Chapter Two

One thing Seokjin enjoyed about the borderline dingy hole-in-the-wall places that Jimin liked to whisk him to, was the fact that there was always good food. Seokjin had gotten some of his best inspiration on these lunch trips, one of which just so happened to now be Jimin‘s namesake crepe.

“How did business go old man, did you make a profit worth the investment?” Jimin asked, his cheeks a rosy apple color from the cold, and from the bottle of unknown blue liquid he kept downing like it was water and he a dehydrated man lost in the desert.

Feeling his eyebrow twitch at the disrespect, Seokjin flicked Jimin on the forehead and subtly pushed his blue drink closer to the middle of the table and further from the danger of falling off the edge.

“If you must know, I want my down payment back.” Seokjin finally said, leaning back into the chair and sighing when the waitress brought over his hot tea and another refill of whatever chemicals Jimin was throwing back.

Jimin was busy chugging down the blue liquid, making a satisfied noise and smacking his lips together before handing the empty glass to the waitress for a refill. He leveled Seokjin with an uncomprehending gaze. “Why exactly would you want that? You already bought the truck, paid in full as soon as—”

“I meant my investment in your advertising skills!!” Seokjin shouted, voice rising a bit louder than he intended. Jimin wasn’t fazed at all, in fact he gave Seokjin a slow blink and he hiccupped, then giggled to himself before he waved his older friend’s concerns away.

“Oh relax. Many new businesses see a temporary deficit of customers. You’ll get more of a loyal following the better known you are.” The reply was smart, despite the fact that Jimin seemed a little tipsy, and Seokjin wondered if he had ever actually seen Jimin fully drunk before. At most, the man had gotten extremely clingy and had once dyed his hair a bright bubblegum pink on a tipsy whim.

Mustering a glare, Seokjin stirred his tea vigorously and replied in a slightly accusatory tone, “I only had one customer all day.”

Jimin’s eyes widened comically and he sat up quickly, nearly knocking his ill-placed blue drink off the table. “WHAT!!?”

This time it was Jimin’s voice that drew attention and Seokjin nudged his foot against the younger man’s shin in an effort to make him calm himself. It worked somewhat, because Jimin deflated a little and repeated his question tin a slightly quieter tone.

“What do you mean you only had one customer??”

Sighing, Seokjin finished stirring sugar into his tea. The little cup was probably sweeter than candy and he regretted letting his mind wander too long. “I meant exactly what I said. Your crap advertising brought me exactly one customer.” Seokjin replied, finding his mind flitting to the sweet kitty from before. Namjoon was a blessing in disguise, he had ordered three more crepes after his free one, each reaction better than the last because his smile got wider and his dimples deeper with every treat.

It was a shame he had a class to rush to, Seokjin was about to muster the courage to ask if he would appear again the next day.

While Seokjin was lost in thought, Jimin grumbled to himself under his breath and opened his messaging app.

Dr. Chim:
Babe, did u not post the note I sent u???

The text was quickly typed, Jimin not bothering with full words or perfect sentences as usual. He had a long day of systematically terrorizing his interns and subtly attacking confused idiots. He didn’t need another stressor—

Cat Babe:
Uhmm…?

Groaning, Jimin rolled his eyes and shook his head to himself. He should have known that his dear overworked college intellectual would forget. He probably looked up a ton of tiny crab videos and forgot after Jimin texted him the day before. (Granted, he did contact his friend at three in the morning, asking for a favor)

Dr. Chim:
…babe

Cat Babe:
(^._.^)∫

Dr. Chim:
Yr lucky yor cute

Cat Babe:
(≧ᴥ≦❀)

Cat Babe:
Ill take car of it

Cat Babe
Don wory chim (*^ω^*)

Dr. Chim:
Good boy

Cat Babe:
Yah! Im older then u!!

Cat Babe:
ヾ(=`•ω•´=)

Dr. Chim:
An cutr babe

Jimin could practically sense the eye roll, as well as pick out the color pink on honeyed skin. He really should have asked someone else or gone and done the advertising himself, but he wasn’t nearly as internet famous as he liked to think he was, so why would he bother printing hundreds of flyers and posting them everywhere like some fanatic?

“Jimin, were you listening to me at all?” Seokjin asked, voice deceptively calm as he eyed Jimin from across the table. The low lighting of the cafe did nothing to dull the threatening spark in his eyes. Too bad Jimin had known Seokjin for years and he knew the older man was all bark and no bite.

“Simmer down old man. I contacted my…contact? And now your little truck will be full of hungry people tomorrow.” Jimin’s flippantly dismissive attitude irritated Seokjin, but the older man settled for glaring a bit longer before he deflated.

“I don’t know why I bother trusting you to get anything done…” Seokjin muttered under his breath. Jimin heard him, but grinned in response, his cheeks squishing his eyes into charmingly disarming crescents.

