Chapter Text
Taehyung works in the coffee shop on campus. The pay is terrible but the coffee is pretty good and the discount is great. It’s easy to meet up for group projects, and his friends don’t mind hanging around while he closes up because they get to eat all the baked goods that are done for the day.
His life is pretty simple. Busy, but simple. He has his friends, he has his school work, and he has his job. It all works and it all works smoothly, which is what Tae loves most about it.
Well, it did work smoothly. Until his manager decided to add another barista.
Jimin is bad at everything. It isn’t an exaggeration. Tae isn’t trying to be mean. Jimin just really is bad at everything. He can’t get orders right, he’s broken the register on more than one occasion, and he’s shattered more mugs than Tae can count. But at the end of the day, Jimin still ends up with more tips than anyone else.
“Well yeah, Hyung. He’s the most beautiful person I’ve ever seen in real life and I’ve seen Jin-hyung shirtless,” Jungkook tells him one night as they were all getting food together.
“Kook, I’m honestly offended that you’d say anyone is more attractive than me.”
“Have you seen him?”
“Yes.”
“And?”
“And I said I’m offended that you said it, not that it wasn’t valid,” Jin finishes.
“So what, just because he’s pretty people will tip him more? Even though he gets all their drinks wrong?” Tae asks.
“Yes,” everyone says together.
Tae rubs a hand through his hair. “It’s just not fair that life gets to be easy for him just because he has a nice smile.”
“Oh does he?” Yoongi asks.
“Shut up.” Tae responds.
Two days later all of Tae’s irritation boils over. He has a paper due the next morning but he’s been switched to the closing shift and he hasn’t gotten a chance to get as much done as he wanted to which means he’s probably going to have to pull an all nighter, depending on fast he’ll be able to close up. He looks at the schedule and groans.
“Guess we’re closing up together, huh?” Jimin asks cheerfully.
Tae gives a tight lipped smile, “Guess so.”
They’ve been closing up for forty minutes and they’re only half done. Jimin is even slower than Tae could have imagined, and he really doesn’t have the patience for it right now. He finishes sweeping his section when he hears a crash from behind the register. Tae groans.
“I’m sorry! I’ll clean it! Just add it to my tab, huh?” Jimin chuckles to himself as he picks up the large pieces of ceramic from the floor.
“Why are you even here?” Tae asks.
“What?”
“You don’t care about this job, why are you still here? Why did you come here in the first place?”
Jimin throws the pieces away and stares at Tae. “What makes you think I don’t care about this?”
Tae gives a humorless laugh, “I don’t know, Jimin. Maybe because you’ve been here almost three weeks and you still don’t know how to make an espresso. You get every drink wrong. All of them. And you still get all the tips!”
“If this is about the tips then fine, you can take them!”
“It’s not about the money, it’s about the fact that you don’t try! You haven’t tried to get anything right, and it’s so frustrating.” They look hard at each other for a moment before Tae continues. “If you’re going to keep doing what you’re doing, then just quit. It was easier when I didn’t have to clean up after your messes, too.”
Tae can see Jimin hold back a response before they each go back to cleaning, the silence thick in the air.
Later that week, Tae is in the library working on a paper. His books are laid open around him but they aren’t giving him any real inspiration. He rubs his eyes in exhaustion. He feels a body sit next to him and he sighs, “Kookie I told you, unless you can convince Joon to write this paper for me, I can’t play video games.”
“I don’t want to play video games,” Jimin responds easily. Tae looks up quickly. “Sorry,” Jimin apologizes. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”
Tae shook his head, “It’s fine. What’s up? Do you need to change shifts or something?”
“No, my shifts are fine. I just.” He rubs a hand through his hair nervously. Tae quirks an eyebrow in response and Jimin takes a deep breath. “Teach me.”
Tae huffs a laugh. “What?”
“You said that I wasn’t trying and I couldn’t even make an espresso so. Fine. Teach me.”
Taehyung considers it, but it sounds like extra work, and he doesn’t really have much free time to begin with. And he’s pretty sure he doesn’t want to spend what little free time he does have training Jimin how to make coffee.
Jimin leans forward and looks at him, “Please.” His eyes are wide and pleading and Tae feels frozen in his place.
His mouth opens slightly and he nods, he feels like he’s in a trance. “Okay. Fine. I’ll show up at your shifts when I don’t have class and you show up at mine and I’ll help you.”
