Hello guys!!! So, I'm back from my vacation, and here's another chapter of the story!!! Enjoy!!! And again, I would like to say sorry for the very long wait for this one huhu and yuh... without further ado, here it is!

Enjoy!!!(?) 

12

“Come in.” Jungkook spoke towards the receiver of the intercom, not bothering to wait for the person on the other side of the door to introduce herself. The sound of the door opening and closing prompted the busy CEO to look up from his laptop screen. “Appointments?”

“Three more scheduled meet ups for today, sir.” Momo answered, scanning through the contents of the clipboard she always carried with her around the office. “A short discussion with the marketing head at thirteen hundred about advertisement plans and changes in branding. Then, a meeting with the board at fourteen hundred.”

“The other one?”

“A discussion with the music department head.” The female answered. It made the boy’s brow rise in confusion.

“Meeting with Min Yoongi?” Jungkook asked, to which Momo answered with a nod. “About what?”

“I don’t know, sir, he did not say anything about it.” She replied. “But he said it was important.”

“Important, huh?” Jungkook scoffed. He then sent the older woman on her way after thanking her for the updates. He even tried scoring by asking her out after office hours—an offer which Momo politely declined due to prior commitments.

Once alone, Jungkook looked down on his desk and sighed, trying to remember if he and Min Yoongi had anything to talk about. It was a bit unusual for the pale male with a rather scary reputation to schedule a personal meeting with him—more often than not, it was Jungkook who requested the other’s presence to discuss a task.

For instance, when he had to ask Yoongi to pretend to be his boyfriend.

Wait.

“Maybe it’s about that?” Jungkook asked out loud, tilting his head to the side and scowling at no one. He momentarily dismissed the idea, having remembered that it was only Jimin and him who knew about the whole setup, but he once again considered it when he realized just how close the two are.

They were close enough for the elder to get Jimin a job in the company despite being inexperienced. Maybe they were also closed enough for the younger to also break his deal with Jungkook.

Jungkook groaned. He was hastily getting stressed over the whole thing until his phone dinged in his pocket. Pulled out of his trouble, the young CEO fished the device out of his pocket to see what was up.

From: Cinderella

Good news, sir. Pink Princess is doing a collaboration with Wings on the upcoming anniversary celebration for the event design.

Also, our company’s proposals are getting noticed by the decision-making bodies of Pink Princess.

 

Jungkook smile. It was a really good progress for the company to overtake the other competing companies for sealing a deal with Pink Princess.

For that, he had Jimin to thank. If it was not for the inexperienced designer, even Jungkook’s shrewd plan would not have worked.

“Maybe I should give him a bonus or something?” Jungkook asked himself, but he quickly shot the idea down when he remembered how the elder had reacted the first time he tried to reward him for a job well done with money.

Jungkook understood how much Jimin despised appearing to be materialistic. And over the course of their deal, the CEO slowly accepted that trait as one of the elder’s assets.

Jimin snapped his head to the side, and smiled when he felt a particular bone click back to place. He was already getting quite uncomfortable, since he had been seated on his chair for the past at least five hours, working his off on a specific assignment that perked his interest.

It was a task given to him personally by the design and creatives department head Youngsun herself this morning.

At first, Jimin received the folder with masked displeasure, since it was additional work. And additional work was always a no-no. But upon opening and reading the contents of the folder, Jimin felt excitement rush into his veins.

Finally, an actual designing assignment.

Jimin felt like the actual life of a designer was about to start for him. To say that he was thrilled was an understatement. He could not even put a word on how he was feeling.

All he knew was that he was inspired, and that he should give his best.

On top of that, he was also due to work with Pink Princess, as per Hoseok’s request, which Seokjin himself approved during their dinner.

Jimin was on the top of the world.

“You seem happy.” Taehyung suddenly asked. On any other day, Jimin would have been startled, but he was far too into his work to care.

“Yeah, I am.” He smiled, fingers working even faster.

“Oooh… this is nice.” The taller said. “What is this? with Jun—“

“SSHHH!” Jimin suddenly turned around the put his finger on the slightly younger’s lips, his usually narrow eyes widening in alert. “Kim Taehyung! This is supposed to be a secret, remember?”

And the other male had the audacity to grin. He then gave the shorter an enthusiastic nod, to which Jimin rolled his eyes, sighing before going back to his work.

“What is that anyway?”

