ᴄʜᴀsɪɴɢ ʀᴀɪɴʙᴏᴡ

18. Notice the teenage boy

Him & I - G-Eazy & Halsey

Jungkook

Earning money was not easy. I repeat. This was not a drill.

I took on the job as an experiment to see how Jimin made it through, and if I made some money out of it, I could always help Ulrich, but working in the shoe department had to be the most boring job one could ever find. I sat around, smiled as customers walked in, looked at myself in the floor-length mirrors, and helped the customers with ugly toes and stinky feet to put on shoe covers.

I was losing my goddamn mind and it has only been a week.

Ulrich was surprised I took the job, to begin with. "I am betting you won't last one week." He had said. I had to prove my point, so I did stick here.

Another reason was that I wanted Jimin's approval. So far my track record hasn't really been really good with him. He must have thought of me as a spoiled and wild child, disrespectful and headstrong, who doesn't care about anyone, who doesn't respect sexual boundaries, but ever since he showed up in my room that night, even for Taehyung Hyung, his opinions about me seemed to have changed.

Although the stiffness in his body still stayed around me, he started doing a better job at not running away from the sight of me. In fact, he bought me coffee last week in the cafeteria. Sure, it wasn't specifically for me, he was buying it for everyone, and I happened to 'pass by,' but he did, which counts.

One time, he saved me his treadmill during the rush hour at the gym.

Another time, he saved me a seat next to him during the lunch break. 

We seemed to be falling into a peaceful territory now. He still didn't let his guard down entirely, but he wasn't the same Jimin from before either. We were friendly-ish with each other. 

I also decided to tone down my actions. I scared him a lot with my impulsive expression of feelings. He needed his sweet time, and I needed a solid plan because my feelings alone didn't worth jack shit to him. I couldn't keep being stupid. I needed to be strategic.

He wouldn't be wrong to think of me as a wild child. I secretly always was. But I had to keep pushing the brakes before because of my father, but now? I loved the liberty of it all.

As I was walking back to the dormitory, I decided to stop and buy some sparkling water for us for our study session. It helped with sleep. Semester exams were on our asses and we had to do good. Ulrich studied much more than I did, but I was confident I'd score well. The first semester wasn't all that difficult so far if I was being honest, but we knew what was ahead, and people were using the easier days as a headstart for the bumpy road ahead. I was the only one who slept for seven hours a night these days.

When I entered the store, a girl I spotted in a uniform was rushing to the back of the department. The place was almost empty, and only one billing counter was active. I saw a few more young boys and girls rushing back, giggling, and then I heard distant shrieking. It was an enthusiastic kind.