The Hoax

15

Days passed and still Yoongi hadn't come to a conclusion on what he wanted to do. His indecision stressed him out and he couldn't eat or sleep properly. What really should be an easy choice was driving him crazy and that made him even more angry with himself.

He tried weighing both potential relationships in his mind, assigning mental pros and cons to each.

Jungkook was a breath of fresh air, bringing amusement and new experiences into Yoongi's life. The boy challenged him through each and every step, making him question his preexisting thoughts and convictions. No one pushed him like Jungkook did, and although he acted utterly inconvenienced by it, he truly appreciated the younger's provocations.

Jimin, on the other hand, had been through a lot with Yoongi. The two shared a history together, one that still meant a lot to the elder. Should he just forget about all of those months? Should he put aside the love he had for Jimin in exchange for something unproven and risky?

Hoseok and Namjoon tried to cheer him up, offering their advice and never ending support. They didn't pressure him to make up his mind faster, nor did they ask for constant updates. They simply let him be as he worked through everything on his own.

Taehyung called Yoongi after a week, wanting to know what the hell had happened between him and Jungkook. He informed the elder that his intern was dejected and uncommunicative at the gallery, devoid of his usual jokes and upbeat behavior. Taehyung point-blank asked if the two were broken up, to which Yoongi replied that they were never really together in the first place.

After a week or so without talking to either Jungkook or Jimin, the answer became painfully obvious to Yoongi. His thoughts strayed to one person alone, consuming his consciousness each and every single moment. The fibres of his body longed to hold and be held by this one person.

There was just one person he needed in order to feel whole again. He was stupid for not seeing things clearly from the get go, but he was going to right everything now.

Yoongi sent out a text, asking its recipient to meet him at a nearby park. He decided to get there early, walking around in an attempt to calm his nerves. As someone who did not like the unknown, Yoongi wanted to get all of his jitters and uncertainty out before he could effectively discuss his future. But by the time he spotted the boy he asked to meet him, a nervous energy still ran through his system.

"Hi," Yoongi said quite lamely as he approached, tracing over the younger's features.

Doubtful eyes met his own.

"Hi," Jimin responded quietly, shifting his weight back and forth as he stood there.

Yoongi took a shaky breath, not quite sure how to start. "How have you been?"

"If you're going to turn me down, I'd much rather you get it over with."

"Jimin . . . I don't want to turn you down," the elder responded, "but I also can't accept."

Jimin stared at him. "For someone who is typically blunt, that is a really vague answer. Do you want to get back together or not? Do you still love me, yes or no?"

Yoongi rubbed a hand over his neck, hating the apprehension in the younger's eyes. "I'll always love you, Jimin. But I don't want to get back together. I think you were right all those months ago. We were complacent. We reached a plateau. You and I were so comfortable that we never tried to challenge each other. If you asked me a few months ago, I would've told you we didn't need to change, but life is boring without change."

Tears came to Jimin's eyes as he nodded his head, wordless and otherwise unresponsive.

"I'm sorry, Jimin. I really am," Yoongi added, wanting to alleviate the younger's obvious sadness. He knew there wasn't much he could do in the moment to help, however. Only time would help Jimin move on.

"I'm sorry, too. I'm sorry for breaking up with you in the first place and then for coming back into your life. You seemed really happy . . . I hope I didn't mess that up for you at all," Jimin stuttered out as he wiped his eyes.

"I did that for myself," Yoongi admitted sheepishly. "But don't worry about it."

The two awkwardly stood there for a while longer, unsure of where to go from here. Yoongi wasn't sure if he was supposed to ask to remain friends. Maybe that'd work in the future, but he thought space would benefit both of them right now. Seeing Jimin torn up still made him sad, but Yoongi refrained from reaching out to the younger.

They had to stand on their own now and learn to flourish without the other.

"I'm going to go now," the younger murmured as he started to back away. "Good luck, Yoongi."

"Bye, Jimin. Good luck."

Yoongi didn't watch him go. As soon as Jimin backed away, he was already running to his next destination.

The art gallery loomed in front of him a short while later, a lot quieter than the last time he saw it. He entered the building, meandering through the rooms as he searched for Jungkook. But every exhibit he entered was void of the boy.

Eventually, Yoongi gave up. Maybe Jungkook had left for the day or was doing some task outside of the gallery. He decided to go find Taehyung, thinking he was past due on filling his friend in on the situation.

He hadn't seen him while circling the gallery, so he went up to Taehyung's office. That was empty as well. Maybe today just wasn't his day for additional confrontations.

Before he left, Yoongi found his way to the Starry Night painting. He recalled what Jungkook quoted all those weeks ago: I don't know anything with certainty, but seeing the stars makes me dream.

Jungkook made Yoongi dream. He didn't want to give up on that potential.

With a sigh, he started finding his way to the exit. Soft voices murmured around him as he entered a relatively empty room, eyes falling on a couple huddled together. Yoongi realized a little belatedly one of the people was Taehyung, so he was a little shocked when his friend was roughly pressed into the wall.

Yoongi chuckled to himself, glad his friend was finally getting some romantic attention.

Though that sentiment went out the window when Taehyung quickly reversed his position with the other person, revealing Jungkook.

Taehyung's face moved dangerously close to Jungkook's, and Yoongi stood frozen, watching in horror. All blood drained from his face and his limbs locked up. His heart stopped working and he stopped breathing.

So this was what heartbreak really felt like.

Jungkook looked up then and made eye contact with Yoongi. The elder breathed heavily, trying to gain composure.

But he failed. Tears filled his eyes and spilled down his cheeks.

And Jungkook remained in Taehyung's arms.

Yoongi fled blindly. He took shallow and shakey breaths as he put as much space between him and that gallery as possible.

No one chased after him.