Chapter Text
Ah, so that’s how it feels to fight with Jungkook. In case Jimin needed a reminder.
It’s like they’ve been walking on eggs this whole time but couldn’t hold it in any longer. It was bound to explode at some point.
As he tosses and turns in his bed that night, snippets from their fight resurface, bringing back words from their previous fights as well. He opens his eyes in the dark and stares at the ceiling for a long time. Then realizing he won’t be able to sleep, he takes a walk outside. He doesn’t know where he’s going but his steps take him to the lunchroom. At this time of the night, it’s peaceful and silent, dimly lit by the moonlight.
“Midnight snack?”
Jimin startles. Namjoon is sitting in the dark, solely lit by his computer screen. He puts his pair of headphones down and points to the empty seat across from him.
“Couldn’t sleep either?” Jimin asks as he sits down.
Namjoon shrugs his shoulders.
“Just… working on some project.”
There’s a slight silence, then they start speaking at the same time.
“Listen, Jimin—”
“Hyung, did J—”
They both stall and invite the other to continue. Jimin insists that Namjoon should go first.
“Thank you for all your hard work, Jimin. I hope you know you’re extremely valuable in this camp. I know the situation isn’t ideal for you and I imagine how hard it must be…”
Jimin clears his throat as it suddenly itches, guilty over having questioned Namjoon’s leadership skills.
“When you come back from camping, let’s get wasted." Namjoon says. "We haven’t had a proper night out with all the counselors yet. That is… if you can bear to be around Jungkook a bit more.”
Jimin winces. Word hasn’t gotten out about their fight, it seems. Of course not, he hasn’t told anyone and why would Jungkook say anything?
“What were you gonna say?” Namjoon asks.
“Nothing… it’s stupid. Did Jungkook talk to you about the treasure hunt?”
“No, why? Is there anything I should know?”
Jimin innocently purses his lips.
“Not really.”
Namjoon nods.
“What happened between you two anyway?”
“It’s… complicated. Maybe some other time, I can explain.”
Jimin feels exhausted all of a sudden. His eyes are pricking, he rubs them with the back of his hand.
“He offered to drive to town with Hoseok to get the groceries. He’s been very helpful, actually. With the treasure hunt and getting everything ready for camping... He’s a really sweet guy, you know?”
Jimin distantly hums. The pressure on his lungs increases.
“Get some rest, Jimin. You got a big day tomorrow.”
But again, he’s not feeling tired anymore.
—
It hasn’t rained for a while and the forest is starting to asphyxiate. Jimin can feel it when they plant the tent pegs in the dried soil.
He barely got any sleep the night before. Sighing, he crouches inside the tent and gently lays the bouquet that the kids picked for him on their scavenger hunt. The flowers are dry and wrinkled but the stubborn fragrance still clings to the crumbling petals.
The rest of the tents are settled and most of the kids are already playing when Jimin checks his phone. He returns the missed call from Kimoon. When his boyfriend’s voice cracks through the phone, Jimin feels like they haven’t spoken in years. It has barely been a week since they last saw each other but it feels like he is in another dimension.
Since reception is lagging, Jimin climbs on top of a crooked tree. From up high, Jimin has a very good view of their tents. Most kids are fooling around, but some are still struggling to plant pegs and Jungkook is squatting by their side to give them a hand. Today he’s wearing bright red shorts and aviator sunglasses that glint with the reflection of dusk sunlight.
“Babe, how’s it going?” Kimoon asks.
Whenever Jimin does the slightest movement, he loses reception. It makes communication very painful, they keep asking if the other can still hear.
“You sound kind of tired.”
“Yeah, I am. Tired. But I’ll be fine.” Jimin hesitates before continuing. “The guy I’m working with is kind of a jerk.”
Jimin’s gaze keeps drifting to Jungkook who has started playing freeze tag with the kids. His high pitched laughter echoes in the clearing.
“What did he do?”
“He said I was a self-centered control freak.”
Kimoon bursts into laughter.
“Wow, pretty straightforward.”
That’s not exactly the reaction Jimin is expecting. Taehyung had insulted Jungkook through text, which had helped him feel a bit better.
“What does that mean? Do you agree?”
“What? Honey, no.”
“Then why would you say that?”
“Babe, don’t get mad. Do you really want to fight?”
Jimin sighs. These days start to feel like endless misunderstandings. Nothing else beside frustration and guilt.
“No, sorry. I don’t.”
Jungkook crawls on the ground to unfreeze one of the twins but he’s not fast enough and they are both caught. The girl—Jimin thinks it’s Rosa but he’s not sure from the distance—trips on Jungkook and they roll over the floor.
“Jimin? Are you still here?” Kimoon asks.
“Yeah, go on.”
“So you know what I replied to this bitch?”
“What did you tell her?”
There’s a small silence.
