A SACCHARINE SMILE || YOONGI × JUNGKOOK || YOONKOOK AU

A NEW BEGINNING

Jungkook counts the time difference on his fingertips, just to check twice. He has always found it hard to trust anything when he is stressed. He doubt and triple checks the time it must be for Yoongi and figures the busy producer must be home by now, showed and hopefully well fed.

Hobi had let him know when Yoongi left from work and Jungkook knows Yoongi enough to know his daily routine. And if he waits any longer, Yoongi might just go to sleep and then there's no waking him until the next morning.

He frantically fixes his hair and checks his clothes one last time before nervously tapping on the video call button. And while the call is getting connected, he reminds himself not to get up from his seat.

Jungkook is dressed in a black t-shirt and black leather jacket with nothing but a pair of blue cotton shorts underneath. For some reason, he thought it was a great idea to look good enough for Yoongi without poaching his peaches in the summer heat.

The call connects just when he is thinking of disconcerting and getting into a pair of jeans. The panic on his face quickly turns Yoongi's brigh smile into a frown.

"Are you ok?" Yoongi asks while leaning towards the scream. If he could, he would lend an arm from inside the screen just to protect his doe-eyed boy.

Jungkook sighs in relief. Nothing has changed between them. Yoongi still cares just as much.

"Hi hyung! It's been a while." he says while he watches Yoongi slowly get his smile back.

He starts the conversation showing Yoongi his blue shorts and they laugh about it for as long as Yoongi rolls on his bed. The elder then calls Hobi a hypnotizing traitor when Jungkook tells him how he keeps little incognoto tabs on him.

"Not so incognito now!" Yoongi jokes and Jungkook replies "He isn't my only source hyung!" with a familiar smirk on his joyfully beaming face.

They laugh about the little things that have happened since he left like how Namjoon went missing for a week and it turned out that he was just on an off-grid trip with the chairman of the company.

Jungkook tells Yoongi all about the receptionist and Yoongi's melancholic smile speaks volumes.

"And do you get to be you there Jungkook-ah?" Yoongi asks and Jungkook just nods with a smile that seems calmer than usual.

And frankly, Jungkook feels part of that calm now, especially while sharing his thoughts with Yoongi.

"Jungkook-ah!" Yoongi exclaims while the doe-eyed boy is drawing circles around the conversation, trying to get to the point without offending the other.

"Hyung won't be mad! Ask what you want to ask!" Yoongi assures him and Jungkook asks "That projects you rejected last month, the one Jin hyung sent to me later, I want to work on that!".

Yoongi smiles and says "That's great! Do you want me to recommend you? Do you want me to get Namjoon to get your that deal? We can help!".

Jungkook takes a nervous pause before requesting "Will you be willing to work with me?" and Yoongi says nothing for an entire minute and a half.

Jungkook knows because he is looking at the clock and at Yoongi pacing up and down his bedroom, folding his laundry and stuffing them into his wardrobe before pulling them back and folding them again.

"That's not the best idea Jungkook-ah! You're doing great there! Surely you will find someone to work with. I don't think we should..." and he pauses to sit back down in front of his computer before saying "I don't think we should work together again! Last time was /intense/ and I'm not ready to go through that again.".

Jungkook pouts and Yoongi says "Don't use those puppy dog expressions on me. You know exactly what I'm talking about. We can't keep doing that to ourselves or to each other. It was hard when you left! It's still not easy not having you around.".

Jungkook doesn't know what to say.

"Jungkook-ah!" Yoongi whines and Jungkook replies "I'm sorry hyung! That was on me. I panicked. And I had to get out of there. It was not you, it was all me!".

"It was us! We could have handled it better." Yoongi reassures him and Jungkook finds the courage to ask him one more time.

"Please! Let me make it up to you! I promise I'll behave this time. No more fooling around and no more running away. I want you..." he pauses before saying "...I need you back in my life. Can we at least work together for one more time? You know we are great together. Please, for our fans if not for me!" and Yoongi can not say no anymore.

"Fine! But just work! And maybe beer!" Yoongi jokes and Jungkook responds "I stopped drinking 3 months ago.".

Jungkook watches Yoongi jump in his seat before it's not enough and then he jumps on his feet hopping with joy before calming down and sitting back like nothing happened!

"That was fun to watch hyung!" Jungkook chuckles and Yoongi replies "Don't be a brat! And I'm happy for you! This is good. This is really good. And I'll see you next week!".

Jungkook thanks Yoongi before they hang up and he spends the rest of the night thinking about nothing but the next song he will create with his favorite producer and his favorite person.

If only Jungkook knew that the very annoying executive from that one AA meeting, the one who had a DUI just last month, he is about to make a mess. And sadly, Jungkook will end up suffering for his drunken mistake.

But for now, Jungkook sleeps peacefully in his bed clutching onto the painting of him and Yoongi. And this time, there are no tears on the glass.