Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

It happened one evening at one of Hoseok’s parties.

Yoongi had come several hours late with his roommate Seokjin. Two stalwart introverts who much preferred to be in bed on a Friday evening, they were only attending because they were among Hoseok’s closest friends, and he had begged them to come this time.

When he and Seokjin arrived, thumping bass and scattered conversation could already be heard through the closed front door.

Hoseok, the model host he was, was immediately there to greet the newcomers as soon as the door opened.

“Hyungs, you’re finally here! I’m so glad you two could make it.” He swung a companionable arm around Yoongi’s shoulder and handed him a beer, which Yoongi took gratefully.

After greeting Hoseok, Seokjin grabbed a drink of his own and headed for the corner of the room, where he was immediately sucked into a (loud, apparently contentious) conversation with Jungkook and Namjoon.

Since this was the best that could be expected for Seokjin at a party, Yoongi decided to stick around with Hoseok and let his friend draw him into a conversation with a group of strangers - mostly mindless small talk but pleasant enough, especially with alcohol in hand.

“Oh, Yoongi-hyung!” Hoseok exclaimed right after someone finished a long, rambling story about a pet fish. “I wanted you to meet someone!”

He reached into the crowd of people and pulled someone out.

That’s when it happened.

Suddenly, it felt like the world started moving in slow motion. Yoongi’s world fell silent as the most beautiful man he’d ever seen (and he lived with Kim Seokjin) emerged from the crowd.

For a long moment (actually a second), Yoongi and the ethereal being stared at each other.

“This is who I was telling you about, Tae!” Hoseok was exclaiming. He sounded miles away. “The music producer who’s been looking for a vocalist like you for ages.”

The mention of work momentarily snapped Yoongi out of his fugue.

Hoseok was right, Yoongi had a song that needed just the right voice, and he hadn’t been able to find it yet. Not even Jungkook’s vocals, heavenly as they were, could quite fit the tone he was going for.

His awestruck gaze on the man, “Tae”, turned more assessing. With those looks, he could easily be an idol (or a supermodel). Yoongi was long past his phase where he judged idols harshly compared to other musicians, but in his experience their vocals could be hit or miss, at least for his purposes.

“PD Min-nim,” Tae finally spoke. His voice was surprisingly deep, and it immediately sent a frisson through Yoongi’s body. “I’ve heard so much about you from Hoseok-hyung. It’s an honour.”

Yoongi just blinked at him stupidly. This beautiful creature thought it was an honour to be in his presence?

Hoseok nudged him with a sharp elbow, apparently mistaking his stupefied reaction for disinterest. “Hyung, this is Kim Taehyung. He and his friend run a dance channel on Youtube that I follow, and Tae sings on the side. His voice would be perfect for that song you’ve been agonizing about for weeks!”

“Call me Yoongi-hyung,” is what came out of Yoongi’s mouth once his brain finally rebooted. “Nice to meet you, Taehyung-ssi.”

“The pleasure is all mine.” Dear god, that voice paired with that face. How was Yoongi supposed to form coherent thoughts in Taehyung’s presence?

“Well, I’ll let you two talk shop.” Hoseok, evidently realizing that something was up other than business-like interest, made his exit from the conversation after giving Yoongi a wink and supportive pat on the back. Yoongi swore he even saw Hoseok mouthing “Good luck” out of the corner of his eye.

Yoongi loved the man to death, but Hoseok was so embarrassing sometimes.

“…So.” Yoongi began, only to be interrupted by another partygoer appearing out of nowhere and clinging to Taehyung’s arm. It was another unfairly pretty man; this one was shorter and had dyed blond hair.

“TaeTae, I’ve been looking for you!” As if just registering Yoongi’s presence, the newcomer glanced over at him. His eyes were suddenly far from friendly. “Oh, who’s this?”

Taehyung grinned proudly. “Jiminie, this is the producer Hobi-hyung was talking about for a possible collab.” 

He looked back up at Yoongi. “Yoongi-hyung, this is my best friend, Park Jimin. We run a dance-based Youtube channel together. I also sing a little.”

“I’m his soulmate,” Jimin proclaimed, tightening his grip on Taehyung’s arm. “And I always say that you don’t post enough of your singing on our channel, TaeTae. Your voice is like an angel. A sexy angel.”

As Taehyung laughed, seemingly not at all flustered at those words, Jimin turned his gaze back onto Yoongi. “And it sounds like he’s your ‘hyung’ already, huh? Sounds like this collaboration is a done deal. How wonderful.”

Jimin didn’t sound like he found it very wonderful.

Yoongi narrowed his eyes at him. What was his deal?

“Well, we just met,” he said, careful to keep any irritation at Jimin out of his voice. “And while you seem very nice, Taehyung (and hot as hell, he added internally), I haven’t even heard you sing yet.”

Jimin immediately let go of Taehyung’s arm and grabbed his phone. “Well, we can’t have that!” he exclaimed, suddenly dropping his frosty demeanor as he scrolled frantically. He finally held his phone out, revealing the familiar Youtube layout for a channel simply called “VMIN”. 

As Yoongi watched, Jimin hit a video titled “COVER - RM Come Back to Me”, handed a pair of Airpods to Yoongi, and let the video play.

30 seconds in, Yoongi wanted to fall to his knees and cry. Hoseok, the wonderful bastard he was, had been totally right. Taehyung was absolutely the One for his song.

Instead of doing that and embarrassing himself even more than he already had, Yoongi stood still and continued to listen to Taehyung’s deep, magnetic voice, barely aware of Jimin and Taehyung’s eager and nervous glances over at him, respectively.