Jimin smiles wide, his eyes scrunching up, “Thank you!” He leaves Tae sitting at the table thinking that he finally understands why Jimin gets all the tips.
Jimin shows up at Tae’s next shift. He’s bouncing on the balls of his feet, eager and ready to learn. “Where do I start?”
Tae ties his own apron on and nods towards the back wall, “The basics. Learn the differences between the types of coffee we sell. It’ll make it easier when you try to put flavors together.”
Jimin picks up a thick binder filled with papers on the different beans the shop offers, the different seasonal flavors, the most popular beverages and more. “I have to read all of this?”
Tae writes down an order at the register and replies, “Technically you don’t have to do anything.” Jimin makes a face at him from behind and the customer in front of Tae giggles. Tae turns and Jimin quickly shifts to a polite smile, his head tilting to the side just barely. Tae can feel his ears warming under his shaggy hair. He shakes his head and smiles at the next customer, trying to ignore the heat and Jimin’s presence.
“How are there so many different types of coffee?” Jimin whines. “Breakfast blend? Medium Roast? Dark Roast? Cold Brew? Columbian? Cuban? Espresso? Americano? Frappuccino? Why do you need so many?”
Taehyung shrugs, “They all taste different. Some are sweeter, some bolder, some bitter.”
Jimin lifts the binder in protest, “Yeah I got that. I’m just saying it seems a little excessive.” He sighs and goes back to reading the binder. Taehyung watches him for a moment, the way his hair is parted perfectly. The way he has perfect posture even when it seems like he’s slouching over the binder.
A customer clears their throat behind Tae and he jumps, “Sorry. Uh, what can I get started for you?” He flips his hair out of his eyes and starts taking the customer’s order. And if Jimin sees a peek of Tae’s pink ears, well he keeps that to himself and hides his soft smile in the binder.
That’s how it goes for the next week. Tae has class during most of Jimin’s shifts, but he still stops by before and after class to check in on him and ask him how he is doing. “I didn’t break any mugs today,” Jimin announces. He looks at Taehyung like he should be impressed and Tae can’t stop his small laugh. “I’m so proud.”
Jimin looks away flustered by the praise and the cup in his hand fumbles to the ground. Tae bites back his laughter as best he can. Jimin rushes to pick it up, eyes wide and embarrassed.
He looks at Tae sheepishly and brushes his hair back, a soft blush overtaking his cheeks. He lifts up the cup. “Didn’t break though.”
Tae laughs, his smile wide and boxy and unrestrained. He shakes his head. “I’ll see you later, Jimin.” He walks away and Jimin stares after him, his soft blush turning much deeper as he thinks about Tae’s laugh and how he’d do anything to hear it again.
“I’m supposed to close tonight and I’m so slow, please keep me company, Tae.”
“Just keep you company?” Tae tries to clarify.
“Well. And maybe help? Just a little bit?”
Tae laughs at Jimin’s poor attempt to convince him. Jimin stills for a moment before clearing his throat and trying again. “Please, Tae? I have an assignment due in two days that I’ve barely started.”
“So why am I getting punished for that?”
“Is hanging out with me a punishment?” Jimin pouts.
“No, but working is.” Jimin raises an eyebrow and looks down to hide his smile as Tae freezes, hearing what he’s just said. He flips his hair out of his eyes and nods. “I’ll help you tonight.”
Jimin grins widely at Tae, “Thank you, you’re a lifesaver! And maybe you could teach me how to make that new drink? I’m scared of the steamer.”
Tae laughs, “Yeah, I could do that too.” Jimin gives him that crinkley eyed smile again and Tae feels his heart clench.
He can’t remember the last time he said no to Jimin, and he can’t even remember when he stopped saying no entirely. When he decided that he didn’t mind if all his free time was spent in that coffee shop with Jimin. He thinks it was probably around the time he made Jimin laugh so hard that he fell into the pastry display and they had to throw out all the croissants.
Or it was around the time that Yoongi came in for a coffee and he told Jimin that it was actually pretty good and Jimin looked at Tae like he deserved a gold star.
Or maybe it was around the time that Tae saw Jimin closing up alone. He stood in the middle of the shop with the broom in his hand, looking at everything he had swept. And he slouched, leaning against the broom. His perfect posture ignored for just a moment while he was alone.
