The Bet - Masters of Puppetry » Jikook

서른여섯

Part Thirty-Six
"You saved me."
       
        
They were holding each other in the dark. Only the moonlight shined through the shutters of Jin's home, illuminating the outlines of their tangled bodies. Lying nose to nose, Jungkook was running his fingers through his boyfriend's blue hair when he whispered, "I'm so sorry what happened today, Jimin-ah. I was really hoping for you to finally find closure. You deserve it so much. I can't stand seeing you like this."

Because all Jimin did was cry. He hadn't spoken for hours either.

Today's events had obviously hit him hard.

That only encouraged the younger even more to whisper sweet nothings to Jimin, to huddle up against him. Jungkook tried hard to cheer him up somehow and although it seemed as if it didn't work, he actually knew Jimin would've been much more devastated without him here. The brunet had become a master in picking up the elder's broken fragments of his self. He knew exactly what to say and how to deal with Jimin in order to make him feel less damaged.

Without hurrying, Jungkook planted gentle kisses all over his boyfriend's face, making his heart swell. His nose, his cheeks, forehead, chin and lips, every spot was showered with love.

Jimin, on the other hand, was holding onto the younger for dear life. Jungkook's shirt was wrinkled due to his tight grip and drenched with tears. The blue-haired didn't know what he would do if the younger wasn't by his side right now. How had he even managed all these years without Jungkook's backing?

The mere thought of a life without him made Jimin tear up again.

"I'm so in love with you," the brunet said unexpectedly, his husky voice filling the little space between their faces. "Nothing has changed, okay? In fact, I think I'm falling more and more in love with you every day."

Listening to the other's comforting words, Jimin started sobbing even harder. He squinted his eyes shut as hot tears rolled down his wet cheeks, landing on Jungkook's skin in the end. They were sharing each other's pain. They were proving their love. Looking back, the two men had always shared the rough and the smooth, from the very beginning.

And it didn't stop now.

"You saved me," Jimin finally spoke up after hours of silence, cupping his boyfriend's face. His voice was so weak, it was hardly audible. Jungkook understood him nonetheless. He would always understand.

"No, don't give me any credit for this," he then replied. "This was all you, love. You survived because you're strong, not because of me. You saved yourself before we even met. Don't you ever forget that."

"I may have survived on my own, but you have given me a reason to go on, to live," Jimin breathed, sniffling. "I was a dead inside my shell until you entered my life and gave color to my blank canvas."

Jungkook smiled widely at his boyfriend's poetic words before he gave him a long, heart-stopping kiss on the lips as a way of telling him that he felt the same way. Before Jimin, the brunet had been like a stray. He had roamed all kinds of places and had got involved with the worst people in town, yearning for a feeling of belonging. There were so many things he had done that he wasn't proud of, things he regretted badly today. Jimin was his only exception. He would never regret having settled down for him. Not ever.

"I love you," Jungkook whispered when he pulled back slightly. The smile playing around his lips in the meantime translated just how much he did.