As the last notes of the song faded away, Yoongi removed the Airpods and handed them back to Jimin. “Are you available to record tomorrow?” was all he said.

Taehyung’s eyes widened. Next to him, Jimin let out a screech of excitement.

“I, uh, have a couple meetings in the aftern-”

“His schedule tomorrow is completely free,” Jimin interrupted. “He has absolutely nothing else going on.”

“But Jiminie-”

“This is way more important than some meetings with sponsors for the channel. Besides, I can go to them by myself.” Jimin made a face even as he spoke.

“You hate going to sponsorship meetings,” Taehyung whined.

“I do,” Jimin sighed. He took Taehyung’s hand in his (much smaller) hand and laced their fingers together. “But I’ll do anything to make sure my Tae-bear becomes a star like he deserves.”

Taehyung shook his head fondly, then turned back to Yoongi. “Then I’m available anytime tomorrow, hyung.”

Yoongi, who had been watching this drama-level performance in complete silence, nodded. “Okay, come by my studio around 3. We might be done by 5, or we might be there until midnight. It all depends on how things go.”

“Sounds good.”

He and Taehyung shared numbers so Yoongi could text him the address to his studio (“The ‘Genius Lab’?” he heard Jimin snorting in disbelief, before being shushed by Taehyung), before parting ways. Rather, Jimin dragged Taehyung away to try the snacks Hoseok had laid out for the party.

Yoongi declined Taehyung’s offer to join them in the kitchen, and decided it was time to call it a night. Fortunately, Seokjin was feeling similarly partied out, so they left together.

Despite leaving the party with the phone number of a handsome man who also happened to be an amazing singer, Yoongi felt conflicted. He couldn’t stop thinking about Jimin, and what kind of relationship he and Taehyung had, exactly. Hoseok had called him a friend, and Taehyung had said they were best friends. But Jimin had said they were soulmates, which Taehyung hadn’t disagreed with. And the way they acted around each other, and especially the almost possessive way that Jimin treated Taehyung, seemed like far more than friendship.

At the same time, Jimin had been so supportive of Taehyung coming in to record a song with Yoongi. He’d almost seemed more excited about it than Taehyung was.

“Did you have an okay time back there?” Seokjin asked as he and Yoongi got on the bus to go home. “You look like you’re deep in thought.”

“It was…interesting.” was all Yoongi said in response. Vague an answer it was, this was apparently enough to satisfy Seokjin, who launched into a (fond) rant about Jungkook being a brat. It was a rant that Yoongi had heard almost verbatim a thousand times before and could probably recite in his sleep by now.

As they sat down at the back of the bus, next to a trio of tired-looking college students, Yoongi closed his eyes and let his friend’s familiar voice wash over him.

Whatever was going on between Taehyung and Jimin (and most importantly, whether or not Taehyung was single), Yoongi would deal with it all tomorrow.

Chapter Text

Early the next morning, Yoongi spent an uncharacteristic amount of time in his closet, trying to find the perfect outfit for his recording session (or, his traitorous brain liked to call it, his date) with Taehyung.

As Yoongi agonized over black ripped jeans versus grey washed jeans, he heard loud footsteps and his bedroom door clicking open.

“I’m leaving for work, breakfast is on the table,” Seokjin announced. An aspiring actor, Seokjin did what most artists did before their big break and worked at a cafe full-time along with Namjoon. Yoongi used to work there full-time as well. He was now better off, career-wise, but he still pulled part-time shifts now and then when he needed the cash.

“Thanks.” Yoongi called without turning around. He heard a scoff at the disrespect, and hurried to give a backwards thumbs up while continuing to stare into his closet. Seokjin did 80% of the cooking in their household, and Yoongi couldn’t afford to piss off his source of sustenance too much.

“You know he’ll barely see you from the waist down, right?” Seokjin said drily. Yoongi hadn’t bothered telling him about Taehyung, knowing Seokjin would tease him endlessly about it, but apparently Hoseok and his big mouth had blabbed about it to everyone last night.

(“Why wouldn’t you want to share the good news?” Hoseok had defended himself when Yoongi complained to him over text.

“I haven’t even heard him sing over the track yet. The recordings could be unusable.”

“That’s not the only good news I was talking about, hyung.”

Yoongi had stopped answering him after that.)

“Oh well,” Seokjin huffed when Yoongi similarly remained silent. “I need to go. If Namjoon tries to open up on his own, who knows what’ll happen.”

“Bye, hyung. Don’t let Joon clean up broken glass again.”

“Don’t remind me, there was so much blood.” Seokjin groaned. “By the way, wear the grey jeans with the black shirt and chain - Jungkookie says it makes you look like a sexy bad boy. I’m sure Taehyung will love that.”

“ Goodbye , hyung.” The tips of Yoongi’s ears burned.

Seokjin left with a triumphant cackle. A few seconds later, the apartment door slammed shut in the distance.

With a sigh, Yoongi dropped the jeans and grabbed a loose black T-shirt to pull on. Seokjin’s fashion advice was as good as any, he supposed. At least now he could get dressed, eat, and head off to the studio instead of standing in his bedroom paralyzed with indecision.

The Genius Lab (which was a very cool and apropos name for his studio, Park Jimin ) was a small space that Yoongi had rented in a less-than-glamorous part of Seoul. It was a bit of a dump, and it took Yoongi forever to commute there, but it was his , which was what really mattered.

Several hours later, Yoongi, deep in the zone as he worked on a half-finished beat, was startled by his ringtone (an Epik High track that he and Namjoon agreed was criminally underrated). His friends and most of his work contacts knew better than to bother him when he was working, meaning this was either an emergency or, more likely, one of the stubbornly clueless ones calling.

