this is us | jjk

drabble ~ it'll be okay (jk pov)

~ Two months after the breakup ~

"I'm starving. What should we get for dinner tonight?" Jimin asked as he set down the box on the kitchen counter. But Jungkook didn't answer; he seemed to be staring off into space. "Earth to Jungkook!"

The doe-eyed man hummed, still staring at the LA city skyline outside his apartment. "I'm up for whatever. You can pick."

Jimin walked over to his good friend and rubbed his shoulder. "Hey—you okay? You've been pretty quiet all day."

Jungkook clears his throat. "Yeah, 'm fine," he sniffles before speaking again, "Thanks for letting me stay with you while I figured things out."

"Of course, man—I'm always happy to host."

"And, sorry if I invaded your and your girlfriend's space."

"Don't even sweat it. Lana understands. I'm just glad we were able to help you out."

Jungkook left on a whim, uncertain of what he was doing or if he had made the right choice to leave. He just knew he needed to be away from you, everyone, and everything—clear his mind and start over.

Jimin was a life-saver, letting him crash and figure things out, and not once did Jimin try to force a conversation about you, even though he knew his friend was hurting. He knew it'd take time for Jungkook to come around and talk about you on his terms.

"How about ramen? Or sushi?"

Either option sounded great, but Jungkook didn't want to take up more of his friend's time and space than he already had. "Why don't you take Lana out on a date? I think I'll get Doordash or something."

"What? Are you sure? I don't mind."

"Yeah—you've helped me so much, and I'll probably just eat here, unpack, and get settled in."

Jimin wavers in his reply, wanting to refute Jungkook's proposal, but ultimately caves in because he does miss spending alone time with Lana. "Well, just call me if you need anything, and we're not that far away."

Jungkook turned to his friend and thanked him before sending him on his way, but Jimin turned back to his friend. "Hey, Jungkook." He hummed and raised his eyebrows. "It'll be okay." Jungkook gives a thin smile before closing the door.

When he returns to the living room, he scans it, searching for a box labeled 'miscellaneous.' He took a few steps, peering over random things to find it hidden behind his desk monitor. He picks up the box and makes his way to the bedroom. The bedframe hadn't been assembled yet, so he sat on the mattress on the floor.

Unwrapping the tape from the box, he fished out a few photo frames and random collectibles before reaching for the one thing he wanted from the box.

Pulling out the fabric-covered album, his nails lightly dragged across the front cover to the corner, opening the photo album. When packing his place back in Seoul, he contemplated returning it to you. He wondered if it would've been weird to have kept such risqué photos of his ex-girlfriend. What would be the point?

But he couldn't let it go so easily.

Though he loved every single photo in this album, there was one he flipped too often. The golden hues from the light captured you so beautifully, laying on the bed, head nestled in your folded arms as you stared directly into the camera and covered in a white bedsheet.

It didn't take much to get him going. The growing bulge in his sweats indicates how much of an effect you still had on him. Two months later, he was still hung up on you. He didn't want to get over you, still wanted you, and longed for you, but he knew it wasn't feasible to keep living like this. He left Seoul hoping to move on, to become a new person—a better person, though it was harder said than done. He couldn't help but return to the things that comforted him, the things that felt like home—you.

His hand traveled down to adjust himself. It would be easy to christen the new place and rub one out right here, right now, but he had been doing that too often and felt ashamed for even thinking about you in this way when you weren't together anymore. Maybe he should've returned the photo album, or maybe he could burn it, get rid of it, and start a new chapter in his life. How long would he keep holding on? And honestly, holding onto what?

He flipped it closed, stuffing it back in the box. Two months in and he was still in the same place he was when he arrived in LA. He wondered if it was the same for you. Were you still hurting? Or did you move on to someone else already? Could it be that guy he had seen you with the night he decided to leave? An endless sea of questions that would never be answered.

But he didn't want to wallow anymore. If he wanted to become a better person, he needed to put in the work and finally let you go.

Let go of the reveries of a future never to become a reality and of what used to be—you and him.

It was time for him to step away from all he knew and discover who he was without you.

a/n:

hi everyone!! i'm sorry it's taking a bit to get the next update out. i figured i should give y'all something lol. i hope you enjoyed this extremely small update from jk's pov. and buckle up b/c there will be a few time skips.

as always, please vote and i'd love to know what you think <3