#AND WE ARE NOT GONNA MAKE OUR ROOMMATE AND HIS PARTNER POSE FOR US--

[tangledinink]

*sudden ominous feeling* who or what tf is hurting swannie while the boys aren’t there oh NO

swanatello. ->

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[binunus]

college bf!rocky

a/n next is our rock and aegyo king sorry sanha park minhyuk !! also I was going to post this yesterday :( but me and my roommates got a little too lit for valentine’s and I literally sat for 7 hours straight in zoom so I couldn’t finish it until now but !! I hope you loves enjoy!!

→ genre: fluff, smut

→ word count: 4.9k

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alright aright alrightttt

we’re gonna switch it up a little bit

add a little flavor

because as much as I would love to say that college bf!astro all got their partners in a cute and smooth sailing way

we all know relationships aren’t that easy

but before we get into how you and rocky met

major: dance

are we surprised? no

rocky is a prodigy in dance

he’s been dancing since he could walk

he started choreographing at age 6

it just made sense for him, like even his parents were like go pursue dance, you’re not a law or business type of kid

he can master any type of dance from jazz, to ballet, to street, to contemporary, to tango, whatever you can think of

he’s roommates with music tech!jinjin

jin literally takes care of him all the time bc rocky??? when he comes back to the apt after dance practice?? dead weight

only passes his gen ed classes bc eunwoo tutors him

if it weren’t for the boys, rocky would literally live in the dance studio

they make sure to drag him out for fun and food at least once a week

or they join and keep him company while he’s practicing

have they gotten noise complaints before while messing around in the dance studio? yes

rocky is loud alright, especially when he’s with astro

he’s a perfectionist, literally will not leave the studio until he’s 100% satisfied with his progress

oh the amount of times myungjun and jin nag at him to take care of his health

now now

you’re also a dance major

people could say that you and rocky are the top two dancers of your year

gasp a rivals to lovers au??? you betcha baby

granted you switched into a dancer major your second year so rocky technically had seniority

but boom baby as soon as you made your appearance, it rocked his world

now im not saying rocky’s cocky bc obviously he’s a cute hardworking humble boy

but was he used to always being placed first in evaluations or getting the highest marks??? yeah

so the first time you placed first and he placed second??? it lit a bit of a fire in him

he’s seen a ton of good dancers in his time, but no one has ever matched his capabilities better than you

there was an unspoken rivalry between you two, everyone knew about it 

you both always wanted to upstage the other

there was always a tension whenever you two were in the same room

but like...have either of you ever really talked to each other besides side remarks in class?

no

and it didn’t really help that the whole dance department basically pit you up against each other to see who was really the best dancer of your year

so you and rocky never had the proper introduction to a friendship, it just went straight to rivalry 

and then came the announcements for the end of the year showcase

and instead of putting on a solo, the department chairs decided to have you and rocky perform a duet

and you’ve never worked with him before so you were dreading the first time you met up

you to your roommate: ugh i can’t believe im partnered up with rocky, that arrogant rude–

your roommate: have you ever even talked to him, y/n? he’s actually very nice

you: no...but that’s what he wants you to believe!

your ego sorta just went along with the whole thing

and rocky was 15 min late to your meeting bc he was out eating food with the guys so your patience?? very thin

literally as soon as he stepped into the dance studio, the air turned stuffy

rocky could feel you glaring at him and he just smirks?? 

rocky: did I make you wait long y/n?

you: yeah you did

he liked pushing your buttons?? idk he just felt satisfaction knowing that any small of action of his affected you that much

it made him feel like he was winning or whatever

and god it took literally forever for you two to decide on a song and genre of performance for the showcase

you wanted contemporary, he wanted ballet

you were literally disagreeing so much on it that you had to ask Siri to flip a coin

and then you fought and said that Siri was rigged when it chose tails (contemporary)

so you decided on a happy? mix of both

rocky at the end of your first meeting: i get that we’re not exactly friends, y/n, but we have to work together so let’s at least be professional

you: i can if you can

rocky: fine

you two literally bicker like five year olds on a playground

even the guys are like ???? why are you being so childish ???

you have 2 months of preparation until the showcase and you start meeting once a week for choreography and practice since given the assignment

you two are pretty civil for the most part, you make the contemporary parts and he makes the ballet parts and then you combine it when you meet up and see how it can incorporate and complement each other

there’s not much joking around ?? like you know how rocky’s a clown when he’s teaching astro choreography?? it’s not like that at all

and honestly you two are too caught up in your rivalry and tension to notice that your styles really match and highlight each other well??

there’s definitely a lot of “i could do this better than you” from both sides

i repeat: you are children

and then there’s this one practice where you and rocky are trying a pas de deux for the first time

(i literally looked this term up, it’s basically what jungkook and jimin from bts did during the 2020 mma black swan intro...if you haven’t seen it, watch it bc it is perfection mmm chefs kiss)

and you don’t know if it’s because you didn’t have enough momentum or rocky didn’t prep himself enough for the lift but he ends up dropping you and you both fall

and you both immediately start blaming each other for the mishap

until you lift your hand to point at him and it just hurts

it’s like a switch goes off, rocky’s immediately concerned and he’s like gently taking your hand like: holy shit are you okay??

you shake your head and you’re wincing whenever you try to move it

you: ow fuck rocky, I think it’s sprained

and he suddenly feels so guilty, like he goes silent

you: can we stop for today? I’m gonna go get this checked out, make sure it’s not broken

rocky: do you want me to go with you?

you: no. I’ll see you next week.

boy he feels so bad, he texts you throughout the course of the following week asking if you’re okay, asking your roommate if you’re okay, telling you he’s sorry that he dropped you

you didn’t respond much, not bc you felt weird texting him–well, you did a little bit shhh–but bc you were beating yourself up for getting injured a month before the showcase

you show up to practice the next week with your wrist in a compression bandage

and he doesn’t greet you with a quip like he usually does, he immediately grabs your wrist (gently) and he’s like inspecting the bandage

you: uh...the doctor said I should be careful with it for a week or two if i want it to heal faster. so don’t bitch at me if i’m not going all out

rocky: y/n...i’m so sorry...I didn’t mean to injure you, it was my fault that we didn’t execute the pas de deux

you just shrug: it was both our faults...if I didn’t fall on my wrist maybe we could have avoided this little obstacle

rocky: if I caught you correctly, you wouldn’t have even fallen

you: are we really arguing right now about this??

and then the two of you just laugh??? 

this is the first real pleasant interaction you’ve had with him

and you notice like wow rocky had a nice smile

you: i should be back to normal before the showcase so we should be fine

rocky: don’t push it though while we’re practicing alright? if your wrist starts hurting then stop, and don’t even think about doing any floor choreo

the atmosphere between you and rocky change after that

he becomes pretty concerned about your recovery–and maybe it’s bc he still blames himself for the cause of it

each night before your set practice days, he always shoots you a text asking how you’re feeling and how your wrist is doing

he brings ice packs, painkillers, and extra bandages during your practices just in case you need it

and you’re actually pretty touched by his concern

about two weeks before the showcase, your wrist is back to full movement and you’re like excited to actually practice to your best ability

from now on you see each other twice a week, just to get that detail and fine-tuning perfected

rocky’s still a bit hesitant to have you go full out but you reassure him that you’re fine

you both try the pas de deux again the day you take your bandage off 

and you can see that he’s nervous to try it

you: rocky, i’m fully healed now. we haven’t practiced this move since the first time and we need it in our routine

rocky: but...y/n, what if I drop you again??

you: you won’t...i trust you 

and you really did, that move requires a lot of trust between partners and you know? maybe it didn’t work out the first time because of the lack of trust between you two

and so you go through the full routine and rocky was holding his breath when that part of the choreography came up but you both successfully did it!! and it was a beautiful move

he was so excited at the end of the run through that he hugged you

and you were smiling too bc this was the first time you did a full run through without any stops in between

you both don’t even notice that all the hostility is gone??

