Subin sat silently at the kitchen table. Jin bustled around the stove, cooking the porridge Namjoon's mother had left behind. Jungkook sat at the table finishing his breakfast. He drank strong tea, whose aroma spread throughout the house. He glanced at the girl from time to time, almost choking on a piece of food when their eyes met. Namjoon talked to someone on the phone in the hallway and then locked himself in the bathroom, but his loud voice echoed throughout the tiny rooms. Hoseok and Jimin still hadn't returned to the kitchen since the awkward incident an hour earlier. Meanwhile, Taehyung settled down on the wide windowsill and watched Subin. He wasn't just watching; he was admiring her. He didn't care that she wasn't wearing makeup or that her face showed minor imperfections. He was so in love with his neighbor, whom he hadn't even spoken to yet, that he couldn't take his eyes off her. He kept thinking about what he would say when they first met. But as soon as he saw her, he forgot everything.
"Be careful, it's still hot," Jin warned as he placed hot porridge that smelled deliciously of grains on the table. "How are you feeling?"
"Better now, thank you," Subin smiled shyly at the boy she had known longest and best of all the Bangtan members. She had crossed paths with him many times on her way to work and had seen him at the BigHit agency, where she was interning.
"You're lucky that Namjoon's mom was nearby. Thanks to her, you're feeling better now. Eat up before it gets cold," Jin said, handing her a spoon.
Subin hesitantly scooped some porridge onto her spoon. She tasted it. She smiled because she tasted her mother's porridge for breakfast again, a long-forgotten taste. For over a year, she had only spoken with her mother on the phone and hadn't seen her face. Today, for the first time since moving to Seoul, someone was taking care of her. This person cared about her, asked how she was feeling, and reminded her of Busan, the city where she grew up. She could always smell her mother's tokpoki and hear music playing on the old radio from the local station. She hadn't felt such warm emotions in a long time. In the Bantans' house, she felt alive. It was cozy and warm. It seemed as if the girl's body were about to explode with happiness.
"Delicious..." she whispered, bringing the tenth spoonful to her mouth.
Barely holding back tears, she ate her breakfast, closing her eyes and imagining the small kitchen and her mother sitting across from her. Jin looked at his neighbor with big, satisfied eyes. He was always pleased when everyone enjoyed his dishes with such an appetite. There was rarely anything left on the table for later.
Taehyung stared wide-eyed at the girl, who seemed oblivious to the three boys in the room. Jungkook looked at her with his mouth open. At that moment, the other Bangtan boys came into the kitchen. First came Namjoon, followed by Suga. Hobi and Jim were the last to enter. Hobi hugged the younger boy around the neck and smiled broadly at Subin as if he knew something about her that she didn't.
The kitchen fell silent for a moment, but Subin continued eating her delicious porridge. Finally, after finishing the last spoonful, she exhaled with satisfaction. Only then did she notice that everyone was looking at her. She glanced around and stopped her gaze on the dark-haired young man. She remembered the morning incident with his bare chest and towel. Her cheeks flushed red again. In a matter of seconds, it became hot. She jumped up from her chair, grabbed her purse from the table, and began to say goodbye from the kitchen door:
"Thank you for the porridge. It was very tasty." "Thank you for helping me yesterday," she continued, backing away. Taehyung jumped off the windowsill when he saw her leave, but he still didn't dare say anything. "All the best," she said with a smile as she stumbled over the shoes scattered under the door near the exit.
"Careful," the Bangtans all chirped in unison, warning her of the danger behind her.
"It's okay. I'm fine," the girl assured them, standing firmly on her feet and keeping her balance. She felt for the doorknob with her palm. She opened the door, looked at Jim, and darted into the hallway, leaving the boys confused by her strange behavior.
Once outside her apartment, Subin breathed a sigh of relief. She leaned her back against the door and slowly slid down. Her heart was still pounding from everything that had happened, but knowing she was home calmed her down. She closed her eyes, and suddenly, she saw an image of Jim in a towel. She opened her eyes and shook her head to bring herself back to reality.