“Assignment by Youngun-ssi herself.” Jimin answered, smiling. “I’m conceptualizing a design.”

“Oh, it’s that thing again.” Taehyung nodded, perking the older’s interest.

“What do you mean ‘again’?”

“The company does that every now and then to scout potential assets to the company.” Taehyung answered. “Good luck, Jiminie. That thing is a competition. She actually gave the same assignment to other people, and would choose the best one. The reward it that the winner would actually get to co-head the designing of the event, along with Youngsun-ssi herself.”

“R-Really?!” Jimin inquired, getting even more determined to do better. Taehyung simply nodded to him as an answer. “Oh my god… that’s amazing!”

“Yeah, and I think everyone else thinks so, too.” Taehyung answered. “The last time they did that, I also joined, but I lost. I think that was when Youngsun-ssi was still on our level. She was the one who won it, and soon after, she succeeded the previous department head when she resigned to settle down.”

“So I get to be a big shot employee here, if I win this?” Jimin asked.

“Yep.”

The newbie nodded in understanding. With even more determination, Jimin resumed working on his design, the competitive spirit in him awakened. He took a look at the clock, and glared at the time. Less than an hour remained on their shift for the day, and the special assignment was due tomorrow.

“Oh well, I could still work on it at home.” Jimin said to himself, and sighed before saving his work and transferring the files to his laptop.

He was in the middle of unplugging his flash drive from his laptop when his hyung’s familiar grumpy voice sounded.

“Hey.” Yoongi said, smiling softly at Jimin who returned the gesture. “How ya doin’?”

“Jiminie’s busy.” Taehyung answered instead, choosing to let his chair roll to the older’s cubicle. “He has a special assignment.”

“Oh, I see.” Yoongi answered, turning to face Taehyung, his smile growing even larger. Jimin almost gagged at how love struck the older’s smile was. “Uhm… well…”

“What are you doing here anyway?” Jimin asked, turning off his device and closing the lid. “And where’d you come from?”

“Nothing in particular…” Yoongi mumbled, looking at the clock hanging on the wall. It took a lot of willpower for Jimin to just not cackle at the department head’s slight blush. “I just finished some discussion with some higher ups, and well… I was wondering if you guys want to eat outside?”

“Food?” Taehyung asked, lolling his head to the side, making Yoongi smile again. He just could not stop himself from smiling at everything that the tall, eccentric male did. “Your treat?”

“If that’d make you come, yes.” Yoongi answered. His smile immediately morphed to a scowl when he heard the shortest’s chuckle.

“W-What are you laughing at?”

“N-Nothing!” Jimin answered in defense, still trying to contain his laughter. He just had to let it out—Yoongi’s game was still the same as it was years ago, and while Jimin thought it was sweet when he was still in school, it was, in a way, cringe-worthy seeing it again at this point in life. “By the way, it’s a no for the food thingy. I still have to work on something.”

“Aww… that .” Taehyung said, disappointment laced in his voice.

“Well, not really.” Jimin answered. “Yoongi-hyung and you would surely have lots of fun.” He then turned to look at Yoongi in the eye, and smirked. “Right, hyung?”

“Y-Yeah.” Yoongi nodded, glaring at Jimin when the tallest male was not looking. He then mouthed a “I’m going to kill you” to the younger.

Jimin knew Yoongi long enough to know that if Yoongi voiced out a threat, that just meant he was playing.

Ignoring the elder’s menacing look, Jimin pushed his teasing a little bit further. “Enjoy your little date, then.”

“I will always enjoy food.” Taehyung chirped, oblivious to the murderous look the pale male was giving his friend. “Let’s go, Yoongi-hyung!”

“O-Okay.” Yoongi answered, only hearing Taehyung going back to his own cubicle to fix his stuff. He hoisted his clenched fist in the air and aimed at Jimin, but it was to no avail. The younger only laughed at him before shooing him away.

Since it was almost dismissal time and the tallest of the three was already done with his assignments, Yoongi and Taehyung left the office a little bit earlier than everyone else, which left Jimin to his own devices. He was just about to leave his own place as well so he would still have some time to walk leisurely to the coffee machine when he overheard two hushed voices coming from his other neighboring cubicle.

“Yah, Mingyu.” Wonwoo said in his deep, booming voice. “Min Yoongi-ssi came by just now.”

“Yeah, I heard.” The other man answered. Jimin could hear the smile in his voice. “He’s definitely whipped for Taehyung’s .”