and the tension suddenly changed from hatred to...dare I say it...sexual

oo baby the day of the showcase you two were hella nervous 

but c’mon you and rocky were the best of the best so ofc you absolutely killed the performance

your energies literally merged as soon as the music started

every move was flawless

and you both had to face each other during your ending pose and you were just like looking at him like ??? wtf ??? did you maybe wanna kiss him??

and you know the look that rocky has in his eyes when he’s dancing

imagine that literally piercing into your soul

you got the shivers waiting for the lights to dim 

you both received a standing ovation after your duet obviously

astro watching it bc they always support rocky: they’re gonna fuck 100%

fast forward to the next term bc you both didn’t really have a reason to contact each other during summer break now that the showcase was done

you and rocky had two classes together, dance research and advanced modern technique

it was then that you started to see his actual personality and how goofy of a person he was

you still had a rivalry of course, but now it was healthy

instead of trying to bring each other down, you both started motivating each other to do better

and yes you’ve always been impressed with how good of a dancer rocky was (and vice versa), but now whenever you saw him practice you start to feel a little bit of stir in your stomach and shit are you blushing??

and then you two get paired up again for your midterm evaluation

your teacher: i saw the chemistry you had for the showcase last term, i think you two would work well together for this project

and god is your teacher trying to murder you??? the theme of this midterm was “couple dance” to encourage collaboration or whatever

you were just thankful that the song choice she gave you was more upbeat and not sensual bc you know for a fact that you would not survive doing a sexy dance routine with rocky

but that didn’t stop the way your skin felt like it was on fire whenever he touched you for partner-dependent moves

this time around, you did the choreography process together and it was actually pretty fun??

you and him would bounce back ideas and joke around whenever something looked stupid

you and rocky did this by the way for reference

and then there was one late night when you two were practicing

it was around 2 am, no one else was in the music building and you both didn’t have class the next day so you two were just like fuck it let’s just practice until campus security kicks us out or whatever

you both were literally dancing for four hours, not just this new routine but old ones and freestyles as well

and then you were doing your new routine and during the part where he had to twirl and dip you, you both fall again

but no one got injured this time luckily

and you both just burst out laughing, maybe you were a little delirious at this point in the night

you: i can’t believe you dropped me again

rocky’s laughing and you both just look at each other, and he’s hovering above you right???

and your heart is beating so loudly in your chest you’re positive he can hear it

and you’re thankful that your face was already hot from dancing so that he couldn’t tell that you were in fact blushing

rocky’s like looking at you for a good minute or so and he’s just like thinking in his head: have you always been this cute?

and maybe it’s bc you guys have been getting along so well lately and the vibes are??? immaculate

but the atmosphere suddenly gets super thick and he !! just !! leans down !! and !! kisses !! you !!

and phew baby you bet that you immediately respond to it

you’re literally making out on the floor for like five minutes

and mind you, five minutes is a long time

until rocky’s phone rings loudly through the speaker and you both suddenly separate

he scurries to his phone and you sit up trying to compose yourself 

jinjin: park minhyuk where are you?! it’s 3 am!!

you literally hear jinjin scolding rocky through the phone and you laugh a little bc it’s so cute how he’s getting nagged right now

rocky: hyung...im practicing...

jinjin: do i need to drag you out of there?! i’ll literally call bin to carry your ass to our apartment! how long have you been practicing huh?? have you eaten dinner at all??

rocky: okay okay I’ll come back home

he turns to you after ending the call and he’s so !! shy !!

rocky: I guess that’s the end of our practice haha...do you want me to walk you back to your place?? it’s pretty late out

you: yeah that’d be nice...hm you sure your hyung’s not gonna call a search party for you??

you’re teasing him and he just pouts

rocky: i’ll be fine

rocky walks you back to your apartment and it’s a little?? awkward?? 

but before you bid him goodbye he’s like: uh...the kiss earlier...sorry if I surprised you

your cheeks are hot again: it’s um...it’s okay, I didn’t mind it...it was actually pretty nice...I guess...

and rocky’s heart skips a beat and now he’s blushing: yeah...it was...i’ll see you in class then??

you: yeah, i’ll see you. text me when you get home okay?

he nods and waits until you’re safely inside and then he just starts grumbling to himself

rocky: i’ll see you in class?? could i say anything more stupid??? 

rocky’s adorable okay

him texting you when he gets back: im home :)

you: that’s good! good night rocky :)

he goes to the guys the day after like: i have a predicament !! me and y/n kissed !! 

jinjin: that’s why you were late last night??

eunwoo: you dirty dog, doing it in the dance studio??

rocky: we didn’t do anything else hyung !!

bin: so did you ask them out??

rocky: no...i said...i’ll see you in class

myungjun: i’ll see you in class?!?! are you an idiot??

sanha: hyung even I’d ask y/n out after that

rocky: i know !! im dumb okay!! help me

sanha: you’re a lost case sorry

jinjin: why don’t you start with, hey y/n do you wanna get some food with me??

rocky: AHHHH

yes he does want to ask you out, yes he does want to kiss you again more than he’d like to admit, but he’s shy

you’re not faring any better, you and roommate were literally talking about it all weekend

the next time you see rocky (in class), you two are awkward as fuck

you both keep stealing glances at each other and then if one of you get caught, you both immediately look away

those 50 minutes of class could not go by any slower

and you were so ready to book it after the professor dismissed you but then you hear rocky call your name

rocky: hey y/n, are you free right now?

you: uh yeah! why what’s up

rocky: do you...um...wanna get some coffee with me?? or food or something??

you: do you mean like just to hang out or...uh like a date?

rocky: a date...if you want it to be

and cue the blushies again

you and rocky end up going to this cute cafe and get smoothies bc neither of you were feeling caffeine at the moment

and the whole time you two are just ??? so cute and shy and awkward with each other ???

which is such a contrast from how you two would dance together

rocky’s so sweet, really the cutest boy

gives you so many butterflies

the two of you end up going on little cafe dates before practice 

and you’re all cute and wholesome

and then he turns all passionate and dominant when you start dancing

like wow alright rocky giving you whiplash or whatever

when you show the routine for your midterm, the teacher and other students give you both high praises 

and he’s all giddy after class and he goes up to you: i think its safe to say that we have really good chemistry when we work together, don’t you think?

you’re smiling hehe but you wanna mess with him a little: hmm i think we’re alright, but who knows, i might mesh well with someone else

and then he’s all frowny, a little jealous: what do you mean someone else? do you make out with someone who just has alright chemistry with you??

your eyes go wide and you put your hand over his mouth: im kidding!!

rocky just smirks at your embarrassed reaction and he like tickles your sides

and then he just grabs your hand like: don’t find another dance partner y/n, just be mine

how could you say no to that??? especially when rocky’s just looking all handsome and charming and shit??? exactly. you can’t and why would you ever say no in the first place??

you and rocky dating?? biiiig news in the dance department

and even outside of it

bc lowkey rocky had a bit of a fanclub bc of how good he is at dancing, are we shocked? no

the boys are so happy for him !!

