A Fractured Mind | 민윤기

Three

5 March 2018

Jimin didn't feel the slightest bit of guilt for his excitement pertaining to the study session with Victoria that awaited him after school. In Econ, she paid attention while he dozed off or played games on his phone. The real fun started when she flashed him a smile as the bell rang and led him to her car.

Her apartment was a nice size, but nowhere near as big as Jimin and Yoongi's. He figured she must have a roommate, but nobody was there when they walked in.

"Welcome to my humble abode," she joked and gestured to the couch. "Have a seat. I'll pour us some drinks before we get to it."

Jimin smiled and did as told. "Thank you."

"What's your poison?" she called from the kitchen.

He thought about it for a second. It had been a while since he'd had anything to drink. "Whiskey?"

"Park Jimin, I like your style." The smirk in her voice was clear.

To keep the conversation going, he continued while clasping his hand together in his lap. "You mix? Like Jack and coke?"

A sigh left her and he thought he said something wrong until she responded. "Here's what I've found works best." She had already pulled out a bottle and began pouring it into two glasses. "Step one: pour eight ounces of jack into a cup." She screwed the cap back on the bottle and put it away. "Step two: pour the coke down the sink." Jimin smirked as she made her way over to him. "Step three: drink the jack." He accepted the glass from her happily as she returned the smile and sat beside him. "Rinse and repeat."

Jimin swirled the alcohol around in the glass a bit. "Are you trying to get me drunk?"

"For starters," she mumbled before taking a sip. He felt his cheeks burn at this, but he was secretly loving the attention.

Now, Jimin was a heavy drinker. He'd almost forgotten how much he missed the sweet taste of the whiskey and the honey-like aftertaste that burned his mouth so good. A long content sigh escaped his lips at the first drink, and he found himself knocking back the whole thing as if it were a shot.

Victoria watched with an amused expression. He gazed back at her, suddenly aware of his actions. "Sorry."

She shook her head with a smile and stood. "No, no. Like I said before: I like your style." She winked at him and followed suit, downing the glass. "I mean what's the point of one glass of whiskey anyway? I retain information better when I'm hammered."

Jimin watched her walk to the kitchen and grab the bottle of jack before bringing it to the table. He began to feel the familiar feeling. Lightheaded and a bit dizzy but still in control. He wanted more.

"Alright," she said as she set it down on the glass between them. "Let's study, shall we?"

As the words left her mouth, the door's alarm clicked and in walked a handsome guy who was clearly very young. His face wasn't much unlike Victoria's—he was clearly somewhat foreign. But even Jimin found his mouth going dry at the sight of the boy. He was very attractive.

Victoria furrowed her eyebrows. "Vernonie? What are you doing here? I thought Soonyoung was—"

"He was," the kid cut her off and closed the door before tossing his jacket onto one of the kitchen barstools. "But I think he was tripping on something and it got really weird so I dipped." His caramel eyes that were perhaps a shade darker than Victoria's with a green tint flickered to Jimin questioningly.

She raised her eyebrows. "Oh—Vernonie, this is my friend Jimin. Jimin, this is my little brother Vernon." He couldn't control the relief that flooded him when she mentioned he was her brother.