"Subin, what's wrong with you?" Why are you fixating on this picture? Everyone from Bantan was there. Why did this moment stick in your mind?" she asked herself. "I need to distract myself." She glanced at the pile of unwashed dishes in the sink. "That's right." Cleaning. I'll start cleaning." With that thought, Subin began a thorough cleaning. There were many thoughts.
*******************************
After Subin left the Bangtans' house, the rooms became quiet and unfamiliar. It felt uncomfortable to be in the house without the girl's company after their neighbor had visited. Every corner was filled with her voice and the sweet, vanilla scent of her perfume, driving Jim and Taehyung crazy. The guys didn't know where to go in the small, cluttered apartment.
Rap Monster and Hobi decided to go to the studio to work on and perfect new compositions, although there was little room for improvement. Jin-hyung and Jungkook went shopping at the supermarket, and within an hour, photos of them with fans appeared on Twitter. Yoongi disappeared without saying a word to anyone. The guys guessed that he had run off to see his girlfriend. Taehyung locked himself in his room to be alone with his thoughts. Jimin, not knowing what to do with himself, spent the whole day on the computer and late at night on his phone.
When everyone was asleep, he realized it was the middle of the night and the clock showed 1 a.m. He had to go to the agency tomorrow to prepare for new concerts and practice choreography. The release of a new album and tour were just around the corner.
Still half asleep, Jim headed to the kitchen where the light above the stove was on. Yoongi was sitting at the table with his eyes closed, holding a sandwich in one hand and his phone in the other. Jim was surprised to see Yoongi there because it was the first time he had seen him in the kitchen at that hour. Usually, Yoongi would be snoring sweetly with his left arm thrown behind his head and his right hand scratching his stomach. Today, however, the guy's mood was below rock bottom. Minnie sat down next to Yoongi, staring intently at his white face. Yoongi slowly looked up from his phone, his eyes widening when he saw Minnie's curious face with its chubby cheeks in front of him.
"Aww, you scared me," he hissed in his hoarse voice.
"Yoongi-hyung, what are you doing here? I thought you were asleep like everyone else."
"Why aren't you sleeping, kid? We have a lot of work to do tomorrow."
"I know..." he muttered under his breath, his voice hinting at sadness.
"Oh, I sense something's wrong. What happened?"
"Nothing," he replied sharply, his eyes widening as he sensed that Hyung knew something.
Yoongi is always the first to guess when his classmates have problems. He looks intently into their souls and forces them to talk about the problem. He always knows how to listen, just like Jin, and he always gives good advice. That's why Jim only confided in him and Taehyung. But now, they were on opposite sides of the fence.
"Well, tell me. You know I'll get the truth out of you," Yoongi said confidently, taking a big bite of his sandwich.
"Ugh..." Jim exhaled bitterly. He felt uncomfortable telling Hyung how he felt, but he needed to talk to someone. "It's... because of a girl," he began uncertainly.
"Oh, is it because of our neighbor?"
"How did you?" Jim began to stutter.
"I saw how you looked at her," Yoon said, smiling and showing his teeth. "And Taehyung likes her, too," he continued.
"Yes, I know. That's the problem. We both like her. I'm confused about my feelings. I don't know what to do."
"Go after her with all your strength! Fight for your true feelings. Don't let her out of your sight. Hug her more often, and go for walks." Yoon spoke with sadness in his heart because, at that moment, he regretted letting Sona leave him hundreds of kilometers away without telling her the most important thing.
"Hyung?!" Jim exclaimed in surprise, causing Yoon to stop. He looked at the small man, his eyes full of tears, but he hid them by lowering his head.
