ᴛʜɪʀsᴛ ☑

# 13. Hot Coffee

Days went by, and Jimin didn't allow himself to think deeper about what he has been feeling. He had apologized to Momo and they broke off for real. His life was repetitive events of eating, sleeping, drinking coffee, working and shopping. It was bright and sunny, but the winds were getting cold — a perfect morning for some whipping hot coffee. 

He stopped his car and closed the door shut after getting out, darting at the board of the cafe. This quaint little place has been here for quite some time. He often thought to stop and buy some baked goodies for the office team, but the weather never seemed so calming. After days, he felt the peace that made him want to enjoy himself.

Grabbing a table, he waited for the waiter to come. The boy in the apron saw Jimin and he crept towards him with a matcha-green printed menu. Jimin could admire that the boy was beautiful. After the incident, his perspective changed about how he marveled at anyone. It wasn't limited to just women. He would often acknowledge the presence of attractive men too, but his thoughts were never beyond that. 

Placing the order for a latte and a muffin, he looked outside through the heavy glass door. His car was parked under a tree that was whisking smoothly. Some school-going toddlers were crying and some bigger kids were chirping as they held onto their guardians' fingers. A smile flitted on his lips as he took in the surrounding, and with the same mesmerization, his neck craned around to see two men sitting behind his table while holding hands.

They looked lost in each other's eyes. Jimin had seen people in love, but this — the way these two sat without speaking and just relishing in each other's presence — gave the man a closer look into a new viewpoint. 

He pulled his gaze back quickly though, but his eyes continued to hover at their reflection in the glasses around them until his food arrived. Just like that, he couldn't count blessings on the small things and the poundage started weighing him down. To this day, even if there weren't many, Jungkook had been the most attractive man, or perhaps, if he considered himself a man who could love another man — then hypothetically — Jungkook was someone he would consider his type — kind eyes, innocent face, sweet voice, the pretty lips, and...

Jimin stopped thinking and slapped himself before taking a sip of coffee and immediately choked and spluttered out the hot drink. "Careful, sir. It's hot."

The waiter brought water and a few more spare tissues. Cleaning himself, Jimin sighed. The good day suddenly went south. Nonetheless, he wasn't going to consider this any harm. The weather was still beautiful and the birds still sang. 

He waited for the drink to cool a bit and while doing so, his eyes fell over the gay couple kissing. It suddenly made him feel uneasy because even after a lot of his mindset changed, he still couldn't accept that this was normal for two guys to do. 

He left the cafe after grabbing his food and decided to finish it in the car. Driving was something that he loved. Although the office wasn't far from the cafe, he enjoyed the little time he spent on the road and finished his coffee. 

He reached the office floor after coming out of the elevator and bowed at Momo as his eyes fell on her talking over the phone. He tried to keep it professional, but he had a gut feeling that Momo wasn't done with him yet. She would often speak over the phone with other guys to make him feel jealous, or discuss her weekend getaway plan with a 'friend' amongst the team in front of him. He never intruded, but he knew the shift in the woman's behavior. He was only thankful for her husband coming back in a week's time.

"Coffee, Jimin?" Momo asked after some time. 

Jimin had set up his work desk by then. He looked around to find his teammates. When another colleague flashed him a thumbs up, he nodded at Momo and stood up, flapping the laptop shut. 

The group walked into the cafeteria. "What would you have?"  Momo asked Jimin.

"Nothing, I just had coffee on the way here."

"Hmm," the lady began to stir her own coffee at the coffee machine. Everyone else took their turn while Jimin grabbed a big table to sit at. He saw Namjoon sitting with the other department directors in front of him as he flashed a smile. The boss nodded and smiled back to affirm.

Jimin was sitting silently whilst his colleagues started to chat and enjoy their morning coffee — their daily tradition. After a few minutes, they all finished their drinks and got up to go back to their desks.

Jimin stood up first, as he had no coffee cup to put in the trash. The moment he stepped out, he saw the lab's door open and loud chatter coming from inside of it. Curiously, he walked into the lab and spotted school kids all around. What made his heart stop was Jungkook. 

 Immediately pivoting around, and maintaining his posture, he rushed toward the lab supervisor. "What are they doing here?"

"Their school had a visit permission today, Jimin. You forgot?" The man answered, looking at Jimin so hassled by the kids. "Did you have testing today?" He immediately began to look at the lab schedule. 

"No," Jimin held the man's palm that was scrambling through pages frantically. "I just didn't think I approved any visit lately."

"You did," the lab supervisor reminded him. "It was a long time back, Jimin. They were supposed to visit two months ago, but they postponed until later the kids' exam. I will block your calendar for half an hour in the day for giving them a demo." 

"I can't," Jimin shook his head. "I mean... I am totally busy today. I will delegate someone else from the team to do the demo."

"Sure," the man now smiled. "No problem. You need to e-mail me their names."

Jimin nodded before he turned around to face Jungkook standing in front of him.