Just - MAP OF THE SOUL 7

Black Swan

In this chapter, the POV alternates.

Jungkook POV

The kiss ended slower this time, leaving a lingering warmth that felt impossible to shake. Our breaths mingled in the cool night air, but neither of us moved away. For a moment, everything felt suspended in time—just him, me, and the quiet hum of something unspoken finally being acknowledged.

I pulled back slightly, just enough to look into his eyes. "Hyung," I murmured, my voice still rough with the emotions tumbling inside me. "Can we talk?"

Jin blinked, his cheeks flushed and lips still swollen. He nodded hesitantly, his hands slipping from my shoulders as he composed himself. "Yeah. Let's go."

We left the table and made our way back to the garden, the silence between us heavy but not uncomfortable. The stars overhead cast a faint glow, and the soft rustling of leaves accompanied us as we settled back onto the cushions. I adjusted myself to face him directly, my chest tightening with anticipation.

Jin opened his mouth, as if to speak first, but I raised a hand, stopping him gently. "Hyung," I said, taking a deep breath, "please... let me go first."

He hesitated before nodding, his expression unreadable but open. The look in his eyes gave me the courage I needed to start.

"I don't even know where to begin," I admitted with a small, nervous laugh, rubbing the back of my neck. "This... these feelings... they've been with me for so long that I'm not sure I can explain them right. But I need to try."

He didn't say anything, just watched me closely, his gaze steady and attentive. It was enough to make my chest tighten even more.

"Hyung, I've liked you for years. I mean... really liked you. It started back when I was younger, and I didn't even understand it myself. I thought it was just admiration at first, or maybe some kind of hero worship because you were... well, you were you. Handsome, talented, confident... everything I thought I wasn't."

My voice wavered, but I pushed through, determined to lay everything bare. "But then it grew into something more. Something I couldn't ignore, no matter how hard I tried. And believe me, I tried. I told myself it was wrong, that it would ruin everything—our friendship, the group, everything we'd built together."

I looked down at my hands, fidgeting slightly. "So I buried it. I hid it so deep that I thought I'd killed it. But it never went away. It just... lingered. Every time you smiled at me, every time you touched my shoulder or laughed at one of my stupid jokes, it came back, stronger than ever."

Jin's face was unreadable, his expression caught somewhere between shock and something else I couldn't quite place. I pressed on, my voice growing steadier with every word.

My gaze softened, my voice lowering. "But...everything changed that day..." I stopped and looked at him, he looked at me attentively, but his eyes carried a sweetness that made me want to stop talking and kiss him non-stop. "The day you looked at me more than usual... that day in the hotel when you sat on my lap."

I watched as his brow furrowed slightly, the memory flickering across his face. "Your reaction...It was small. Barely anything, maybe, to anyone else. But for me..." My breath hitched. "For me, that was the moment I had hope. For the first time in all these years, I let myself believe there could be something more between us."

I paused, glancing down before continuing. "When I told the boys, they thought I was delusional - again."

"Wait, what boys?" He interrupted me, clearly curious.