you meet his friends literally the day the two of you start dating

and you’re a bit nervous meeting them bc ofc you want them to like you, they’re his friends

but they’re so sweet...and headass

when rocky brings you to their dinner, the five of them literally start applauding at your entrance

you were so confused and rocky’s just out here with second hand embarrassment

he’s the cutest boyfriend

shy with pda in public (unless you’re dancing), most he’ll do is hold your hand

but in private he’s very clingy

loves backhugging you

he also tickles you when he wants to be a little shit

which is 50% of the time

very playful bf, will tease you at least once every day

if you two are just practicing dancing, he’ll make any sort of excuse to hold you or kiss you

asddfadsjf he’s so cute

gets very soft at night especially when you two are worn out from practice

just wants to go back to your (or his) apartment and cuddle and sleep

imagine just you two cuddling in bed after hours of dancing and he’s just spooning you and he mumbles tiredly into your shoulder: you’re amazing y/n...you’re one of the best dancers i’ve ever seen

and before, his pride would have never allowed him to say that, but now it can

not really one for pet names in my opinion, but he does call you “my y/n”

after you two start dating, you begin to call him by his real name, minhyuk

or you say hyukie

he lowkey loves it when you call him that, it’s so endearing

the guys teasing him, cooing at rocky all gross like : heyyy hyukkie

then rocky just like crosses his arms: only y/n can call me hyukie

he didn’t realize he loves couple dances so much until you and him are dating

well he only loves it because you’re his partner ofc

alright hear me out !! slow dancing with rocky

slow !! dancing !! with !! rocky !!

he dims the lights in the dance studio until it’s just a single spotlight and some slow romantic music comes on and he just grabs you by the hand and twirls you once before pulling you close and you’re just swaying side to side

and then he presses your foreheads together and he’s just looking into your eyes and gives you the softest smile

!!! im freaking out!! i want this so bad !!

that’s how the first i love you comes out

surprise, you say it first

okay but like in the moment, the atmosphere is literally so perfect, and you can just see how much he treasures you and you always feel butterflies whenever he does this, but there was just something that night that made you say it

like your chest was constricting so hard and you were thinking to yourself, i love this man

and so you just said it

and omg the smile on rocky’s face just widens and he kisses you so sweetly before he says it back

loves kissing you, your lips are like a drug to him

can literally make out with you for hours

has pushed you against the walls of the practice room just for a little make out session

ahhh here we go ladies and gents

sex !! with !! rocky !!

first and foremost, dance studio sex??? yes

especially if it’s just you two late night practicing like the first time you kissed?

mirror kink? maybe so

and bc y’all are ~flexible~, you bet he likes bending your back like a pretzel

he’s a very passionate lover, your pleasure is his #1 priority

loves foreplay just as much as the main event

but oof his hips?? grrrrr bark bark ram me over with a truck

his stroke game is so good

literally knows how to fuck you in all the right places

and his stamina??? god tier, can go at it for hours on end

into edging and overstimulation, oof you bet you’re cumming at least twice during every session

i cannot stress this enough!! thigh riding

you know he has thighs of steel

will make you cum just from riding his thigh

most of the time you guys start off slow and sweet, and then just boom it turns it hard sex

will definitely get turned on from doing a sexy dance routine

the amount of times he’s wanted to just fuck you in the middle of class bc you turned him on?? but ofc he has public decency he won’t do that

he knows you get turned on from his fingers oops

anal or vaginal fingering?? he’s all for it baby

he’s loud during sex, all the grunting, huffing, growling, oo im getting chills

not afraid to tell you how good you’re making him feel

not really into spanking, but he grips a lot, like his fingernails have definitely left some deep imprints in your hips or your ass

hair pulling?? yes, both sides receiving

okay but if you call him rocky during sex? big turn on

i can’t explain why, it just is

favorite position?? cowgirl

he loves when you’re on top of him

yes he likes seeing you try to fuck yourself on him

and then when he can’t take it anymore and just grabs your hips and thrusts up into you until your body literally collapses on him

he always tries to make you cum first but oops sometimes baby just busts a nut

yes you will probably tease him about it and then he’ll just shut you up by kissing you 

on another note, no way to turn rocky on faster than sucking on his bottom lip when you’re kissing

will cuddle you after cumming, like he doesn’t care if either of you are sweaty or messy, he’s hugging you for at least five minutes

honestly becomes a baby after sex so it’s more like you’re giving him after care sksksk

the switch he makes from being a sex fiend to a clingy cuddly boy? whiplash

like you need to go to the bathroom to pee or something and he’s like: but...i wanna hug u

i would risk it all for rocky yes

anyway after graduating, rocky becomes a choreographer for this really famous dance studio and get recruited to join a highly-competitive dance troupe

you both do long distance for a little bit bc obviously he’s back home but you have to travel with your group for competitions, sometimes even internationally

and so that caused some strain in your relationship bc distance sucks, but you would always make sure to call him every night before going to bed and despite any time zone difference, he would always answer

your biggest supporter !! literally flew out to surprise you during a big dance competition in london or whatever and you cried happy tears bc was he really there right now??

that’s when you knew that he was the one :’)

you spent the night w him in his hotel room and after a good couple rounds of reunion sex, you were like trying to test the waters a little bit: i missed you hyukie

rocky: i missed you too, but now that you’re here with me, nothing else matters

you: what do you really think about this long distance thing??

rocky: it sucks...but i know it made us stronger. i feel like we can get through anything now

you: yeah, i agree

rocky getting paranoid: omg why? are you thinking of living abroad?? y/n, do i need to start looking at dance studios out here??

you have to hold in your laughter bc he’s so cute: why? would you move out of the county for me if i wanted to??

rocky: i mean...if you’re thinking of leaving for good...then yeah.

he gets so shy and quiet and you’re just !! wow you love him !! he’s yours !!

you kiss him shortly and you smile: no, i’m not gonna live abroad. I miss being home and I miss seeing you all the time. I told you before, I’m thinking of leaving the troupe in two months and then gonna find a job back home for good.

he lets out a sigh of relief: you scared me a little

you just laugh: I only wanted to confirm something and hmm I was right

rocky: what did you wanna confirm??

you being a confident baddie: that I wanna be with you for the rest of my life

rocky feeling his heart implode: you mean it??

you scoffing: why would I be lying about this?

he just laughs and kisses you: I wanna be with you too...I’ve been thinking it since the last time you visited. How much I love you and how much I hated seeing you leave for who knows how long, but I didn’t wanna say anything bc you’re still living your life and I didn’t want a promise like this to influence you to come back if you didn’t want to yet.

two months later you’re back for good and move in with rocky

you end up becoming a choreographer at his dance studio too

you and rocky: the couple™

and you live happily ever after

somewhere down the line...

sanha: hey remember when you two hated each other?

eunwoo: remember when you injured y/n??

bin: remember when you freaked out to us about your first kiss together

myungjun: and you said i’LL sEe yOu iN cLaSs

jinjin: those were fun times, right hyukie?

rocky: i hate you all

__________________________________________________

2-16-21

[baepsaesbae]

Sugar, Snow, and Everything Glows

Pairing— Park Jimin x female reader ft. OT7 

Genre— Fluff, College au, Friends to Lovers, Holiday au

Warnings— None

Word Count— 3.6k

Summary— You’ve gone the entire semester being friends with Park Jimin. Now that the holiday season is in full swing, will things take a turn?

A/N—  This gift was created through @bwcsecretsanta​ event and is for @pjmsdior​. Surprise! I’m your Secret Santa, Winter Bear ❄️🐻  It has been so fun getting to know you and sending fun little asks. Please stay in touch and know that you can always come chat with me! I hope you enjoy my present, Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays~

“We only have two days before everyone goes home. Well, I guess it’s more like one and a half now. We gotta make this count!” Jungkook enthusiastically stated to everyone crammed into his tiny dorm room.

“We just finished our last final, can’t we chill out for tonight? We can watch a holiday movie or something,” Taehyung complained.

“That’s exactly why we should celebrate! I heard they’re having a floor wide gingerbread house competition tonight,” Jungkook wiggled his eyebrows.

“Yes, we all know that, Kookie. We literally all live on the same floor and have the same RA,” you reminded him, “Honestly, I’m down to make a gingerbread house. I haven’t done that in forever.”

“Then it’s decided, we’re building edible houses tonight. We still have a few hours to kill so we can watch a movie if you guys want,” Jimin suggested.

