Take on Me

9

¤ Surprise Yourself
Jack Garrett ↲

Talk without a taint or hold
The doubts that should embrace your heart
The calm and chaos of your soul
You know you might surprise yourself

▪︎ ▪︎ ▪︎

Mid-afternoon on Thursday, Namjoon declared that the crew could finish early for the day. Everyone was elated, ready to get home early for once.

Everyone except Jungkook.

"You couldn't have let us go early when I didn't have to stick around?" He pouted, moping after Namjoon as the elder went to his truck. "Can I transfer my early dismissal to tomorrow?"

Namjoon rolled his eyes at him. "Appreciate what's given to you, Kook. Why don't you hang out with your old roommate before meeting up with that guy again?"

He huffed, earnestly wishing he could do just that. "Jimin doesn't get back to his dorm for another couple of hours. I'm gonna be stuck roaming around campus until then."

"Sorry, man," Namjoon said, not sounding apologetic at all. "But I gotta go and there are no other supervisors around today. And I can't have you and the guys messing something up."

"Fine, whatever." Jungkook eyed his friend as he pulled out a nice shirt and tie from his truck. "Seriously, Joon. What've you been doing? I've never seen you wear clothes like that since knowing you."

The elder tossed the items over his arm and spun to face Jungkook. "I'm going on a date."

"A date?" The younger asked with emphasis, eyes big and mouth gaping. "You're dating?"

"Why do you sound shocked? I'm a catch. Of course I date."

"You never talked about anyone, so I assumed you were single like the rest of us," Jungkook shrugged his shoulders. "Where are you meeting the lucky person?"

Namjoon shook his head as he started heading for the university gym. "Don't know. It's a surprise. I'll tell you about it tomorrow, okay? I have to shower."

"Oh!" The younger shouted happily. "Let me grab my stuff. I'll shower with you. You have that nice smelling shampoo."

They both headed towards the gym, Namjoon muttering on about how Jungkook would not be showering with him. Twenty minutes later and they were both clean and wearing fresh clothes. They parted ways, Namjoon going to his date and Jungkook wandering around until it was time to meet Taehyung.

It seemed like his feet had a mind of their own, taking him to the Art Department. While he'd been here frequently over the last couple of weeks, he hadn't been to the photography wing in a long time. So, taking a deep breath, Jungkook headed that way.

The halls here were both familiar and foreign. Memories resurfaced as he took in some of the blown up photos on the walls, highlighting the top students' work. He spent time looking at them all, recalling the countless hours he used to put into mastering his techniques. Many of these images were better than anything he ever captured, and seeing them made Jungkook wish to start up again.

Rounding a corner, he was presented with a colorful photo, rich blues and purples complimenting the image of a forested lake. The picture invoked a sense of peace within him, a calmness he hadn't felt in a while. It brought him back to the day he took this picture, which was one of his last before he dropped out.

His fingers traced over the glass, right above where his initials were imprinted.

"Yours?" A deep voice asked from beside him.