Pathways

History of Whispers

Jungkook had graduated and the event itself had been as normal and plain as any other graduation, his parents came to see him and take him out for dinner. They told him that he looked good, that they were proud he was healthy and maintaining his shape. Jungkook guessed they were somewhat curious if he had any intention of moving back to Busan. He didn't.

Some of the boys showed up to support him, as well. Jimin dragged Yoongi to the festivities while Hoseok tagged along. It had been a quiet and normal day all in all. He could honestly say that he had fun. He did agree to go back to Busan for a couple of days just to appease his parents and see his relatives but the trip was also a bit of a nuisance since the boys couldn't celebrate with a party as they had initially planned. Actually, their plans slowly became a constant rain check. None of them had any free time as soon as summer started.

The maknae took on full hours at a small PR company, dealing with video commercials and various other media projects and it was a good start to make money. He had been excited by the initial internship and glad to be called on board afterward. He barely had time to think about anything else rather than settling a routine that could provide him with maximum efficiency.

Namjoon had been sympathetic and helpful in defining his new schedule, having delivery food ready for him when he got home, or cleaning the apartment here and there. He had been writing for days on end, pressured by his editor and his deadline had to be met so he was mostly at the apartment anyway.

The main reason why they all couldn't get together had also been the fact that Yoongi and Seokjin were busy as soon as summer started with Jin recommending Min Yoongi as a score composer on whatever project he worked on. Film score was a side passion for Yoongi but it also got him more exposure in the field as he continued producing at his normal rate for rappers and kpop artists.

Although they had met in smaller groups from time to time, they refused to have a party without Jin who had been shooting and promoting abroad with a variety of Indie Film Festivals held all over Asia and Europe that kept him away from Korea.

Therefore, summer passed without all of them being able to gather around the same table, Jimin being the most annoyed with the universal lack of free time. Whenever three or four of them met, he complained loudly that they needed a vacation together and away from Seoul. They threw around ideas like going to Jeju or Tokyo but everybody knew Jimin's true desire was to go back to Italy since an entire year had passed since he last saw Taehyung. However, finances and schedules did not permit a spontaneous trip to Europe and Yoongi that had the tightest working hours out of all.

Also, there was the minor detail that Dae hadn't been invited or included in any of their talks and that could have proven to be another potential (or most likely, certain) problem. Therefore, all the discussions remained only that: discussions, none of the boys actually having time to spare or make it happen.

Taehyung only came up when discussing this potential, make-believe trip but nobody noticed how Yoongi stared at Jungkook when the exiled boy's name was brought up. Nobody noticed except for Jungkook who could instantly feel a pair of curious eyes tracking his every breath. He remained quiet. It became easier and easier to deal with the mention of Tae's name since the memories were more distant with each passing day.

The only bit of new information he got about Tae was that he was traveling a lot for his work. He had been to Paris, Brussels, Barcelona, London, and New York. And, if he was to believe Hoseok, since Jimin didn't have the details, Tae had refused a temporary project in Seoul.

Jungkook had been a bit angry with that when he found out. Tae slipped the info while talking to Hobi over the phone one evening and the very next day, Hoseok told Yoongi while also asking for his advice on whether he should tell Jimin or not. As if Yoongi was a true Jimin connoisseur and had a deeper understanding of the boy's psychology, which was not extremely far fetched. Yoongi and Jimin often ended each other's sentences or immediately picked up whatever the other was trying to explain.