I hate everything about you (why do I love you?) ; ym

3. accepting to love you

The brochure lying on the table in front of Jimin was mockingly laughing at him. He couldn't help but glare at it, even though technically, it was just a piece of paper. Except for it wasn't.
"We don't know what to do with you anymore. This is our only chance."Jimin wanted to huff, wanted to shake his head and cuss, but he didn't. It would only add fuel to the fire. So instead, he continued to stare.
"It's a great school," his mother, sitting opposite of him, said. Her hands were folded on top of the table and she forced a smile that didn't reach her eyes. "They've got great teachers and you can even continue to dance –"
"Or play football," his father interrupted, "Try something new."
"It's just... for your best, you know," his mother continued, "We... we don't want you to to go to the bad."
"School is important. Your future is important. And at the moment, you're doing all you can to destroy the chances you have," his father said sternly. Mrs. Park closed her eyes for a short moment. When she opened them again, they were glistening.
"And... you can always come home for the holidays," she said, her voice trembling dangerously. She lowered her head and pinched the bridge of her nose. "Sorry, I... excuse me."
Jimin stared at her with blank eyes. The word boarding school was burned into his mind. Pictures of happy students in nice uniforms laughing into the camera, clean, bright classrooms with gigantic windows, green spaces with clean-cut hedges and bushes. It looked perfect, except for it wasn't.
Except for it was somewhere else and not here, it was somewhere in Seoul, far away, and Jimin's life was here, it had always been, so why should it change now?

"So, you're just going to shunt me off, just like that?" he asked, surprised by how monotonous his voice sounded. But he simply didn't have any strength left.
"Don't be stupid," his father scoffed, "We're doing what's best for you."
"You're not," Jimin said, frowning, "You're just doing what's easiest for you."
"Jimin –"
"No! I'm done, honestly. Why are you allowed to make that decision for me?" Jimin said and then got up with such force, his chair almost fell over.
"Jimin," his father snapped and glares at him, "Sit down and listen to us!"
"You say that I'm destroying my future, but that's just what you think because I'm not doing whatever you have in mind for me! So you take all control over my life and send me off to a stupid boarding school? That's not how any of this works!"
"That is exactly how it works!" his father yelled so loudly, Jimin actually took a startled step back. The man stood up, leaning onto the table and breathing heavily.
"Goddamnit Park Jimin, you're really testing my temper here. You're going to boarding school, end of conversation! Now get out of my sight before I lose myself!"
Jimin blinked at him with wide eyes. His heart beat heavily in his hollow chest. For a split second, he considered talking back, just one last time, just for his own satisfaction rather than getting his point across. But then, he caught his father's rage-filled eyes and the way his hand twitched.
"Go!" his father screamed, and immediately, Jimin flinched and hurried over to the stairs. Up in his room, his cat sat in the corner, right next to a puddle of pee.
"Of fucking course," Jimin hissed, and he honestly wasn't even surprised anymore that everything in his life was going wrong.

~

On Jimin's first day back at school, he felt like a stranger. Everyone seemed to be giving him weird looks that he couldn't escape, only feeding into the hollowness in his chest. He hurried to his locker with his head hanging low to get his books and to then walk to his classroom as fast as possible.

"Jimin!" he heard Jeongguk's voice behind him. Next to him stood Taehyung. They both looked relieved and concerned at the same time; Jimin had talked to them on the phone, but apart from one call they hadn't had any contact over the past three days. Jimin forced a weak smile.

"Hey."

"How are you? We were so worried!" Jeongguk said right away, eyes wide and a pout on his lips. Jimin's heart clenched.
"I'm alright," he said, "Just... you know... stress with my family and..." He knew he should tell them about the boarding school. Tell them that soon, they wouldn't see each other anymore on a daily basis. Soon, Jimin would be gone and then they would forget about him because the only times he would be here would be on vacation every now and then. Things would change and definitely not for the better.
But it felt so impossible to tell his friends. What were they going to do, anyway? Jimin hadn't told them how bad things were at home and he certainly wasn't ready now. But before he could even finish worrying about it, Taehyung spoke up again.