Tae thinks it was probably all of those moments. They showed snippets of who Jimin could be, and they made Tae realize that he did want to know Jimin. The real Jimin. Even if it meant he’d be making bad coffee at midnight for weeks to come.
Tae goes back to the coffee shop just before closing. There isn’t anyone inside, which doesn’t surprise him. All of the baristas have their own tricks to hint that they were about to close. Tae’s preference was to play “Closing Time” on repeat until everyone left. People usually get the idea after the third listen.
The bell rings to announce Tae’s arrival. Jimin is washing something at the sink so he yells out, “We’re closed, sorry!”
Tae smiles and leans against the counter, “My clock says you have another fifteen minutes.”
Jimin jumps and drops the blender jar back in the sink. “You scared me!”
Tae laughs, “Sorry, sorry!” He puts his hands up in mock surrender and moves behind the counter.
“So do you want a coffee? We are technically open for another fifteen minutes, you’re not wrong.” Jimin puts the blender jar to the side to dry and turns to look at Tae.
“I’m good. I actually don’t really like coffee.”
Jimin stares at him. “But you work in a coffee shop.”
Tae shrugs. “The tea and hot chocolate is good here too.”
“Wait are you just saying that so I don’t try to make you coffee? Cause I promise I get like 75% of the drinks right now.”
Tae holds back a laugh, “No, I’ve never really liked it. It’s not you.”
Jimin leans back against the counter opposite of Tae. He looks at Tae suspiciously. Tae hates how elegant Jimin manages to look all the time. Or maybe he loves it. He isn’t entirely sure to be honest. “I guess I’ll believe you. For now.”
Tae shakes his head and laughs. “So which drink did you want help with?”
Jimin bounces off the counter and moves toward the espresso machine. “The new one, I think it has pumpkin in it?” Tae nods. “It needs milk but the machine hates me. I think it can smell fear and it knows I’m scared of it.”
Tae smiles at Jimin and joins him at the machine. “It’s temperamental, but you just have to figure out the right touch.”
Tae grabs the metal cup and goes through the process. He doesn’t have to think when it comes to most of the machines anymore, his body runs on muscle memory in the shop. He taps the side of the machine twice before pressing the button he wants. Three taps on the top. The next button. And two more taps on the other side. It’s an old machine with a lot of quirks, but it still works so the owner refuses to get a new one.
Tae feels Jimin pressed up to his side watching his movements carefully. He presses the last button and moves the cup under the nozzle. It hisses at them for a minute and then begins spraying out the milk. Tae smiles softly at the nozzle, “See, not so scary, huh?”
He turns to look at Jimin who is already looking up at him. Tae can feel the warmth of Jimin bleeding through his clothes and he feels goosebumps break out on his arm. He swallows hard and sees Jimin’s eyes follow the movement.
They go up to Tae’s lips next. He’s breathing heavily by the time Jimin’s eyes leave his lips. Tae looks down at Jimin’s lips in return, unfairly plump. Tae wonders if they would feel as soft as they look. Does he wear lipgloss? Would he taste like fruity chapstick?
Jimin licks his lips and Tae’s eyes shoot back to Jimin’s. His heart feels like it’s beating a thousand beats a second. All he can see is Jimin, with his perfect hair and perfect posture, leaning closer to him and Tae leans in in return. He feels Jimin’s nose against his, his mind blanking on everything except this moment.
“Shit!” Tae jumps back and drops the cup with steamed milk on the floor and holds his hand. He rushes over to the sink and runs cold water over it.
Jimin turns the machine off in a panic, “How can I help?”
“First aid kit is in the back.” Jimin runs to the back and returns a minute later with the kit. “See if we have any burn ointment.” Jimin opens the kit and rummages through it. Tae’s hand is pretty red under the water, but no blisters luckily. It isn’t a burn bad enough to need to see a doctor which is great. Tae doesn’t really have the money for that.
“I don’t see any burn cream,” Jimin worries.
Tae grabs Jimin’s hand where it’s still digging through the first aid kit. Jimin freezes. He looks at Tae’s hand on his and then up at Tae. “I’m okay,” Tae reassures him.
Jimin turns his hand over so it fits into Taehyung’s. Well, until it’s smothered by Tae’s. Tae looks at their hands and feels the smile grow on his face. “Shut up, don’t.”