“Drink more and you’ll feel better!” Jimin chirped, trying to offer Seokjin some of his freshly refilled drink and almost spilling the entire glass in the process. Seokjin shrieked when the unknown glass of blue chemicals stained his white shirt.

“Park Jimin!!” He shouted, lifting the drink stained blue area and desperately fanning it with his free hand.

Jimin grabbed a napkin and tried wiping it up, only to make the stain bigger. Seokjin slapped him away and made a combination of drying whale and outraged penguin noises. Hearing the storage sounds, Jimin started giggling again and took another sip of his drink.

“There’s no saving that mess.” The doctor finally managed to gasp between giggles.

Seokjin hissed at him, “No thanks to you, you little—”

“At least now your shirt matches the mess you are inside and out.”

Seokjin’s eyes narrowed, but then his eyes darted down to Jimin’s chest. He bit back a smirk and gestured for Jimin to look down. “Looks like you’re a mess as well.”

When Jimin glanced down at his white lab coat, he gasped at the thin trail of blue liquid his own hand was unconsciously pouring on his clothes. Seokjin was the one cackling when Jimin tried to dry himself off, only his napkin dabbing technique made things worse.

Humming to himself, Seokjin wandered down the aisles of the grocery store closest to his neighborhood. He had spent most of the money he had saved from his previous job, but he had been neglectful of his own fridge. It was a surprise considering he had a passion for food, but he supposed he had been too focused on his food truck and had forgotten to remember to feed himself. He was usually out for dinner or lunch with Jimin anyway.

There wasn’t much he could afford at the moment, but he only needed something to get him through the next morning and the rest of the evening. Jimin had paid for his meal but had still seemed unapologetic about the stain on his shirt. He even laughed at Seokjin once more before taking off his own folded lab coat and taking it to some run down dry-cleaners across the street. As long as Seokjin didn't take off his jacket, no one else would notice the blue stain on his shirt, but he was sure the white cotton was ruined for good.

Feeling his brow twitch in irritation, Seokjin growled to himself and grabbed some pre-made salads in the produce isle. If he was going to eat on all his remaining money, he might as well have something green before he was forced to survive off his last resort- ramen noodles.

Once his handbasket was filled, Seokjin made his way over to the cash register areas, only to stop once he noticed a new freezer with what appeared to be flowers. He stopped to admire them and was debating taking a picture when something slammed into him from the side. He lost his footing and almost fell, but he managed to right himself in time.

The other person was not so lucky, having slipped to the floor face first, various grocery items rolling around the floor.

“Oww,” Came a true groan of pain and Seokjin immediately crouched by the person’s side, helping them sit up.

“Are you ok—” Seokjin froze and felt his own question die in his throat.

There was no way he was this lucky!

“Ah, yeah I’m fine. I should have been watching where I was going, sorry— Oh.” Namjoon was sitting next to him, hand still in Seokjin’s from when he was offered help.

Pink hair was day and hat worn and flared out like a wispy little halo from under the knitted beanie Namjoon had on. His ears were tucked into the hat this time, and his tail was probably curled under his jacket, Seokjin remembered his step-mother doing the same on cold winter days.

“Seokjin! I’m so sorry!! I didn’t mean to run into you!” Namjoon exclaimed once he had gotten over his surprise, his wide, worried brown eyes rivaling that of a baby owl. He had pulled his hand from Seokjin’s, much to the human’s disappointment, but he was now patting down his shoulders and sweeping imaginary dust from them. If his expression wasn’t so worried, Seokjin would have suspected he was subtly trying to feel him up.

“You don’t have to be sorry, it was an accident.” Seokjin finally calmed him, grabbing his hands and gently holding his chin up so he could look at the little scrape Namjoon had managed to acquire sliding face first on the floor. It was sweet that the hybrid was so concerned about hurting him, but he seemed unaware of his own injuries.

“This looks like it stings,” Seokjin hummed to himself, using his hold on Namjoon to press just a little closer enjoying the way the hybrid’s cheeks pinked just the slightest bit from embarrassment.

“O-oh, this is nothing.” Namjoon replied, slipping out of Seokjin’s hold and toying with the mittens buttoned to the sleeve of his coat.

‘Cute,’ Seokjin’s mind butted in before he registered the rest of Namjoon’s words. Straightening in place, Seokjin addressed Namjoon with concern, “What do you mean? That was a pretty nasty fall.” Everything happened within seconds, but he could still remember the exact slight gasp Namjoon gave when he hit the ground, and the whimper of pain that followed after.