“Yeah! Yeah! God, it’s so obvious.” Wonwoo agreed, followed by the sound of contained laughter. “It’s a surprise Taehyung haven’t noticed yet.”

“Man… that guy is a genius, but he can be oblivious at times.” Mingyu answered. There was a momentary lack of sound which piqued Jimin’s interest, but what he heard afterwards made his eyes widen.

“Yah… Wonwoo, wanna grab something to eat?” Jimin heard Mingyu ask. The fact that the tall, dark and handsome man invited his friend out for a snack was not surprising at all. But what confused the eavesdropping male was the fact that the usually bubbly voice of Kim Mingyu was in a way… different.

“Uhm… sure?” Wonwoo answered. Even he was sounded tentative to Jimin’s ears.

He was about to stand to take a look at the two when another voice called his attention.

“Park Jimin-ssi.” The voice called, prompting the said male to turn around to see Momo standing behind a cubicle wall. “CEO Jeon wants to have a word with you.”

“O-Okay.” Jimin answered, confused. “Thank you.”

And with that, Momo left him to his own thoughts. As far as he could remember, the two of them had no arrangement for the day. If it was not a meeting with Seokjin, what could it be that Jungkook wanted from him?

Sighing at the loss of a prospect leisure coffee before going home to continue his work, Jimin grabbed his belongings and headed to the topmost floor.

What he did not expect, however, was the attitude the younger had towards him the instant he entered the office.

“Park Jimin, did you breach our deal?” Jungkook immediately asked even before Jimin could greet him.

“W-What?”

“I asked, did you break your deal with me?!” Jungkook asked again, his voice getting more threatening. “We had a deal, Park! We agreed to not tell anyone about this!”

“But I did not!” Jimin answered. “I have kept my part of the bargain, and I always will!”

“Then why did Min Yoongi come here to ask about it?!” The younger screamed, frustration clearly displayed on his face. “You clearly broke your promise!”

“Well, it’s not my fault you approached him first!” Jimin countered. “He knew only because you actually asked him first before you went to me, and he isn’t really as dumb as other people out there!”

“But how did he know you and I made a deal?”

“Because he knew me more than anyone else, and noticed how the deal between us affected me.” The older answered. Silence rang in the room after his statement, and even the CEO’s face slightly softened at the older’s words.

“He… He’s the person closest to me, and I can’t just lie to him. I could fool myself, but not Yoongi-hyung. The last person I could fool is him. That is how much he understands me.”

The hostile atmosphere in the office was, all of a sudden, gone, and was replaced by an awkward feeling. The oral reprimand that Jungkook was planning on doing to Jimin backfired—it felt like it was the other way around. He really did not like having emotional conversations.

“Oh…”

“Why’d you ask, anyway?” Jimin broke the silence, and Jungkook was mildly thankful that the older made the first move to change the topic.

“Uhm… Min Yoongi dropped by a while ago.” Jungkook answered, his mood taking a complete 180. “And he confronted me about our deal.”

Jungkook’s head snapped up from the monitor screen when he heard the doorbell to his office sound. Looking at the time made him realize who was waiting outside.

“Who is it?”

“Min Yoongi, music department head.” The person on the other side of the door answered through the intercom.

With that, Jungkook let the older in. As per usual, the two greeted each other formally. Once the pleasantries are over, the younger initiated the topic that they needed to talk about.

“What is your purpose for coming here?” The CEO asked.

“I’m here to ask you to stop using Jimin for that immoral scheme you are doing.” Yoongi answered bluntly, shocking the younger. “I am not here because Jimin asked me to. I’m here as someone who cares for him, and I know he doesn’t like doing this.”

“W-What are you talking about?” Jungkook asked, trying to salvage the situation. As long as he did not admit to anything the elder was saying, there would not be a problem.

“Your words are trying to mask your actions, but you can’t fake your expressions that fast, Mr. Jeon.” Yoongi answered, his face still blank. It was the first time Jungkook encountered someone like him—maybe everyone feared and respected him, his own brother, Namjoon, included, for a reason.

“When I declined your proposal, I thought you would have stopped there.” Yoongi continued, clearly not being fazed by the fact that he was talking to his own boss. “Does Namjoon even know about this?”