“Your hands-”
Jimin tried to pull his hand away but Tae held on tight. “I know, okay, Tae-”
“They’re so-”
“I know-”
“Jiminie they’re so cute.” Jimin stops resisting.
Tae pulls him closer and maneuvers Jimin’s hand to press up flat against his. Jimin blushes fiercely as Tae stares at their hands in awe. Tae intertwines their fingers together and puts them back on the counter between them. Jimin moves a stray strand of hair from Tae’s face and smiles up at him. “I have to start closing up.”
“I’m sorry I can’t help.” The cold water was helping a lot and while Tae can feel his hand throbbing, it doesn’t hurt as bad.
“That’s okay. I like just spending time with you, Taehyungie.” Tae feels his face heat up. Jimin smiles and squeezes his hand before letting go. He grabs a towel and puts ice in it and hands it to Tae. Tae turns off the water and sits on the counter with the homemade ice pack on his hand while he watches Jimin sweep and clean the shop.
They talk easily as Jimin closes up. It seems like he’s gotten faster at closing than the last time he and Tae had worked together. “So why do you work in a coffee shop if you don’t like coffee?” Jimin asks.
Tae shrugs and looks down at his ice pack. “I needed a job and they were hiring. Plus it’s convenient. It’s right on campus so I can still get to my classes quickly.”
Jimin stops working and watches Tae. They’ve been working together for nearly two months but Jimin still doesn’t really know anything about him. He’s met a few of Tae’s friends, the ones that come in for regular caffeine fixes. He knows that he likes photography and that he was getting an art minor because of it. He knows that Tae likes to wander around campus when he’s feeling overwhelmed. And he knows that if you make him laugh hard enough, he’ll lean into you. Jimin knows those things, he treasures those things. But there is so much more to Tae that he wants to learn.
“My family lives on a small farm in the country. They have a little business in town and they sell vegetables at the market when they can. It’s small but it’s my home. I’m here on scholarships, it’s the only way I could afford it, honestly. And the scholarships are great, I mean they help so much. But they really only cover tuition and a couple textbooks, whichever ones I can’t borrow from the library. It’s not enough to live off of though, so I had to find somewhere to work. There weren’t a lot of options, most places hire the summer before the semester starts. I think I’d been rejected by 15 different places before I came in here and just asked if they would give me a job.” Tae looks over at Jimin, a shy smile ghosting his lips. “So yeah. That’s why I work at a coffee shop when I don’t like coffee.”
Jimin nods. “I’m glad you told me.” Tae flips his hair out of his face and sighs, “So what about you? Why did you want this job?”
Jimin rubs the back of his head, “I didn’t really. I’m not on scholarships or anything like that. My family… They handle all my finances. And they didn’t think I needed to get a job, they thought it would distract me from my ‘studies’. But, I’d never had a real job before. I thought it would be fun.”
“You thought getting a job would be fun?”
“Well they look fun in movies. You make friends and end up laughing through your shift and everyone is nice to you.” Tae stares at him open mouthed.
Jimin holds back a laugh, “In my defense, my first few weeks in this job were like that. Everyone was so nice to me. Well, almost everyone.” He gives a stern look to Tae and Tae rolls his eyes. “No one has ever really called me out before.”
“Seriously?”
“Yeah, but you did. You told me to be better.” He shakes his head and looks back at Tae. “At first I was really annoyed. I think I ranted about it to my roommate for like an hour straight. But then I realized you were right. I did need to be better.” Jimin looks down and Tae can tell his mind has gone somewhere else.
“You did get better, though.” Tae offers.
“Really?”
“Yeah. I heard you only get like 25% of the drinks wrong now instead of 100%.”
“Hey!” Jimin yells and throws a pen from his apron at Tae. Tae avoids the pen and laughs at Jimin. Jimin looks at him fondly before joining in a second later.
Jimin is only a little faster closing up that night, but he doesn’t mind. He has a lot left to learn and more work to put in to be better, but he’s learned a lot so far. He’s learned that he still can’t trust the steamer. He’s learned that every drink he makes right counts as a small victory that he should be proud of. And he’s learned that he really loves the way his hand fits in Taehyung’s.
Everything changes after Jimin and Taehyung’s almost kiss. Not in a dramatic way like “nothing was the same again” but in a simple way. Like Tae realizes that he doesn’t want things to be the same as they were. He wants more.
