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The supposedly special (Jihoon still doesn't know what's so special about it) and elongated episode of Music Bank is thankfully done and over. The hall is chaotically bustling with singers and staffs trying to reach their dressing rooms, and really, Jihoon thinks it's stupidly impractical to repeat themselves over and over to the same people every time they pass by, but it's the unbreakable rule in the broadcasting industry and it's safer to go through the procedure than to get hunted down by reporters who eye their every single move.
"Say the name, Seventeen! Hello, we're Seventeen!"
So Jihoon follows Seungcheol's lead, joining in with his members and bowing towards their seniors (for the nth time that day, he really lost count) until his waist bends to a perfect right angle. When he straightens back up, Jihoon can't help but sniffle his nose in slight embarrassment. At least on the bright side, he’s glad that someone else finds the humour in this. He'd seen that Jimin was already laughing from across the hall, having known what was coming as soon as his eyes landed on a long train of boys huffing their way down. Seokjin jumps, a little startled at the deep rumbling chorus of thirteen boys shouting towards him. He gives them an acknowledging nod, chuckling when he sees that it's just that new group.
Seventeen.
Again.
"We know," Taehyung jokes, returning the bow in a dramatic manner and causing half of the Seventeen members to disappear in a hasty bow again (and earning himself a punch in the shoulder from Jimin). "I'm pretty sure you've told us."
Seungcheol laughs and so does the others, but Jihoon's too concerned on keeping his eyes glued to the silver stud on Taehyung's red jacket incase he moves his gaze. He sees a blur of mint green in the right corner of his view, and Jihoon musters all the strength in him to keep himself from meeting the pair of indifferent eyes under those soft bangs. A few words of encouragement are tossed back and forth between them, and Seventeen shuffles past BTS down the hallway towards their dressing room again.
It's all done in a hurry, in a flurry of buzzing noise and constant bowing that Jihoon doesn't process the touch of someone's familiar hand that runs down the back of his purple head. Not until he stops before their dressing room, and it registers in his brain like a swift, breathtaking hit. Jihoon blinks and whips around, but his seniors are already out of his sight. He lifts his arm and presses down the back of his head where Yoongi's lean, white fingers had caressed through. It feels as if the warmth still remains, and Jihoon bites down on his lower lips to restrain them from curving up.
"Jihoon,"
Seungcheol calls from inside the room, seeing that the younger male is still standing outside. He catches a towel from their stylist and slings it over his sweaty neck.
"Something wrong?"
Jihoon shakes his head, his hand sliding down his neck and over his thumping chest before it falls to his side. His fist unconsciously curls, a reflex that Jihoon doesn't realize is an attempt to calm his uncontrollably pounding heart.
"Yeah, I'm fine."
He lies, something Jihoon rarely ever does, especially to Seungcheol. Jihoon doesn't know, he really doesn't know what the man named Min Yoongi is to him to break him out of his passive and composed character.
But one thing's for sure, something is definitely wrong.
And Jihoon's okay with it.
Jihoon stirs to the sound of their managers waking them up and telling them that they've arrived to their dorm. Jihoon wants to pretend that he didn't hear, the desire to grab another second of deprived sleep being greater than being an overall a less pain in the ass for his managers. But Jisoo starts gently shaking him up, telling him that it's time to go home, and Jihoon begrudgingly straightens himself up. Rubbing his dry eyes, Jihoon habitually unlocks his phone to check the time when he sees that there's a new text message sitting in his phone. The name of the sender effectively and completely jolts Jihoon out of his drowsiness, and his fingers hover hesitantly over the screen before he pockets it inside his jacket. It takes a mere second to check a message, he knows, but Jihoon wants to save it, make the moment while he reads it special, so that he can remember it, have it to himself, and treasure it.
"Hyung, let me just grab a change of spare clothes and I'll be right down. Can you drop me off at Pledis?"
The manager frowns wearily, studying Jihoon's fatigue-worn face.
"Are you sure?"
He asks as Seungkwan, the last one in the van, hops off and saunters towards their apartment. It was becoming a regular routine these days, dropping Jihoon off at the company building at his request.
"You haven't had much sleep lately, Jihoon. Don't you think you need some rest?"
"I'm fine. I just need to do a few touches on the track I've been working on, and I want to get it done while it's still fresh on my mind."
Jihoon replies in a breath, his tone edgy as if he's in a rush. The last thing he wants is for Yoongi to think that he's leaving him hanging on purpose.
"Alright, but I better find you sleeping on the couch when I come to fetch you in the morning."
Jihoon laughs.
"You always do, hyung."