“W-What—”

“Apparently, no. Because if he did know about this, you shouldn’t have proceeded.” The elder answered his own question. “I know Jimin wouldn’t have accepted it, as well, if he hadn’t been in a very tight situation at that time. That boy is the sweetest, most wonderful person I know, and he wouldn’t deceive people even if it meant having the world in his hands. Have you even considered asking him why he accepted your offer?”

No, Jungkook have not asked. Now that he was thinking about it, he really have not gotten to know the older aside from what his basic information sheet contained.

And given what he had learned from Jimin after the short amount of time they had spent together, he really was someone who would not harm others for personal gains.

“You know, Jimin gets attached really fast to people.” Yoongi continued. “And he gets hurt really fast, too. If he gets hurt from this, I swear, there will be hell to pay for.”

“You sound like you’re Park’s boyfriend.” Jungkook countered, smirking and raising his brow at the older. No, he refused to lose to Min Yoongi. “Maybe you still love him, and you’re jealous?”

“I was Park Jimin’s boyfriend.” The older answered easily. “And even though we’re over, I still care for him a lot. Unlike you.”

The accusation hit Jungkook right in the gut, in a way that he never thought it would affect him. Yoongi was making him seem like a prick, when in fact, he still considered Jimin’s well-being.

Because he was still his employee, after all.

“Y-Yah—”

“Now, that’d be all, sir. Have a nice day.” Yoongi stood up from his seat and gave the younger an obligatory bow before he walked out of the office despite Jungkook’s protests. Even as he left, his face still bore the same unreadable expression that gave Jungkook chills.

 

“And then I just sent him away.” Jungkook ended, trying his best to edit the story to his favor. “It’s not like he made a scene or something. He just… reminded me.”

“Wow… hyung really did that?” Jimin asked, surprise evident in his face.

“Well… yeah.” The younger answered. “But what really concerns me is if you told anyone else about it.”

“No, I did not.” Jimin looked up to the ceiling in an attempt to recall any other confrontation with other people. “Well… Kim Taehyung asked me about it, too. But I lied.”

“What’d you say?”

“That we were really dating.” The older easily answered, and taking the scandalized look on Jungkook’s face, he did not take the news well. “Well, I can’t really lie that well to him and say that nothing is going on between us when he noticed—”

“We’re dating?!” Jungkook asked, exasperation evident in his voice. “W-What?!”

“Look, that was the best that I could do at that time and—”

“Oh my god… what if everyone thinks I’m gay?!”

“You’re acting like being gay is that bad, when in fact, it isn’t.” Jimin countered.

“But what if the ladies think—”

Jimin sighed loudly, cutting the younger’s train of words. “Really, Jeon Jungkook? You’re seriously thinking about that now? And don’t worry, trust me, Tae won’t tell a soul.”

“You sure about?”

“Yep.” Jimin answered. Relief washed over Jungkook’s features at the older’s reassurance. “But seriously, though. Wow… Yoongi-hyung is such a softie. Maybe I could tease hyung about it?”

“Don’t!!!” Jungkook suddenly screamed in objection, surprising the designer. He would surely look like an idiot if the shorter manages to learn the truth about what really transpired during his confrontation with Yoongi. “I-I mean… we should try to not remind him of the deal, r-right? So he would eventually forget?”

The shorter just scoffed. “Well, it’s not like hyung forgets things like that, but okay. Is that all?”

The doe-eyed male nodded as a response, prompting Jimin to give him a polite bow before heading towards the door. He was, however, stopped by Jungkook calling his name again.

“Jimin!” He called, stopping said male in his tracks. “Where are you going?”

“Home?” Jimin answered. “It’s dismissal time.”

“I know.” Jungkook replied. “But have you forgotten we were supposed to help Jin-hyung and Hoseok-hyung with their design?”

The older’s brow furrowed at the boss’s words. “That is today?”

“Yeah.”

“I wasn’t informed.” Jimin continued. “You didn’t tell me we were starting today.”

“Well… sorry about that. Jin-hyung just messaged me a while ago about it, too.” Jungkook answered. “Why? Is there a problem?”

Well, there really was a problem. Jimin stopped working on his special assignment by Youngsun, thinking that he would still have lots of time at home to finish it until the next day. And it was not like they would only stay in Seokjin’s house for an hour or two. Jimin was sure they would finish much later.

But then again, the collaboration with Pink Princess was also a big deal.

Welp, there goes his sleep, then.

“Nothing.” Jimin finally answered after a short delay. “When are we leaving?”