At the next dinner out with friends he asks, “Would it be okay if I invited Jimin to the next one?” He looks down at his food to avoid the questioning stares. He misses the way they all exchange knowing smirks, “Sure, Tae. That sounds nice.”
His head jerks up. “Really?”
Namjoon smiles, “He seems nice.” Tae smiles back, “He is.”
“Have you kissed him yet?” Jungkook asks when they get back to their dorm room.
Tae sputters and shakes his head. “Why would you even ask that?”
“I don’t know, Hyung. Maybe cause you want to invite him to family dinners now? And you don’t complain about him anymore? And sometimes you just watch him clean mugs which is like a little cute and a little weird so.”
Tae groans, “Please stop calling me out okay, I get it.” He collapses on his bed and Jungkook sits next to him.
“Do you think it’s one-sided or something?” Tae throws an arm over his face. “Cause I can assure you it’s not.” Tae peeks out at Jungkook from behind his arm.
“How do you know it’s not?”
Jungkook lays back and looks over at him. “Because when you’re not looking at him, he’s looking at you.”
Tae looks at Jungkook and pouts. “Looks how?”
“Do you want honest or romantic?”
“Both?”
Jungkook elbows him. “He looks at you like you placed every star in the sky by hand and he’s lucky enough to see you smile.”
Tae’s mouth falls open and his ears warm under his hair. “What’s the honest one?”
Jungkook looks over at him and smirks, “That was the honest one.” He shoves himself off the bed and heads towards the shower, leaving Tae to stare up at the ceiling, trying not to think about why his heart is beating so fast.
His next shift at the coffee shop is Jimin-less and Taehyung can’t decide if he’s relieved or disappointed. Namjoon comes in for his morning tea and honey and politely asks how Tae is doing. “Not great, Joon-hyung.” He sighs and rings up Namjoon’s usual order.
Namjoon closes his mouth and clears his throat. “Do you… Want to talk about it?”
“Yes.” Tae answers immediately. “But also I have to work so it’s a working talk.” Namjoon holds back a laugh and nods. “It’s about Jimin.”
“I thought you liked him now.”
“I do. That’s the problem.” Namjoon looks at him and Tae raises his eyebrows. “I like him.”
“Oh.”
“Exactly.”
Namjoon smiles at the floor before putting on his impassive advice-giving mask. “So why is that a problem?” Tae puts the finished drink on the counter and leans over to be closer to Namjoon. Joon meets him halfway.
Tae whispers, “Because we almost kissed and I don’t know how to deal with it. Because I maybe want to actually kiss him. And Jungkook said he maybe wants to actually kiss me too. So how am I supposed to function around him knowing that?” Tae pleads with Namjoon.
Namjoon empathizes and sympathizes, he really does. He understands the limbo that they’re living in. The limbo of liking each other but not being sure enough that the other likes you. But he knows that the only way out of the cyclical pining mess if for one person to take the first step. Out and forward.
“You should ask him out, Tae.”
Tae gasps. “I thought you were gonna give me real advice.”
“That is real advice!”
“No it is not. You just gave me the romantic equivalent of rub some dirt in it.”
“That is good advice! Take action!”
Tae shakes his head and moves away. “Our friendship is over,” Tae walks back to the register. “Next time you come in your tea is full priced!”
Namjoon sputters, “Tae! What did you want me to say?”
“I don’t know, Hyung. Tips on how to breathe when he smiles at me?”
Namjoon takes a sip of his tea before offering, “Breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth?”
Tae stares at him, unimpressed. “You’re cancelled. I’m never coming to you for advice again.”
Namjoon laughs as he leaves. “I’m sorry. I love you!”
“I love you too,” Tae says before getting ready for the next customer.
The next afternoon, Jimin and Taehyung have a shift together again. Tae hasn’t stopped thinking about Namjoon telling him to just ask Jimin out. He also hasn’t stopped thinking about the way Jimin’s eyes crinkle when he laughs really hard. And he definitely hasn’t stopped feeling a tightness in his chest when he thinks about kissing Jimin. He takes a deep breath and continues to work.
The beginning of their shift is busy. The after lunch rush of people trying to caffeinate for their afternoon classes or recaffeinate to avoid giving in to the post-lunch sluggishness.
Tae and Jimin don’t have time to talk about anything. They rush through orders, keeping a smile on their faces and trying to be polite while quickly finishing what they can.