With everyone in agreement, all four of you crammed onto Jungkook’s tiny twin bed to watch How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000). Your first semester of college has been a success. You aced all your classes and lucked out on being in a great friend group. You met all three boys at your first dorm mixer. Thankfully, you all came to a mutual agreement that dorm parties were way too crowded and not even that fun if you weren’t completely drunk. So, you all decided to leave together and played ping pong in the lobby. All four of you had been good friends since.

Jimin and Taehyung were roommates and were practically inseparable. For once, it seemed like the random roommate system created a perfect match. Jungkook was the luckiest of all, since his roommate dropped out early on and he never got a replacement one so he had a room all to himself. The other boys joked that he could have hookups any time he wanted but despite his good looks, Jungkook wawa rather shy when it came to girls. He was awkward when you first met, but he easily warmed up to you and now treats you like one of the boys (Jimin often has to remind him of this when he tells him to keep his poop jokes to a minimum). 

You used to get dirty looks from other freshman girls when they saw you surrounded by all the cute boys, but you learned to ignore them. You tried going on dates with some guys, but freshman boys are still just high schoolers disguised as college students. Needless to say, you never found any guy that interested you. 

Of course, no one could blame you for having a tiny crush on Jimin. You liked everything about him. He was extremely thoughtful, very intelligent, and was in fact a very cute boy. However, you kept your romantic feelings a secret because you didn’t want to ruin the group dynamics. 

These thoughts were hard to suppress when you were literally pressed up against his chest. In order for everyone to fit comfortably, Jimin offered for you to lean against him as he put his arm around you. The other boys paid no attention to his move, which you were thankful for because they would have made fun of you for blushing. You couldn’t pay attention to the movie. You were engulfed by Jimin’s scent (he wore a light yet alluring cologne), and your heart was beating so loudly you were worried that he could hear it.  

“Should we wear Christmas sweaters?” Jungkook glanced at the clock as soon as the movie ended.

“I don’t have any,” you shook your head.

“I have an extra, you can borrow it if you’d like, “Jimin offered. 

“Perfect! Tae do you have one?” Jungkook didn’t give you time to reply.

“I have one with polar bears on it,” Taehyung answered.

“That’ll work! Let’s meet back here in 10,” Jungkook stated as he stripped off his shirt.

“Stop showing off,” Taehyung laughed as he slapped the younger boy’s abs, “C’mon ___, let’s go get changed.”

The other boys’ room was just a couple doors down from Jungkook’s. Taehyung went to change in the bathroom while Jimin picked out a sweater for you. You waited patiently while you looked around Jimin’s side of the room. Your gaze stopped at his polaroid collection that hung above his desk. Looking at them made you smile as you reminisce the fond memories from throughout the semester. You saw the boys laughing and smiling, a surprising number of Jungkook shirtless, and a few selfies that only got Jimin’s forehead as he tried to fit everyone in the picture. 

Then you saw one you’ve never seen before. It was a solo picture of you from Halloween. You wore one of your favorite black dresses with flowy sleeves paired with a pointy witch hat that brought the look together. Upon a closer look, you realized you weren’t even looking at the camera. Instead, you were looking away at an angle that made it seem like you were doing one of those classic model poses.

“I didn’t know you took this,” you called to Jimin, who was rummaging through his closet.

“Oh. Yeah, you just looked picturesque in that moment. I’m glad I got to capture it,” Jimin said in an uncharacteristically bashful way, “Here’s my Santa sweater,” he handed you the article of clothing.

“I actually look kinda cute here, so you did a good job,” you teased him as you put the sweater on over your shirt.

“You always look cute, so don’t worry about that,” Jimin smiled softly.

“You guys ready?” Taehyung barged in, ruining the moment. 

“Yep!” you quickly answered and walked out of the room. Jimin was always sweet, but was he purposely flirting with you there?

“Give me a second, I’m almost ready,” Jimin responded with a tinge of annoyance. 

Jungkook was already waiting outside the room, apparently too impatient to wait for everyone to show up in his room. He was sporting a green sweater that was obnoxiously decorated with real ornaments.

“Did you make that yourself?” Taehyung asked in awe.

“Made it last year with my family; they insisted I bring it with me,” Jungkook shrugged, “Let’s go win this thing!”

“Whaddup guys?” your RA, Jin, greeted the group as you entered the lobby. Four gingerbread kits were set up on a table in the middle of the lobby. Jin glanced at his watch and sighed.

“Hey Jin. Ready for the holidays?” you asked.

“Ready to get away from all you troublemakers,” Jin laughed, “Just kidding. You guys are the only ones who show up to my events, so you’re all automatically my favorites. I had to invite a few of my friends to help make it a real competition.”

“There’s already four people here though, that’s all you need,” Taehyung observed.

“That’s no fun. This is a team competition,” Jin explained, “Counting my friends, I think we can split up perfectly into teams of two.”

“I call ___,” Jimin immediately spoke up.

“Dude, I thought we were gonna be partners,” Taehyung looked butt hurt.

“Don’t worry Tae, we’ll kick their asses. Let’s combine our creative juices together,” Jungkook slung an arm around Taehyung.

“Fine. But keep your juices to yourself,” Taehyung sighed.

“What’s good, party people?” an unfamiliar voice shouted. 

“Ready to show these Freshman how to properly make a gingerbread house?” Jin called out to his friends, “These goons are Namjoon, Yoongi, and Hoseok. I’ll pair up with Namjoon.”

“Sope in the HOUSE!” Yoongi and Hoseok hollered in unison.

“Oh, and I forgot to mention that the winner gets a $50 giftcard,” Jin winked, “Ready, set, go!”

You and Jimin quickly got to unwrapping all of the goods. You were in charge of putting the house together as Jimin thought about how to decorate. The icing that held the walls together looked a bit messy, but you could cover that up with even more frosting.

“Wanna start icing the details and I’ll add the candy?” Jimin suggested.

“Yes chef,” you nodded and got back to work.

Jimin delicately added gumdrops and mints to the roof and added licorice to line the windows. You moved on to take care of the front yard. You added candy canes to make an arches along the front walkway, which was lined with kisses. More and more candy was being added onto the house up until Jin’s timer rang.

“Time’s up! Step away from the houses! Let’s start from this side with Jungkook and Taehyung’s house,” Jin announced.

“It’s certainly...avant garde,” Jimin commented. Icing was piped around the house in intricate patterns and candy was strewn across the house with no rhyme or reason.

“We didn’t want to be confined to the cookie cutter gingerbread house norms,” Taehyung said proudly.

“I can’t tell the windows apart from the door,” Namjoon whispered.

“You’re not supposed to!” Jungkook snapped, “Our house is anything you want to imagine.”

“Alright, moving on-- what the hell? Did you guys even try?” Jin shot a disgusted glare at the SOPE team.

“In my defense, I haven’t had dinner yet,” Yoongi shrugged.

“And I thought it wasn’t fair that only Yoongi got to eat it so I joined him,” Hoseok hung his head. 

You stifled your laughter as you looked at their plate. Candies were piled up and the house laid unconstructed with many bites taken out of it. Jin shook his head and continued to present his house, which honestly was not much better than his friends’ lack of a house.

“This one was my bad,” Namjoon rubbed the back of his neck.

The gingerbread house looked like it was struggling to stand up. The walls were lopsided and the icing was messily laced around the entire thing.

“I wanted to go for a White Christmas look and have the roof be completely covered with the icing. But thanks to Namjoon’s sloppy work, it got too heavy and the house started to fall apart--” the house collapsed right as Jin said that.

“___ and I made a picture perfect gingerbread house,” Jimin boasted. It was true. Your house looked like it was done by a professional. The icing was well done and the candies were placed in all the right places. No one else made a front lawn like you guys.

“It looks like we have a clear winner,” Jin nodded.

