Work Text:
Yoongi had been going to Triptych since he started university. It had been mentioned a class by his professor who told them it was a place to perform, to experience and to help kick start their desires to create. He hadn’t expected to enjoy it as much as he did, watching others both his age and older perform covers of songs and original songs in all sorts of genres. He certainly hadn’t expected to still be returning now, aged twenty-two, out of uni and in the workplace. Yoongi frequented the bar often enough that the owners of the place knew him, asked him how he was getting on with work and whether he would ever perform on the stage again, that regular attendees would smile at him across the room and stop by to catch up for a couple of minutes before they parted ways. It was a home away from home and Yoongi always found himself wandering back.
Yoongi had come tonight on request of Namjoon and Hoseok. They were supporting Taehyung and Jimin, who had both performed at Triptych before, as both soloists and as a duo, but were performing tonight with a friend who they had started a new project with. Yoongi was clueless to what they would actually be doing on stage, but they always pulled through with something great, something memorable, so Yoongi was content to be left in the dark.
Hoseok, Namjoon and Seokjin’s chatter filled the air around him as they waited for the next act to move onto the stage. Someone walked on, part of a drum kit in hand and Jimin followed after them, watching as they began to put the parts down. He gave the guy a thumbs up when they were all on stage and sat down on his stool, moving anything that seemed out of place. Taehyung strolled on then, bass guitar resting against his chest as he turned to speak to the guy that followed him out. The third guy Yoongi hadn’t seen before. He was tall, almost Taehyung’s height, with a black beanie pulled down over his dark hair and a flannel shirt over a black t-shirt. He lifted his guitar strap over his shoulder and plucked at the strings for a moment before turning to look at Jimin who smiled at him, and pointed towards the microphone.
Taehyung caught sight of their table and waved, smiling brightly as Beanie Guy shuffled towards the mic at the centre of the stage and cleared his throat awkwardly.
“Uh,” He started. “Hey.”
There were a few cheers from the crowd and Beanie Guy shot them a bashful look. It could have been the lighting, but Yoongi was sure he saw a red flush spread across his cheeks. It was cute. He shifted from foot to foot, fiddling with the pick in his hand before he continued.
“We’re Currently Nameless,” He said, Taehyung walking to his side and throwing an arm over his shoulder, grinning at the audience. Beanie Guy relaxed under the weight of Taehyung’s arm and carried on talking. “And I mean that’s actually the band name, not that we don’t have a name. This is our first live performance outside of the music rooms and you are the first actual audience that doesn’t consist of our professor or classmates so please be nice.”
There were a few chuckles from the audience and Beanie Guy let out a small smile.
“Enjoy our set!” Taehyung leaned over to speak into the mic. “You’ll probably recognise some songs, but there are a few originals thrown in there too.”
They moved into position then, Beanie Guy and Taehyung exchanging a nod before glancing back at Jimin who smiled, knocking his drumsticks together to count them in.
They started to play and Yoongi recognised the first few chords of a song he’d heard once or twice a while back, when Taehyung took over the music in Seokjin’s car. Beanie Guy began to sing and - fuck.
He was screwed.
Beanie Guy was cute and he could sing. Really well too. Hoseok nudged him in the side and Yoongi turned to look at him only to see Hoseok wiggling his eyebrows. Yoongi scowled and elbowed him before turning back to the stage and ignoring the grin that he knew was on Hoseok’s face. Fuck Hoseok and the fact that he knew basically everything about Yoongi. He never should have mentioned (admittedly he was drunk at the time so it was less in casual conversation and more of a secret confession that he’d whispered to Hoseok whilst he had been sat under the kitchen table) that he had a weakness for cute boys and great singing voices and cute boys with great singing voices.
Yoongi shifted in his seat as he tried to concentrate on the performance. They were good, a little rough around the edges, but for a group who hadn’t performed in front of a live audience like this before, they managed to work the stage well. Jimin was banging happily at his drums, Taehyung was bobbing his head as he played, chipping in with the occasional backing vocal and Beanie Guy seemed to become more comfortable as he lost himself in the music. Yoongi noticed he closed his eyes when he really felt a song, usually one of the groups originals. His voice was smooth and heavenly and wanted to hear more of it. His voice would be excellent to work with and Yoongi found himself wondering what it would be like if he sang along to some of Yoongi’s lyrics. All of his friends had sung for him at some point, Jimin and Taehyung were used to dropping by the studio after they’d finished their lectures with a cup of coffee for Yoongi in hand and voices at the ready to sing and Yoongi couldn’t count the amount of times that he had crawled into Hoseok’s room in the early hours of the morning, shaking him awake and asking for his help so that he could record the beginnings of a melody that had been on the tips of his finger tips for days and that he had final managed to put together (Yoongi always made it up for him the following day, buying him dinner and letting Hoseok choose whatever he wished).