Slightly irritated, he accepted the call without checking the caller ID. “What,” he grunted.

There was a pause, before a deep voice hesitantly spoke. “Ah…Yoongi-hyung? Is this a bad time?”

Yoongi immediately sat up in his chair. Taehyung. He’d completely forgotten what time it was.

“Nope,” he replied, a little too quickly. “This is a perfect time. Are you here?”

As he spoke, Yoongi hurried to save his work and clear the room of the empty coffee cups, takeout containers, and bits of scrap paper containing discarded lyrics that had accumulated over the past weeks. This was the typical state of Yoongi’s studio unless Hoseok came over to visit, in which case the whole place would be deep cleaned.

Luckily, Taehyung didn’t sound upset or impatient. “Yes, I’m right outside.”

“Great, I’ll unlock the door.” Yoongi winced as he felt something splash against his upper leg. “Just give me a minute…”

“No problem.”

Yoongi hung up and looked down, groaning as he realized that he had spilled the remnants of today’s drink onto his jeans and the bottom of his shirt. At least the shirt was black and hid the stains, but small dark drops were visible along his light pants .

Silently cursing Seokjin’s wardrobe suggestion from that morning, Yoongi grabbed a hoodie and tied it around his waist, hoping it would help hide the mess, before making his way to the door and peering outside.

There he was - Kim Taehyung. Still as beautiful as he was last night, even blurry and magnified as he was through the peephole.

Letting out a deep breath to calm himself, Yoongi opened the door. “Taehyung-ssi,” he greeted the man with a small smile, hoping he didn’t look too disheveled. “Thanks for coming.”

Taehyung smiled back. Yoongi’s stomach did backflips at the sight. “The pleasure’s all mine, Yoongi-hyung.”

Yoongi stepped back and let Taehyung enter. He couldn’t help but feel nervous as Taehyung glanced around his studio. He was suddenly hyper-aware of the peeling paint on the walls, the skid marks on the floors from constantly moving equipment, the ragged blanket tossed over the couch that Yoongi liked to nap on after pulling an all-nighter.

“This is so cool,” Taehyung breathed. Yoongi blinked. “I used to record all my covers in the closet. I’ve never been in a real music studio before…I love it.”

“It’s tiny and run down,” Yoongi shrugged, fighting off the urge to grin proudly at Taehyung calling it a real studio .“But it gets the job done. Speaking of…”

Taehyung nodded, immediately adopting a more professional demeanor. “Oh yes, of course. Where should I go?”

“In here, please.” Yoongi ushered Taehyung into the recording booth, smiling to himself as Taehyung looked around the booth like an excited puppy. How could one mak n be so handsome yet so cute at the same time?

As expected, Taehyung was an amazing vocalist. What was more, he took direction very well, never objecting when Yoongi asked for another take, asking clarifying questions when necessary, and incorporating Yoongi’s feedback and suggestions seamlessly into his vocals.

If Yoongi didn’t know otherwise, he’d think Taehyung was an experienced singer, not an amateur who’d only recorded cover songs in his closet before. Their professional chemistry, at the very least, was undeniable.

Before he knew it, Yoongi found himself clapping his hands together and telling Taehyung they were done after listening to the recording one last time. This was it, the missing piece he’d been looking for. With Taehyung, this song was sure to be a hit.

In response, Taehyung blinked and nodded slowly, as if breaking out of a stupor (Yoongi could relate). He bowed deeply as he exited the recording booth. “Thank you very much for all your guidance, Yoongi-hyung. I’m very grateful to have had the opportunity to work with you.”

“No, thank you .” Yoongi replied, gesturing for Taehyung to straighten up. “Hob-ah wasn’t lying when he told you I’d been struggling for a while on this track. Nothing was clicking with any other vocalist I worked with. But you…you’re perfect for this song.”

You’re perfect in general , Yoongi thought.

Out loud, he added: “You were a pleasure to work with. With your talent and professionalism, I think you could do great things if you want to continue pursuing a career in music.”

Taehyung’s eyes widened and his face flushed at the praise. “You really think so?”

Yoongi chuckled at the shy but eager smile spreading over Taehyung’s face. He really was so cute. “Absolutely. After this song comes out, I bet you’ll have everyone in the industry knocking down your door to work with you.”

“Including you, I hope.” Taehyung said with a cheeky grin. This time, it was Yoongi’s turn to blush.

“Of course,” he managed. “I got to you first, didn’t I?”

“And you never forget your first time, as they say.” Taehyung winked at him playfully.

Yoongi’s heart stuttered in his chest. Was Taehyung flirting with him?

Before he could second-guess himself, he blurted out: “Let me take you out to dinner to celebrate successfully recording your first professional song.”

To avoid looking at Taehyung while waiting for him to reply, Yoongi checked his watch for the time. It was fairly early for dinner (especially for Yoongi, who typically ordered takeout around midnight when he did remember to eat), but not so early as to be embarrassing.

“Oh, that would be-” Taehyung began, only to be interrupted by his ringtone. With a quick apology, Taehyung pulled out his phone and answered.

“Jiminie?” was the first word out of his mouth. Yoongi’s heart sank.

Oblivious to the sudden drop in Yoongi’s mood, Taehyung continued his side of the conversation with Jimin. “Is everything okay? How did the meetings go?…Oh no…No, no, thanks for checking up, we just finished up actually. Yoongi-hyung-…Oh, really?!...Minnie, you didn’t have to do that for me!…Okay, okay, let me tell hyung first. Bye, see you soon~”

To Yoongi’s disappointment, but not surprise, Taehyung apologetically informed him that he couldn’t come to dinner tonight. Apparently, Jimin was personally preparing a celebratory dinner for him, having anticipated that the recording would go well and that “my Tae-bear will be a star soon” (Taehyung chuckled in fond embarrassment as he quoted Jimin’s words; Yoongi replied with a smile that probably looked more like a grimace).

