Shall We Date?

Part 2

AN *Sorry this took so long to upload, my current job is incredibly taxing, but I should be able to get chapter three up soon, and I'll be moving and switching jobs so I'll have a lot more time to write soon!*

After practice Mingyu ran back over to the bleachers, followed by a handful of other players, all smiling and waving at Jungkook with knowing looks on their faces.
"Kookie, have you met any of my teammates?" Mingyu asks, stopping short in front of Jungkook who shakes his head.
Mingyu waves a few boys over, "This is Eunwoo," He says as the first one comes over, he smiles so prettily as he says hello, and Jungkook can't help but smile back at him.
"This is June, and Zui," Mingyu introduces the other two as they run up, smiling as well.
"Hi!" Jungkook says, feeling extra shy when Mingyu introduces him as his boyfriend.
All three of them grin and try to make him feel relaxed as they talk until the coach yells at them to hit the showers.
"You want to stay out here or come in while I shower? I'll try to be quick," Mingyu asks Jungkook once the others had run off.
Jungkook blinks several times, not wanting to be left alone but not wanting to go into a locker room with a bunch of gross guys.
"Just come to the first room, you won't see anything, but you won't be seen by unfriendly eyes," Mingyu offers his hand, and Jungkook nods, letting Mingyu help him stand from the chair. He sighs as they walk slowly across the field toward the locker rooms.
"Are you okay?" Mingyu asks, obviously worried.
"My ice is not ice anymore," Jungkook says simply as if it was a normal occurrence for him.
Mingyu slows, "So we need to find new ice?"
Jungkook shakes his head, "No, if it's okay I'll ask you to bring me home and my mom will help me get some more on it overnight."
"Sure, anything you need," Mingyu agrees quickly.
Jungkook smiles and finds a chair to sit down on as Mingyu sprints into the locker room, taking the fastest shower he's ever taken.

In Jungkook's opinion, the next month is one of the best times of his life. Mingyu picks him up every morning and drives him to school. He gets walked to his first class and sticks with Yugyeom and BamBam during lunch, avoiding Donghyuck as best he can. He waits in his last class for Mingyu to come sprinting down the hallway to pick him back up. Some days he goes to the coding club and some days he sits by the football field and watches Mingyu run around.
They go out to the diner after, Mingyu always insisting on paying with his dad's credit card. Jungkook doesn't argue, he couldn't pay even if he wanted to.
Sometimes Mingyu's football teammates come with them, and all make fun of Mingyu, joking with Jungkook about his boyfriend. And sometimes Jungkook invites his friends, even Yeosang and Yunho, and they push a few tables together, sharing large plates of fries and mozzarella sticks.
Sometimes Jungkook says no, and makes Mingyu catch up on his homework that he tends to forget to do.
But no matter what happened each day, he went to bed that night happy with the day's events.
As prom and graduation aproach, Mingyu gets more invested in his college applications and talent seekers. They had already come through during the football season in the fall but not that it was spring, decisions needed to be made.
Jungkook watched Mingyu fill out yet another application one night his own work already finished.
Mingyu had insisted that they come back to his house that night instead of the diner, he had forgotten the applications at the house and needed to work on them before the deadlines.
A housekeeper came over to the long marble dining table and set two plates of cut fruits and pastries on the table between the two boys.
Jungkook smiled at her, "Thank you."
She grinned, "You are most welcome, young man," then she leaned down to his ear and whispered, "I think you are the one who's making my young employer so happy these days, thank you for that."
Jungkook flushed as she stood back up, sent him a wink, and walked back into the kitchen to do something, Jungkook wasn't sure what.
Mingyu was already looking at him when Jungkook turned back to him.
"What?" He asks, unable to discern the look in Mingyu's eyes.
"What did she tell you?" Mingyu asks eyes narrowed.
Jungkook smiles, "Just said thank you for being your friend or something similar, she was so quiet it was hard to hear."
Mingyu looks unconvinced but Jungkook just looks at him with a small smile and he nods, "Okay, as long as it wasn't something embarrassing about me."
Jungkook laughs, "I knew you in middle school, I don't think anything else could be more embarrassing than that, Gyu."
Mingyu groans, "You are so right, that was a terrible time."
"Don't worry, I was just as bad as you," Jungkook laughs shifting in his chair.
Mingyu shakes his head, eyes soft, "No, Kook, you were an angel back then, trust me."
For some reason the way Mingyu had said the sentence sent Jungkook's normal blush down through his toes.
Mingyu just smiles and goes back to his application.