Yoongi thoroughly enjoyed the set they played and clapped along at the end, Hoseok’s cheers reverberating around the room. He was dragged along to the bar where Hoseok ordered a tray of seven shots and waved over the band when they finished packing away their equipment.
“Currently Nameless?” He asked, pulling Taehyung into a hug first, then Jimin and finally Beanie Guy, leaving his arm wrapped around the latter’s shoulders. “Who came up with that?”
“Me of course,” Taehyung said with a grin, walking over to Yoongi and pulling him into a hug that Yoongi wasn’t fast enough to avoid. He sighed as he felt Jimin wrap his arms around him too. He was trapped right in the middle and looked over to Seokjin, pleading for help but Seokjin just laughed. “That way whenever someone asks who we are and someone says Currently Nameless, they’ll be like ok, so when will they come up with a name and then the other person will be like no, they’re literally called Currently Nameless.”
Hoseok laughed and Beanie Guy rolled his eyes, leaning back in Hoseok’s grip. “I tried to stop him but you know hyung, when he has an idea, he doesn’t back down.”
Just as Yoongi managed to shuffle out of the grip of Taehyung and Jimin, Yoongi locked eyes with Beanie Guy for just a few seconds, before the latter looked back at Hoseok and nudged him in the side.
“Oh right,” Hoseok said, taking his arm away from his shoulders. “Jeon Jungkook, this is Min Yoongi. The music production hyung I told you about, the one that used to be my roommate. Hyung, this is Jeon Jungkookie, isn’t he cute?” Hoseok made to grab Jungkook’s cheeks and squeeze them, but Jungkook ducked at last minute and left Hoseok’s grabbing at thin air.
Laughing at Hoseok’s antics, Jungkook turned to Yoongi with a smile. “Hi, Hoseok hyung’s told me about you.”
“What exactly did he tell you?” Yoongi asked. “Because Hoseok talks a lot of shit.”
Jungkook laughed again quietly, nodding his head. “That’s true.”
“Hyung, don’t turn him against me,” Hoseok whined, before turning to the bar and thanking the bartender for the shots and handing them out. “To Currently Nameless’ first live performance! We all wish you many more successful shows in the future.”
The group all repeated “To Currently Nameless!” and then threw back their shots, Yoongi shuddering as the alcohol burned in his throat. Then they were being led back to the table, Hoseok ordering another round. Yoongi had a long night ahead of him.
Yoongi lost count of the number of drinks he had somewhere between the fourth and the seventh, but he knew for certain that he had definitely drunk a little too much. A student DJ had taken to the stage to show off their skills to the crowd (most of whom were inebriated, but then again, most DJ’s would be playing to crowds of a similar state so maybe it didn’t really matter too much) and Yoongi was slouched down in the booth that he was sat, Namjoon muttering unintelligible things by his ear and Seokjin laughing too loudly at nothing in particular. Hoseok bounced over and grinned at Yoongi, sitting down next to him and throwing an arm around him so that Yoongi could lean his head on Hoseok’s shoulder. Yoongi was sure that Hoseok had been sliding him extra drinks all night and Yoongi was just about to confront him about it when Hoseok whispered, “So, what do you think of Jungkook.”
Yoongi was too drunk for this.
“He’s nice,” Yoongi said after a moment, looking into Hoseok’s eyes to see a familiar gleam that he knew meant trouble.
“Just nice?” Hoseok asked and Yoongi nodded. “Come on hyung, I saw you looking at him when he was on stage, you were giving him the heart eyes. You were the human embodiment of the heart eyes emoji. His voice is great, isn’t it?”
“It is,” Yoongi admitted with a nod of his head. “But I wasn’t giving him heart eyes, don’t lie to me Jung Hoseok. I know what my own eyes were doing.”
“And what were they doing hyung?” Hoseok asked, voice teasing.
“Admiring,” Yoongi said.
“The view?” Hoseok asked.
“His voice!” Yoongi sat up, scowling at Hoseok who burst out laughing.
“Are we talking about Yoongi hyung’s penchant for adopting vocalists under his tiny bird wings?” Namjoon asked, resting his face in his palms and grinning, eyes unfocused.
“Of course,” Hoseok said, at the same time Yoongi practically yelled “Tiny bird wings?”
“You get this distant look in your eyes whenever you hear someone with really nice vocals,” Seokjin leant over, joining the conversation. “Like you’re imagining everything you could do with their voice.”
Yoongi narrowed his eyes at Seokjin. Was he a mind reader? That was exactly what he was doing earlier. Seokjin winked at him before he stood, clapping his hands together and disappearing into the crowd. Well then.