“Apparently one of our sponsors gave Jimin a hard time during our meeting today,” Taehyung added with a sigh. “He really doesn’t like dealing with them alone…”

Taehyung’s cheery demeanor had faded; he looked a little guilty to have left Jimin alone to face the dreaded sponsors. Yoongi resisted the urge to roll his eyes. In his eyes, Jimin was, despite his childishly possessive behaviour last night, a grown adult who could manage his own business affairs without someone else holding his hand through it.

“It sounds like his meetings are done, at least,” was all he said, pushing down his jealousy and disappointment at Jimin disrupting his time with Taehyung again. “And so are you. Go enjoy your home-made dinner with your…with Jimin. I won’t keep you here any longer.”

Yoongi badly wanted to ask Taehyung what kind of relationship he had with Jimin, exactly, but wasn’t nearly bold enough to do so.

Taehyung nodded, brightening back up. “Thank you very much, hyung. It was a pleasure working with you. I look forward to hearing the finished track.”

“You’ll be the first one I send it to,” Yoongi promised. He held out his hand, which Taehyung enthusiastically took for a handshake. “When we both have time, we should grab lunch. Both to celebrate your accomplishment today and to discuss future collaborations togethers.”

Taehyung looked surprised, then very pleased. “I’d love that, Yoongi-hyung. It’s a date?”

“Definitely.” Yoongi reluctantly let go of his hand. “I’ll be in touch. Have a good night, Taehyung-ah.”

He watched the door to the studio click shut behind Taehyung’s back. Taehyung’s last words echoed in his mind.

It’s a date.

Despite himself, hope swelled in his chest.

Chapter Text

After the recording session, Yoongi tried to focus on his work and put Taehyung out of his mind as much as he could. This wasn’t easy, considering that his current tasks largely consisted of listening to Taehyung's voice over and over. Though it wasn’t a love song, the sound of Taehyung crooning directly into his ear was still a lot for Yoongi to endure. Nevertheless, Yoongi persisted, and post-production moved along steadily.

About a week later, Namjoon texted Yoongi (at an appropriate-for-Yoongi’s-work-schedule time), and asked to meet him at the cafe after Namjoon’s shift. Supposedly, Namjoon wanted to discuss lyric ideas for his next EP. In reality, Yoongi had once again cooped himself up in the studio for too long, and Namjoon just needed an excuse to get him out and socializing. Yoongi knew this, and Namjoon knew that Yoongi knew it, but both kept up the fiction to satiate Yoongi’s workaholic tendencies. Who knew, maybe this time Namjoon really did need help with his EP.

Yoongi caught the bus just as it arrived at the stop nearest to the Genius Lab. He checked his phone as he sat down, pleased to see that he was several minutes earlier than the time estimate he’d given to Namjoon before he left the studio. Since he was early, and it was a nice day out, he decided to get off a few stops early and walk the remaining blocks to the cafe.

As he walked, Yoongi took the time to really take in his surroundings, something he rarely took (or had) the time to do back when he worked here. Downtown Seoul was always busy and bustling, the streets filled with businessmen and women in suits, schoolchildren out on trips, tourists taking photos, and the odd employee taking a smoke break to the side.

Yoongi had a lot of issues with it all - the injustices, the inequalities, the hypocrisy - but he couldn’t deny that there was something compelling there as well. Walking around never failed to inspire him.

His train of thought was suddenly interrupted as the pedestrian in front of him stopped walking. Before Yoongi could stop himself, he ran right into their back.

“Sorry-” Yoongi immediately took a step back, eyes wide in apology. Only then did he realize that the person he’d run into, who had turned back to face him, was all too familiar.

It was none other than his brand new arch-nemesis, Park Jimin, clad in fancy athleisure and with a yoga mat tucked under one arm.

Jimin’s eyes narrowed. It was obvious that he had recognized Yoongi as well.

Yoongi flicked his eyes around, checking for Taehyung’s presence. Sadly, Taehyung was nowhere to be found - for once, he and Jimin didn’t appear to be joined at the hip.

“Well, if it isn’t PD Min-nim!” Jimin finally exclaimed, pulling his lips up into a wide, obviously fake smile. “Fancy running into you here! Or should I say, you ran into me.”

“Sorry about that, Jimin-ssi.” Yoongi replied with a fake smile of his own. “I tend not to notice small things that are in my way.”

Jimin’s smile twitched and his grip on his yoga mat tightened. “I’m not sure you have room to call anyone else small , Yoongi-ssi.” His eyes flicked up and down Yoongi’s body mockingly.

Yoongi stifled the immediate urge to fire back with another barb. “I see you’re on the way to the gym, Jimin-ssi.” he said, choosing to be the bigger person and change the subject instead. Then, because he couldn’t help himself, he added: “I’m surprised Taehyung-ssi isn’t with you today.”

There was a triumphant flash in Jimin’s eyes. “Oh, didn’t he tell his Yoongi-hyung ? TaeTae is visiting his family in Daegu today. It’s his grandmother’s 80th birthday.” He looked incredibly smug to know something about Taehyung that Yoongi had no idea about. It was almost astoundingly petty.

“Oh?” Yoongi said, carefully maintaining his unbothered, polite demeanor. “What a coincidence, I’m from Daegu as well. It’s nice to know Taehyung-ssi and I have something in common. Are you from there as well, Jimin-ssi?”

Jimin’s smug expression faltered. “How nice,” he muttered. “No, I’m from Busan.”

