THE BREAKFAST CLUB

13

"um, so i was just thinking," says namjoon. "i mean, i know it's kind of a weird time, but i was just wondering, um, what's gonna happen to us on monday? when we're all together again? i mean i consider you guys my friends, i'm not wrong, am i?"

"no..." jungkook shakes his head.

namjoon nods. "so on monday... what happens?"

"are we still friends, you mean?" asks jimin. "if we're friends now, that is?"

"yeah..."

"do you want the truth?" jimin raises his eyebrows.

"yeah, i want the truth..."

"i don't think so..."

hoseok chews his lip. "well, do you mean all of us or just yoongi?"

"with all of you..." jimin says.

"that's a real nice attitude, jimin!" jungkook narrows his eyes at the older.

jimin rolls his eyes. "oh, be honest, jungkook-ah...if namjoon hyung came walking up to you in the hall on monday, what would you do? i mean–picture this, you're there with all the sports. i know exactly what you'd do, you'd say hi to him and when he left you'd cut him all up so your friends wouldn't think you really liked him!"

jungkook shakes his head furiously. "no way!"

hoseok nods. "okay, what if i came up to you?"

"same exact thing!" jimin exclaims.

yoongi, furious, jabs a finger in jimin's direction. "you are an asshole!" he screams.

jimin glares. "why? 'cause i'm telling the truth, that makes me an asshole?"

"no! 'cause you know how shitty that is to do to someone! and you don't got the balls to stand up to your friends and tell them that you're gonna like who you wanna like!"

jimin sits up. "okay, what about you, you hypocrite? why don't you take hoseok to one of your heavy metal vomit parties? or take namjoon out to the parking lot at lunch to get high? what about jungkook for that matter, what about me? what would your friends say if we were walking down the hall together. they'd laugh their asses off and you'd probably tell them you were doing it with me so they'd forgive you for being seen with me."

"don't you ever talk about my friends!" yoongi spits. "you don't know any of my friends, you don't look at any of my friends and you certainly wouldn't condescend to speak to any of my friends so you just stick to the things you know, shopping, your father's bmw and your poor-rich-drunk mother in the caribbean!"

sobbing, jimin pleads. "shut up!"

"and as far as being concerned about what's gonna happen when you and i walk down the hallways at school, you can forget it! 'cause it's never gonna happen! just bury your head in the sand...and wait for your fuckin' prom!"

"i hate you!" jimin screams, tears streaming down his red face.

"yeah? good!"

there is silence until namjoon speaks.

"then i assume hoseok and i are better people than you guys, huh? us weirdos..." he turns to face hoseok. "do you, would you do that to me?"

"i don't have any friends..." hoseok says quietly.

"well, if you did?"

"no," he shakes his head. "i don't think the kind of friends i'd have would mind..."

namjoon faces the others again, a defiant look on his face. "i just wanna tell, each of you, that i wouldn't do that... i wouldn't and i will not! 'cause i think that's real shitty..."

sniffling, jimin chuckles weakly. "your friends wouldn't mind because they look up to us..."

namjoon laughs at him. "you're so conceited, jimin. you're so conceited. you're so, like, full of yourself, why are you like that?"

jimin reddens. "i'm not saying that to be conceited! i hate it! i hate having to go along with everything my friends say!"

"well, then why do you do it?"

jimin lowers his head, shaking it in disagreement. "i don't know, i don't... you don't understand...you don't. you're not friends with the same kind of people that jungkook and i are friends with. you know, you just don't understand the pressure that they can put on you!"

namjoon gapes. "i don't understand what? you think i don't understand pressure, jimin-ah? well, fuck you! fuck you!" he buries his head in his arm to hide the tears. "know why i'm here today? do you? i'm here because mr. lee found a gun in my locker..."

"why'd you have a gun in your locker?" jungkook asks.

namjoon chews his lip, smiling sadly. "i tried. you pull the fucking trunk on it and the light's supposed to go on... and it didn't go on, i mean, i–"

"what's the gun for, namjoon hyung?"

"just forget it..."

"you brought it up, man!"

"i can't have an F, i can't have it and i know my parents can't have it! even if i aced the rest of the semester, i'm still only a B. and everything's ruined for me!"

"oh, namjoon hyung..." jimin murmurs, pity laced in his voice.

"so i considered my options, you know?"

"no! killing yourself is not an option!" jimin exclaims.

"well, i didn't do it, did i? no, i don't think so!"

"it was a hand gun?" hoseok asks.

namjoon shakes his head. "no, it was a flare gun, went off in my locker."

jungkook stifles a laugh. "really?"

namjoon frowns. "it's not funny..."

they all start to laugh, including namjoon.

"yes it is... fucking elephant was destroyed!" namjoon chuckles.

"you wanna know what i did to get in here?" asks hoseok. "nothing... i didn't have anything better to do."

everyone laughs harder.

"you're laughing at me..."

jungkook shakes his head, but cannot stop the laughter. "no!"

hoseok starts to laugh too. "yeah you are!"