“He’s a really nice guy,” Hoseok told him, mirroring Namjoon’s pose and resting his chin in his palms. “A little shy at first. If you asked him to sing for you though, I think he’d be interested.”
Yoongi turned away from Hoseok and glanced out into the crowd where Jimin, Taehyung and Jungkook were all dancing together. Jimin was lost in his own world, moving his hips along to the music and Taehyung and Jungkook were cheering him on, jumping up and down with smiles on their faces. Watching them have fun, celebrating their first live set sent a warmth down Yoongi’s spine. He was proud of them – all three of them, even Jungkook whom he had known for all of four hours.
“You should talk to him hyung,” Hoseok said, drawing Yoongi’s attention back to the group. Hoseok’s eyes were softer now, his smile less mischievous and more encouraging.
“Maybe later,” Yoongi yawned and leaned over so he could comfortably rest his head on Hoseok’s shoulder again. He closed his eyes and felt Hoseok’s arm go around the back of his neck. He would think about it.
♫
Yoongi found himself seeing Jungkook more often than he thought he would. Taehyung’s birthday first where Yoongi somehow ended up on toilet duty, rubbing Jungkook’s back as he groaned, forehead pressed to the toilet bowl. Then there were the new year celebrations, followed by several nights at Namjoon and Hoseok’s place scattered across the following months. Yoongi learnt that Jungkook was studying music, that he was in his first year and that he’d met Jimin and Taehyung when they walked in on him playing his guitar in the music room one day early in the term. He lived with his mum, dad and elder brother back at home, had a dog and his favourite colour was red. Hoseok was right – Jungkook was nice. Yoongi noticed him come out of his shell the more time that they spent together, the mischievous side of him that messed around with Taehyung, Jimin and Hoseok, the sarcastic side that had even Yoongi cracking a smile.
They were back at Triptych, Currently Nameless having performed again. They played less cover songs now, most of it was their own original music. Jungkook had told him one evening that seeing people in the crowd who remembered his lyrics sing them back to him sent his heart soaring out of his chest and made him want to work even harder. Yoongi knew the feeling – every comment, every word of encouragement he ever received just pushed him further and further.
“Hyung,” Jungkook pulled a chair up next to Yoongi, sitting on it backwards with his arms hanging over the top. “Can I hear your music?”
“What?” Yoongi was in the midst of swallowing his beer and nearly choked.
“I, I want to hear what sort of music you make. Hobi hyung is always talking about it and he said he’s danced to your tracks before and Jimin hyung and Taehyung hyung said that they’ve sung for you.”
“I make all sorts of music,” Yoongi said, looking down at his hands in his lap. “For work, most of it has a more mainstream sound. In my own personal work, it tends to be heavier, grittier.”
Yoongi pulled his phone from his pocket. “Do you have earphones? I have some stuff saved.”
Jungkook reached into the pocket of his bomber jacket, tongue between his lips as he rummaged. With a triumphant sound, he pulled out a pair of earphones and passed them over to Yoongi.
“Will it not be too loud to listen in here?” Jungkook asked, watching Yoongi ask he scrolled through his music.
“Hm,” Yoongi looked up. “It might be. But where else-“
“We could go outside?” Jungkook suggested, sticking his hands in his pockets and looking up at Yoongi with wide eyes.
“I guess we could,” Yoongi said, standing and putting his phone the pocket of his leather jacket, picking up his beer and finishing it with a final swig.
It was dark outside, and Yoongi paused as they left Triptych before he spotted a bench not too far down the road, looking out over a park. He pulled his phone out to text Hoseok of their whereabouts before making his way across the empty road, Jungkook following along behind him. He sat down when he got to the bench, looking up at Jungkook who was hovering beside him.
“Sit down,” Yoongi told him, patting the space next to him and holding out the earphones for Jungkook to take.
“Are you not going to listen too, hyung?” Jungkook asked, taking one and putting it in but holding the other in his hand.
“It’s better if you listen with both,” Yoongi told him and Jungkook shrugged before putting the other in too.
Yoongi pressed the track and turned up the volume before putting his phone down in his lap. He kept his eyes on Jungkook’s face, watching him nod his head to the beat. It was one of Yoongi’s earlier tracks, but one that always kept a place in his heart. Written after a particularly hard rough patch in his first year of uni, the lyrics told the tale of his struggle and how no matter how hard he tried, things didn’t seem to be getting any better. The lyrics were harsh and the music even harsher and the first time he had performed it (after weeks of prompting on Seokjin’s behalf), the room had fell silent before bursting into a round of applause.
Jungkook’s tapped his index fingers against the skin exposed through his ripped jeans, eyes closed tight. Yoongi used the moment to take him in – from the familiar red beanie, the silver hoops hanging from his ears and the scar on his cheek to his ripped black jeans and his timberlands.