Shuffling his fingers through the soft knit of his mittens once more, Namjoon glanced up at Seokjin. “I’m, uh, actually this happens pretty often. Everyone thinks I’m c-clumsy…” The hybrid trailed off and Seokjin saw his shoulders deflate a little. Namjoon’s hat twitched, making the little yarn pouf at the end bob in the air. Seokjin could imagine his white ears trying to move, only to be restricted under the constricting cloth of his hat.

Unsure of what to do for a moment, Seokjin settled for brushing his fingers under Namjoon’s chin, careful to avoid the red scrape. Namjoon’s eyes widened, but he met Seokjin’s gaze and directed all his attention to him once again. “Well, why don’t we get cleaned up and walk home together?” He didn’t know whether his offer would be accepted, considering the fact that he had no idea if Namjoon lived around the area, or if he took a car. He hoped Namjoon would agree regardless. 

The familiar brightness that lightened Namjoon’s eyes from dark coffee to melted chocolate appeared again and Seokjin was graced with another grin that revealed familiar charming dimples.

“Okay! We can get hot chocolate on the way too!” Namjoon agreed, his happiness affecting Seokjin and making the human want to hug him close. He was adorably sweet, and had no idea that Seokjin wanted to spend more time with him so he could flirt.

“Excuse me, could you two please step aside?” Someone asked, breaking the little bubble that Seokjin and Namjoon had unknowingly found themselves in.

An employee of the grocery store was standing above them, trying to hide the tired and irritated light in their eyes by smiling too politely at them. “I have to clean and it’d be best for you two to move along.” The employee continued, looking close to shooing them away with a mop and a broom in both hands.

Namjoon scrambled to his feet at the same time as Seokjin, though his cheeks were a tomato red.

“I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to make such a mess,” Namjoon apologized profusely, body reflexively moving into a bow. The employee looked a little flustered at the action, but he nodded at them and waved them both off, looking relieved once Seokjin and Namjoon were out of the way.

Namjoon appeared a little unsure as he walked along Seokjin’s side to the cash registers, but he eventually grabbed onto the human’s sleeve and stopped him from walking away.

“Uhm, I d-dropped my stuff. You can leave without me, our walk can be on another day or—”

“I don’t mind waiting for you.” Seokjin interrupted a little too quickly. Namjoon sent him a surprised look, eyes widened again and lips parting just the slightest bit. Shaking his head, Namjoon recovered and tried to get Seokjin to leave without him.

“I don’t want to bother you, I already caused trouble for you.” He was actually worried. It was evident in the way he was biting his lips and furrowing his eyebrows, occasional pink strands of hair floating with static electricity.

Feeling his heart warm at the pure, kindness and consideration Namjoon had for anyone, Seokjin nodded his head firmly and smiled to show that he wasn’t annoyed or bothered by the cat hybrid. In fact it was the opposite, he wanted more of Namjoon’s time.

“Namjoon, even if you shoo me off now, I’ll still wait for you outside.”

Namjoon looked conflicted for a second before a tiny smile made its way onto his full lips. “Okay, but wait by the flowers! I’ll be quick, but it’s still too cold to wait outside Seokjin!” With that said, Namjoon darted off, hidden long white tail popping out from under his slightly oversized parka.

Chuckling to himself, Seokjin made his way to the checkout, never once losing the dopey smile on his face even when the woman in front of him had a cartful of stuff and a purse full of coupons.

A while later, Seokjin had finished paying for his items and had surreptitiously glanced around at the other cash register lines. Namjoon wasn’t at any of them, so Seokjin walked over to the flower section of the shop and sat on what was probably a display bench. He had to move a couple pots of miraculously blooming orchids to make room for himself. It was late fall and he suspected that soon all the roses, carnations, orchids, and sunflowers decorating this little area would be traded in for potted poinsettias.

He had never really paid attention to this side of the store before, but he found it somewhat of a surprise to find flowers in bloom and ready to take home so late in the fall. Winter was staring in a few weeks, but the sunflowers surrounding him told his internal clock something different. He almost forgot it was cold outside and that the first snow would be expected that weekend.

Darkness enveloped Seokjin’s visual senses and the human jolted a bit in surprise, only to relax when he heard a badly disguised voice in his ear.

“Guess who!” Namjoon said, voice a little unsteady with held back giggles. His voice was horribly raised in pitch and Seokjin wondered how someone could be so adorable.

Still, the inner joke lover inside Seokjin awoke and he played along. “Oh I don’t know, your voice is really pretty. Are you a princess?”

Namjoon obviously couldn’t hold back his giggles anymore, but he tried to act offended at the subtle jab to his voice acting skills. “How rude, I sounded like a pretty ballerina!”

Huffing in amusement, Seokjin stood up and grabbed his bags. “I apologize my dear, I didn’t realize ballerinas smoked.”

