SONGS OF WINTER | pjm

04 | CLASSICAL

THE SOOTHING SOUND of delicately played piano keys filled the art studio, mixing in nicely with the cool light that streamed in from the floor to ceiling arched windows. along with the chilly air, the familiar notes of clair de lune wrapped around jimin as he worked at a large desk.

nala laid at his feet in a cozy bed that she seemed to enjoy sleeping in. glancing down at her when she let out a small sound in comfort before snuggling further into the bed, he grinned.

fingernail picking at one splotch of dried green paint on the cuff of the denim jacket he wore to keep himself warm, he let out a small sigh. "maybe i shouldn't have worn this while painting." he mumbled to himself. "ah, well, it has a little more character now." shrugging, he picked his pencil back up.

he'd only made a single stroke to continue the rough sketch of a painting he was planning to do when he heard his name being called.

turning around, he didn't bother to hide his surprise when he saw winter standing in the middle of his studio awkwardly. he hadn't really seen much of her in the last two days. he was trying to give her some distance as it became obvious to him that she really wasn't comfortable with him being in her space. yet, here she was in his.

"winter." he got on his feet, making sure to avoid bumping into the sleeping puppy. seeing her still slowed the air moving through his lungs and sped up the beating of his heart. jimin wasn't the type to not acknowledge his feelings or make excuses for his reaction to things or people. so he knew. he'd lived long enough to know why he felt like this. he had a crush on winter kain.

"are you here to pick nala up?" he asked, approaching her. "yes, i am." she answered with a nod. he glanced out the window behind her and slid the sleeve of his jacket up to look at his watch. "huh," his brows arched. "it's still pretty early." he stopped a little distance from her, knowing enough not to infringe on her personal space.

"fran forced me to close the shop early the moment everything sold out." she brushed her braids back. "why?" jimin caught himself smiling when he noticed patches of white in her brown hair. lately, it seemed like he rarely saw her without flour in her hair. his brows drew together when he took note of what she was wearing.

she slipped her hands into the pockets of her loose jeans. "she's of the opinion that i'm overworking myself. but i think she only wanted an excuse to get off work early." she sniffed.

"is that all you're wearing?" he asked, more worried about her than fran looking for a reason to get a break. she glanced down at the black t-shirt she had on and then back at him. "oh, i was hurrying to leave home early this morning that i didn't notice i hadn't taken my coat with me until i was halfway to the shopping district. but it's not—"

her words were lost when she watched him slip his jacket off to reveal more of the blue hoody he wore underneath. "here, wear this. it has some paint on the sleeves but it's not noticeable." he held it out to her, still making sure he did not cross the imaginary line he'd drawn between them. "that is not necessary. i can handle a little cold."

"take the jacket. just because your name is winter doesn't mean you're immune to it." he insisted, moving his arm in a gesture that said she should hurry. "uh, thank you." she mumbled, taking the jacket from him.

he waited for her to slip the jacket on over her t-shirt before turning around, pretending that seeing her in his clothes wasn't doing things to his chest. "nala's sleeping over there." he pointed to the little dog. "you got her a bed? you didn't have to." winter's voice carried a note of surprise. "oh, i didn't buy it. my friend has a toy poodle. he let me have the bed since the little guy has outgrown it. i thought it would make her more comfortable while she's with me."

"that's very kind." winter replied, unconsciously following him towards the desk at the other end of the studio. "you have a really nice place here." she commented softly. jimin glanced back at her to find her looking around.

the large space was painted a pristine white, save for the tiny splotches of paint that was splattered on one of the walls from when he forgot to cover it up before painting close to it.

the floor to ceiling windows on both ends and the clerestory windows that crowned the french doors on either side of the building flooded the studio with so much ambient natural light that it made the space feel much more open and almost ethereal. especially since they offered a spectacular view of the garden that surrounded the studio and the town beyond.

the windows allowed a lot of air to flow in and out of the studio so that the fumes from some of the paints that breathed lives of colour on his canvases did not suffocate him. jimin was more thankful for that than anything else.

his easels were scattered around with canvases of his completed works. only one held the piece he was still working on, hence the floor being covered with plastic drop cloth. some of his favourite paintings hung on the walls in an artful order.

eyes moving away from a painting of the night sky from a summer vacation he took with his friends two years ago, jimin smiled. "thank you. i do okay for myself. but why do you sound surprised?" he arched a brow at her in question.

"you could say that i am a bit surprised." winter replied honestly, meeting his eyes. looking away from her when his heart began to react to her gaze, he chuckled. "what? did you think i was a starving artist?" he stopped and leaned down to pick up the stirring puppy.

twisting around to catch a glimpse of her face when she didn't reply, he gasped. "oh my god, you did!" he straightened, fixing her with an accusatory stare. "i didn't—"

"you did! don't deny it! it's written all over your face." he whined, pointing at her in accusation. "i am sorry. since you always seemed to have a lot of time on your hands, i just thought business wasn't booming." she shrugged her shoulders. he smiled at the action. it was the most carefree gesture she'd ever made in front of him.

"maybe if you got to know me better, you'd find that that's not true." jimin handed nala – who was now wide awake and leaping for her owner – over to her.

he saw her smile, actually genuinely smile, when nala licked excitedly at her face. jimin captured the image in his mind. the way one corner of her mouth lifted higher than the other, causing the ghost of a dimple appear on one cheek as her eyes crinkled. and even though it lasted only a few seconds, it would play itself for years in his head.

"thank you for taking care of nala even though you're busy." she looked at him, her face returning to what jimin had come to know as her natural default expression. "it was my pleasure." he smiled softly.

"well then, goodbye, jimin." she pressed her lips together. "bye, winter." he replied with a small wave of his hand. he watched her turn and leave, wishing there was something – anything – he could do or say to make her stay a little longer. winter disappeared out the door without a single idea forming in jimin's mind.