When the track ended, Jungkook pulled an earphone out and looked over at Yoongi. “This is really good hyung, your rapping it’s- it’s great. I really like it.”
“Yeah?” Yoongi asked and Jungkook nodded before badgering him to play something else.
Yoongi lost track of time as he played track after track and Jungkook commented on them, his smile when they stood to meet the others back at Triptych’s entrance a genuine one. “I really like your music hyung. You can hear the passion in your voice, in your lyrics.”
“Thanks Jungkookie,” Yoongi smiled and, if it were possible, Jungkook’s smile seemed to get wider. “Maybe one day I’ll feature you, huh?”
Yoongi laughed as he started to walk, Jungkook frozen in place as he processed the words before he bounded forward and clutched Yoongi’s arm. “Seriously?”
“One day kid,” Yoongi told him. “That’s a promise.”
♫
“I’m so fucked,” Were Yoongi’s first words to Hoseok as soon as he picked up the phone.
It was nearing two in the morning and Yoongi had only just got back to his apartment. He had invited Jungkook down to the studio earlier after the younger persistently messaged him asking to see Yoongi in action, to visit his studio and to see how their creative processes differed. Yoongi had agreed of course, and Jungkook had come down with coffee for him after his class ended (“I asked Jimin hyung what your favourite was,” He had said on arrival as he dipped his head, shuffled from foot to foot and held the coffee out in front of him shyly) and they had spent the evening at the studio before Jungkook said that he needed to head back as he had an early class the following morning.
“Hello to you too hyung,” Hoseok said with a laugh. “What’s up? What’s got you fucked?”
“I just got back from the studio,” Yoongi said, kicking off his shoes and leaning his back against the wall in the hallway, sliding down until his butt hit the ground. “Jungkook came to visit.”
“Ah,” Hoseok said and Yoongi knew that Hoseok had gotten what he was trying to convey. “Did you have fun?”
They did have fun. Jungkook was knowledgeable musically and anything he didn’t know he was eager to learn. Yoongi let him have ago on his computer, messing around on a music software he hadn’t been exposed to yet. Yoongi ended up shoulder to shoulder with him as he pointed out what did what on the screen, Jungkook nodding along with a focused expression on his face as he tried to take everything in. Jungkook had told Yoongi about how he had been struggling to write recently no matter how hard he tried and he even sung a line or two to get Yoongi’s opinion on lyrics he was unsure about. It was great. Yoongi had fun. He also felt like his heart was being squeezed tightly in his chest the entire time, but it was all good.
“I had fun,” Yoongi said after a (long) pause and Hoseok hummed on the other end of the line.
“Then what’s the problem?” Hoseok asked and Yoongi scowled. If Hoseok was here right now, he would probably punch him.
“You know what the problem is,” Yoongi said, glaring at the wall opposite.
“You think he’s cute,” Hoseok said and Yoongi made a sound of distress in response. “I’m taking that as a confirmation.”
“What the fuck do I do Hoseok?” Yoongi asked, rubbing at his forehead, a pulsing beginning to grow.
“Talk to him,” Hoseok said. “Ask him out. I don’t know, what do you want to do?”
“I…” Yoongi hesitated. “I can’t ask him out.”
“Why not?” Hoseok asked and Yoongi could hear the frown in his voice.
“I just can’t,” Yoongi said and Hoseok sighed on the other end. “He probably doesn’t even like me back.”
“You don’t know that,” Hoseok said, sounding weary all of a sudden. “You never know until you try.”
“Or I could just save myself the heartache and write my feelings into a song instead,” Yoongi murmured.
“If that’s what you think is best,” Hoseok responded and Yoongi dropped his head to his knees before he changed the subject.
♫
It was when he and Hoseok were watching Jungkook do his own acoustic solo that Yoongi noticed it.
Seokjin was working late, Namjoon was writing an essay and both Taehyung and Jimin had exams coming up so it was just the two of them. Yoongi had brought the drinks and the two had chatted as they waited for the performers to start. Neither of the mentioned the phone call. They sat through a jazz duo and a folk singer before Jungkook walked on stage, guitar in hand and red beanie pulled over his black hair. He looked a little lost up there without Taehyung and Jimin at his side and he cleared his throat, introducing himself with a small smile before he looked over in Yoongi and Hoseok’s direction and smiled widely at them both.