“Hey! I wasn’t that bad,” Namjoon reprimanded, lightly hitting Seokjin’s shoulder. The human was used to such teasing blows from Jimin, but he wasn’t used to the soothing pat Namjoon unconsciously gave afterward.

Laughing at the hybrid’s playful charm, Seokjin led him out of the store, not missing the harried side-eye from the same employee who cleaned up Namjoon’s spill and who apparently had drawn the short straw with the plants Seokjin displaced.

As soon as the automatic glass doors shut behind them, Seokjin and Namjoon were hit with frosty blast of air. The sun set much earlier this time of year and it only served to make the chilly air colder. It felt like late winter rather than late fall, and Seokjin almost glanced up in the sky to see if snow would make an appearance earlier than the meteorologists on TV had predicted.

“Brrr, so cold.” Namjoon whined once they made it outside. He shivered in place as he moved his grocery bags to one hand and tried to his mittens from his coat sleeve. His tail had made an immediate retreat under his coat again, but he was having trouble trying to wrestle on his mittens one handedly.

Seokjin loosened his grip on his own bags and raised his arms slightly, letting the bags fall down his arms like bracelets. This freed his hands and he stepped closer to Namjoon, actually moving a bit more into his space than he would with anyone else just so he could see the hybrid’s brown eyes and pink hair up close.

“Here, let me,” Seokjin offered, not waiting for Namjoon to answer before he had grasped his mittens. Ironically, they were made of white yarn like his beanie and were soft to the touch, the way Seokjin imagined Namjoon’s white ears and tail felt. Undoing the little buttoned strip that held the mittens to his coat sleeve, Seokjin soon had one slipped over Namjoon’s long fingers. There was another buttoned strap just below the wrist that tightened the mitten and kept it in place and Seokjin took a bit longer than necessary fumbling with the button just to feel the steady pulse in the hybrid’s elegantly slimmed wrist.

Seokjin had never really been one for judgement based on looks, or making assumptions, but there was something so artful about the way Namjoon’s hands and wrists looked that made him think the hybrid was an artist. He could easily imagine him making something beautiful, or getting lost in his own world and bringing something breathtaking to life.

“Oh, you’re better at this than I am.” Namjoon commented once Seokjin was done with his right glove. He looked impressed with Seokjin as he changed the bags to his other hand, “It usually takes me ten minutes of struggle to get one mitten on.”

Seokjin laughed, “I’m surprised myself. It takes me longer to tie my shoelaces when standing up and trying not to fall over at the same time. I have to sit down to do them.”

The revelation had Namjoon giggling in return. “We must have incoordination in common then, hyun- I mean Seokjin. Sorry. ”

Bubbling with warmth despite the cold outside air at the familiarity Namjoon addressed him with, Seokjin waved off the little apology. “Don’t worry about it, you can call me hyung Namjoonie, you’re Korean too right?”

Namjoon nodded, cheeks and nose alight in a rosy pink from both the cold and what Seokjin assumed was slight embarrassment from his slip up and Seokjin’s approval. (Not to mention it had been a while since someone used his name so affectionately. Namjoonie sounded so nice after a while of not hearing it.)

“Yes hyung, I-I just forget sometimes that I’m not in Seoul anymore.” Seokjin hummed in agreement, remembering a time when he first moved to America with Jimin and had a huge culture shock, not to mention he was struggling with a language barrier at the time as well.

“It’s alright to let loose with me, I understand what it’s like to move to a completely new country.” Seokjin admitted, sliding the mitten onto Namjoon’s left hand and snapping the button to keep it in place. Once done, he didn’t let go of Namjoon’s wrist right away, instead he met the hybrid’s curious eyes. Every couple of minutes or so there was an icy blast of wind that seemed to bite through any type of winter clothing, but Seokjin wanted nothing more than to keep the moment still and forever in his mind.

While doing Namjoon’s mittens for him, he had stepped closer to the other, and they were almost face to face now, barely a step away from one another. It was shocking to Seokjin himself how unbothered he was by this, by how much he wanted to close the distance between him and the hybrid he met and talked with this morning.

He was almost not surprised by how badly he wanted to close the one inch height gap between them and kiss Namjoon’s soft rose petal colored lips. It would be so easy too, all Seokjin had to do was lean in and—

Someone cleared their throat behind them and Seokjin and Namjoon jumped apart in surprise when they realized they had been blocking the entrance to the grocery store. An older woman wearing a bright red Santa hat far too early into the season was giving them a knowing look, a teasing light in her ice blue eyes.

“Excuse me boys, I need to get inside and it’s too cold to stand here much longer. Get inside and have some hot cocoa or tea and kiss at home.”

Namjoon blushed at the same time Seokjin did, but Seokjin felt his rattled heartbeat drop when Namjoon made a flustered confession.

“W-we absolutely can’t kiss! I already have a boyfriend!”