Magic Shop

Part 7 - The Lengthy Photoshoot

By the time the receptionist had returned with Seokjin's painkillers, Jungkook had gotten washed and dressed and was waiting on the sofa. The outfit Jimin had prepared for him was a pair of silky black trousers, braces of the same colour and a stylish white jumper. Jungkook loved how it looked on him, and had spent quite a while staring at his reflection in the guest bathroom mirror.

When Jimin arrived, Jungkook thought it would have been awkward, but the receptionist seemed like his usual, cheery self again. After greeting everyone and giving Seokjin the painkillers, he had immediately begun to busy himself with the piles of paper on his desk for the next appointment. After the three doctors had returned to their own rooms one by one, Jimin rang for the next one and waited quietly for the lantern to light up. When it did, however, he did not usher Jungkook in like before, instead gesturing silently towards the doors and avoiding his eyes.

The room contained nothing but a single, cushioned chair opposite a large, expensive-looking camera. Standing elegantly beside the device was a young man as beautiful as the receptionist. He wore a long brown robe similar to Yoongi's, a red neckerchief tied in a neat bow, and a gigantic blue ring in the shape of a flower. His sleek hair had been dyed a mint-green colour, and his face was angular and perfectly symmetrical other than his mismatched, but oddly charming, hazel eyes.

"Welcome, welcome!" the fourth doctor spoke with a grand demeanour. "Please, take a seat." Jungkook obeyed, perching almost at the edge of the posh chair. "My name is DR. Photo," the handsome man continued. "But you may call me Taehyung. Or Tae. Or Tete. Or Vante. Or... whatever works, I guess." Jungkook blinked calmly. He was in for a long thirty minutes.

This doctor didn't seem to be providing much of a remedy for anyone other than himself – the truth was that he was enjoying the lengthy photoshoot he had put together (which was his method of remedy-making) a lot more than his patient was. At first he instructed Jungkook on how to pose on the chair, how to tilt his head, how to smile, but he gradually got closer to physically moving his body into place himself. He prodded and poked at the younger man's arms and face, pinched and stretched his cheeks, fluffed and twirled his hair. Jungkook imagined that he looked quite ridiculous on most of the photographs.

Then Taehyung began to join in with the photos more and more, until eventually Jungkook was the one standing behind the fancy camera while the doctor had a whale of a time posing on the chair. The younger man was surprised to find that he enjoyed being the photographer more than being the model. He quickly learnt how to focus and zoom in the correct ways, and even started to consider getting a camera of his own. After half an hour, however, his fingers ached and his back was stiff from being hunched over the device, and Taehyung finally decided to call it a day.

"Thank you so much for coming!" the doctor beamed, holding the doors open for Jungkook graciously. "I will make sure to print these off – you are a very talented photographer!"

"Thanks," Jungkook replied with a small smile at this praise. "It was nice to meet you."

"You too!" The doors shut behind him. Jungkook wandered back over to the sofa, where Jimin had been waiting. He seemed rather nervous as he twiddled his thumbs restlessly.

"So," the receptionist began. "How did it go?"

"Alright," Jungkook answered with a shrug.

"Not great, then."

"Nah."

Jimin paused, took a deep breath, and spoke again: "Listen... I'm sorry for shouting earlier; I wasn't thinking straight."

"That's alright," Jungkook shook his head with a grin. "Yoongi told me the reason why, and it seems pretty plausible to me."

"Ah." Jungkook couldn't decipher whether Jimin's reaction had been relieved or annoyed.

"I don't particularly want to leave, you know," the younger man continued. "I don't know whether I'll find this 'remedy' you've been going on about, but you're all so great to spend time with!"

"Really?"

"Of course!"

"Then... do you think you'd want to stay?" The receptionist looked so hopeful that Jungkook almost couldn't resist staying, but he couldn't just leave his home without a word.

"I'm not sure about that," he mumbled.

"Oh." Jimin's face fell again.

"I could come back and visit, though," Jungkook suggested.

"That might not be possible," the other man sighed.

"I'm sure I'd find a way somehow!" Jungkook was determined that he would see his friends again after he left the shop. Jimin still look uncertain, but smiled gratefully and laid his head on Jungkook's shoulder.

"I'm glad you don't find us annoying," he sighed, wrapping an arm around him. "To be truthful, I think we can be a bunch of nuisances sometimes."

"Well, you're not nuisances to me," Jungkook replied firmly. "You're my friends." He embraced the little receptionist warmly and held him for a while. He knew he would miss this place once he had to leave.