It was almost like watching a completely different person. When stripped of his friends, he was back to the shy soul that they had seen that first night, voice soft and gentle as he sang, songs about dreams and hopes and what lay ahead, songs about struggles and desperation that struck a chord in Yoongi’s heart. Yoongi glanced over at Hoseok, just for a brief second and it was then he noticed. He noticed the way Hoseok’s eyes were locked on Jungkook, a subtle soft smile on his face. He looked captivated, and Yoongi knew the feeling. Yoongi moved his eyes back to the stage and watched as Jungkook flickered open his eyes after playing his last note, breaking out into a bright smile as he was met with applause. Yoongi clapped along too, eyes focused on Jungkook for a little while longer before he excused himself to go the toilet.
It was empty when he got there and he walked straight towards the sink, looking at himself in the mirror. Hoseok liked Jungkook too. He closed his eyes, breathing in and out a few times before he opened them again and shook his head. Get over yourself. He didn’t linger there much longer, leaving the bathroom and heading back to the table where he spotted the red of Jungkook’s beanie and caught a glimpse of Hoseok’s bright smile.
“Good job tonight Jungkookie,” Yoongi said, putting his hand on Jungkook’s shoulder and smiling at him. “You did well.”
“Thanks hyung,” Jungkook turned to face him, smiling back. “Do you want your usual? I’m buying drinks.”
Yoongi nodded his head and Jungkook smiled at him again before standing and heading towards the bar. Hoseok turned to Yoongi as soon as he left, a look of concern on his face, his eyebrows furrowed. “You ok?” He asked.
“Yeah,” Yoongi said, watching Jungkook disappear into the crowd. “I’m fine.”
♫
Yoongi had been avoiding well, everyone, since the acoustic show. He didn’t want to face Jungkook and have his heart flutter uncontrollably whenever he did, well, anything. He didn’t want to face Hoseok either, not when all he could think about was whether Hoseok would make a move. He felt bad – neither of them deserved the sharp text responses he sent, his selfish decision to decline invitations to Hoseok’s flat or to go to see Currently Nameless perform, they deserved better explanations for his actions but Yoongi was Yoongi and when it came to his problems he just preferred to shut himself away and hope that everything would pass. It was fine. He’d get over it. He just needed a little time.
It was day ten when he woke up to an urgent knocking on his door. He groaned, rolling over in bed to check the time. Fine, it was 10am, but who was up before then on a Saturday? He pulled himself out of bed, scratching at his chest with a sigh as he shuffled over to the door of the apartment, grabbing his keys from the side and opening it up.
Hell hath no fury like an angry Jung Hoseok. He was glaring at Yoongi and Yoongi shrunk under his gaze, hiding behind the doorframe.
“Can I come in?” Hoseok asked.
Yoongi slowly pulled the door open and Hoseok walked in. Yoongi took in a deep breath as he closed the door behind him before turning to face Hoseok who had already kicked off his shoes and was stood, arms crossed as he watched Yoongi.
“What’s up?” Yoongi asks, clearing his throat and walking towards the kitchen to start up the coffee machine. He had a feeling he was going to need it.
“’What’s up’?” Hoseok repeated. “That’s how you’re starting this. ‘What’s up’.”
Yoongi flinched at Hoseok’s harsh tone.
“Well,” Hoseok said, and Yoongi turned to see him leaning against the kitchen work surface. “I’ve had a pretty shit week. My best friend has decided to give me the cold shoulder for no apparent reason and another friend has been besides himself thinking he did something to piss you off because you’ve been ignoring him.”
“Sorry,” Yoongi said and the apology sounded weak, even to his ears. “Work has been-“
“Busy.” Hoseok finished for him. “So you’ve said. But it hasn’t stopped you from coming to Triptych before. What’s your problem hyung? Why do you keep locking yourself away? Why won’t you talk to me about what’s wrong?”
“Because,” Yoongi said, gripping onto the work surface until his knuckles turned white. “What’s the point of getting attached when I don’t have a chance?” Yoongi asked, looking directly in Hoseok’s eyes. “I just need some time to clear my head.”
“Who says that you don’t have a chance?” Hoseok asked him, folding his arms across his chest.
“But you like him,” Yoongi said and Hoseok’s gaze changed. Yoongi looked away. “You like Jungkook, Hoseok, why would I do something that could hurt you?”
“You locking yourself away from the world and not talking to me hurts me, hyung, I’m your best friend,” Hoseok said. “And yeah, ok, I like him. But you like him too.”
“I know,” Yoongi said. “So I’m not going to do anything about it.”
“Yoongi,” He looked up as Hoseok sighed out his name, running a hand through the dark hair on his head. “Yoongi, you need to stop putting your own personal happiness behind everyone else’s. You’re allowed to be happy too.”
“In what way could this situation be solved without one of us getting hurt?” Yoongi asked, confused as Hoseok made his way towards him until they were stood face to face.
“Well,” Hoseok started, a sheepish smile coming onto his face, all former traces of anger and frustration gone.