Jungkook absentmindedly reaches for the fruit, slowly eating the apple slices.
"Why haven't we hung out here before?" Jungkook asks, looking around the spacious and definitely empty rooms on the first floor of the house.
Mingyu looks up, "It's so cold and empty here, I would rather go to the diner where there are other people."
Jungkook nods, "I guess that makes sense."
"Why don't we ever go inside your house?" Mingyu asks, focusing on his papers again.
Jungkook pauses, thinking until Mingyu looks up again, "I don't like being there."
Mingyu nods, "I think we have similar feelings for opposite reasons."
Jungkook nods in agreement, "I think you are probably right. Man, why can't parents be good to their kids?"
Mingyu shakes his head, "I have no idea. I don't think I even want any of my own in the future, I wouldn't want to risk messing them up."
When Jungkook doesn't say anything, he looks up from his application to find Jungkook already looking at him.
"What?"
Jungkook shakes his head, "I just know I don't want any kids too. I'm so scared I'll end up like my dad," He says the last part so softly that Mingyu almost doesn't catch it.
He does hear it though, and he stands up, walking around the end of the table to sit in the chair next to Jungkook instead of across from him, offering his arm out.
Jungkook shuffles his chair closer and leans over, resting his head against Mingyu's shoulder and chin.
"Kook, you will never be like your dad, I know you are nothing like that," He wraps both of his arms around Jungkook who melts into him.
"I don't think you would be like yours either," Jungkook says softly, wrapping one of his arms around Mingyu's waist.
Mingyu doesn't respond for a long time, just happy that Jungkook trusted him enough to let him touch the younger without flinching or shying away.
"We have so much time to figure that out," He finally says, petting Jungkook's hair.
Jungkook tenses in Mingyu's arm and the older looks down at him concerned, "What's wrong, Kook?"
Jungkook slowly sits up, "You are acting like we're actually dating," He says carefully and Mingyu's eyes widen in realization.
"Oh, I'm so sorry, Jungkook," He says quickly.
"It's okay, I guess like I really don't mind acting like we are dating, I've gotten used to it, but isn't like talk of a future together a bit over a line?"
Mingyu quickly nods, "Yeah, it is, I'm so sorry."
Jungkook shakes his head, "It's okay."
Neither of them says anything for a long while until Jungkook pushes the plate of fruit closer to Mingyu, "I guess now is a good time to tell you this."
Mingyu looks up, suddenly concerned, "Did I do something else wrong?"
"No, no," Jungkook smiles, "It's something about me."
Mingyu's brows furrow and he waits for Jungkook to continue.
"I'm not going to college with you," Jungkook says after a deep breath, watching Mingyu with his trepidation tarantulas back in his stomach.
Mingyu just stares at him as if he was talking in a different language, "What?"
"I'm not going to college, Mingyu, I can't afford to go. I have to start working as soon as I graduate," Jungkook waits for Mingyu to answer but he just sits there stunned.
"Gyu?" He asks finally and Mingyu's face turns stormy and then smooths over again.
"I thought we were going to go together," Is all he says, obviously trying to hide a twinge of hurt in his voice.
"I'm sorry, I should have said something before," Jungkook says, suddenly feeling shy in a way he hadn't been around Mingyu for years.
"Why didn't you?" Mingyu asks almost harshly, standing up from his chair to walk back around the table.
Jungkook sighs, "I don't know, you seemed so excited about it, and I didn't want to ruin it for you."
"So, you are just going to ruin it for me now instead?" Mingyu asks, on the opposite side of the table again, arms crossed as he stands studying the application on the cool marble.
Jungkook nods silently, fighting the emotion welling up in his chest. He had never been on this end of Mingyu's anger before and never thought he would have to be.
"What the point of me filling all of these out then? I was hoping if I did enough of them, we would both get in somewhere."
"I'm really sorry, I really just can't afford it. My dad barely makes enough for us to rent our apartment," Jungkook says, head still lowered.
Mingyu picks up the half-finished application and rips it in half several times before throwing the scraps back onto the table.
Jungkook flinches as the scraps come flying toward him and push his chair back, "I should probably go," He says, starting to grab his bag and phone to leave.
Mingyu sighs, "No, I'm so sorry, kook," He takes a step closer to the table and Jungkook backs up, slinging his bag over his shoulder.
"Kook," Mingyu tries again, following Jungkook to the end of the room where the dining room leads into the large hallway and front door.
Suddenly in the low light, Mingyu starts to look like Donghyuck and Jungkook backs up faster, stumbling over his own feet as he heads for the entrance of the house.