“Oh, I have a friend from Busan, you might have met him at Hoseok’s party the other night.” Yoongi said with feigned interest. “I assume you met Taehyung in Seoul as well, then?” He put subtle emphasis on the words as well , just to tick Jimin off. From the look on Jimin’s face, it worked.

“TaeTae and I met almost as soon as I moved here,” Jimin explained. “He was the kindest, sweetest little bear from the start. We were assigned to the same dorm in university, and we’ve been living together ever since.” He smiled fondly, as if reliving nostalgic memories, before shooting Yoongi another challenging look. “I don’t see that changing anytime soon.”

“Of course,” Yoongi replied smoothly, internally still wondering whether Jimin and Taehyung were roommates or roommates. They were both frustratingly vague about the exact nature of their relationship. “I know first-hand how hard it is for one person to afford rent in Seoul.”

“Oh, I thought given your talents, you’d be rolling in dough, Producer-nim,” Jimin adopted an expression of faux-shock. Yoongi resisted the urge to roll his eyes. How did Taehyung put up with him?

“I make do,” was all he said. Like hell he was telling Jimin that he was technically still a part-time barista. “And you still dance on the internet?”

There was a spark of anger in Jimin’s eyes at that. “Tae and I still run our Youtube channel, yes. It’s doing very well, thank you for asking.”

“Oh, did the sponsor meetings go well despite Taehyung-ssi’s unfortunate absence?” Yoongi couldn’t help but ask. So much for being the bigger person. Extended conversation with Jimin really did seem to have the effect of lowering Yoongi to his level.

“They went fine,” Jimin said coldly. “I heard TaeTae did a wonderful job recording that song for you. It’s too bad he couldn’t go to dinner with you after,” he added with a knowing smirk.

Yoongi’s eyebrow ticked. Of course Jimin had to find out about that. “Yes, Taehyung-ssi did do amazingly. I hope to work with him on many more songs in the future. And to treat him to many meals.”

Jimin’s eyes narrowed at that. “You’d better be careful, Producer-nim. From the way you talk about him, someone might think you have more than a professional interest in my TaeTae.”

‘My TaeTae’, huh?

“The nature of my relationship with Taehyung-ssi is between the two of us, and no one else. Not even his best friend.” Yoongi gave Jimin a challenging look. Go on, tell me I’m wrong. Tell me he’s your boyfriend, that he’s off limits for reasons other than petty possessiveness on your part.

Jimin glared back fiercely, but didn’t contradict Yoongi’s words. Instead, he scoffed. “TaeTae’s my soulmate. He trusts me more than anyone in the world. If I don’t approve of someone they’ll be out the door before they know it.”

Then why haven’t you told him about your own feelings for him? It’s obvious that you like him. Yoongi thought but didn’t say. For one, he didn’t want to give Jimin any ideas. He also didn’t want to provoke an outright fight with Jimin. Jimin may look soft and harmless in his pastel pink yoga pants, but experience (aka Hoseok) had taught Yoongi that dancers had much more strength than their slender builds tended to betray.

“I trust Taehyung-ssi to come to his own judgments-” Yoongi’s retort was interrupted by Epik High blaring from his phone. He glanced down and saw that Namjoon was calling him, likely wondering where he was.

Guiltily, Yoongi swiped to deny the call, resolving to call Namjoon back soon. “I have to be somewhere else,” he said instead. “It was lovely to see you again, Jimin-ssi.” A blatant lie, of course, but there was no point in ending the conversation on an overtly rude note.

Jimin gave him a clenched-teeth smile. “The pleasure was all mine, Yoongi-ssi.” Without a further glance, he spun on his foot and walked the other way.

Yoongi called Namjoon as he fast-walked toward the cafe, bracing himself for the lecture.

Namjoon just sounded tired. “Let me guess, you were just about to leave the studio but you just had to finish something first.”

“Wrong. I actually left on time today.” Yoongi huffed into the phone. “I’ll be there in a few minutes.”

“Wait, really?” Namjoon sounded surprised. Was Yoongi really that predictable typically? “Why are you late today, then?”

“I’ll tell you when I get there, it’s a long story.”

“Okay. See you soon, hyung.”

“See you.” Yoongi hung up and rushed to the cafe.

When he arrived, Namjoon was waiting at one of the corner tables with an extra-strong espresso and a slice of Yoongi’s favourite cake (thank you, employee discounts). After refreshing himself, and at Namjoon’s urging, Yoongi told him (and Seokjin, who was still on shift but eavesdropped from the front counter) about his chance encounter with Jimin. By the end of the story, Namjoon was shaking his head in bemusement.

“This Jimin sure sounds like a character. I’m surprised I don’t remember him from Hobi’s party,” Namjoon said.

“If you met Taehyung, you would have met Jimin,” Yoongi sighed. “He was attached to his arm like a limpet.”

“I mean, at least you found out that he and Taehyung aren’t a couple. That’s good.” Namjoon said encouragingly.

Yoongi flushed. “Why would that be a good thing?” he blustered.

“Oh come on, hyung. We all know you’re interested in Taehyung. Hobi said you were looking at him like he’d hung the moon. And he got the impression Taehyung was interested back.”

Silently cursing Hoseok once again, Yoongi slumped in his chair. To be honest, he also got the impression that Taehyung was interested, especially now that the relationship status between him and Jimin had been cleared up, but…“If we dated, I’m sure Jimin would be trying to break us up the whole time.”

A broom bumped against the table. An apron-clad Seokjin grinned at over at him. “Then prove to Jimin that you’re a better boyfriend than his jealous little self could ever be.”

“Yeah!” Namjoon patted Yoongi’s shoulder. “You got this, hyung.”