As soon as Jihoon closes the studio door behind him, he yanks out his phone and admires the name that's still floating above the screen. Yoongi hyung, it says, so conveniently pretty and effortlessly natural that it feels so right when Jihoon whispers the name to himself. Jihoon takes a deep breath and opens the message.
jihoon it's okay to look at my face you know 12:20am
Jihoon can feel his cheeks glowing red, and he wonders if his attempt just ended up being counter-productive. Jihoon starts panicking a little; he'd only been trying to be extra careful. He'd been caught staring at Yoongi's profile a numerous times by Soonyoung after all, getting a jab in his ribs because it could come off as impolite and rude. When Jihoon told Yoongi, the older male interlocked his fingers in Jihoon’s vibrant hair, his lips drawing that signature smirk to tell him that that was why he noticed him in the first place. Sometimes, Jihoon is glad that his friend can be a little dense when it comes to situations like these.
sorry i was just nervous 12:58am
Jihoon deletes the last bit of i really wanted to, hyung. He presses send, and Yoongi's reply comes before Jihoon can plop down in his swivel chair.
i know 12:58am
it was cute 12:58am
taehyung thinks you're really into his jacket tho 12:59am
Jihoon stares, his heart racing faster every time he reads the word cute. He dislikes being called "cute" by his fans and even loathes it when his members associate him with such description, but for some odd reason Yoongi's "cute" makes Jihoon curl his knees up into his chest and wonder what it really is, that makes Yoongi think he’s cute. Jihoon's chair spins him around as the male buries his head in his pastel pink sweater.
Jihoon can never figure it out.
are you home? 1:02am
Yoongi texts, before Jihoon can think of a rational reply to his previous series of messages. Jihoon taps the screen and his keyboard immediately pops up.
no i'm at the studio 1:03am
Then Jihoon instantly regrets it, because Yoongi might think that he's implying that he's at work and busy, and that Yoongi is bothering him, which is the worst thing Jihoon could ever do and he's worried that Yoongi might stop texting him-
is it okay if i call? 1:05am
His phone vibrates again and Jihoon involuntarily holds his breath.
i just prefer talking over texting on the phone 1:05am
fuck it, i just want to hear your voice jihoon 1:06am
Jihoon understands that Yoongi is blunt; it shows on his facial expressions, his tone of voice, his raps and his lyrics, yet sometimes it still pushes Jihoon off guard. His lurching stomach feels like it’s suddenly unleashed a thousand butterflies and Jihoon feels ticklish to the ends of his toes. Trying to ignore the bass that's reverberating from the center of his frame, Jihoon taps the dial button and holds the phone close to his ears.
"Jihoon-ah."
It’s everything Jihoon has wanted to hear in a while, and there’s something about Yoongi’s voice that makes Jihoon forget everything he wanted to say, the words he’d been stashing up all day.
“Yoongi hyung.”
So Jihoon just settles for saying Yoongi’s name.
It’s loud and clear this time, and it’s more than just a sigh to himself. There’s a second of comfortable silence (a little nerve-wracking for Jihoon) and Jihoon’s grip on his phone tightens when Yoongi drawls,
“I miss you staring at me.”
A rush of heat mounts to Jihoon’s face as the younger straightens his posture indignantly.
“I just,” His voice gains strength as he remembers the earlier events of the day. “I feel like I’m so obvious and sunbae doesn’t help, every time we pass by, you either squeeze my hand, tap my face, pat my head, and I swear, they’re not as inconspicuous as you think they are and you’re going to give me a heart attack.”
Yoongi laughs, and Jihoon prays that “stupid” isn’t the definition of “cute” in Yoongi’s dictionary.
“What if someone sees?”
“Let them,” Yoongi responds as if he can't give an ounce of a care. “If anyone asks, I’m just saying hi to a cute hoobae.”
Jihoon falls silent again.
Yoongi doesn’t say much, and he doesn’t pressure Jihoon to speak much either, despite the fact he’d said he wanted to hear Jihoon’s voice. It’s so much like his hyung that Jihoon doesn’t mind at all.
“Are you alone?”
Yoongi hums.
“Yeah.”
There’s a smirk that carries a whiff of Yoongi’s rasp. Jihoon hasn’t exactly been subtle with his feelings, and he’s sure that Yoongi’s picked up how Jihoon started coming to the studio every night after his schedules. Just so he could talk to Yoongi without having to whisper into his phone out of his members' sights.
“Go back to your dorm, Jihoon. Go home, change, wash up, and send me a picture of you tucked nicely in bed.”
Yoongi’s tone is low, and he sounds lax as if he’s leaning against his own swivel chair too in his very own studio.
“I will if you will.”
Yoongi makes a sucking noise through his teeth, a gesture that parents might do when admonishing their child.
“Kid, where did you learn to talk back to your sunbae?”
