Smile -Myg-

46

 It's been a couple months since Christmas. Yoongi and I have returned to our usual friendly banter but there's still this feeling of tension silently present. I shout goodbye to SeoJeong and leave the apartment. I take a bus to work. As soon as I open the door the sweet smell of the shop greets me. Nana? Gives me a smile and hands me a cookie as I put on my apron. It's soft with frosting on top, it's sweet but not too much. The bell on the door rings and Jay walks in. He greets us with a smile and goes into the back room. The day passes as usual with idle conversations and the tasting of sweets. I hang my apron up and grab my bag to leave when someone walks through the door. I nearly call out my usual greeting before I see that it's Jimin.

"Oh, hi Jimin." I give him a smile. He pulls down his mask and smiles back.

"I didn't know you were working today but I'm happy I get to see you." He gives me a hug before I can even respond. Jay walks in as he lets me go. He's holding a small bag of treats which he hands to Jimin.

"Here you go." Jimin gives a sheepish smile.

"You can say my name, you know?" Jay nods slightly.

"Okay... Enjoy them, Jimin." I stare for a minute at the awkward men. What is this weird tension? Are they in a kdrama or something? Jimin gives a cheeky goodbye and heads for the door but I grab his hand before he can make it out.

"Jiminie, are you busy? We should eat together. I just got off and I don't want to go home just yet." I give him my best puppy eyes I can muster. Fortunately, losing my self-respect works and he agrees. I spin around and make eye contact with Jay. Clapping my hands together I suggest that Jay come along with us since his shift is almost up. Jay hesitates but I persuade him by describing foods in all their glory. Jay ends up reluctantly going but I think a part of him was hoping that this would happen, besides, it's always fun to hang out with friends after a long day.

The three of us end up in a small restaurant hidden in an alleyway. Jay tells us that it is one of his favorite places to eat. The atmosphere is very relaxed and welcoming. The walls are lined with various posters from over time and the lights are dimmed perfectly as to not be too bright or too low. As we sit down, I place my bag on the booth besides me, forcing Jimin to sit besides Jay. Fortunately, they don't seem to mind the fact that much. It takes a little bit of time for the conversation to start picking up but Jay begins to relax.

"So why'd you want to be a kpop idol," I ask him.

"Oh... Well, I just really enjoy singing... I wouldn't want to do anything else besides singing with my life." He looks down sheepishly. "That's a pretty common answer, huh?"

Jimin shakes his head in response. "It's said often but it's never this genuine." Jay looks at Jimin for a moment, shocked. Jimin gives him an encouraging smile which snaps him out of it.

"Thanks," he says quietly.

Our food appears and we eat like royalty. The food itself is incredible. I eat until I physically cannot. I look over at Jimin who is trying to get Jay to try one of the dishes.

"Come on," he draws out the words in a begging way. "Please. Oh, pretty please." He looks at Jay with a small pout and blinks excessively.

Jay gives a huff but ends up letting Jimin feed him the food. After chewing he rolls his eyes. "Okay, fine... It's pretty good." Jimin and I let out a small cheer then burst into giggles as Jay takes more of the food. We laugh the night away with memories and dreams of the future. Eventually, we are nicely asked to leave and we head outside under the night sky and city lights. My body shivers at the change in temperature. The three of us walk closely together on the sidewalk, walking in no particular direction. After a little aimless walking, we go back to our cars.

"It was really fun hanging out with you guys." I give them a big smile and hug the two of them despite Jay's protests.

"Yeah. It was fun." Jay gave a small smile and I can feel that he genuinely meant it.

"You want me to take you home, Jimin?" Jimin smiles in response and nods. I wave goodbye to them and head back home. It was really nice getting to hangout with them. I drive home, a smile on my face the entire time. As I reach the parking spot for scooters, my phone rings out.

"Why is someone calling this late?" I fumble with my phone once my scooter is parked and look at the caller ID. Yoongi.