy grin taking to his mouth. Hoseok glanced up as Taehyung slid onto the stool on his right, obviously wanting to speak to him.

“Hey, you're a really good singer,” Hoseok complemented half heartedly, though this seemed more than enough for Taehyung as he let out an excited squeal.

“Thank you! But you… you look so unhappy,” he pouted, resting his elbows on the bar and leaning closer. “Are you not enjoying yourself?” Hoseok paused with his glass raised to his lips, wondering if he was really any sort of keen to share his woes with a stranger. However as he looked over at Jimin doing unnecessary aegyo to a playfully sickened Yoongi made his stomach churn to the point he needed no second thoughts, or any thereafter.

“See that guy there?” he gestured behind him and Taehyung followed his hand as inconspicuously as he could manage, nodding slowly.

“Jimin? My best friend?” Hoseok shook his head in clear frustration and groaned lightly, gesticulating once more and taking a large gulp of the alcohol which as of yet took no effect.

“The dude he's chatting up.” he corrected, popping the ‘p’ and setting his glass down on the bar with such a force it startled the couple at the furthest end of the bar.

“Ah… Yoongi, right? I've heard about him.” Hoseok narrowed his eyes and rubbed his face with both of his hands, resisting his overwhelming urge to scream.

“Yeah. I wanted to. Confess tonight, to him.” Hoseok stuttered, lowering his voice so the man they spoke of would remain none the wiser. “I didn't know Jimin would be here,” Hoseok didn't try to hide how salty he was from Taehyung, ordering another beer and a shot of whiskey this time too.

“He never misses one of my gigs!” Taehyung lilted with a smile that quickly faded at Hoseok's glower. He was pretty much never this mad or unhappy; even the musician he'd only just met seemed to realise how uncharacteristic it was. As Hoseok got his drinks Taehyung gasped slightly, clapping his hands and making hoseok frown even more. “Boilermaker, huh? You haven't changed at all!”

“Okay I may be starting to get tipsy but you can't fool me. We've never met.” Taehyung shook his head with an exasperated sigh, though unlike Hoseok his countenance was still gleeful.

“We went to college together? Every Friday night I'd come here for lyrical inspiration and to unwind and every week, without fail I'd watch as you and your friends got wasted ,” He cackled and Hoseok scowled, dropping the shot glass into his beer and chugging what he could before he had to come away and grimace at the bitter burn. “You used to be able to take those in one shot, though.” Taehyung laughed, Hoseok still not answering but continuing to look unimpressed.  “You're too cute to wear a frown like that, sweetie,” he tried with a rather forward wink, finishing the interestingly classy red wine he'd ordered with an extravagant air.

“Are you trying to chat me up?” Hoseok questioned, scrunching his nose. “Kim Taehyung, I barely even know you, and kinda have a thing for-” he looked back and found Jimin somehow strewn across Yoongi's legs, the latter looking so chill and happy it lit a burning fire in the pit of Hoseok's stomach. “I have to go.” he whispered, words only just comprehensible to Taehyung who hastily took a small notepad from his shirt pocket (as he always carried one in case he thought of lyrics when out). He searched the back pocket of his jeans for a pen and almost yelled in triumph when he withdrew it, hurriedly scribbling his name and number on one of the slips of paper and tearing it from where the pages were bound. It hadn't taken Hoseok long to realise that no matter how truly inebriated he became he'd never be enough so to be remotely okay with his ruined date. As he tightened Yoongi's scarf around him and braced himself for the evening chill he felt long fingers wrap around his slim forearm, making him turn in surprise and nearly hit Taehyung over the head before realising who it was. “YAH! You scared the out of me!!”

“Sorry…” Taehyung simpered, placing the paper in Hoseok's palm and smiling sweetly. “Instead of mulling over him… maybe consider me? I'd like to get to know you, Hoseok.” And with that he disappeared into the crowd, leaving Hoseok to leave into the gradually darkening night with blurred thoughts and tears b in his eyes.

In his opinion? That night couldn't have more.