Jimin starts at the register but quickly joins Tae making drinks when he notices the orders piling up. Tae stops him, “Don’t worry about it, I can handle them.”
“Tae let me help.” Jimin gives him a soft smile and Tae tries to stop himself from melting right then and there. “I told you, 75% success rate.” He gives a cheesy grin and takes a cup from Tae and starts to make the drink. Tae smiles at the back Jimin’s head for a second before shaking his head and finishing the other orders.
The world feels softer when Taehyung is alone with Jimin. The lights seem to flare and sounds aren’t as harsh and the only conclusion Tae can come to is that it’s because of Jimin’s smile. And it doesn’t make sense because it’s just a smile. A smile with a crooked tooth, but still just a smile. A smile hat sometimes leads to an infectious laugh. Or sometimes an annoyed comment after the person walks away. But still. It’s just a smile.
Taehyung thinks about how nice it would be to see that smile all the time. How nice it would be to live in a world with soft lights and Jimin’s smile. Jimin looks over at Tae, that smile slowly spreads over his face along with a questioning eyebrow. And Tae thinks Jimin must be able to hear how his breath catches and his heart pounds.
“Jimin?”
“Yeah?”
“Do you want to go out with me?”
Jimin’s soft smile increases tenfold and he bites his bottom lip trying to hold back his smile, and it maybe kills Taehyung just a little. “Yes. Yeah, please. When?”
Tae clears his throat. “Uh, tonight? After our shift?”
Jimin nods, “Perfect.” Tae can’t hold back his smile anymore. He says, “Perfect,” as his ears warm under his hair and he turns to fix the pastry display. He thinks that it maybe isn’t just a smile.
They’re sitting in an iHop at midnight. It’s the one on campus that’s usually the safe haven for the broken souls during exam weeks or the drunken fools who think a sugary carbo-load will help them fight off their impending hangover. Luckily, neither of those people are in the iHop now. It’s just Jimin, Taehyung, the waitstaff, and a small group of people in a booth in the back.
Jimin is looking intently at the menu in front of him like he’s trying to solve a particularly difficult problem. Tae is watching him while also trying to not make it obvious that he’s watching him. But he knows he’s obvious. He has to be.
But how is he supposed to not look at Jimin in artificially warm light sitting curled over his menu in a worn red leather booth? Jimin huffs as he looks at his menu. “Why are there so many pancake options?”
Tae smiles. “It’s the International House of Pancakes. It’s in the name.”
“Don’t they also have burgers?”
“We don’t talk about that.” Jimin cracks a small smile and finally looks away from his menu. Tae hopes that he isn’t imagining how Jimin seems to relax when they look at each other. “Do you want to order a few options and share?” Tae asks.
Jimin leans back against the booth in relief, “Yes, please. What do you recommend?”
Taehyung snorts. “Recommend? It’s the iHop, Jiminie, it’s not like a five star restaurant.”
Jimin blushes and pushes his hair out of his face. “Fine, then just surprise me.” He cocks his head to the side and gives Tae a knowing look that makes Tae’s mouth suddenly go dry.
Their waitress comes up to the table, a young woman with colorful streaks in her hair and disinterest in her eyes. “Are you guys ready to order?”
Tae scratches the back of his head and finally breaks eye contact with Jimin. “Hi, yes. Can we get the Double Blueberry Pancakes, the Cupcake Pancakes, and the Tres Leches Pancakes?”
“Anything else?”
“Uh, a side of bacon?”
She adds the note to her pad and nods. “I’ll put this in for you.”
“Thanks!” Taehyung smiles up at her. She gives him a small, unsure smile back as she walks away.
Jimin is looking at him still and Taehyung is trying not to blush, he’s really trying to act normal but also he feels like melting when Jimin is around him so he’s not sure what to do or say. Jimin feels the same way. His stomach is in knots as he watches Taehyung pick at his napkin nervously. Jimin is sure that his face is giving him away, showing Tae just how fond he is of him. He’s just not sure if he cares.
“What?” Tae asks bringing Jimin out of his daze.
“You look nice, Tae.”
Tae tries to cover his face, “We just got off work there’s no way I look nice.”
Jimin reaches across the table and tries to pull Tae’s hands off his face. “You do, I promise. Stop hiding.”
“No I’m embarrassed.”
“No you’re cute let me see you,” Jimin successfully pulls Tae’s hands down and keeps them weighted down on the table between them by keeping his hands in them. “You always look nice, Tae.”
