Chapter Text
Taehyung
"...and His voice was like the sound of many waters; and the earth shone with His glory" (Ezekiel 43:2)
In early March, the weather decided it was ready to move on from winter and graced the students of Taylor university with abundant sunshine. So naturally, many students brought out their blankets and towels to lay about the big lawn, reminiscent of the turtles sunbathing on rocks at the nearby river.
Taehyung and Jimin were no exception, Taehyung lying out on what was probably a bath towel, but he couldn’t remember. It looked better than Jimin’s, which was ratty and frayed at the edges, but probably more acceptable for the outdoors.
“I’m so booooooored,” Taehyung flipped on his stomach and stretched out the word until his lungs were depleted. His head faced Jimin, who was hunched over his laptop, eyes squinting to make out the words he typed. He had an open notebook on one side and a textbook on the other.
Jimin flipped a page of his notebook before replying, “How about we play the silent game.” Phrased as a question, definitely not one.
Taehyung rubbed his cheek on the towel, enjoying the softness of it. It was definitely a bath towel. Maybe he could wash it before his mom noticed.
“I have a better idea. How about we listen?”
“Huh?” He got Jimin to look up at least.
Taehyung’s voice was muffled as he spoke, “Remember how Namjoon preached about Logos and Rhema on Sunday?”
“Yes - Logos is the written word and Rhema is the instant voice of God.” Jimin recited factually, probably still stuck on studying mode.
“He also said that we should practice listening to Rhema more, instead of only focusing on speaking at God.”
“Uhuh…” Jimin’s fingers were twitching over his textbook, so Taehyung knew he had to get to the point.
“What if we practice that? Right now? As a break from your work?”
“Taehyung, I -”
“You know, the mind set on flesh is death and all that.”
Jimin cracked a small smile, “My animal bio exam is not distracting me from the kingdom of God. You’re ridiculous.”
Taehyung sat up to give Jimin his puppy eyes. The best angle was through his eyelashes.
“You’re a child,” Jimin accused while sticking out a foot to kick Taehyung. Then he ran a hand through his black hair. “Okay, I was getting tired of studying anyway. How do we do this?”
“I don’t know… Namjoon just said to have some quiet time with God and listen and wait for what God might have to say for us.”
Jimin put his laptop aside and they decided to treat it sort of like a meditation. They’d be silent, after all. Taehyung closed his eyes and tried to tell his mind to be quiet too. He had to make some space to hear God. What would God sound like anyway? He’s heard stories from Hoseok that some people have heard an actual voice. Probably something like roaring water. Maybe it wouldn’t sound like a man. Taehyung squeezed his hands together. Focus. He was never good at meditation. He’s heard that it becomes easier with practice, though. He bet that Jeongguk would be good at it, sometimes he had a face so blank that there couldn’t be a thought behind those eyes-
“Hey guys!!”
A cheerful voice interrupted their practice and Jimin blinked owlishly at Taehyung, while Taehyung looked behind him at the boy bounding towards them. Speak of the devil…
Speak of the man…? Maybe that wasn’t a good idiom.
When Jeongguk reached them, he tapped Jimin’s right shoulder, only to peek over his left and blow in his ear. Jimin’s gasp rattled his whole body and he attempted to swat Jeongguk back but was quite delayed. Jeongguk easily avoided the attack and settled next to Taehyung, offering him a quick fist bump.
“Wow, what happened to you? All that studying fry your brain?” Jeongguk teased.
“At least I’m doing work, you just woke up.” Jimin jabbed, but the effect didn’t quite reach his eyes.
“You got me there…but that is not a crime.” Taehyung snickered and helped Jeongguk pat his bed head down. He was supposed to join Jimin and him earlier but hadn’t replied to their calls this morning.
“Jimin and I were practicing listening to Rhema.” Taehyung informed Jeongguk while rearranging his bangs once more.
“Oh, the voice of God, like what Namjoon was talking about, right? Hear anything crazy?” His lips pulled up into a smile again as he pulled off his backpack. He had a yoga mat clipped to the top, which he unfurled with a flourish.
“That my true calling is in the Appalachian Mountains, where I shall become a sheep herder.”
“That I should learn the piano.”
Jeongguk immediately understood that Taehyung’s response was a joke, and of course, so did Taehyung. So, their gazes rounded on Jimin and they asked in unison, “What?”
Jimin leaned back on his palms, distancing himself from their eager faces. Now Taehyung knew for certain that what Jimin said was true, but he wanted to hear one more time.
“Um…I think that I should learn to play the piano. Or maybe not. I could have just been thinking about pianos.” The more Jimin’s eyes wandered, the more his uncertainty shone through.
“What did it sound like?” Taehyung asked, an echo of his previous thoughts.
Jimin took a deep breath and sat up again. He interlocked his fingers and squeezed. “I felt it. The word piano resounded through me, and I began to think about taking lessons.”
“Wow,” Jeongguk exhaled. “That’s pretty out of the blue. Have you thought about learning to play the piano before?”
Jimin furrowed his brows. “I’ve never seriously considered it. It would be cool to be able to play while I sing, but I don’t know.”
Taehyung jolted and reached over to jostle Jimin by shoving his nearest knee. “Then it must be God! Why else would you be thinking about it so seriously, when you never have before? You’ve got to learn the piano now, Chim!” To Taehyung, it seemed like the best sort of message to receive from God. To play an instrument? What a blessing that would be!
“Yeah Jimin!” exclaimed Jeongguk, shaking at his other knee. “Learn the piano, and let’s form a band!”
Taehyung gasped and voiced his agreement. The more Jimin attempted to stop them from jostling him, the more excited they got. He laughed as he finally got his bearings and shoved them to the ground. Surprisingly, they gave in easily and landed on their backs, eyes crinkled with laughter. Jimin settled into the space between them, then they were all staring up at the clear sky.
“If you learn the piano, I’ll learn something, too,” started Jeongguk. “Piano would sound really great with Tae’s violin. I want to play something cool! But it would have to go with piano and violin.” He hummed in thought.
“Oh yeah!” assented Taehyung. “I could actually practice some violin solos with you.”
Jimin let a huff of air. “Tae, you are way too good. I couldn’t possibly learn to accompany you on the piano that fast.”
Taehyung turned his head to examine Jimin better. “Sounds like you’re considering it now,” he chuckled.
Jimin heaved in another deep breath. “I have no idea no idea how I would even do it, but I have to admit, the idea doesn’t feel wrong.”
“I’m sure it will all come together in God’s timing,” said Jeongguk. “But in the meantime, I’m going to text the old man to teach me the guitar!”
All the boys voiced their agreement and dreamed of how their band would come together. They tossed a few ridiculous names back and forth and established Jimin as the lead singer. Jeongguk and Taehyung liked to sing as well but were not quite as practiced as him. In a miracle that took about thirty minutes to come into fruition, the boys focused again on their schoolwork. Focus as in Jimin making headway for his animal bio exam while ignoring the two serial procrastinators by his side, but there’s no better attitude for doing homework than the cheer that comes from hopeful plans.