First Love // {yoonmin}

03 | The A Club

C H A P T E R   T H R E E 

"Even when I look away

I am still looking."

— Richard Siken

The siblings spoke in Busan satoori, quick and fiery, vowels shaped like bullets. Jimin's face was shadowed whilst Jinah dabbed his brow with a towel, delicate as a sunflower that was apologetic for how much sun it had received.

I tried to keep up but their conversation moved fast like cursive handwriting, difficult to separate into standard Korean. My own Daegu dialect had become diluted over the years but I still found myself slipping into it when I felt anxious or threatened.

"Stop worrying about me and focus on yourself," Jimin said to his sister, grabbing the towel. I turned away.

After taking my sweet time packing up the sound equipment, I said my goodbyes to the orchestra but Jimin noticed my deviation, breaking away from his sister and coming up to me. It had been a week since I'd given him the soundtrack CD as a gift and we'd been spending our breaks together, chatting about trivial stuff. It was funner than bearing the cold with the other smokers since he didn't smoke and it was only a stress habit for me.

It was weird. Jimin had a way of fishing opinions out of me, ones that I didn't even know myself. The way my tongue loosened around him terrified me because I wasn't used to talking about myself for long bouts of time, but he was a good listener and the frequent brush of his hand on mine caught my breath.

Jimin had one of those loud laughs, always funnier than the joke, the kid who set everybody else off, collapsing back, chin tipped, neck stretched, eyes shut tight as tears squeezed out of the corners. It was beautiful. I liked it best when his hand clapped my shoulder in explosive hilarity.

But it was the campfire of warmth in my chest that petrified me the most — pretending it didn't exist was my best bet right now.

"Yoongi-yah!" Namjoon was waving at me from the exit because we had to get to the club in Gangnam within an hour to set up before the night began.

"You're coming out tonight, right?" Jimin asked, eyes shrinking behind his smile. It was my favourite smile of his.

I turned around to look at Namjoon, letting out a groan. Seokjin must have invited all the main dancers to come to our night out in Gangnam. I guess he had point, it was so much easier working when you could enjoy the rest of night with friends instead of sleazy strangers and brooding bouncers.

"I haven't got a choice," I answered. "I'm working as one of the DJs for tonight."

Jimin instantly perked up. "You are?"

"Sadly."

"Then I'll be there." Jimin grinned, brushing my shoulder. The campfire inside me glowed. "I want to see you in your element."

I laughed, touching my hair. It was in desperate need of a trim. "It really isn't anything special."

"Well if it's anything compared to your skills here then I'm sure you'll set the night on fire."

I laughed again. "Whatever. I'll catch you later."

Jimin's hand brushed my shoulder again. "You can count on that."

Reluctant to say goodbye, I moved towards the exit without turning my back to him. Jimin grinned at me, only breaking eye contact when he was spun around by Hoseok who draped an arm around him and began cracking jokes that made Jimin throw his head back with hysterical laughter. I wanted to make him laugh that way but I didn't know any good jokes. Maybe I could ask Seokjin to teach me a few.