“Right now. Just give me a moment to pack up.” Jungkook answered before he proceeded to busying himself with his own belongings.

Once Jungkook was done with his preparations, the two of them headed straight for the company parking space at the basement where they boarded the younger’s car.

Along the way, Jungkook had driven the car through a fast food drive thru to order themselves a light snack, claiming that he did not have lunch. Learning this made the worrisome mother spirit in Jimin reprimand Jungkook for skipping a meal, not minding the fact that he also did the same thing countless of times already. But Jungkook did not have to know that. If only the designer had as much as half of his boss’s money, he would not even think about skipping meals. But then again, he had close to nothing at all, and he was still supporting his parents back in Busan.

Upon arriving at the castle-like abode, Jimin still could not stop himself from being awestruck at the loveliness of it all. Jungkook could only shake his head in amusement at the older’s expression.

“There you are.” Seokjin’s voice garnered the attention of the two when they got close to the front door. “Come in, guys.”

The pair found Hoseok already seated in front of his laptop and lots of papers, all on top of the coffee table. He greeted them with his million watt smile, which Jimin gladly returned with his crescent smile.

“Jiminie!!! I missed you!” Hoseok shrieked as he stood up from his seat in favor of coming over to the younger and pinching his cheeks.

“Hyunggg…” Jimin whined, his smile not leaving his face. “We saw each other like… yesterday.”

“Doesn’t count.”

“Yah, hyung, you’re gonna crush Jiminie-hyung’s face.” Jungkook protested. He lowkey pitied his employee for the excessive attention.

“Don’t worry, Jungkookie, I won’t steal your boyfriend.” Hoseok smirked at the younger, causing Jungkook to flush a bit at the embarrassing comment.

“M-Me? I’m not worried!” He answered, making both Jimin and Hoseok laugh. The former then walked towards his fake boyfriend and hugged him, making Jungkook a lot more uncomfortable. They really had not shown that much intimacy throughout the course of their act, so he really did not know how to react.

His cheeks, however, knew exactly how to respond. By getting even redder.

“Aww… Jungkookie, of course you shouldn’t be worried.” Jimin drawled out. “I’m all yours.”

Along with the gagging noise Hoseok made were the internal vomits both Jimin and Jungkook did in their minds.

“Oh my god, stop the PDA and let’s get working.” Seokjin complained with a fond smile on his face as he came back at the living room from the kitchen. He quickly set down a tray of snacks and drinks before he situated himself at the spot beside where Hoseok was.

At the mention of the task at hand, the shortest of the bunch visibly stiffened. Jungkook noticed this but did not mention it, opting to just lead the two of them to the other seat.

“Here, Jiminie,” Hoseok said when he reclaimed his position on the couch. “Are the details of the plan.”

“O-Okay.” Jimin answered as he received the papers the older was handing him. He then let out a sigh as he tried to focus on the words printed.

Nothing made sense.

He squinted his eyes at the words and tried to carefully read the words and figures once again, but still, to no avail. He was starting to panic when he heard Jungkook spoke.

“Hyung, are you okay?”

“Y-Yeah… I’m just—”

“Hyung, relax, you’re shaking.” The youngest said again, taking the designer’s hand into his own by instinct. “Is something wrong?”

“I-I’m just…” Jimin tried to answer, finding it difficult to do so with his breath running short. He closed his eyes, and tried his best to relax. “I’m a bit overwhelmed by this.”

“Don’t worry too much, Jimin.” Seokjin said in an attempt to make the younger relax. “You won’t mess things up.”

“Still… this is a big event.” Jimin answered. “One small mistake and it’s over.”

“And that is why we are working as a team, Jimin.” Hoseok added. “If something goes wrong, all of us takes responsibility, not just one. That is, if we make a mistake. However, with you skills, I don’t think we would.” He smiled, making the rattled designer calm down.

“Yeah, hyung, you can do this.” Jungkook said. After a few moments, Jimin managed to calm down from his breakdown and proceeded to working with all three of his companions to finish the design details.

Jimin proved to be invaluable in spotting minute errors in the design, something that impressed even a senior designer like Hoseok. After a few error detections, Seokjin decided to let the boy review the whole plan to make sure that the design was flawless from start to finish.

Not too long after the four of them decided to have dinner at Seokjin’s place. Once again, just like the last time, it was the Pink Princess CEO who cooked their meal, and as the food reached their taste buds, they could not help the sighs of content that escaped their lips.

