LIMIT ° you . kth . jjk [18+]

final

[ jungkook ]

One month, that was exactly how long it had been since their conversation at the park. To say it felt like his heart had exploded into a confetti of butterflies when the older girl returned his feelings was an understatement. The sky that had paled into a dull orange was suddenly invigorated with hues of yellow and purple, painting the afternoon in a fiery palette that mirrored the swirling mass of emotions colliding in his brain. 

Jeon Jungkook had managed to side-step the curse of the second lead and actually won the affections of the girl who had only seen him as a friend for the past three years. It was a reality even he could hardly comprehend. After he dropped her off, the muscles of his legs grew frail and withered like a decaying branch of a tree, and he walked home like a drunk man on the verge of collapse. In fact, he probably did trip and stumble a few more times than he would like to admit. Everything had faded into a blur of colorful lights and only sleep would rejuvenate wearied cells.

Unfortunately (or maybe, fortunately) no matter how much he slept, Jungkook would always awaken with a giddy smile quirking against his puffy cheeks. 

It seemed like the honeymoon phase hadn't ended yet. Of course, he never wanted it to end in the first place.

Going to school was a challenge to say the least. Song Ahreum had made such a fool of herself in the beginning years, that the permanent label of 'Taehyung's stalker' was nailed to her back. No amount of hand-holding or public hugging seemed to shake it off. Fortunately, she didn't seem to care much as long as Taehyung kept his distance - which he did, surprisingly.

It was strange. He, Taehyung, and the rest of the boys had been inseparable from the start of the school year. They were that one group of friends others envied for having such a fraternal bond. Despite their age differences, with Namjoon and Seokjin somehow refusing to graduate even though their grades permitted them to, they were thicker than blood and closer than atoms. 

And then suddenly they weren't.

Jungkook supposed this was just how life went. Even glue would cool and dry as time passed, so why wouldn't relationships? It was a shame. He hoped to graduate with all of them by his side, and though Ahreum hadn't forbade him from hanging out with his friends, it was a painful smile that curved on her lips, that prevented him from meeting with them. Granted, he was sure she had nothing against them. Not all of them at least. Only the most problematic one. 

There was something she refused to tell him about Taehyung and whatever it was, Jungkook didn't want to pry in fear that he would be flung into a murderous rage if he found out the truth. Granted, that thought didn't exactly mollify his worries either. All he could do was keep his distance for her sake. 

Alright, that was a lie. He did it for himself as well. It was like his fist had been turned into a magnet, all too tempted to meet its opposite pole, lodged in Taehyung's jaw. Whatever the male had done to Ahreum was something she did not want to remember, and Jungkook reluctantly complied to her wishes. 

School days were strained. The seven boys found themselves caught in a cold war neither Jungkook nor Taehyung would verbally acknowledge. Three would sit with one, while the other two accompanied the latter. They would swap and switch depending on their moods, but even the most optimistic of the bunch knew that their tight-knit friendship had already tumbled down like a house of cards built on rocky foundation. 

Surprisingly, Ahreum took it the worst, blaming herself for the plunging chasm that divided them. It seemed like she only carried worries on her back and the younger male was determined to extinguish all her grievances, no matter how much his heart wanted to join all the corroded links of their past friendship together.  (Granted, he would've been fine if one particular chain rusted to nothingness.)