“Good try guys, better luck next time,” Jungkook stepped up to claim the prize.

“___ and Jimin are the winners,” Jin handed you the giftcard while looking at Jungkook in disbelief. 

“Woohoo! Great job __!” Jimin cheered and hugged you tightly. You once again caught a whiff of his cologne and felt yourself melting in his arms. 

“Boo! Lames!” Jungkook yelled at you both.

“Wait, is it snowing?” Yoongi said as he looked out the window.

Sure enough, white flurries were swirling around as snow landed on the ground. It must have been snowing for a bit, as it was actually sticking to the ground and there was at least an inch of it. 

“Let’s go let’s go!” Jimin took your hand and dragged you to the elevator.

“You too, Jin. I wanna pelt my RA in the face,” Jungkook stuck his tongue out at Jin.

“Oh you’re on, kid. Let’s go boys,” Jin motioned to his friends.

Cold air whipped across your face as soon as you walked outside. You weren’t wearing nearly enough warm layers and the cold chilled you to the bone.You stuck your tongue out to catch snowflakes as you shivered. Jimin wrapped his arms around you, catching you off guard.

“Cold?” he whispered in your ear.

“Maybe a little,” you admitted as you felt your ears warm up. Right as you said that, a small white ball exploded on your chest. Jungkook had his signature bunny smile plastered on his face as he laughed hysterically. He was on a rampage, and you laughed as you watched him chase Jin around with a gigantic snowball.

“Oh, it’s on!” Jimin yelled at him as he started to form ammunition of his own. 

You went to stake your own tiny claim of land to make snowballs in. Taehyung was running around with an arm full, pelting anyone in sight. Endless bouts of laughter echoed outside of the dormitory as you and your friends engaged in an intense snowball fight. There was no clear winner, but no one could feel their extremities by the end of it.

“Alright alright truce! You kids go take a hot shower before you get sick. I don’t wanna get blamed for anyone having an unpleasant holiday season,” Jin finally shooed all of his kids out of the snow. 

“I can’t believe this. Why do my parents have to come pick me up a day early?” Jungkook complained as he sprawled out on his bed.

“Because they love you and are excited to see you, Kookie. Don’t worry, we’ll have plenty of time to partake in more shenanigans next semester,” you patted his ankle in reassurance.

“If you’re leaving, then I’ll probably drive home today too. I miss Tannie,” Taehyung sighed.

“Why? ___ and Jimin are still here. You guys can have fun without me,” Jungkook pouted. Jimin and Taehyung exchanged a quick glance at each other before Taehyung talked about how much he missed his adorable little fluffy companion. 

“I’m telling you, you have to sneak Tannie over here next semester,” you joked. 

“He’ll get too excited and bark. Jin is chill, but probably not that chill,” Taehyung said somberly, “But don’t worry! We can take a field trip to my house next semester for sure. My mom makes the best food.”

“I can’t wait buddy,” Jimin smiled as Jungkook finally got out of bed to start packing. All three of you saw Jungkook off once his family came to pick him up. His mother was sweet and you could tell that he got his charisma from his father. Taehyung hugged both of you goodbye and you watched him drive off.

“Guess it’s just us left huh,” Jimin observed.

“What do you wanna do? It’s not even 11am yet,” you checked the time, “Oh! How do you wanna split up the gift card? It’s a visa so it can be used anywhere.”

“Why don’t we spend it together? That way it’s fair. What do you say to one final outing to commemorate the end of a great semester?” Jimin offered.

“Sounds good! Do you wanna stay on campus or?” you trailed off.

“I have an idea,” Jimin nodded, “But it’s a surprise! Meet in my room after we get dressed? Change into something a little warmer.”

“Fine,” you rolled your eyes.

You showed up in front of Jimin’s door wearing a cozy sweater a couple minutes later. You also sprayed on some of your favorite perfume, but he probably wouldn’t notice. Nor would he notice the extra effort you put into styling your hair. 

“Hey you ready to have some fun?” Jimin greeted you with a smile, “You look...nice.”

“Thanks, you too. Now will you tell me where we’re going?” you asked.

“I’ll tell you on the way. C’mon let’s go catch the train!” Jimin led you by the hand down the hallway yet again.

The way he said that you looked nice made you feel self conscious. He had the same tone that people have when someone really doesn’t look nice but they were too far into the sentence to correct themselves. Now sitting together on the train, you wondered if you were wearing too much perfume.

“How do you feel about ice skating?” Jimin asked.

“I love it. Haven’t done it in a while though,” you answered.

“Perfect! I realize I probably should’ve made sure you enjoy skating before surprising you with it,” Jimin laughed nervously.

“This still makes for a fine impromptu date,” you laughed with him before realizing what you said.

“Date?”

“Sure is weird not having those two around causing a scene!” you interrupted him.

“Um, yeah. They’re good dudes,” Jimin awkwardly agreed.

You shifted uncomfortably in your seat. You finally get some alone time with Jimin and you’re making it all weird. The other boys always made sure there was never a dull moment during your escapades. You wished they were here right now.

“This is our stop,” Jimin tapped on your knee.

The snow had stuck overnight, making everything that the sun touched glisten. Your spirits lifted as you walked around the decorated town, the festivity of everything seeped into you. Christmas lights were strung up everywhere, and there were big red bows on nearly everything. 

“You good? You seem kinda out of it,” Jimin nudged you. 

“Oh yeah, I’m fine! Don’t worry about it,” you shot him a fake smile.

“Hey, don’t lie to me. I’d like to think I know you better than that. What’s wrong?” Jimin prodded.

“It’s nothing really. It’s silly, believe me,” you replied quickly.

“___,” Jimin said in a serious tone.

“I didn’t mean to say ‘date’. It was just a stupid slip up and I guess I was worried about making this awkward when you’re really just trying to be a good friend and--”

“This is a date,” Jimin stated.

“It--what?” you were surprised.

“The boys and I have been planning this since last month. We figured it would be the only natural way for us to spend time together. Alone,” Jimin blushed as he looked at the ground.

“If you wanted to make it seem natural then you probably shouldn’t have disguised it as an accidental stroke of luck,” you crossed your arms, “And the way you said I looked nice earlier made me feel like I’ve had something on my face this whole time.”

“No no! You really do look nice! I was actually gonna say super cute but I chickened out. Aw, ___, you look lovely. I’m sorry I made you self conscious,” Jimin pulled you in for a hug, “I’ve liked you for a while, but I was scared that you didn’t feel the same way. If this makes you uncomfortable, we can just forget about this whole date thing and just skate as friends,” he whispered. 

“I was scared of ruining the group so I never wanted to tell you that I like you,” you responded once the hug ended.

“I guess we both goofed. So can we call this an official date?” Jimin asked with a hopeful smile.

“Yes, yes we can,” you laughed.

“Sweet. Since it’s a date, can I hold your hand?” Jimin held out his hand and you happily took it. He led you to the ice rink as you both laughed and made fun of each other for being so coy for the entire semester.

“So how long have you liked me?” you asked.

“Would it be cheesy to say since I first laid eyes on you?”

“Yes.”

“Then since I first laid eyes on you,” Jimin was pleased with his answer.

“And the other two knew?” 

“The entire time,” Jimin confirmed, “It was actually Taehyung who came up with this plan.”

“Why didn’t you just ask me out normally?” you tilted your head.

“Honestly, we never thought of that,” Jimin admitted.

“You boys are all so dumb,” you laughed.

“True, but it worked!” Jimin defended, “We’re here! You got the gift card on you?”

After paying for the ice skate rentals, it was now you leading Jimin into the ice rink. It had been a while since you last skated, and you were eager to glide across the ice again. You dragged Jimin behind you as you trudged forward.

“Do you not know how to skate?” you looked back at him.