Hoseok made him sit down before he told him the supposed solution to all their problems, so there he was, hands curled around a cup of coffee, legs folded underneath him as he sat on the sofa as Hoseok took a deep breath across from him.
It had started, Hoseok said, back when he was in his first year and he had gone to Triptych with Namjoon, two lost first years trying to find their way. Yoongi had been on stage that night, had rapped, pacing from one side of the stage to the other whilst the crowds chanted his name. Namjoon knew Donghyuk, who in turn knew Hunchul, who knew both Hyosang and Seokjin. That was how they met Yoongi in fact – after he had gotten off stage, Yoongi walked over to the group, fringe plastered to his forehead and laughing as Hunchul patted him on the back and told him he’d done well. Yoongi remembered that day clearly. It was a Friday, he’d had a busy week – two essays to finish up and a whole handful of readings to do – and being on stage had completely lifted the stress from his shoulders. He had gotten back to the table to see his friends with a few others and had been in a good enough mood to offer to buy drinks for them all. From then on, Hoseok, Namjoon and Donghyuk became regulars and sat alongside Yoongi’s friends and the rest was history.
“I always thought you were really cool,” Hoseok murmured, knees pulled up to his chest as he looked at the coffee table. “You just had this aura around you, it was easy to see you really cared about music.”
Hoseok kept talking. He talked about how although he was close to Namjoon, he felt a like a bit of an outsider at first. It was Donghyuk and Namjoon, and then Hoseok was just there too. He talked about how he felt lost for months after joining university until that one night that Yoongi had found him, dancing in the dark in his communal kitchen.
“Do you remember what you said to me, hyung?” Hoseok asked, looking at Yoongi with soft eyes.
“I told you that you should keep dancing,” Yoongi cleared his throat. He remembered that day too. “And you were worried that you wouldn’t be on the same level as the others in the dance group and I told you that everyone has to start somewhere.”
Hoseok nodded and smiled at Yoongi. “Yeah you did. I think that was where it all started,” He said with a laugh and Yoongi’s fingers tightened around his cup. “After that I joined the dance club. After that, we became closer.”
Yoongi hummed. They had become closer – close enough that the following year when Hoseok was looking to rent his own place during his second year, he asked Yoongi if he’d like to join him.
“Hyung, I like you,” Hoseok said, running a hand through his hair and looking at the floor. “I have done for a while. I like you and I like Jungkook. And if… if you would like to, we could make it work together. The three of us, I mean.”
Yoongi blinked slowly, his heart seemed to skip a beat in his chest. Hoseok liked him. Hoseok liked him. His best friend, someone Yoongi couldn’t imagine, didn’t want to imagine living without in his life, liked him. “Oh,” Yoongi said, shifting on the sofa and putting down his cup on the coffee table. “Oh, Hoseok.”
Yoongi got up, walking over to the sofa that Hoseok was sat on. Hoseok was silent, lips pressed together in a thin line as he awaited Yoongi’s reaction. Yoongi sat down next to him, wrapping his arms around Hoseok’s neck so that he could pull Hoseok’s head into his chest.
“Hyung?” Hoseok sounded confused but he didn’t fight Yoongi, instead he sunk into the warmth of the elder’s skin.
“I think I’d like to give it a go,” Yoongi said quietly after a moment into the crown of Hoseok’s head.
Hoseok stiffened under him, shifting so that he could look up at Yoongi. “Seriously?”
“Yeah,” Yoongi replied, smiling as Hoseok’s eyes widened and a small smile appeared on his face. “Yeah, I would.”
♫
Yoongi spent his Tuesday afternoon cleaning his apartment. He hadn’t been completely lying when he said that he had been busy when he had been avoiding everyone, work had suddenly picked up and he had several deadlines to meet, meaning he was in the studio until the early hours of the morning almost every day. Luckily, it only lasted for a week weeks and things started to get less busy and he was able to actually get home when the sun was still out.
Both he and Hoseok agreed that Yoongi needed to make it up to Jungkook. He had sent Jungkook a text, hey wanna come over on tues afternoon? Bring ur guitar, and kept his fingers crossed that Jungkook would agree and that he didn’t hate Yoongi at the moment. Thankfully, that didn’t seem to be the case and Jungkook responded, albeit almost six hours later (not that Yoongi had been counting), and agreed to come over.
Nervous cleaning was a habit Yoongi had picked up from Seokjin – one year during exams Seokjin had come over to Yoongi, Hoseok, Namjoon and Donghyuk’s apartment and cleaned it all, including the mugs that had been in Namjoon’s room for so long, he was surprised they hadn’t started to frow mould. Hoseok, who had been begging them (them being Namjoon and Donghyuk, Yoongi for the most part was reasonably clean and tidied up his own messes) for months to clean up after themselves, almost burst into tears when he came back after a particularly tough exam to see the apartment clean from floor to ceiling and he had lay in a state of delirium with a tub of ice cream in his hand for two hours afterwards.