Yoongi’s Daegu dialect slips in between, and Jihoon giggles as he further relaxes into his chair and the small device in his hand. Both coming from the same Gyeongsang-do background, Jihoon finds that Yoongi likes to speak to him in his home accent. Jihoon knows he’s probably attributing too much meaning into trivial stuff like this, but the younger male interprets it as a sign of closeness between them. The jagged articulation of Yoongi’s words makes his heart flutter just as irregularly, and Jihoon replies in Busan dialect.
“I’m just going to do the last touches on the layer you heard yesterday and I’ll head home, hyung. I promise.”
Yoongi doesn’t sound convinced.
“Jihoon, I know your comeback is soon but it’s important to get some rest as much as you'd like to work on your track.”
Jihoon nods reluctantly although Yoongi can’t see him. He blows his bangs out of his eyes, and Yoongi chuckles as if he can somehow see the pout on Jihoon's face.
“As much as you want to talk to me.”
Jihoon tries to think of a comeback as an obnoxious smirk drifts from the other line, but there’s nothing but truth there so really, he’s got nothing.
“Now listen to me like a good boy and get up, Jihoon. I’ve heard what you got, and your track can wait.”
“Hyung-”
“I’ll walk you home.”
Jihoon hops off his chair, his brows scrunching up in confusion.
“Walk me home?”
“It’s late and dark out, Jihoon-ah. I’m keeping you on the line until you get home safely.”
Jihoon feels a bit dumb, grabbing his bag of clothes and the USB that hasn’t even had the chance to be stuffed into its port yet. Refusing to step out of his studio, Jihoon sniffles a little, biting his lips before he lets out a barely audible,
“You don’t have to, hyung. I’m not a girl.”
Yoongi is quiet, knowing Jihoon doesn’t like being treated like a girl per se, or a baby, or anything that might contribute a weak image due to his small frame and height. And Yoongi, out of anyone else, should know the stress better than Jihoon himself. So he tries to think of a way to make sure that Jihoon knows that’s not what he means, but it slips out before Yoongi can turn on his non-existent filter.
“I know you’re not a girl, Jihoon.”
He sort of wishes he could be saying this to Jihoon face to face.
“But you’re mine, and I get worried.”
Yoongi doubts it sounds anything but romantic, with his Daegu satoori making him come off as more brusque and indifferent than he intends to be (he's really not). He just hopes that Jihoon is clever and nice enough to ignore the assertiveness that coats his accent.
Jihoon doesn’t say anything. Yoongi just hears noise, like the clatter of Jihoon’s backpack, the click of the doors closing, and the gush of wind as Jihoon steps out of the building and into the streets.
A smile creeps on Yoongi’s satisfied lips. He's got a smart one that he totally doesn't deserve.
And at least it got Jihoon to go home.
Jihoon looks up at the apartment, reluctant to tell Yoongi that he’s arrived home and that he should hang up now.
“Are you almost there?”
Yoongi asks, and Jihoon nods. The phone burns in his palms, and Jihoon switches hands.
“No. Almost.”
He nods, but his mouth tells Yoongi otherwise before he can stop himself. Jihoon sighs and leans against the entrance.
“You should go home and get some rest too, hyung.”
Jihoon’s voice comes out muffled, buried against the collar of his turtleneck sweater. His purple hair glows blue against the glass door, the moonlight reflecting against his coloured locks.
“Nah, we have an easy day tomorrow.” Yoongi replies lazily, and Jihoon can hear intense clicking of the mouse as Yoongi plays around with the track he’s mixing. “And I’ve got lots of time to sleep in the van, unlike you guys with the most stupidest rule I’ve ever heard of. Who came up with that anyways?”
Jihoon chuckles. It’s a unique rule of Seventeen’s, to not fall asleep in the van as they move from schedule to schedule as a way to maintain their energy and keep their spirits high. Usually their rules are just a bunch of opinions mixed together, somehow organized and reduced to one sentence by their leader Seungcheol, so really, Jihoon has no idea.
He enters the apartment lobby and presses the up button on the elevator. Jihoon hopes that the echo doesn’t give away that he’s indoors, but knowing Yoongi, he probably already knows.
The door creaks open and Jihoon tiptoes inside. The dorm is silent and dark, a relieving sign that all of his members have drifted off to a blissful sleep. Jihoon slips inside the bathroom and lets out a low whisper.
“Yoongi hyung, I’m home.”
Jihoon’s voice comes out a little (very) disheartened than he'd expected it to, and he hears Yoongi’s ruthless clickings halt. Putting the phone on speaker, Jihoon starts undressing to take a shower.
“Alright, sleep well, Jihoon-ah. Don't get sidetracked, don’t bother turning on your computer and go to bed, okay?”
Yoongi says softly when Jihoon untangles his head from his sweater.