“I do, but this is more fun,” Jimin smiled. You let go of his hand and took off. You laughed as he struggled to chase you. His version of skating was more like inching forward very very slowly with the grace of a newborn deer. You skated circles around him to tease him. The teasing continued until you both wore yourselves out (and your rental time was up). 

“That was fun,” you announced happily.

“Speak for yourself, I lost track of how many times I fell on my butt,” Jimin rubbed his backside with a sad frown.

“7 times. And you fell onto your knees 3 times,” you informed him, “Do you wanna grab something to eat to make you feel better?”

“Some hot chocolate would smack right now,” he nodded.  

 “Let’s go get you warmed up big boy. Wanna go to Starbucks or something?” 

“I have some hot chocolate back in the dorm. Can we heat that up and watch a movie?” Jimin asked sweetly. You nodded and made your way back to the train station. You leaned onto Jimin’s shoulder on the way back, enjoying your new freedom to be a little flirty with him.

Once back in Jimin’s dorm room, you made the hot chocolate while he changed into pants that didn’t have ice all over them. Both of you snuggled together on Jimin’s bed while Die Hard played on his laptop (believe it or not, that counts as a Christmas movie). 

“Would you say today’s date was a success?” Jimin asked before taking a sip of his drink.

“I’d say so. I think we get along well,” you nodded.

“Well that’s a relief. I can take you on more next semester if that’s okay with you,” he looked into your eyes.

“That’s perfectly fine with me,” you smiled before kissing his cheek. This semester definitely ended on a high note. Tis the season.

Published December 25, 2020. No editing, copying, translating, or reposting allowed. All Rights Reserved © 2020 Baepsaesbae.

[almostkoo]

60 Minutes

 pairing: yoongi x reader

word count: 4.3k

summary: reader gets dragged to a party where they get a drink spilled on them, makes some friends along the way and spends time discussing conspiracy theories with a cute music major

warnings: language 🤡

a/n: so this is my first piece of writing I’m putting out there (no worries I plan on getting better) I’ve had this written up since late august it honestly took me a long time to post because I was nervous but I overcame that because I wanted to share this with the internet I hope you guys enjoy this it’s just simple. go easy on me !! hope you all enjoy !!

                                                         The atmosphere of the party was dark and muggy. Neon light decorations lined the walls of the mini mansion as you looked quickly over all of the various faces jumping up and down to the music . You held tightly to your friend Naomi’s side a little anxious at what the night had to offer.

“Loosen up a bit it’s gonna be a fun night!” Naomi yelled over the loud music , a newer song you wasn’t familiar of yet. Your eyes quickly linked with each others, hers radiating happiness and excitement while yours most likely radiated slight fear.

Parties were not your thing at all.

 Since starting college you ended up isolating yourself, there on a full ride with everything to lose it didn’t allow you to engage in all of the fun rites of passages that came with college. But here you were with Naomi at the end of the semester before break, everyone celebrating being done with finals . The call of your name broke you from your thoughts.

“Did you hear me at all? Loosen up !” She emphasized by grabbing your shoulders and shaking them hard. “It’s just one party. One night.”

“I don’t know about this.” You said eyes scanning over the party, you could tell that some people were obviously intoxicated, sweaty bodies all over each other, hair clinging to their foreheads as many of them had the same trademark look of euphoria plastered on their face.

 Naomi dragged you out of your shared dorm on the second to last Friday before break started. You stood there looking into her eyes awkwardly shuffling back and forth feeling uncomfortable at the loud noise in the party.

“It’s just a party, how many times do I have to say it. Look give it a hour, mkay? If you’re still not having fun we’ll go back to the dorm get comfy, order a pizza and we’ll watch some Criminal Minds?” she asked with a raised brow, she could tell you didn’t have to contemplate the offer.

“Just an hour?” you leaned in.

“Just an hour.”

“Naomi, I swear if you’re lying I’m going to take all of your stuff and throw it-“

“Hey now what are two beautiful ladies such as yourselves doing bickering at a party?” A voice interrupted your rant. You turned your attention to the sound of the voice and there he stood Jeon Jungkook. He ran a hand through his black hair that he had been growing out (which had been making all the girls go mad along with the fact he was one of the star football players on the college’s team) dressed in all black, the color subtly complimenting his muscular figure. He had two drinks in his hands offering them to you. Naomi happily took hers while you hesitated sniffing the cup, inhaling the strong scent of cheap liquor before opting to just hold the red solo cup.

“If you need refills they’re in the corner of the room.” the young man smiled.

“I’m trying to bring my roommate out here to have a good time. Jungkook have you met her?” Naomi asked. Jungkook’s wide eyes ran over your figure, not in a bad way but more as to see who you were.

“Nope! Haven’t seen her “Jungkook turned back to you “are you a freshman?” Disgust washed over your features as he placed you well below where you actually were.

“God no! I’m a junior.” Naomi and Jungkook chuckled at your reaction.

“And I’ve never seen you around... what’s your name?” Jungkook asked, offering you a hand to shake. You introduced yourself.

“That’s a pretty name.” He smiled. “Well if you didn’t know I’m Jeon Jungkook, student by day star athlete by night.” He gave you and Naomi a prideful superhero pose flexing his biceps that you could see very well through the long sleeved shirt he wore.

“Jungkookie !” a voice yelled. Jungkook cringed slightly at the use of his nickname. A smaller boy with pink parted hair stumbled up to him. Before he started conversing with Jungkook he looked over you and Naomi, small brown eyes suddenly lighting up in recognition at your roommate, full lips curled around a smile spreading across the young man’s soft features.

“Naomi!”

“Jimin!”

 The boy, Jimin removed his hand which had been clinging to Jungkook’s arm to fling his around Naomi, enveloping her in a hug. You and Jungkook shared a confused look with one another . They removed themselves from the hug.

“Jungkookie this is the lovely girl I was telling you about from my dance class last semester!” He beamed. Jimin and Naomi shared huge megawatt smiles.

“I told you about Jimin right?” Naomi asked, locking eyes with you. You searched over Jimin’s features as if a hint of recognition would come to you from trying to remember Naomi talking about him to you.

“Noooooo” you said, it almost coming out like a question “I don’t think I recall.”

Jimin let out a loud whine, as he playfully hit Naomi’s arm.

“You didn’t tell her about the best dance partner you’ve had? Naomi, how could you do this?” He laughed.

“I swear I told her about you ! It’s not my fault she doesn’t remember !” She laughed. You chuckled at the interaction going on between the two.

“Jimin what did you need? Are we running out of drinks or something?” Jungkook asked, turning his attention to the boy. Jimin shook his head.

“Seokjin is here and he’s asking for the rent.” Jimin said .

“The rent ? Now ?” Jungkook sighed.

“Wait Seokjin ? Like Kim Seokjin ? Tall? Broad shoulders and plush lips?” Naomi asked. You could see panic wash over her and it confused you.

“Who’s Seokjin ?” You asked.

“Jungkookie ! Jimin !” Yet another voice called out, joining the conversation. A taller young man yelled. Jungkook’s shoulders slumped as he let out a sigh. He came up behind Jungkook and Jimin as he placed his hands on the both of their shoulders. Seokjin was up to par with Naomi’s quick description. Broad shoulders complimented by a small waist, and full pink lips composed into a smirk. He wore a loose blue button down and fitted black jeans. His eyes locked with Naomi’s as she mumbled something under her breath that sounded a lot like “fucking asshole” as she took a swig from her cup.

“My dear Naomi, how have you been?” Seokjin asked, a mischievous gleam in his eyes.

“Fine.” Naomi said, cutting him short. You and Jungkook along with Jimin shared looks of confusion again.

“We’ll have to talk later I’ve missed you.” He said. Naomi rolled her eyes. “So Jungkook where’s the rent ?”