Tae’s smile is big and boxy and the best thing Jimin has ever seen. “Thank you,” he replies softly as he interlocks their fingers together.
“So what did you order us?” Tae perks up at the topic change. He likes compliments, and he likes feeling noticed and appreciated, but when it comes from Jimin it makes it feel like his heart is going to combust and his brain seems to malfunction.
“Okay, so obviously with pancakes you have to go sweet, but I wasn’t sure what kind of sweet you’d be into so we’ve got your natural blueberry sweet, your sugary cupcake sweet, and then a soulful sweet with tres leches.” He raises his eyebrows to really sell his point and Jimin swallows hard.
“Can’t wait,” he almost chokes out. Jimin takes a drink of water to clear his throat.
Tae looks concerned, “Do you not like pancakes at all? I didn’t even ask if you liked breakfast at midnight!” Jimin inhales his water and tries to cough it out, his face red from Tae’s words and from choking on his water. “Oh my god, are you okay? You can’t die it’s only our first date.”
Jimin manages to stop coughing but he’s hunched over the table, hair partially covering his eyes, and looking up at Tae like he’s just announced something particularly amazing.
“Only our first date?” Jimin tries, voice thick and raw. Tae looks at him like it’s obvious but he’s talking gently, making sure Jimin is okay. “Yeah, I just asked you out like eight hours ago.”
“But you said ‘only’. As in. You would want to go on more than just one date?”
Tae stares at Jimin. He opens his mouth to make an excuse but quickly closes it. He doesn’t want to make an excuse. He doesn’t want to not be honest with Jimin. “I’d like to go on a lot of dates with you, Jiminie.”
Jimin is still looking up at him through his fallen hair, smiling. And Tae thinks it may be the most beautiful thing he’s ever seen. And when Jimin says, “I’d like that too,” Taehyung thinks it may be the most beautiful thing he’s ever heard.
When they finish eating and Tae has to fight to pay the bill “because I asked you out, Jimin, it’s fine” they walk back across campus together, hand in hand. Jimin has decided that because Taehyung paid for dinner, Jimin gets to walk him to his dorm and drop him off at his door. Taehyung agrees easily, because he would agree to anything if it meant being able to be with Jimin.
They talk about nothing and everything while they walk. They go the long way to get back to Tae’s dorm. They walk around the student union. They look at the hammock trees in the courtyard and are happy to find them currently empty. They go past the fountains and the small butterfly garden the Special Education majors made.
Time doesn’t seem to flow while they talk. It feels like a pool that they’re simply wading in together. Existing in this moment, separate from all other moments.
Eventually they’ve walked all over campus. They’ve talked about books, movies, childhood memories that probably should’ve told them earlier that they were gay but they just didn’t put it together.
They’re standing outside Tae’s dorm room and neither of them want the night to end. Tae thinks that he remembers reading somewhere that that was how you know you’re with one of your soulmates. Your soul is reaching out to theirs and doesn’t want to be separated again.
“Thank you for asking me out.”
“I was so nervous about it,” Tae confesses.
“Really? Why?”
Tae laughs shyly. “Because you’re pretty and kind and your laugh kinda makes my heart beat really fast.”
Jimin laughs and Tae smiles and Jimin falls into him. “You know everytime I laugh now I’m gonna think about that.”
“I hope you do.”
Jimin’s cheeks are starting to hurt from how hard he’s smiling, but he doesn’t want to stop. “I’m glad you stopped hating me.”
“I don’t think I ever really hated you.”
Jimin raises a teasing eyebrow. “Really? Not even when you told me to quit?”
“Okay, well I was very frustrated by you. But I didn’t hate you.”
Jimin softly moves a strand of hair out of Tae’s eyes and rests his hand against Tae’s cheek for a moment. “And how do you feel now?” He looks up through his eyelashes and Taehyung feels like he can’t breathe and he knows that he’s not thinking.
He leans forward and presses his lips against Jimin’s. They’re soft under his, even softer than he imagined, and he can’t help but smile. He pulls away, still smiling and Jimin is blushing but his eyes are dark.
He pulls Tae in again, kissing him. He swipes his tongue against Tae’s bottom lip and Tae isn’t sure who’s making what sounds. All he knows for sure is that he’s kissing Jimin and he tastes like blueberry pancakes and he feels like destiny.