Mr.Park & I || JiKook

Chapter 17 • Guilt

"What are you pouting about?"

Yoongi asked, amused at the sight of his elder friend, who had the similar expression of a child that had just been told no. Seokjin could only sigh, gathering his stuff and putting it away in his desk.

There was no way he was going to admit that he was a little gloomy because he didn't get to see Namjoon that day. How sad was that?

"I was about to head out for some food with Jimin, want to come?" The younger male asked, just wanting to hang with his two friends for a bit before heading home to nap and then nap some more. The day had been a little odd and stressful if he was being honest.

Seokjin looked at his phone once more, seeing no notifications and scoffed slightly. How dare Namjoon make him wait, he thought before he slipped the phone into his pocket.

"I could eat," the elder said, Yoongi smiling slightly in response, walking away with Seokjin a couple steps behind him before catching up next to him.

"Jimin is already in the car, we'll be taking mine," Yoongi said, glad to have his car back after what seemed like forever but really couldn't have been more than a couple days but he was just that dramatic, not as dramatic as Seokjin but enough.

"Chimmy!" Seokjin said cheerfully, noticing the youngest of the three sitting in the passenger seat with a dazed expression on his face, not noticing that he was being talked to.

Seokjin and Yoongi got into the car with Yoongi on the wheel and the eldest in the back, Jimin still out of it amusing both males. Yoongi finally flicked the youngest male in the forehead, finally breaking him out of his trance and blushing afterward.

"Sorry, ugh- I was thinking of ugh- stuff," Jimin excused himself lately.

"Stuff? I thought his name was Jungkook?"

"Shut up and drive already!"

* * *

They were in the car for a good twenty minutes, discussing their day and plans for the week before Yoongi pulled into the parking lot of a familiar small cafe.

They all smiled, a nostalgic feeling hitting them all strong and everything just seemed normal for once.

The cafe wasn't anything really special, but it had been the three males haven during the difficulties of high school and college to just take a breather. Despite it not being popular with the youth, it did get a lot of elderly clientele. Better for them though, they preferred not running into anyone they knew there anyway.

"The last one in has to pay!" Seokjin said, before bolting out of the car with Jimin following in seconds with a giggle.

Yoongi sighed but couldn't help but smile.

"These idiots."

* * *

Namjoon paced back and forth in his room, he thought of what Taehyung had said just an hour earlier and couldn't wrap his head around it.

He always noticed everything, but why not this? He always knew when his friends were happy or sad. Namjoon had always tried to make sure they were always happy and did their very best. He felt like a father to them sometimes but he couldn't help it.

How had he not noticed his friend in pain, and for so long?

Namjoon groaned before tossing himself and bed, he looked at his ceiling, before finally grabbing his phone and saw he had three notifications.

Jungkook, Taehyung, and Jin.

Jin!

Namjoon suddenly sat up, reading the male teacher's concerned texts and felt guilty instantly. He instantly apologized and hoped Seokjin wouldn't be too mad at him.

He proceeded to open Jungkook's message who wanted to know if Taehyung was okay and text from Taehyung asking to talk later. The silver-haired male bit his cheek, not knowing how to answer Jungkook but having no choice but to lie and blame some nonexistent issue in Taehyung's outburst.

He then answered Taehyung with a quick "of course!" before throwing his phone to the side once more.

Namjoon thought of the car ride back home with Hoseok, who was seemingly quiet the whole time which made the elder male worry. He honestly didn't know if Hoseok had heard anything and was too scared to ask, not knowing if the red-headed male would push him to spill if he knew Namjoon was hiding something.

The truth was, Namjoon hoped that no matter what, at the end they would all still be best friends.

* * *

"Taehyung is in love with me."

Hoseok thought over and over. He wanted to convince himself that he had heard wrong, considering Taehyung had whispered it but he knew he heard right.

Hoseok felt his eyes sting with tears, which he quickly brushed off. He couldn't help but feel an overwhelming sense of guilt overtake him.

He had put Taehyung through so much pain. He felt so stupid, recalling all the times he had gushed about Mr.Min to his younger friend, being oblivious to his feelings the whole time.

Hoseok felt his eyes tear up once more and this time he didn't wipe them away and let them run down his cheeks freely. He felt like an awful person.

Could he even act the same around Taehyung anymore? The last thing he wanted to lose him from his life completely.

Hoseok recalled having a crush on Taehyung the first couple years of their friendship, only to realize that it was probably just a silly fantasy and let it go. How was he supposed to know that Taehyung felt the same? Since when? And why?

Hoseok questioned his feelings for Mr.Min right then and there, he didn't even know what he didn't know. He honestly just wanted to forget the whole thing.

"Who needs feelings anyway, what if I wanted to be a duck?" Hoseok said to himself sadly, before covering himself with his covers and forcing himself to fall asleep, wanting to postpone his problems for later. Even if it was just for a little bit.