HELIOS// A Jikook AU.

Five: An Aquarium Incident

"Lust is to the other passions what the nervous fluid is to life; it supports them all, lends strength to them all ambition, cruelty, avarice, revenge, are all founded on lust." 

- Marquis De Sade

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The orange haired young adult gawked, excitedly accompanying the little kids and toddlers as he raced towards the glass where rays of colourful fish spun among the artificial light. His hands splayed across the transparent barrier, his eyes wide, his breath creating little patches of condensation with every moment he remained transfixed at the sight.

His friend, a brown haired girl by the name of Ji-eun chuckled affectionately. Her heart warmed at the sight of her high-school friend gaping childishly at each exhibit without a care in the world.

She could see his stunned face in the reflection, the way his eyes glinted, darting about in avid chase with each and every multicoloured fish that passed his line of vision. She could see his lips moving and knew, that under his breath he was reciting the names of the fish he saw, occasionally babbling to himself as he remembered an interesting fact that little teenage Jimin had yearned to learn.

If there was one thing she was confident of when it came to her childhood friend, it was that Jimin loved the ocean almost as much as he loved to dance. Had he not been scouted by that dance company when they were teenagers, she was pretty sure he'd have become a marine biologist or perhaps an aquarium owner.

Drawing her attention back to the giddy young adult, she suddenly realised he had moved from his place beside the glass and was now seated around a group of young children, ridding the aquarium guide of her job as he told fascinating stories about the schools of fish behind them.

"These ones are 'Red Rainbowfish', or 'Glossolepis incisus'," He pointed to the shimmers of red darting through the tank. Every child listening to him seemed mesmirised... captivated by his welcoming aura. "They're carnivores and you can find them in New Guinea." He was responded to with a series of 'woaaahs' and cute little attempts at pronouncing the scientific name of the fish.

A smile of glee drew itself upon Ji-eun's face: a warm, sympathetic feeling flushing into her system. Jimin's parents had passed away when he was fifteen. He'd been at her school only for a year before moving to live with his grandfather and aunt, but the two of them had remained in contact ever since.

Even after the event, he'd been nothing but a kind-hearted, selfless individual. He had not allowed anyone to see the depth of his mourning, choosing instead to continue his parent's wishes and care for others before himself, in a way he expected them to care for him.

Even when his ex-boyfriend had proven to be a malicious dickhead, none of Jimin's friends had suspected his suffering until later than they'd all hoped to. It had taken Ji-uen three attempts to finally force Jimin to speak, and when he finally did, he had inebriated himself off of a bottle of wine before admitting the truth. "Jimin..." she sighed, reminding herself that this friend of hers still refused to speak to her about the accident he'd had at work last year.

She was not praising his ability to hide his suffering. If anything, the young Master's student wished Jimin was more vocal and did not slip into the expectations of reality that determined asking for help to be a sign of weakness. But she was praising his ability to turn the other cheek and move on. To not take revenge on a partner who was unkind, to not lash out at someone who made a mistake too many.

Although... despite his humble, down to earth nature, she had never met someone else with his ability before: the ability to walk into any room and be the centre of attention. The ability for any stranger to instantly recognise that he was an incredible personality, a wonderful character and, if you were lucky: a life-long friend.