Autumn Leaves / Park Jimin fanfiction

11. More Than A Friend?

Appetence
An eager desire, an instinctive inclination; an attraction or a natural bond.

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I had been playing catch with Seojin the Pomeranian for the past 25 minutes as Jimin watched whilst packing his suitcase. I had originally come to help him but Seojin's cuteness was too much to handle and Jimin was more than capable of packing his own things, making me wonder why he had asked for my help in the first place?

"I'm starting to think you like Seojin's company more than mine," Jimin muttered as he finished packing his clothes into his suitcase.

"Who said I liked your company?" I giggle throwing the ball up for Seojin. Jimin scoffs, flinging himself down on the couch beside me in an exhausted heap. "If you didn't like my company you wouldn't have agreed to come round and help." I ignore his comment, sliding down onto the couch to sit beside him. I couldn't help thinking about what I'd found in his cupboard. The pills, the alcohol, the cigarettes. Was Jimin depressed, and I just wasn't seeing the signs? The thought fills me with dread. I had so many questions, so many things I wanted to say to him, but none of them seemed appropriate.

"Do you think we'll be given free time on the trip or will we have to trudge around art museums all day?" Jimin sighs, leaning his head back to expose his neck. I look away quickly, not wanting Jimin to catch me staring at the smooth skin for longer than would be deemed normal. "What's wrong with art museums?" I give Jimin a disgusted look.

"You're joking with me aren't you?" He raises an eyebrow, tilting his head to the side to lock his eyes onto mine. I look away for a second time in a bid to avoid his gaze. Instead I train them on Seojin. "Jimin you're an art student. How can you not enjoy art museums?" I ask in disbelief.

"I'm not an art student out of choice, you know." I raise my eyebrows in confusion. Ignoring the Pomeranian huddled at my feet, I shift my full attention onto Jimin. "What do you mean?"

"Well, I was originally taking dance. I was top of the class in fact but I sustained an injury to my knee. I didn't think it was serious at first so I continued dancing on it. Next thing I know the doctor is telling me I can't dance again and I had the choice of either joining art class or a foreign language class," he shrugged. The more I learnt about Jimin, the more I realised he isn't who I had initially thought he was.

"I'm so sorry." I gaze down at my lap, unsure of what else to say. "It's fine, it's not your fault," a sullen look overcomes him all of a sudden, but he hides it immediately, "I guess you'll have to teach me how to love art." He gives me a weak smile, but it doesn't hide the sadness that had built up in his eyes. I feel his pain in my chest, I know what it's like to lose something you love. My mind races to change the subject. "Do you happen to know someone called Hoseok, or he said his friends call him Hobi?" I inquire, hopeful that it'd cheer up Jimin's mood, but his nose scrunches up slightly at my question.

"He used to be in my dance class, I know that much," he responds in a casual manner, but I can't help feeling like he was hiding something. "Oh, okay," I trail off, scratching at my head, deciding it was probably best to avoid the entire subject of dance.

"Why do you ask?" He searches me for an answer, his eyes narrowing as if he was trying to read my mind. "I just met him the other day that's all, I knew he was taking a dance course so assumed you two might be friends." Jimin simply nods his head before picking Seojin up in his arms rubbing his nose against the dogs.

"I've never seen you around university before Autumn. Not even at any of the parties." He abruptly moves on from Hobi, but I decide to ignore it. "I don't like parties," I repeat the same words I had told Yoongi earlier this week. Why was everyone so obsessed with going out and getting drunk? "I'll soon change that." He has a mischievous glint in his eye as he carries on. "So who do you hang out with? Any friends? Boyfriend?"

"I don't have a boyfriend." I cut him off quickly, pushing Taehyung to the back of my mind. I'd become so accustomed to people knowing me and Taehyung were dating that now it almost felt odd to not mention him. "I have a friend, Min Yoongi." I smile thinking about him but it soon disappears as I think about the cold note we left on the last time we spoke, and I instantly wish I hadn't told Jimin about him. "Yeah, you mentioned him on the phone yesterday. I've never heard of him though," he shrugs.

Not many people had.

"No other friends?" he questions, trying to dig for more information. I was embarrassed to admit it but I couldn't lie to him, he would find out eventually. "Yeah just me and him. We get on better when it's just the two of us." I catch myself smiling as I talk about him, a smile that could be read as something more.

"Sounds like more than a friend to me." Jimin leans back into the couch so I could no longer see his face. "Nothing more, I promise." I lean back with him as I watch Seojin fall asleep on his lap.

"You'll have to introduce me to him." Jimin sighed, my eyes widening as I panicked.