"Jungkook, I'm sorry, please don't leave," Mingyu follows Jungkook out into the front yard of the big house.
The cool air of the evening calms Jungkook down almost immediately and he lets Mingyu come up to him in the middle of the large grass lawn, hands gripping his backpack straps with extra vigor.
Mingyu slowly steps up to Jungkook's side, staying a few feet away from the hyperventilating boy, "Kook, you know me, I would never hurt you like that."
Jungkook glances at him and then shakes his head, gaze falling to the ground under his hasty put-on shoes.
Mingyu risks another step closer to Jungkook and slowly reaches out his hand to the younger boy, waiting for Jungkook to respond.
Jungkook looks at his hand but shakes his head again, "I need to go," He mumbles.
"Let me drive you home then, please," Mingyu says, "Just let me go get my keys,"
Jungkook interrupts him, "No, my cousin will come to get me," He shows Mingyu his phone screen where a text chat is pulled up, someone promising to arrive soon.
"Can I at least wait out here with you?" Mingyu asks, fighting the urge to reach out and touch Jungkook, to comfort him, anything.
"Ok," Jungkook says softly, seeming rooted to the spot.
Mingyu stands there, not sure what to do or say until his feet start to hurt, and he sees Jungkook shifting from leg to leg.
"Can we go and sit on the steps? I'll stay away from you," Mingyu suggests, looking back toward the house and its wide set of stairs.
Jungkook glances over and then nods once, walking a wide circle around Mingyu. He sits down on one side of the steps, body clearly tense.
Mingyu sighs to himself and then follows him over, sitting on the far side of the stairs, "I really am sorry Jungkook."
Jungkook looks at him again with watery eyes, "It's okay."
It's all he says until a car pulls up to the curb and the window rolls down, a voice calling Jungkook's name.
Jungkook stands quickly, wiping his hands on his pants as he moves to get into the car.
"Can I still pick you up tomorrow?" Mingyu asks, stilling Jungkook's movements.
"I'll text in the morning," Jungkook says quietly, not able to turn around, he then darts the rest of the way across the yard and climbs into the car, hissing for Jimin to drive.
"What happened? You never ask me to pick you up anymore," Jimin asks as he pulls away from the curb.
Jungkook rolls up the window and hides his face in his hoodie sleeves.
Jimin stops the car again, concerned, "Jungkook, please tell me what was going on in there? That was Mingyu, right? I thought you guys were close friends."
"We were, are, maybe not anymore, I don't know," Jungkook's hands fall onto his lap, his wet face coming into view.
"I'm gonna need you to explain that further Jungkook, what's going on," Jimin says sternly.
And so Jungkook tells Jimin everything, down to his ever-changing feelings for Mingyu and his flashbacks to Donghyuck in Mingyu's dining room.
At some point during his rambling, Jimin had begun to drive, and when Jungkook was finally done talking he looked up and was startled to see that they were now parked on a mountain top overlooking the city below them.
"When did we get up here?" Jungkook asks looking around at the lights slowly coming on all over the city.
"We've been here for a while already," Jimin says with a soft smile, "What are you going to do Guk?"
Jungkook sighs, "I don't know," He looks out the window, not really seeing anything.
"I don't think you should throw away friendship like his over this, but maybe you need to go back to being friends who are not fake dating. I think this whole dating thing can't be healthy for either of you."
Jungkook nods, "You are probably right."
Jimin lets him think for a long time as the sun disappears and the lights in the city become brighter than the sky above them.
"Do you think I should try and go to college?" Jungkook finally asks, this had been bugging him since he had left Mingyu's house.
"Only if you want to. I'm sure you could get scholarships with grades like yours, and I would be willing to help you with any expenses," Jimin pauses and then adds on, "I think your friend Mingyu would fund your entire schooling if you let him."
Jungkook's head shoots up at Jimin with this statement, eyes wider than normal in disbelief and shock.
"I can't do that," Jungkook says, this thought made him want to hyperventilate for the second time that night.
Jimin chuckles, "I'm serious about the first part, you have higher grades than most of the country, I'm sure you could test into some pretty hefty scholarships."
Jungkook looks away, thoughts flying through his head, "Do you really think so?"
"Yes, it's more like I know so, Kook," Jimin pat Jungkook's leg, "How about we go and talk to Taehyung about it?"
Jungkook chewed his lip for a few seconds before giving Jimin a tiny smile and nodding in agreement, "As long as you guys are not super gross while I'm there."
Jimin just laughs and pulls away from the parking spot, carefully navigating back down the mountain and to his and Taehyung's apartment.