Jungkook swallowed hard, eyes darting to Jimin as he stared at the ground playing with the sleeves of the hoodie he wore.  

“Seokjin aren’t your parents like millionaires why do you need our money ? Especially at a party.” Jungkook responded, annoyed.

“Well” Seokjin cleared his throat “money is money I need it for my.... extra curricular activities and why not swing around to this amazing party my two tenants are throwing? Free booze and food? Can’t possibly pass that up.”

“Our food isn’t for you-“

“We’ll have the money tomorrow.” Jimin said, cutting Jungkook off before he could rip Seokjin a new one. His eyes burned holes into Jimin’s face as he smiled at Seokjin who returned the look. Jimin looked at Jungkook’s face noticing the very angry expression on it and quickly turned to leave with Jungkook hot on his heels.

“So Naomi? Can we talk?” Seokjin asked, reaching out for Naomi’s hand. She rolled her eyes and after looking at him for a few seconds she sighed, whole demeanor changing. Her eyes softened at him with a slightly reluctant smile appearing on her face.

“Sure. Come on Jin let’s talk.” The use of a nickname confused you even further. What were they to each other?

“You’re gonna be okay right ? I don’t wanna leave you alone but Jin and I really need to talk .” Naomi asked.

“No it’s not problem. I just gotta hang in for a hour and it’s pizza and Criminal Minds.” You said with a light chuckle. Naomi blew you a kiss dramatically as Seokjin gently pulled her away.

 Looking down at the red solo cup in your hand. Swirling around the clear alcohol in the cup you opted to go to the drinks table. Holding the cup close to you as you made your way through the swarm of people dancing .

  By the time you made your way to the back of the large room half the cup had spilled out on the floor. Your eyes scanned over the table looking over the various bottles on the table. A bottle of Jack, vodka, something fruity &  colorful and then finally tequila. You eyed the solo cup in your hand one last time smelling the drink before deeming it safe. You swallowed the remnants of the cup, before your face scrunched up in disgust. You picked up the bottle of tequila, smacking your lips in an attempt to rid your mouth of the foul taste of the liquor. You aimed the bottle over the cup watching the amber colored liquor flow when unexpectedly another body crashed into you causing the cup to splashing all over your light denim jacket and top.

“Dude, what the hell?” You yelled.

 Anger rolled off of you in waves as you looked for the catalyst of this unfortunate event. Your eyes connected with the stranger, alert brown orbs met yours as you had to somewhat tilt your head to scowl at the boy who gave you a goofy dimpled smile.

“I am so sorry !” He exclaimed, frantically looking around for anything to clean you off as you caught a stain almost mirroring the one on your jacket on his white shirt & blue hoodie.

“What the hell is wrong with you ? Bumping into people like that?” You asked, annoyed remembering why you wanted to stay in your dorm in the first place.

“I’m sorry I didn’t see you standing there. It was a accident !” He apologized. He ran his hand through his platinum colored hair. “I just came to grab a drink for me and my friends and I got shoved, look I’m very sorry.” You sighed, this stranger was lucky he was cute or you probably would’ve splashed whatever was left in the solo cup in his face.

“It’s whatever you’re clearly drunk I can’t even be mad at least someone’s having a good time here.” You allowed the end of the sentence to tread off quietly. The tall boy let out a loud laugh.

“What could possibly be so funny ? I’m standing here smelling like cheap tequila because some big oaf bumped into me. Hardee-har-har.” You said.

“The stain on your shirt looks like a horse.” He laughed, taking the bottle of tequila out or your hand. “it was just a accident it’s just liquor it’ll come out. No worries.”

“This is denim I’ll probably have to scrub it with freaking oxy clean or something. You must be used to messing up stuff to be this lax about accidents, stranger.” Another sigh left you . Just hang in there for a hour. You reminded yourself, leaving the boy to walk down the closest hallway, abandoning the loud music in a attempt to find a bathroom to at least dampen the jacket to get the stain out.

“I’ll have you know I have a name!” The boy called from behind you “didn’t your mother teach you to not talk to strangers anyways ?”

“I don’t want to know your name !” You called over your shoulder, shrugging off the jacket.

“Wait!” The boy caught up with you just as you found the bathroom . He rested a hand on your bare shoulder as you chose to wear a pastel tank top under the jacket.

“What do you want now ? You wanna mess up my shirt even more?” You asked, irritation lacing your words.

“Can I at least put the jacket in the cleaners for you ? It’s the least I can do for ruining your night.” He smiled again, flashing his dimples. You rolled your eyes.

“Sure whatever I’ll find you around campus before break starts you better keep your word.”

“I am a man of my words ma’am.” He said, placing his hand over his heart. A door opened up from a little further down the hall.

“Namjoon ! Where’s the booze? We’re dying in here!” A deep voice bellowed into the hallway followed by a head peeping out from a door, a huge white cloud emerged along with a boy. The yell caught the boy, Namjoon off guard causing him to yelp loudly which in turn caught you off guard making you flinch. The boy in the doorway had angelic features with a head of blue hair. His eyes widened as he saw the two of you, him noticing you were pressed against the door with Namjoon’s hand still resting on your shoulder. He raised a eyebrow, a smirk on his face making his features go from angelic to devilishly mischievous.

“Namjoonie we send you out for drinks and you come back with a snack.” He said, narrowing his eyes, checking you out. You rolled your eyes at the boys cheesy comment, noticing how glassy his eyes looked and you decided to pay him no mind.

“Taehyung, go back in the room I’ll be right there. I’m just helping out....” he trailed off looking at you realizing he didn’t even know your name. You finished his sentence giving him your name.

“You know I went to elementary with a girl with the same name.”

“Sure you did.” You said, forcing a smile.

“Joonie ! Hurry up!” Another voice called from inside of the room Taehyung was coming from.

“I’ll be right there.” Namjoon confirmed.

“Okay but can you please bring some snacks too, Hobi and I are actually dying in here.” Taehyung said, comically draping his forearm against his forehead with a frown.

“Fine. Now can you go back inside so I can finish helping this young lady out?”

“Okay. Okay. I’m leaving.” Taehyung said, closing the door behind him. Namjoon turned back to you .

“I already know your name so if you fall through on this dry cleaning promise I’m gonna hunt you down.” You joked. He smiled again at you.

“Sure you will.” He smiled, walking down the hallway. “Sorry again for the jacket!” He called. You walked into the bathroom wetting the jacket under the water attempting to scrub the tequila off the jacket. Once your were satisfied you rung it out. You looked out of the bathroom window seeing the side of a balcony. It seemed to be on the second floor. If you could get up there you could try to let the jacket air dry while you waited for Naomi.

 You left the bathroom finding the winding circular staircase and climbing it until you came to the doors that led to the balcony. Large, white framed doors were ajar allowing a breeze to blow the curtains back that were covering the doors windows . You stepped on the wide balcony, suddenly noticing a young man with jet black hair coordinating with the all black he wore was out there also, a bell shaped bottle of brown alcohol to the left of him. He seemed to be content in his solitude. You went to take a step back when he turned to face you, feline like eyes trained on your figure as you were caught attempting to leave resembling a dramatic cartoon.

“You’re more than welcome to stay out here if you want.” A baritone voice left the young man’s small frame.

“I-I didn’t want to come out here to interrupt you. To be outside alone at a party I assumed it was for a good reason.” You said, allowing yourself to relax.

“I could say the same thing about you.”

“Some guy bumped into me spilling tequila all over my jacket, I tried to get the stain out I just wanted to let it air dry.” The young man turned back around to look at the dozens of stars  that adorned the night sky.

“Let me guess. Tall, blonde hair and a blue hoodie?”

 You sat down a few feet away from him on the big balcony carefully snaking your legs through the railing, kicking your feet just like the boy next to you was.

“How did you know that?” You questioned.

“Namjoon is a klutz. I figured you had to had ran into him when you said some guy.”