There was a sound of sobbing. Yoongi never allowed himself to show such emotions, especially in front of his members. But today, his heart was breaking. He had made so many mistakes that he didn't know how to move forward. That's why he advised Jim not to ignore the feelings raging in his heart, still young as it was. It hurt Jim to look at the sad Hyung because he was feeling something similar. Love. The desire to be with her. To spend every second together. Jealousy. Thanks to Yoongi, another unfamiliar feeling had awakened in Jim's heart. The desire to do something nice that would make Subin's heart beat in rhythm with his.
Taehyung stood by the kitchen door the whole time, hearing every word. "Win her over with all your strength. Fight for true feelings."
No, he won't let that happen.
He will be the one to make his neighbor fall in love with him first. She will be with him.
~~~~~~~~~~~*************~~~~~~~~~~
The alarm clock had been ringing for ten long minutes, vibrating wildly on the table. But Subin, tired from yesterday's cleaning, didn't hear it. She was having a pleasant dream, which made her smile as she lay sprawled on the bed. Suddenly, Jim burst into her dream, wearing only a towel around his hips. The alarm clock had slid to the edge of the table and fell loudly to the floor, scattering its parts under the bed. Subin jumped up on the bed sharply and, in a moment, realized that she had been sitting on the edge and had painfully hit the hard wooden floor with her butt:
"Ouch, damn it..." she cried out.
Subin sat on the floor, leaning her elbows on the bed, and rubbed her right palm on her sore butt. "Oh, Jimin! Why did you find me here?" she asked herself because she really didn't know.
In the shower, she noticed a large bruise on her left buttock. It hurt to move her leg; everything hurt. After barely pulling herself together and drinking only hot coffee for breakfast, Subin headed for the exit. She wore dark blue jeans, a pink T-shirt, and a denim sleeveless jacket with pink ballet flats. She searched her bottomless purse for her headphones and untangled them because they had twisted into an endless tangle of wires at the most inopportune moment. Finally, she pulled out one earphone, then the other. She put them in her ears and turned up the volume on "BTS - Rain." As if on cue, raindrops began to fall on her nose, lightly and coldly touching her skin:
"Debak!" she exclaimed. But she didn't want to go home to get an umbrella. The thought of running in the rain flashed through her mind. But, remembering the consequences of her walk in the downpour the other day, she didn't want to risk it again. What if she got caught in the rain again? There, Jimin...
She stood under the front door's roof for several minutes, hoping the rain would pass. She looked up at the sky and begged it to stop. But it only grew stronger. The wind picked up, driving the rain to the right and left. It tore white petals from the blossoming trees. Subin's feet were already wet, yet she still hadn't gone back for her umbrella.
Exhaling heavily, the girl emptied her lungs of all the air and switched songs. "BTS — For You," one of her favorites. It was gentle and melodic. It was perfect for listening to while the sound of the rain harmoniously emphasized the rhythm. She closed her eyes and listened to the lyrics while breathing in the fresh, rain-filled air that permeated every corner of Seoul. Suddenly, it got darker, as if someone had blocked the sky. She opened her eyes and saw a yellow umbrella above her, like a bright sun on a cloudy day. Her heart was filled with pleasant warmth. Then — shock. Her heart screamed in fright when she looked to her left.
Dark-haired Jimin was standing next to her, holding the umbrella over her like the sun. He smiled slightly and blinked his long eyelashes at her. He was so handsome and well-dressed. Wearing a sports jacket, black skinny jeans with holes in the knees, and a cap, he looked like a neighbor boy you might meet on the way to school or at the market buying cola and chips. There were three moles on his forehead, and a small dimple on his cheek made it impossible for Subin to take her eyes off him. Something incredible was happening inside both of their chests. Fireworks exploded, making noise. Hundreds—no, thousands—of butterflies fluttered wildly in their stomachs, unable to find a way to freedom.
"Go after her with all your strength. Fight for your true feelings." These words spun around in Jimin's head.
"No, Subin. Don't. Not like this, not here, not now." Don't fall in love because it will hurt," she heard in her head.
But their hearts had long been beating in unison.