Yoongi gave both of his friends a weak smile. “Thanks, I guess.”

Thankfully, the conversation moved on from Taehyung and Jimin after that. Yoongi was frankly relieved that he had made it through the topic with so little teasing from his friends.

The rest of the afternoon was spent making small talk about other recent happenings. Namjoon was making steady progress on his EP (and he did appreciate Yoongi’s input on the lyrics), Jungkook’s new job was much better to accommodate his intense university schedule than his previous one, enrollment for Hoseok’s dance class was so big he’d had to split into two classes, and Seokjin had landed a role in a shampoo commercial.

Everything seemed to be looking up for his friends. Yoongi hoped that, despite Jimin’s best efforts, this meant good things were coming for him, too.

—

A few evenings later, Yoongi’s phone buzzed with a text from Taehyung.

Taehyung: Hope you’re doing well, hyung. Jimin told me you’d bumped into each other the other day.

Yoongi stared at his phone screen nervously. Jimin could have said anything about his encounter with Yoongi, spun it to make him look like an angel and Yoongi like a complete asshole.

Whatever he said, at least it hasn’t turned Taehyung off making contact with him entirely, he told himself.

Yoongi: Yes, we did. I hope you had a good time in Daegu with your family.

Taehyung wrote back immediately.

Taehyung: I did, thank you hyung :D

Taehyung: Are you free this Saturday for lunch?

Yoongi wanted to leap from his bed in excitement, but before he could reply Taehyung continued.

Taehyung: I’d like to meet with you along with Jimin. Is that okay?

Yoongi’s jubilation immediately soured.

After a minute of hesitation from Yoongi’s end, Taehyung added:

Taehyung: I just think it would be a good idea if all 3 of us get together and talk. I want to clear some things up with you both.

That didn’t sound like a great time. It sounded like a terrible time - probably one where Taehyung would turn Yoongi down and Jimin was there to gloat. But it probably was better to get it all out there at once, so Yoongi could move on instead of holding onto false hope.

So, despite his mind screaming at him to politely decline, Yoongi replied yes, and blindly agreed to the restaurant Taehyung suggested. It wasn’t like he was going to taste any of the food there.

Taehyung: Great :) See you then, hyung.

Yoongi set his phone down with a sigh. So much for his friends’ pep talk.

Chapter Text

Before Yoongi knew it, it was Saturday morning - 10 AM, to be exact. After turning off the alarm blaring in his ear, he reluctantly got out of bed to get ready for the day.

As Yoongi brushed his teeth, staring blankly at himself in the bathroom mirror, he took a moment to reflect. He hadn’t dated in years, and he wasn’t the type to actively put himself out there with the intention of finding a partner. Yoongi found things like dating apps and speed dating to be far too artificial and superficial to be romantic in any way, so he avoided them. He was someone who wanted to meet the love of his life (or, at the very least, a compatible partner) while both of them were out and about living their authentic, everyday lives. If he couldn’t feel comfortable being himself around his partner, and vice versa, what was the point of even dating each other?

After Hoseok’s party and the recording session, Yoongi allowed himself to wonder if Taehyung was it for him. That this had been his meet-cute moment from the romantic comedies he sometimes found himself watching with Seokjin (and which he ended up enjoying far more than he’d admit). Sure, they mostly talked about work on those two occasions, but Yoongi was pretty sure there had been the spark of somewhere more between them as well.

Once Yoongi found someone he was interested in, he was quick to be open about his intentions - he would ask that person out, hear either yes or no in response, and go from there. With Taehyung, however, there was a complication - Jimin.

Taehyung and Jimin seemed to come as a package deal, and Yoongi had no idea what to make of it at first. They were business partners as co-owners of their Youtube channel, so it was expected they would be around each other frequently. But business partners generally didn’t go around clinging to each other and calling each other their “soulmate”, unless they were also partners in another sense. As grating as Yoongi found Jimin to be, he wasn’t a homewrecker. If Taehyung was taken, he would feel disappointed for a day or so, then move on.

But Taehyung kept giving off mixed signals. As close as he was to Jimin, he never explicitly came out and said they were (or weren’t) together. And he certainly seemed to be flirting with Yoongi during their recording session.

However, it was only after his run-in with Jimin the other day that Yoongi felt confident in saying that they weren’t dating. Jimin’s blatantly jealous and possessive behaviour made it obvious that he was far from a fan of Yoongi’s interest in “his TaeTae”, but he couldn’t invoke anything but the best friend card to try and dissuade him. Yoongi was  sure that, if Jimin and Taehyung were anything more than that, Jimin would have made it abundantly clear to him.

Unfortunately for Yoongi, Taehyung’s own intentions were still far from clear to him. Taehyung had seemingly followed up on Yoongi’s offer to go out to lunch together - a good sign. But he wanted Jimin there as well - a bad sign. Taehyung apparently wanted to “clear things up” with them both - Yoongi had no idea what that meant, but he couldn’t help but jump to negative conclusions. Receiving the equivalent of a “we need to talk” text seldom resulted in good news, after all.

Despite a part of him wanting to cancel today’s lunch and then ghost Taehyung for the rest of his life, Yoongi knew he had to go. Not only was he morbidly curious about what, exactly, Taehyung was going to say to him and Jimin, Yoongi wasn’t going to let his personal feelings for Taehyung affect either of their professional lives. He hadn’t been lying when he told Taehyung he had a lot of promise as a professional singer, and he was intent on helping Taehyung achieve that dream if that was something he wanted to do, even if there ended up being nothing else between them. 

After getting ready, Yoongi scrolled aimlessly on his phone, too nervous to do anything more productive in the hour or so before he had to leave.