So far Yoongi had tidied the living room (making sure the cushions were plumped and in the right place), the kitchen (all the dishes were back in their rightful cupboards and the surfaces were spotless) and had scrubbed down the bathroom until his back was aching and his knees were sore. Seokjin would be proud.
He was debating on whether or not to get the brush out and sweep the floor when there was a knock and he froze in place. Brushing his hands on his jeans and doing one last check of the apartment, he walked to the door and pulled it open.
Jungkook was looking down, rocking on the balls of his feet. He had his guitar case in his hand and backpack slung over his shoulder. He looked up and smiled at Yoongi.
“Hey hyung,” Jungkook said.
“Hi,” Yoongi responded, staring at him for a moment before he opened the door wider to let him in.
Jungkook smiled at him, walking through into the hallway and Yoongi closed his eyes and exhaled as he shut the door, turning to Jungkook with a smile.
“Are you hungry?” He asked, “Want anything to drink?”
“I’m ok,” Jungkook said, shaking his head. “I had lunch not too long ago.”
“Alright,” Yoongi said, gesturing for Jungkook to follow him.
Yoongi’s home studio was in the guest bedroom. It hadn’t gotten much use recently, what with work taking over the majority of Yoongi’s time, but he found that he was able to spend an hour or two a day there now, work on his own music and take a break from writing stuff for others. Jungkook looked around as they entered, putting his guitar case down on the floor next to the small sofa in the corner of the room.
“So this is where you do your stuff, huh,” Jungkook said.
“Yeah,” Yoongi said as he took a seat and as Jungkook sat down on the sofa. “This is the place.”
He cleared his throat before speaking up again. “I should apologise,” Yoongi said and Jungkook looked up, eyebrows raised. “I’ve been really busy over this past week or so, but I didn’t mean to make you feel like you had done something wrong.”
“Hoseok hyung told you?” Jungkook asked and Yoongi nodded in confirmation. “It’s ok, I know things can get stressful. And I’m here now, aren’t I?”
“You’re here now,” Yoongi repeated, spinning on his chair to load up his computer, “And I’m glad that you came. I have a song I’ve been working on,” He started. “And I wondered if you would like sing on it.”
Jungkook practically leapt out of his seat to move and stand next to Yoongi. “I thought you’d forgotten about that promise,” Jungkook admitted.
“I promised, didn’t I?” Yoongi said and Jungkook grinned at him, pulling the stool in the corner of the room closer so that he was sat next to Yoongi.
“Yeah,” Jungkook replied, and Yoongi turned to see Jungkook’s face close to his, Jungkook’s eyes locked on his. “Yeah, you did.”
♫
After Hoseok’s confession to Yoongi, things had gone on mostly as normal, only Yoongi found himself watching Hoseok more. When he spoke, when he laughed, when Yoongi dropped by at the dance studio after work and Hoseok was still in the practice room, lost in his own world as he danced and Yoongi watched from the door.
Yoongi thought he was being quite subtle, but apparently that wasn’t the case. They were watching a film at Yoongi’s place, both craving take out and an evening of relaxing after a week of long and busy days. Yoongi had his legs curled up underneath him, but Hoseok was sprawled all over the sofa, an arm behind his head and a hand stuck under his shirt, resting on his stomach. He had moved over the course of the night – at first he had been sat normally and he had slowly sunk further and further down until his head was almost on Yoongi’s shoulder. Yoongi wasn’t really paying attention to the film, too busy watching Hoseok out of the corner of his eye as he yawned, moving the hand from behind his head to cover his mouth, his temple finally dropping onto Yoongi’s shoulder. He lowered his hand and scratched at the skin of his stomach, Yoongi catching a tiny glimpse of the beginnings of a happy trail.
“Are you not enjoying the film hyung?” Hoseok asked, twisting his head so that he could see Yoongi’s face.
“What makes you say that?” Yoongi asked, looking down at Hoseok as if he hadn’t just been sparing him lingering glances over the past few hours.
“You’re staring,” Hoseok said and Yoongi ducked his head, turning back to face the TV.
He could feel his cheeks warming up, the tips of his ears too, and he hoped that in the dull light of the room it wasn’t too noticeable. “No I wasn’t,” He said.
“Hyung,” Yoongi could hear the grin in Hoseok’s voice. “You were staring.”
“Fuck off Hoseok,” Yoongi scowled, shoving him in the side.
Hoseok laughed, sitting up and then shifting so that he could rest his head on Yoongi’s lap. “It’s fine to stare hyung.” He had a mischievous twinkle in his eyes but a gentle smile on his lips.
