Heart&Seoul || jjk/kth/bts

Chapter 12: Action!

Jungkook

Yeontan's conditions are worrying. That adorable ball of fur is going through a hard time and Taehyung is understandably anxious about the operation. Although my empathetic side is under a lot of pressure right now in order not to shed any tears, I'm glad Tae asked me to be by his side. I'm not here to sadden him even more by bursting into tears at the thought of Yeontan not surviving the delicate surgery, my duty is to comfort my friend and offer him a shoulder in case he needs it.

Dr. Kim Seokjin is a well-known vet, the most renowned around here. My dad and I have personally recommended him to Taehyung because his hands have cured Bam's problems many times before, and he's a close friend of Jung-hyun, too. I have faith in him and I'm positive Yeontan will be okay. Taehyung lovingly boops Yeontan's nose from outside the pet cage as I list all of Dr. Kim's good qualities in an attempt to reassure him.

Before the vet arrives, a younger guy enters the building and makes his way across the waiting room to Dr. Kim's office. As he spots Taehyung, he goes for an unnoticeable nod instead of a proper greeting, before eventually disappearing in the office without a word. Taehyung's gaze lingers on the door for a moment too long after it closes. The second he meets my inquiring eyes, he answers my unasked question: he happens to know Dr. Kim's assistant and vet trainee from a previous encounter, and doesn't seem nervous at the idea that an apprentice is going to have Yeontan's life on his hands.

Once we get called from the vet's office, I stand up with Tae to follow him inside, but the apprentice's words stop me: "I'm afraid only the pet owners are allowed inside."

"Uh, yeah...sure. Sorry."

I've brought Bam here countless times, and have never heard of this rule before. I suppose the apprentice's presence reduces the number of people allowed in the small room for safety reasons. I'll bring it up to Dr. Kim next time.

While I await Taehyung's return, I kill some time by going through the texts I've put off reading since this morning. The first one I click on at the speed of light is from Bridget. She texted "good morning" with a particularly happy emoji. Below the message, the picture of a shop window. I zoom in to identify the exposed merch and a smile creeps up on my lips when I see it's a bunch of bucket hats.

"They reminded me of you." I stare at those words for two, five, ten consecutive minutes until my facial muscles hurt from trying to suppress a grin. I go back to re-read the messages we've sent each other two nights ago, when she shared the picture she took of me in Itaewon, in front of the shop named 'JK'. I still wonder what the shop sells. I'm curious to know, merely because it has my name on it. Or rather, my nickname. The stage name I dreamed of using in my idol career.

I snap a picture of the bucket hat I'm currently wearing as if to prove Bridget's point. Hesitation freezes my thumb right before pressing 'send', but I gaslight myself into believing the "you only live once" mantra. It helps to imagine the chuckle she could let out at the sight of my bucket hat photo. Assuming she won't be laughing at me. Fuck, why did I send it? I need a distraction. I hurriedly type a question for her to answer, asking about her day and starting a conversation that leads the furthest away from the picture that can't be unsent.

I naturally speak English with Bridget, even though she texted me in Korean first. It's a fair and useful compromise for me to write in English and for Bridget in Korean. At least until one of us two is fluent enough to pick one language over the other. Bridget replies soon after, telling me she's simply walking to campus. When she asks me what I'm doing, I have to use the Papago app to explain I'm at the vet to stay by Taehyung's side during Yeontan's operation.

Bridget and Taehyung have talked a lot the other night, which didn't leave me unbothered. They've built such a strong friendship in so little time, something I've failed to do because I'm half as outgoing and charming as Taehyung. I struggle to muffle the jealousy screaming inside of me every time I hear them joke and laugh together. I have no reason to doubt Taehyung's intentions, I'm just a little envious of how fast he's become friends with Bridget without even trying. In light of all of this, I'm led to think she knows about Yeontan, but I'll still specify he's Taehyung's dog to remove any confusion from the start. After checking for grammar mistakes at least five times and hoping everything is correct, I press send.