“Don’t forget to text me in the morning, reply right away if you can, and just…”
Jihoon waits.
“Take care, aight?”
Jihoon doesn’t want to hang up. He just wants to stay up all night and talk to Yoongi through the dawn, and he kind of hates the older male right now for urging him to hang up so quickly.
“I’m not going to bed right away,”
Jihoon replies gruffly, feeling like a spoilt child desperate for attention.
“I’m in the bathroom, I just got undressed to take a shower.”
There’s silence, and the phone goes dark as Jihoon realizes that Yoongi just hung up on him. Jihoon blinks, staring at his dead phone in horror for half a second until it starts vibrating again. Jihoon can’t quite believe the words video chat flashing on the screen, and his phone reverberates over the edge and slides down into the sink as it continues to cry noisily.
[Yoongi hyung] has requested video chat 1:47am
Jihoon squints, and the call wails for what feels like an unnaturally long moment until it stops. It’s literally two seconds later when his phone resonates for attention again.
[Yoongi hyung] has requested video chat 1:47am
[Yoongi hyung] has requested video chat 1:48am
There’s bubbles forming just below his throat and Jihoon starts laughing, clasping his hands on his mouth incase the noise wakes up his sleeping members. Jihoon quickly picks up his phone out of the sink and slides his forefinger over the red [end] square.
keep trying hyung, I’m not gonna answer that 1:48am
Jihoon texts, the laughter still glinting on his lips.
[Yoongi hyung] has requested video chat 1:49am
stOP 1:49am
well it was worth a try 1:50am
Jihoon unconsciously snorts, texting him that he’ll be taking a shower now and that he’ll send him a selca of him tucked in bed when he gets around to it later. Yoongi replies with a freshly taken photo of himself resting his chin on his hands, leaning against the studio table.
Jihoon clicks save.
He really likes his Yoongi hyung. A lot.
Jihoon wakes up the next morning to see that Yoongi has sent him a file through the texting application. It’s a music file and he immediately downloads it, hastily groping under his pillow for his earphones. He ignores the knots that have now turned terribly intimidating, and shoves them into his ears as he presses play.
Jihoon freezes in bed when the audio starts playing. It’s his track, the song he’d been working on all week, the one that cost him a lot of courage and guts to send to Yoongi (it took Jihoon three days and a whole lot of self pep talk). He’d been more nervous than the first time he auditioned to be a singer, and Jihoon could swear that his heart stopped for a whole minute when Yoongi had told him that it was actually good.
And right now, Jihoon is listening to the same song, yet the annoying sound sources that he’d been frustrated with, sounds absolutely incredible. The same part that sounded mediocre and flat, and which just outright slammed a creative wall in Jihoon’s face loops around again, and he's amazed at how enticing the very same part rings to his ears.
Min Yoongi’s a freaking genius.
Seungcheol walks into the room, bracing himself to wake up Jihoon, a challenge that takes up half of their entire time to get ready. He stalls in shock when he sees Jihoon sitting upright, his eyes skating up the bunk bed and giving Minghao a questionable glance. Minghao merely shrugs. Jihoon rolls off the bed, greets Seungcheol good morning with the brightest smile on his face, and darts right into the bathroom with his phone clutched tightly in his hands.
hyung you’re unreal, this is phenomenal 6:03am
i owe you big time, what can i do to say thanks? 6:04am
Seokmin whines from behind the door as soon as Jihoon presses send, asking for his toothbrush and toothpaste. Jihoon groans, flinging them carelessly before shutting the door close again.
Jihoon almost drops his phone when it vibrates with a reply from Yoongi.
answer 6:07am
Jihoon’s brows knit into a frown. He’s unsure of what that means, and his one impressive nest of bed hair cocks to the side. Confused, Jihoon stares at the screen when Yoongi’s name pops up on the device with a roaring shake.
[Yoongi hyung] has requested video chat 6:08am
Oh.
Jihoon laughs, making a quick peep behind his shoulders to make sure that Seokmin isn’t going to kick down the door any minute. A clear click resonates inside the washroom as he locks the doors, and Jihoon answers Yoongi’s video chat.
“Jihoon-ah,”
Yoongi’s still half-asleep, looking like he’d been sitting in the same chair for hours and hours on end. His voice is hoarse and his eyes are droopy, and Yoongi looks unjustly sexy. It’s everything Jihoon has wanted to see in a while, and there’s something about Yoongi’s face that makes Jihoon forget everything he wanted to say, the words he’d been stashing up in his dreams.
So Jihoon just settles for saying Yoongi’s name.
“Yoongi hyung.”
Yoongi's lips curl to form a crooked smirk.
"See you soon in the hallway at Music Core, Seven... It's Seventeen, right?"
Jihoon just rolls his eyes.