It was only when he pulled up the address for the restaurant on his phone that he realized that this was the place that Jungkook had recently started working at. And, given his schedule as a university student, Jungkook tended to take a lot of weekend shifts.

Yoongi could only hope that Jungkook was busy doing something else today.

Unfortunately, when Yoongi arrived at the restaurant, he was greeted by a familiar pair of wide eyes and bunny teeth. It would have been a welcome sight any other day, but today Yoongi could only return Jungkook’s excited look of recognition and greeting with an awkward wave and grimace-grin.

Jungkook seemed to recognize Yoongi’s subdued mood, and gave him a sympathetic smile and pat on the back (which did cheer Yoongi up a little) before leading him to a secluded booth in the far corner of the restaurant. It was still fairly early for lunch, so there was no one else sitting nearby. Yoongi couldn’t help but wonder if Taehyung had deliberately arranged for this amount of privacy, perhaps anticipating some kind of meltdown from either him or Jimin. It certainly didn’t make him any less nervous.

Taehyung was already there, and he gave a little wave in greeting as Yoongi sat down across from him. He was alone at the table, and for a moment Yoongi allowed himself to hope that Jimin wasn’t coming today. This hope was immediately dashed as Taehyung informed him that Jimin was just using the washroom and would be back soon.

“Thanks for coming, Yoongi-hyung,” Taehyung added. “I know I was pretty vague, but I didn’t feel like we could talk about this over text. I think it needs to be done with all three of us here, in person.”

He reached across the table and touched Yoongi’s hand. It was a brief touch, but it made Yoongi’s heart beat faster despite his continued confusion about what was going on. Damn Kim Taehyung and his mixed signals!

“Right,” Yoongi managed, not sure what else to say. “It’s good to see you again,” he added, a little belatedly.

Taehyung grinned at him, before glancing up as someone approached them. “Ah, Jimin’s back!”

Reluctantly, Yoongi looked up as well.

Jimin was much more subdued compared to their last meeting. He silently slid into the booth next to Taehyung without acknowledging Yoongi in any way.

“Right, let’s get this over with,” he grunted, slouching over in the booth. His attitude surprised Yoongi, who had expected Jimin to be smug and gloating. He wondered what Taehyung had told Jimin to get him to come here today.

Taehyung’s smile dimmed. “Come on, let’s order first. Didn’t you want to try their special?”

“I’ll have whatever you get, TaeTae.” Jimin shrugged. Taehyung sighed. It was a stark contrast from their usual behaviour around each other. 

At that moment, as if sensing the tension between the diners, Jungkook re-appeared with glasses of water for everyone. After exchanging a sympathetic look with a clearly uncomfortable Yoongi, Jungkook politely asked if they were ready to order.

Taehyung ordered the special, which Jimin echoed. Yoongi, who couldn’t imagine eating anything in these circumstances, asked for a light appetizer, just to order something.

Jungkook left, leaving behind an awkward silence. Finally, Taehyung spoke.

“It always gets so tense when the two of you are around each other,” he said, glancing between Yoongi and Jimin. “You’re both lovely, kind people who have a lot in common. But you don’t seem to like each other much…”

Taehyung bit his lip and looked down. “...and I think it’s my fault.”

Immediately, Yoongi opened his mouth to protest that of course this wasn’t Taehyung’s fault. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Jimin about to do the same. 

Before either could speak, Taehyung held up a hand and continued. “Please let me finish, guys.”

He turned to Yoongi, giving him a nervous smile. “I hope I haven’t been reading the signals wrong, Yoongi-hyung. I like you a lot, and I hope you feel the same.”

Yoongi’s mouth opened, but no sound came out at first. He had been bracing himself for the exact opposite, so Taehyung’s confession took him aback. In a good way, of course.

Finally, he got a hold of his vocal chords. “How could I not like you? Taehyung, you’re beautiful both inside and out.”

Taehyung flushed at the compliment, eyes shining with joy and relief. To think Yoongi had made him look like that. If regular Taehyung was beautiful, a Taehyung that was this happy was absolutely gorgeous.

Then Taehyung turned to Jimin, and Yoongi remembered that they weren’t alone.

“Jimin…you’ll always be my soulmate, you know that.” Taehyung said softly, reaching out for his hand, only for Jimin to flinch away from his touch. “There’s no need to be jealous of Yoongi and I.”

“How could I not be?” Jimin choked out. Yoongi could see tears forming at the corners of his eyes. “Especially after that lovely confession that you just made me sit through.”

“Hey, hey,” Taehyung soothed, cupping Jimin’s face in his hands. “There’s no need to cry, Jiminie, I’m not done yet.”

He pressed a kiss to Jimin’s cheek, wiping away his tears with his thumb as he pulled back. Jimin stared after him, wide-eyed. Clearly this wasn’t a usual thing for them.

Taehyung immediately turned to Yoongi, who was clearly equally as confused as Jimin. “Yoongi-hyung, please understand. There’s no need to be jealous of me and Jimin either.”

“Explain yourself right now, TaeTae,” Jimin demanded, voice shaky. Taehyung nodded and faced them both.

“I’m sorry, I’ve gone about this all wrong.” Taehyung cleared his throat. “What I meant to say all along was - I like you two equally.”

He glanced at them nervously, and they stared back at him.

“What?” Jimin whispered.

“Equally?” Yoongi asked at the same time.

His head was spinning. Previously, in his mind there had been only three possibilities - Taehyung was interested in Yoongi, he was interested in Jimin, or he was interested in neither of them, at least romantically. Despite several of his friends being poly and being in non-monogamous relationships, he had somehow never considered that maybe Taehyung liked them both romantically.

