Anyone, But A Jock | Jikook (Mini)

Chapter Four: The Friend

Jimin snorted. "You sound like a stoner."

"I am a stoner."

Jimin laughed, resting his head on the back of the couch. It felt too good to be sitting down.

"Any news on Yoona?" Taehyung asked, shifting the conversation to something lighter, though equally as fun to talk about. Drama.

Jimin groaned, rolling his eyes. "We had a check-in on our submissions last week. I had nothing to show yet, so she turned to me and called me an early bloomer."

"What does that even mean?"

"No, because - exactly. First off, I think she was trying to call me a 'late bloomer,' like I'm late to start my project, so somehow that translates to me being late in my life experiences. Which doesn't make sense on so many levels. Second, if you're going to try to be backhanded, at least research your insults."

Taehyung snorted.

Jimin turned his gaze up at the alpha. "Speaking of drama, how's the band situation? My Yoona feud is nothing new."

Taehyung groaned, rubbing his face with his hands. "I have no idea. Our saxophonist is just on a completely different page than everyone else."

Jimin nodded. "Yeah, I remember you saying that. Is it just with you or with everyone in the band?"

Taehyung sighed. "Sort of everyone right now. It's like every time we sit down to brainstorm, it turns into a battleground instead of creating something together. Everyone has such strong opinions about the music, so it's hard to find common ground. Jazz is chaos, which makes it beautiful, but we still need to work together for it to organically grow."

Jimin nodded. "What do you think is causing all the tension? Maybe there's something behind the scenes you're not aware of?"

"Honestly, I'm not sure," Taehyung admitted, running a hand through his hair. "I mean, we all care about the music, and that's part of the problem. We're all so passionate, but it leads to our ideas clashing over our direction."

"Yeah, I can see how that," Jimin replied thoughtfully. "I think when everyone's so invested, it's easy for disagreements to escalate. Have you talked with your band about it yet? Not about your music, but the tension you guys are all feeling."

"That's the plan tonight. We're talking things out before we dive in again. Try to see what's really going on, and hopefully, it'll open space for us to perform together more cohesively."

Jimin nodded. "You want to come over to smoke after? So, you have something fun to look forward to?"

Taehyung looked over at Jimin, smiling. "Ah, Jimin-ah. My favorite non-smoking ally."

Jimin laughed, shrugging. "Look, I'm not a smoker but I love a good nap on a couch. You smoke, I nap; it's a beautiful friendship combination."

Taehyung snorted. "Sounds beautiful, but I can't tonight. I think the guys and I are going to be working this out all night. Hopefully, we can improvise together afterward to get back into it, so I think we'll be going until morning. But thanks, Jimin-ah. Next time, for sure."

Taehyung looked down at his phone and frowned at the time. "Damn, speaking of which, I should get going." He blinked. "Unless you want to come with me? I could use a buffer to ease into it."

Jimin slowly peeled himself off the couch. He looked out his studio window. The sun going down had cast the space in a deep golden light. "I can't tonight, Tae. I need to shower this charcoal and paint off me. Plus, it sounds like a band-member thing. I don't know how much help I'll be sipping whiskey in the corner. But call me if you need support or an excuse to leave the room. I'll keep my notifications on in case you do."