“I’m talking about my coach.”
“Ah… sorry, the reception is bad.”
There’s another silence and for a second, Jimin thinks the call was cut short.
“Moon-ie?”
“Yeah, I’m here. Are you really listening?”
“Of course! I like hearing you talk. It feels so good just to hear your voice. I was so tense today and I already feel better.” he says, knowing it’s exactly the kind of words that makes Kimoon’s cheeks pinkish, even more so if Jimin uses his sultry voice like he just did.
“Ah… that’s nice. I miss you, babe.”
“I miss you too.”
—
Jimin gets up in the middle of the night to take a piss. As he unzips the tent, a whip of fresh air caresses his face and he almost whimpers. The air of the tent was getting stifling hot. He hasn’t gotten a minute of sleep yet and he knows Jungkook hasn’t either because he keeps fidgeting.
A few days before, Namjoon had told Jimin the plot of a TV show he liked. Something about people designing personalized sets of hells for each individual. If such a thing did exist, for Jimin, it would be right here, in this tent.
It’s already horrible enough to share the same dorm but at least Hoseok and Seokjin’s presence there makes it bearable. But in the tent, it’s just the two of them and they haven’t exchanged a single word all day. The silence is deafening.
The moonlight barely pierces through the heavy mass of black clouds. It might start raining soon. A few giggles fill the chill night air, meaning some kids aren’t sleeping yet either.
As soon as Jimin crawls back into the tent, Jungkook also gets up and steps out. Jimin leaves the door ajar, relishing in the chill air sweeping through. About five minutes pass, then he sits up in alarm at the sound of a low grunt followed by high-pitched screams.
Jimin grabs his phone and rushes outside the tent, turning on his flashlight.
In front of the girls’ tent, he catches Jungkook hopping with his right foot in his hands, wincing as if in terrible pain. He squeaks when Jimin points his flashlight on him, then composes himself and crosses his arms to cover his chest. He’s not wearing any shirt.
“Jimin,” Jungkook puffs.
“Are you okay? What happened?”
“Nothing.. just, I tripped–” Jungkook gently knocks on the entrance of the girls' tent. The shrieking intensifies. “Shhh! Girls, it’s just us!
One of them unzips the door and sticks her head out. Jimin crouches to get on her level.
“Hey there. No need to panic,” he tells the girl.
“We heard a bear!” One of the girls cries inside.
“A—what?”
Giggling, Jimin lurches back against the cold grass that tickles the sole of his bare feet.
“No, that was just me!,” Jungkook says.
He crouches down as well. There is not enough space for the both of them to stoop over the entrance so their sides brush.
“But we heard it!”
“That’s impossible,” Jimin says.
“No, it isn’t! ” A girl squeals. “Tim’s uncle was attacked by a bear. He lost one arm!”
“Don’t listen to everything he says!” Jimin shouts in a whisper. “And that was in Canada!”
He nudges the girl back inside with a gentle push.
“And even if there were bears, they only attack humans when they feel in danger,” he continues. “Actually, you know what’s the best thing you can do to avoid a bear attack?”
Five pairs of wide eyes stare at him, waiting for the answer.
“Go to sleep.”
The girls sulk at his playful wink.
Jimin bites his lips on the way back to their tent, suppressing laughter. Jungkook walks in front, keeping head down. His back gleams with the silver moonlight. Thankfully, the cold night breeze has cooled down the inside of their tent while they were checking on the kids. They squeeze back in their respective sleeping bags without a word.
Jungkook gives a weary moan and Jimin can’t help it, the laugh that he’s been holding back resurfaces. He doesn’t want to make fun of Jungkook but the more he tries to hold it back, the louder it comes out. It’s this whole situation, it’s just so ridiculous.
Groaning, Jungkook hides his face in his sleeping bag.
“I feel so stupid. I can't believe they thought I was a bear,” he says.
“You kinda sounded like one,” Jimin chuckles.
“It’s just… I banged my pinky toe against a peg, it was so painful.”
Jimin can’t stop laughing, and soon Jungkook’s airy bubbly laugh rings louder than his and they both know they shouldn’t laugh too loud because the kids might hear them but Jimin can’t blame him. It’s not even that funny, but somehow they need to release all that tension.
“You could have put on a shirt,” Jimin says. “The girls are gonna talk about that all night, you know.”
“They will not,” Jungkook replies, clearly embarrassed.
“Of course they will. You don’t know how eleven year-olds are.”
Jimin doesn’t know how long they laugh in the dark but at some point his throat gets sore and he even forgets why they’re laughing. Drops of rain start knocking on the tent, a soft tapping sound that envelops them. Jungkook yawns and Jimin does too. The rain pours harder, as if to hush them to sleep.
Jimin’s eyes flutter shut. He feels so much lighter. He almost instantly falls asleep, his body going limp like melting marshmallow.