That dinner, they got to know each other more. Seokjin shared that he had a younger brother who was, in his opinion, the only person he could admit was prettier than he was.

Jungkook learned that he was only straight guy in the house at the moment, with Hoseok being biual, and Seokjin and Jimin being gay. It did not bother him as much as he had expected, but it still made him a little bit uncomfortable.

The table turned into an uproar—courtesy of Jung Hoseok and Park Jimin—when the two learned that both of them loved dancing in their free time.

“And then work life came, and I suddenly don’t have time for dance.” Jimin shared, complete with a small pout at the end that made everyone, even Jungkook coo at his cuteness. “It .”

“I know right!” Hoseok agreed. “At the start of my career as a designer I also ran out of time for dancing, but trust me, it gets better with time. Especially with your skills. Once you get to the upper half of the corporate ladder, your schedule suddenly becomes free during normal days.”

“Oh… that’s good to hear.” Jimin smiled. “How about you, Jin-hyung?”

The said boy suddenly emitted a windshield laugh that made Hoseok cringe. “Oh god, ask Hoseok.”

“He can’t dance to save his life.” The long-faced man answered, making the whole table erupt in laughter.

“Yeah, yeah, there was this one time I danced in a party,” Seokjin shamelessly said. “I was so bad, everyone started taking videos of my dancing and using it as blackmail material. I couldn’t care less about it.”

“Yeah, you were that shameless about it.” Hoseok chuckled. He then turned at the youngest and asked, “How about you, Jungkook?”

“Me?” Jungkook asked dumbly, and all he got was a nod from the elder. “I don’t dance.”

“Liar.” Jimin chuckled, making the younger snap his head at him. “You dance.”

“W-What?!”

“Oohhh… what is this?”

“I-I don’t!”

“Yes you do.” Jimin raised his brow at his own boss, clearly knowing that he was messing with his senior. “I’ve asked you dozens of times already, and still you won’t show me.”

“Hiding it even from your boyfriend?” Windshield laugh guy remarked with a teasing smile. “What, reserving it for special purposes?”

“W-What special purposes?” Jungkook stuttered awkwardly, making the other three laugh even more. “I don’t dance!”

He continued protesting his case for some time as the other three continued to , all the while sending glares at the traitor. Jimin, on the other hand, did not seem fazed at all. He was actually right—he used to dance in the past, but he never recalled telling Jimin about it or even writing it in the sheet that he gave the boy at the start of their setup.

So how did Jimin know?

“Awww… poor Jiminie, you’re yet to see your boyfriend’s dancing.” Hoseok said, reaching over to give the younger a pat on the back. He was halted, however, by the death glare Jungkook suddenly sent him. “Woah…”

“What?” Jimin asked, confused by the elder’s actions. Hoseok then pointed at Jungkook, who now bore a neutral expression.

“He glared at me when I tried to touch you.”

“W-What? I did not!” Jungkook said in defense, not really remembering doing such a thing. He was too young to get senile.

“Aww… Jungkookie I told you I’m all yours!” Jimin cooed, smiling at the younger.

Jungkook just wanted to punch the smile away.

The team finalized their work after dinner, and less than an hour before midnight, the four of them rejoiced when Hoseok announced the whole design done to the last detail. All the storyboards for the AVP, the pathways, flowers, and table arrangements were finalized and ready to be ordered.

“Hey, Jimin, Jungkook.” Seokjin called the attention of the two. “Is it okay if Jimin goes to the office every day until the anniversary night? He’d be of great help to the team.”

“Well, of course, if that’s alright to him.” Jungkook answered, looking at his boyfriend. “Are you fine with that? I’ll just keep you free until this is done.”

“It’s fine to me, I guess.” Jimin answered. “Do I like… go straight to Pink Princess?”

“Nah, come to the office, I’ll drive you there.”

“Every day?”

“Yep.” The younger nodded. He was being too nice again, in Jimin’s opinion, but maybe it was all part of the act. Either way, it was a win-win situation for everyone, so he just went with it.

“Okay, I’ll just see you in your office tomorrow then.”

Soon after, the pair bid their hosts a good night before leaving the place. Hoseok said that he would be spending the night in Seokjin’s residence, so they did not have to wait for him to leave as well. And just like the night before, Jungkook offered to take the older home—an offer Jimin did not bother refusing.

