Jimin woke up the next morning to find Eun sleeping on his furry pastel blue carpet and Yong sleeping beside him on his king-sized bed with drool cascading from her lips and all the way to her chin.
And that's when it occurred to him that he only had 5 minutes to arrive at school before he would receive a tardy slip. "Gotta' run, gotta' run, bitches! See ya' after school or something, Eun! Yong!" There were sleepy, muffled replies, but Jimin didn't care. He dashed through the staircases and was greeted by his servants with weak smiles and golden brown pancakes on the tile island table. He took the pancakes and forced them into his mouth with a lethargic wave and found himself panting in front of his school just in time for the bell to ring.
It was pure luck, because he could've sworn he dreamt of Taehyung last night, and he wasn't proud of the images lingering in his head. It was a miracle he woke up because it was one great dream, and if it wasn't for God, he would've been in a perpetual doze in a reality where Taehyung was actually his. Where he could actually kiss down his mouth-watering neck, devour his beautiful lips, and cuddle with him until he choked.
But, it isn't real.
— ♬ —
The wind tickled Jimin's bare skin from the window and pulled at his pink hair that was flowing in the direction of the moving air. The student's jumbled rambling finally came to a halt at the sound of the school bell. The mochi gathered his belongings and shoved them into his pastel pink school bag, and flinged it incompetently over his shoulder with a loud grunt.
The students were soon pouring out the double doors and Jimin was left in the classroom collecting his possessions, and he was trying so hard not to panic at the sight of Taehyung doing the same only a few desks in front of him with his blazing blue hair crystal clear on display. The taller finally stood up with his textbooks clenched to his chest as he came for the door, but he was stopped by a sudden call of his name.
"Taehyung, Jimin, you stay behind. I need to discuss something with you two before you leave." Her eyebrows were creased in deep thought. "Right. You might have an idea of why I called you two behind, right? It has to do something with your grades and stuff like that." The pink and blue haired boys shook their heads.
"I really don't know, teacher," Jimin straightened his posture while Taehyung sagged in his metal chair. He thought he was going to faint. He was literally 5 inches away from his crush and his hands were practically shaking. He instantly panicked when a crazy thought hit him that made his stomach churn. "Are m-my g-grades low?"
"Jimin, you are one of my top students. It's obvious that that's not the case," She was cut off by the sound of a creak of the metal door coming ajar to reveal their principal standing over the door with a bright smile. "Ah, Principal Reynolds. Just in time to announce the news." Kendrick Reynolds is a foreigner, and Jimin could argue that he wasn't the worst guy.
"Thank you, Kristine. Now, straight to the point, boys. You two have been chosen by the educational officials of the district as well as me and the other staff members of the school to be school presidents because of your educational achievements. Do take this seriously, because this is a big deal, and it will be a great honor if you undertake this role and accept the responsibility to diligently manage the ways of this school together." He adjusted his monocles and shot them a genial grin to expose his luminous white teeth.
"Me? Work with him? Sir, I'm sorry but don't think I will," Taehyung said and shot Jimin a nasty look. "I'm not exactly friends with Mr. Park, so I don't think it's possible to work cooperatively with someone as effectively as to someone I'm close with. I apologize."
"Which is why you will set up days every single week so you two can chit-chat and build that friendship, Taehyung. You boys will organize some days where you will just hang out like you've been friends all along, so you can do all those group projects productively," Taehyung appeared like he was reconsidering it. "This is good for your future, so if you guys accept this offer, you most definitely won't regret it." He added with a wink.
The blue-haired peeked at Jimin, whose head was stooped low into his pastel pink sweater and was staring into a bunch of nothingness, clearly lost in his own thoughts. Taehyung released a shaky sigh before banging his fists onto the wooden table, causing Jimin to spring from his seat with an alarming rivet of his eyes wide open. He looked so weird that Taehyung couldn't help but snort.
"Okay, I guess. I'll take the offer."
The principal's smile grew wider. "Jimin?"
"I-I'll take it t-too, sir."
"Then I'll let you two decide the first day you'll be meeting up after school to hang out. The location, time, and everything else is up to you. Let's go, Kristine. We'll leave them here to talk." And with that, the two staff members of Busan High School of Arts exited the property leaving Jimin and Taehyung in silence.
Jimin awkwardly cleared his throat. "E-Er, so..."
Taehyung glared at him. "Listen here, Jimin. I only did this because it'll benefit my future. I'm just going to remind you once that we are definitely not friends and we will definitely never be. Got that?"
"O-Okay, T-Taehyung..."
There was more quietude, and none had the spirit nor bravery to utter another word. They knew that they had to plan a day they would socialize, but Taehyung was most definitely not craving to mingle around with one of the lowest ranked students on the charts and was most definitely not ready to tell a soul.
"S-So... when are we g-going to m-meet up?"
"God, Jimin, I don't know. What do you even do? Go to some random fashion mall and shop for skirts? Is that what you like, huh?"
"N-No! I honestly don't really go anywhere. I don't like going anywhere, but I don't like staying at home either. Not after..." He felt a lump in his throat with the inability to finish his sentence. "Nevermind. Where do you want to go?"
"Can we just meet up at my parent's private basketball gym? I know it sounds stupid, but I just really like the sport, and—whatever. Forget it."
"No, no! That sounds cool! I'm down!" Jimin was surprised that he was able to form a sentence without any unintentional slurs or stutters. "What day?"
"I want to get it over with, so tomorrow right after school, since my basketball coach is out on vacation for the week. You decide the rest of the days we'll go out." Taehyung shuddered involuntarily at his choice of words—'Go out.' He turned his gaze away from the pink-haired and looked shyly at his Nike sneakers. He finally shedded the bright red hues decorating his cheeks and stood up from his seat to head for the door.
"Hey!"
"Yeah? What now?"
"Bye, Taehyungie!" Jimin held out his hand while Taehyung met it. His hand was uncontrollably quavering when he felt Jimin's smooth skin against his own in a handshake. "I'll catch you tomorrow!" All Taehyung could reply was a timid nod as they exited the building together and went their separate ways.