“I want to date you both. At the same time,” Taehyung clarified further, cheeks turning pink as they continued to look at him. “It’s just…I know it’s weird but you’re both so…I can’t imagine just dating one of you and being content, you know? I can’t choose between you two. And I know you don’t get along right now but I hope that can change as you get to know each other. You don’t need to date each other too!” he hastened to add when Jimin made a face. “Just...I really do think you have a lot in common, and I think the only thing getting in the way of you two being friends is your jealousy of each other. And like I told you, you don’t need to feel jealous of each other. Because me liking one of you doesn’t take away from how I feel about the other one. And maybe it’s because I’m selfish but…I-I really want you both to be happy together with me. I really like you both.”

Taehyung said the last part all in one breath, stuttering only at the very end. Yoongi suspected that he had practiced parts of his speech in advance, and he found it very sweet and endearing.

“Thank you for being open and honest with us, Taehyung-ah.” Yoongi said, taking Taehyung’s hand in his own. Now that the initial shock had passed, he felt much more capable of responding and reassuring Taehyung. “You’re not selfish or weird at all for feeling the way you do. Sure, maybe it’s not what society expects, but fuck society.”

At that, Taehyung gave him a watery smile.

“Yes, Jimin and I haven’t exactly gotten off on the right foot,” Yoongi continued. “But you’re right that, on my part, it was largely because I was jealous of how close you two are. You’ve been so close for so long, and I thought there was no way I could compete.”

“There was never any need to compete,” Taehyung said quietly. Yoongi nodded.

“I know that now. And as I said, I really like you as well. I’m willing to give this a try. Both with you, as your partner, and with Jimin, as your other partner.”

Yoongi looked Jimin in the eye as he spoke. Jimin just looked back at him. For the first time since he met Jimin, he looked vulnerable and soft.

Taehyung’s eyes glittered. “I didn’t expect you to say that, to be honest. I mean, who would want to date someone with another boyfriend?”

“I do.” Jimin finally spoke. Taehyung and Yoongi both turned to him, surprised. “Because you’re worth it, TaeTae. I won’t lie and say that I want to be best friends with Yoongi, because I don’t.” Taehyung cracked a smile, and Yoongi snorted, because he didn’t necessarily disagree. “But I believe you when you say you like us both. Because I know you, and I know your heart has so much love to give.”

Taehyung was on the verge of tears at this. Seeing this, Jimin pulled him into a close hug, which Yoongi soon joined. Although Jimin tensed up as he felt Yoongi’s hand next to his, he gradually relaxed.

“See what you’re able to do, TaeTae,” he murmured into Taehyung’s ear. “Your love brought Yoongi-ssi and I together. Something I never thought would be possible.”

Taehyung giggled into Jimin’s neck. “Can I kiss you?” he murmured. When Jimin nodded, he leaned up and pressed his lips against his chastely. Blushing, Jimin turned Taehyung’s head toward Yoongi as they pulled away. 

“Better kiss him too, before he gets jealous,” he teased.

“No need to be jealous,” Taehyung pouted, before leaning in to kiss Yoongi as well. Taehyung’s lips were soft and sweet. Knowing that he’d just kissed Jimin as well didn’t upset him nearly as much as he’d expected it to.

“Now you two?” Taehyung asked with a hopeful expression, though it was obvious he was just teasing. Jimin made an exaggerated face and sat back in the booth, straightening his clothes to look less rumpled.

“That’ll take a while, if it ever happens,” Yoongi chuckled as he too sat back and made himself presentable.

“So you’re saying there’s a chance.”

“Not on my watch!” Jimin exclaimed, much to Yoongi and Taehyung’s amusement.

As if waiting for a good time to interrupt (which he probably had - God, Yoongi hoped he hadn’t seen them all kissing), Jungkook swooped in carrying their dishes. 

“Enjoy,” he said with a wink directed at Yoongi. Yoongi knew he was in for endless teasing after this, but somehow he couldn’t find it in himself to care at the moment.

The three of them enjoyed their food (with Yoongi now wishing he’d ordered more than just an appetizer). Now that they’d made it through the big emotional discussion, they made much lighter small talk, with Taehyung (and occasionally Jimin) asking Yoongi about himself, and Yoongi doing the same with Taehyung and Jimin in turn. As they got to know each other, Yoongi became more convinced that he had made the right decision. Taehyung was lovely and easy to talk to, of course. And he had to admit that Taehyung was right - he and Jimin had more in common than he’d expected.

After Jungkook cleared their plates and asked if they wanted dessert. Taehyung, seeing that Yoongi and Jimin were both eyeing the ice cream, suggested they get it to share among the three of them. 

And so they ended up with one massive bowl of ice cream and three spoons, with Jungkook giving them a knowing look before telling them to enjoy. 

And they did enjoy. Jimin even giggled instead of getting annoyed when Yoongi accidentally flung a bit of ice cream onto his face.

The whole time, Taehyung sat between them, looking radiantly happy.

When the time came to pay the bill, Yoongi insisted on paying as the oldest one. He made sure to leave Jungkook a more-then-generous tip, both for his excellent service (especially his discretion), and in hopes that it would help keep his mouth shut for at least a little longer.

“Thank you, come again,” Jungkook grinned as he handed Yoongi his receipt, giving him a look that said he would be blabbing about this to their other friends as soon as his shift was over.

“We will,” Taehyung chirped. Yoongi resisted the urge to pat his boyfriend’s (he couldn’t believe he could call Taehyung that now) head. Next to him, Jimin looked over at his (also-)boyfriend fondly. Yoogn was surprised to realize the sight was cute rather than jealousy-inducing.

Maybe they really could make this relationship work, he thought.

END