“Yeah, whatever,” Yoongi mumbled, training his eyes on the TV and trying to ignore the weight in his lap.
Old habits die hard though, and it wasn’t long before Yoongi was looking down at Hoseok. His eyes were starting to flicker shut and Yoongi moved his hand to rest it on Hoseok’s head, running his fingers through his hair. Hoseok sighed under his touch and it wasn’t long until he dozed off.
♫
“So,” Hoseok said, legs crossed as he sat on the floor of Yoongi’s living room. “We are here today to discuss things.”
“Things,” Yoongi snorted from where he sat on the sofa and Hoseok glowered at him whilst Jungkook looked on confused and out of the loop.
“How exactly am I supposed to phrase it, it’s not like I’ve ever done this before,” Hoseok told him, using one of the pillows resting on the floor next to him to hit Yoongi’s knee. “Ok, so. As middle man here, I have information from both parties.”
He turned to Jungkook, pointing in Yoongi’s direction. “Hyung likes you.”
Yoongi could feel his cheeks getting warm as Jungkook sat up a little straight and looked in his direction.
“And Jungkook,” Hoseok looked over to Yoongi this time, a smile on his face. “Likes you hyung. A little birdy also told me that you like me too, Jungkookie.”
Jungkook folded his arms over his chest and huffed. “I’m never telling Jimin anything ever again.”
Hoseok laughed and then clapped his hands together. “But all is good because I like the both of you two. Yoongi hyung and I have already had a talk and we wanted to ask,” Hoseok paused, looking over at Yoongi who gave him an encouraging prod on the knee with his foot. “We wanted to ask if maybe you wanted to date us. Both of us.”
“Both of you?” Jungkook asked, shuffling forward to the end of the sofa and unfolding his arms, resting his elbows on his knees and his chin in his palms. “We could do that?”
“It’s called polyamory,” Yoongi pipped up from where he was sat. “It’s not as uncommon as you might think.”
Hoseok looked over at him then and Yoongi shrugged. “What, I did some research.”
“So we could all be dating each other,” Jungkook reiterated and as Yoongi and Hoseok nodded their heads, a small smile broke out on his face. “That’s good. Great even. I’d like that.”
The tension slid out of Hoseok’s shoulders and he smiled before standing up and putting his hands on his hips. “Good. Excellent. Well, that’s that sorted.”
Yoongi and Jungkook let out a laugh at Hoseok’s words, and Yoongi stood, pausing and then pressing a kiss on Hoseok’s cheek. He moved, smiling at the squeak of surprise that Hoseok let out behind him and then bent down and did the same to Jungkook before walking towards the kitchen. “Do you guys want to order in a takeaway?”
♫
"So, hey, as most of you know we're Currently Nameless," Jungkook looked out into the crowd and adjusted his guitar strap. "We're going to play a bunch of original songs for you tonight, so I hope you enjoy."
Besides Yoongi, Hoseok cheered loudly and Yoongi rolled his eyes at his antics. Somethings would never change.
Jimin counted them in, tapping his drumsticks together, and then they were off. Jimin was banging away at his drums a grin on his face as Taehyung turned to face him as he played his bass. Jungkook started to sing into the microphone, a song that Yoongi recognised from an evening not too long ago where Jungkook has brought his guitar to Yoongi's place and had played for hours, Hoseok lying on the sofa besides him whilst Yoongi prepared their dinner. Jungkook's eyes scanned the crowd until they fell on Yoongi and Hoseok, sat at their normal table with Namjoon and Seokjin. He broke into a smile before he looked away again and Yoongi glared at Namjoon as he started to coo at them from across the table. Yoongi kicked in Namjoon’s general direction with his foot (smiling to himself when he heard Namjoon yelp) and looked back at the stage as the group finished up the song they were performing to a round of applause from the Triptych crowds.
“Now,” Taehyung spoke into the microphone, looking over in their direction and wiggling his eyebrows, “Because Jungkook is a sap he’s going perform a song he wrote for some special people,”
Jungkook elbowed him and Yoongi could see the flush on his cheeks from where they were sat. Next to him, Hoseok shifted, sighing quietly, contently, before reaching out with his hand to take Yoongi’s in his own. Jungkook switched out his electric guitar for his acoustic, lifting the strap over his head and looking over at Taehyung and Jimin who nodded before he started to play.
It was a song that sent shivers down Yoongi’s spine, a burst of warmness in his chest. Hoseok squeezed his hand and Yoongi turned to smile at him, squeezing back. On stage Jungkook’s eyes fluttered shut as he sung, lyrics about love and happiness and when he opened them again he smiled softly in their direction.