what are you afraid of? the advertisement demands.
can you make it to the end of the virtual reality game that exploits your darkest, deepest fears and uses them against you?
jimin thinks he can, even though he is afraid of almost everything in th...
"...I...I don't know what to say to that..." The man places his head in his hands.
Jimin sighs, tracing the grains of the bench behind Radon. This night isn't so forgiving as the last night they were out here, when it was calm and they were bathed in moonlight. This night is muggy, mosquitos clinging to any area of Jimin that he isn't fast enough to swat at. The moon is but a crescent in the sky, illuminating little around them. They have to rely on the vague traces of artificial light from the strip mall in order to see each other. But Jimin isn't complaining. I'm glad it's dark. I don't want to see the look on Jinyoung's face right now.
"You don't have to say anything." Jimin assures Jinyoung. "I just don't feel the same way about you. I've tried to, trust me...and I'm sorry that you aren't the right person for me, but that's just how it is." The crickets speak for themselves, filling in the silence that surrounds the two men at the bench. Jimin feels a great relief flow into him by confessing the truth, yet guilt still tags along for the ride. He can't deny the slow pulse of guilt every time his heart beats, the memories of kissing Jinyoung just to make him feel better refreshing in his mind.
"Jimin...are you sure you're not just confused?" Jimin hears a sharp inhale from the law intern, a soft swish of hair. Jinyoung is clearly upset and probably feels like it's somehow his fault that Jimin doesn't like him. "When we kissed I thought you felt something, I, I thought-"
"I'm sorry, Jinyoung." Jimin thinks back to the parking lot, when Jungkook witnessed Jinyoung's forced parting kiss with him. The one Jimin didn't want because he didn't like the other male. "I'm sorry if I led you on, and maybe I was confused at first about how I felt...but now I know for sure that um, we aren't compatible for each other."
"Seriously...?" Jinyoung grumbles. In the dim light, the other seems to rake at his face with his hands. What a change from a few minutes ago, when he was all bright and eager to see me...ugh...now I feel like an asshole. "From the way you understood me, listened to me, and spoke to me, I'd think we were already dating...so I can't...can't believe this..."
"Again, I'm sorry Jinyoung-"
"How long have you been leading me on?" Jinyoung snaps, his voice cutting the humid air like a butcher's knife. Jimin winces, tapping the bench anxiously. The crickets taper away to a low thrum, and Jimin wills them to come back. Please don't make this harder than it needs to be. Please understand.
"Jinyoung, I didn't mean to lead you on...I was sure at one point my feelings for you would snap in place, and I could eventually learn to feel the same way-"
"When did you know you didn't like me?" Jinyoung interrupts. Jimin can't see the other's face, but he somehow knows in this advanced darkness that the older is staring at him...sending his wrath Jimin's way.
Deep down, Jimin knows he's soiled Jinyoung's plan of finishing law school with a complacent boy at his side who listens happily to all of his boring law plans.
"I...why are you doing this, Jinyoung-"
"WHEN!" Jinyoung's anger comes out of nowhere. He isn't even that drunk! How is he this angry? I've only been doting on him for...oh god...like seven weeks? Wait, that's kind of a long time...uggghh why am I so stupid.
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