“Hyung,” Jungkook said in the middle of the ride, gaining the elder’s attention. “You did great again. Just like every time.”

“Pfff… I’m always good.” Jimin proudly answered, grinning. “You’re improving as well, good job.”

“Thanks.”

“Though you get easily flustered over the smallest of things.” He continued. It was true, so Jungkook did not bother fighting him.

The CEO was about to drop the conversation when he remembered something that bothered him back during their dinner with Seokjin.

“Hyung,” Jungkook asked again, to which Jimin responded with a hum, telling him to continue. “How’d you know I dance?”

“You dance?” Jimin asked, a surprised look etched on his face. “Wow… I just guessed.”

“Oh god, really?”

“Yeah…” The designer answered. “You look like you dance. Being a dancer for a long time made me perceptive of such things.”

“Cool.” Jungkook simply answered.

Several minutes after their conversation, the two reached the older’s place. Unlike last night, instead of just staying inside the car, Jungkook also got off when then elder did.

Jimin raised his brow at this. “What are you doing?”

“I… uhm…” Jungkook stammered, thinking of an excuse to get to see the inside of the place. “I’m thirsty.”

“Don’t you have water inside your car?”

“I don’t.” He answered, not really knowing if he actually had water or not. “Don’t you want to give me water?”

“I mean… it’s fine to me.” Jimin shrugged. “I just thought you won’t wanna come inside such a place.”

“Yah… what do you take me for?” Jungkook protested. “Lead the way, then.”

“Okay.”

And Jimin let the younger into his place. As he had expected, Jungkook found the place… less than ideal. The only way he could describe the place was… it was cramped.

“Make yourself comfortable, I’ll just get your water.” Jimin said, excusing himself to the cupboards which were in the same room. “It won’t take long. It’s like… two steps away from you.” He added with a chuckle.

“Yeah, no problem.” Jungkook answered. While the other was, in a way, away, he took the time to look at the living space. He was currently seated on a chair which Jungkook supposed was the working chair. The only other resting place was the bed, which despite being only large enough for one person, was neatly and nicely made, just like the rest of the place.

Everything was organized, so the space appeared a lot more breathable than its size permitted.

And the TV. It was one of those sets that Jungkook had seen before in his childhood days, before he first saw the wonders of the flat screen TV.

“And… here’s your water.” Jimin suddenly said, snapping Jungkook out of his thoughts. He graciously took it from the older’s hands and took a sip.

“Thanks.” Jungkook said after he finished the drink. He then handed the glass back to Jimin, which the older simply put on the sink.

There was a moment of silence as Jungkook continued to eye everything else in the apartment. Just as he had thought the night before, he still thought the sweet boy did not deserve such living conditions.

“Yah, don’t pity me.”

Jungkook turned his attention to Jimin, who was smiling softly at him. “I don’t.”

“I know that look on your face. Of course you pity me.” Jimin answered, taking a seat on his bed. He ran his open palm across the sheets and sighed. “I don’t think there’s anything to be ashamed of in my condition. Right from the start I stayed true to myself, that I’m just a poor boy from the province. And there’s nothing to be ashamed of. I’d be ashamed if you came here to see my place when I told you I was rich.”

And Jimin chuckled.

Jungkook took in Jimin’s appearance. For some reason, the older looked—happy. Happy and proud.

“So you don’t have any reason to pity me.” Jimin continued.

And Jungkook understood. He understood what Yoongi meant when he said that Jimin was the most wonderful person he knew, because damn, he really was.

This realization made the famous CEO genuinely feel like he was a prick for using Park Jimin for personal gains. He felt bad for using such a genuine person’s troubles to get his way.

“Hyung—”

“Get on you way, sir.” Jimin suddenly interrupted him, grabbing his arm and pulling him up from his seat. “I’m too tired for anything else. Just go home.”

“But—”

“Whatever that is, just tell me tomorrow, please?” Jimin whined, letting out a yawn as he proceeded to pushing the younger out of the place. “I’m really tired. I won’t understand a thing with what your about to say if you say it now.”

Jungkook let himself be pushed out of the door, looking at the shorter over his shoulder. “O-Okay.” He stuttered out once he was out of the door. The apology can wait. “See you tomorrow, then.”

“Mmmm… take care.” Jimin tiredly answered before he closed his door on the younger’s face. The boss blinked once, then twice at the door before he turned around to board his car and rest for the day.