𝐁𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐧 (𝑇𝑎𝑒𝑔𝑔𝑢𝑘) ✓

♦THIRTY♦

"It been a while since we've all gone here, together," Hoseok said, trying to smile.

A week had passed since Jeongguk broke up with Taehyung, and all of the other shit before that went down. Now Jeongguk, Jimin, and Hoseok were all having lunch at an old restaurant they used to go to in their freshmen years; acting like everything was normal even though tensions were in the air.

Hoseok was extremely confused ever since Jeongguk started sitting with them at lunch again. Hoseok had assumed that the two boys had talked things out and everything was back to normal, but Hoseok also seemed to notice to a bit of tension between them, but also something else.

Affection.

To be honest, Jeongguk didn't know what he was doing. He and Jimin hadn't done anything more than kiss that night, but it also hadn't meant anything to Jeongguk. Jimin thought that Jeongguk liked him, and he thought that there was finally something between them, but Jeongguk used him as a distraction.

Jeongguk felt guilty about it since he was practically toying with his friend. But he needed something to forget, something that reminded him of the one thing he wanted.

And Jimin was just that.

"Yeah, it's nice to go out like this again," Jimin said, looking over at Jeongguk. The younger expected to feel his heart flutter, his stomach drop, or even a smile creeping its way onto his lips.

But instead, he felt nothing.

Jeongguk smiled back, though it didn't reach his eyes. These past few days he's felt completely numb, and he's been using Jimin to fill up that void.

"Remember the dumplings here? They tasted like literal heaven!" Hoseok exclaimed, still trying to be positive.

"Yeah" Jeongguk replied. The three boys sat there, not sure of what to say next. It was awkward, and none of them knew what to say after that.

They ordered their dumplings and talked a bit, but Jeongguk was out of it. He tried hard to hide it, but Hoseok could see right through him. Hoseok didn't know what was wrong exactly, only that he wanted to help him. Jimin noticed something was off too, but he decided to ask him later when they were alone.

"I'll be right back guys," Hoseok said, standing up. He said he was going to use the bathroom, and Jimin nodded in reply, while Jeongguk was still quiet.

"Hey, are you alright?" Jimin asked once he was sure he and Jeongguk were completely alone. "You seem kind of off."

"Yeah, I'm fine" Jeongguk lied "just tired. I didn't get a lot of sleep last night, that's all."

Jimin didn't buy it, so he leaned in closer and asked quietly: "are you sure?"

Jeongguk went quiet. He didn't want to talk about Taehyung, but he didn't want to keep lying either. Before Jeongguk knew it, Jimin had placed his hand on his head gently, running his fingers along with his locks. 

"Well, whatever it is, you know I'm here for you, right?" Jimin spoke. 

"Yeah, I know" Jeongguk replied. He wished this would make him feel better, that his heart would flutter and he could take it as an opportunity to kiss the older.

But instead, it made him feel worse.

Jimin used his hand to grab Jeongguk's hand, squeezing it reassuringly. The difference in the size of their fingertips was amazing, with Jimin's hand being incredibly tiny while the younger's were skinny and large.

Jimin looked to see Hoseok coming back, to which he immediately took his hand away from Jeongguk's head. But he kept holding his hand under the table, where Hoseok couldn't see.