“Small world.” You mumbled, letting out what have to had been your hundredth sigh of the evening, you relaxed your shoulders allowing you to slouch a bit.

“Penny for your thoughts?” The boy asked.

“I really didn’t want to come to this party.” You let out a breathy laugh.

“So why come?”

“My roommate... she said she got tired of seeing me holed up in our dorm, she heard that Jeon Jungkook was throwing a party so here I am.” You said. The small boy made a noise. You turned to him seeing that he had been looking at you the whole time.

“What?” You asked.

“Hard to miss out on the party of the century huh ?”

“This ?” You scoffed, seeing the young man give you a gummy smile. “my high school had better parties than this.”

“You don’t really seem like the party type.”

“Neither do you Mr. balcony man.”

“My friends made me come out too. They say I stay in my dorm too much” He gave a sigh of his own, reaching for the bottle of alcohol and taking a swig. “ ‘Yoongi, stop staying in your dorm all day’, ‘Yoongi, make sure you get something to eat’ ,’Yoongi, come talk to someone’. Sometimes I just prefer to be alone.”

“I understand that. Naomi is the same way.”

“Seokjin’s girlfriend, Naomi?” Yoongi questioned. Your mind went blank. If Naomi had a boyfriend she would have mentioned it . Right ?

“Girlfriend? Naomi?” You answered, but it sounded like a question.

“Aren’t they together?”

“I’m not sure.”

“I don’t think they might be either.”

 You and Yoongi looked at each other and then starting laughing. You looked back up at the sky, a million thoughts running through your mind.

“Yoongi?” You asked, hoping he wouldn’t mind you calling him by his name although he hadn’t formally introduced himself. He glanced at you.

“Do you think aliens are real?”

Yoongi’s eyebrows scrunched up at the question, seemingly confused at the sudden random question.

“Uh” he trailed off, eyebrows unscrunched and raised slightly, mouth agape. You could see the cogs turning in his mind. “Probably not.”

 You gasped in slight shock.

“How come?”

“Why would there be?”

“Why wouldn’t there be?”

“Haven’t they conducted all different types of tests and sent rovers to Mars? Something would have came up by now? NASA would have like put out a public notice or something right?”

“The government faked the moon landing why would they tell us if there was life on other planets?” You responded.

“The government did not” Yoongi trailed off again “they definitely faked the moon landing. I still don’t think there’s life on other planets.”

You rolled your eyes.

“Why would we just be the only things out there we’re creatures of a plain design.”

“True but so are fish.” He laughed.

“That made no sense whatsoever.” You laughed too.

“I might be drunk.”

“Might be?”

“I am.” He laughed again but this time a little harder than before. You looked over at Yoongi seeing how his dark eyes shined under the moonlight and somehow that same moonlight gave his skin a almost ethereal glow. Full cheeks allowed him to have a youthful look. He was truly a sight to behold.

“Why are you staring at me?” He reached for the bottle of liquor again. You felt a warm flush come over you in embarrassment as you realized you indeed had been staring at him.

“I uh-“ what’s the quickest lie you could come up with ? “I thought you had something in your hair. It must have been a trick of the light.” You said, quickly turning your head away from him. Looking down over the balcony seeing the various cars parked in front of the mini mansion and on the lawn. You knew that would ruin the grass. Party goers loitered outside talking loudly with hearty chuckles sprinkled in here and there. You heard Yoongi laugh on the side of you.

“What’s funny?” You asked. Seemed to be a night that was full of questions.

“You like conspiracy theories, huh?”

“Yeah” you shrugged “they keep life interesting I suppose.”

“Okay, how about this one? JFK’s assassination, thoughts?”

“Definitely two shooters. I don’t believe anything else. You call that a conspiracy theory? That’s weak.” You reached for his bottle, Yoongi’s eyes growing wide at your sudden assertiveness, he found himself studying your features as you took a sip of the liquor. But after this ... rowdy night you had you were in desperate need of a drink.

“Someone’s thirsty.” Yoongi mumbled.

You ignored him moving on to the question that popped into your head.

“I got one. MLK’s assassination, thoughts?”

“Oh, he got murdered in the hospital room. Isn’t that common knowledge?”

“You know about that?” You asked, surprised.

“Why wouldn’t I? I like conspiracies.”

“I don’t know not a lot of people know about that.”

“I’ve heard so much shit about conspiracies you wouldn’t even believe the half of it.” Yoongi shook his head.

“So what are you majoring in?” You asked, preferring to change the subject knowing the government was probably listening to your conversation through the cellphones you both owned.

“Music. What about you?”

“Business & Marketing. I couldn’t decide on anything else, so I decided to keep it simple.”

You and Yoongi looked back up at the sky. Eyes running over the seemingly endless amount of silver twinkling dots that stared right back at you two.

“So what type of music? What do you do like sing and play guitar or something?” You asked, earning another laugh from Yoongi.

“I make beats and um I rap.”

“YOU RAP?” You yelled, in shock. Yoongi’s narrow, cat like eyes bucked at the sudden increase of volume in your voice.

“Let me hear something.” You asked, turning around and resting your arms on your drying denim jacket so you could still face Yoongi as you two conversed.

“Oh no. The songs I make are for assignments. Not for personal listening.” He said, flatly. You tossed your hands up and shrugged against the ground.

“Well shut me up then. Maybe you’ll change your mind and I can hear some one day.” You laughed.

“Who knows? The future isn’t concrete. For now I just want to keep those kind of to myself.” He said, gazing back up at the stars. Yoongi humored you in the few moments you had spent with him. He seemed like a man of few words but with so many thoughts flowing around in his head. You found yourself staring at him again , taking in all of his features and yet again he caught your eyes.

“Why do you keep staring at me?” He asked with a smile.

So you lied again.

“I’m telling you it looks like it’s something in you hair. Maybe you shouldn’t have jet black hair and be out here with the moonlight making it glisten or something, like crunched up rock candy.” You grinned.

“Crunched up rock candy is sugar” He laughed, which made you laugh even harder.  “are you saying my hair.... is shiny ... like sugar?”

“Yeah Yoongi something like that.” You smiled. You both held each other’s gaze for a few moments, eyes darting around each other’s appearance, you found yourselves leaning in closer and closer ...

“Hey are you ready to go?” Naomi suddenly barged onto the balcony catching you and Yoongi inches away from each other. The two of you quickly pulled away from each other trying to play down the situation.

“Are we interrupting something?” Seokjin asked, from the side of Naomi. You could clearly see Naomi’s mauve lipstick faintly on the sides of his cheeks.

“Umh, no no not at all.” You said. Yoongi mumbling words over each other. Naomi smirked at the both of you. You quickly stood up along with Yoongi.

“We’ll be waiting out here.” Naomi smiled, her and Seokjin stepping out from the balcony.

“I am so sorry about that.” You apologized.

“It’s no problem.” Yoongi said, quietly.

“Maybe I’ll see you around. After all I have to get my jacket dry cleaned and you obviously know Namjoon right ? So I’ll see you.” You said.

“And you know Naomi and since I know Seokjin I’ll be seeing you around too.” He smiled.

“Wait. We should like exchange numbers or something right ?” You asked, hoping you weren’t being too forward.

“I was just about to ask.” He said, pulling out his phone. You both swapped phones, exchanging information.

“So I’ll see you.” You said.

“See you.” You stepped off the balcony, leaving Yoongi alone and returning to now Naomi and Seokjin. Naomi wrapped a arm around you and you all started down the stairs.

“So you hung in there for a hour?” She giggled.

“It’s already been a hour ?” You asked, nonchalantly.

“Yep and I see you made a new friend.” Naomi acknowledged. raising a eyebrow.

“I see you did too.” You said, playfully being defensive. You caught Seokjin smile at your comment.

“He’s not new.” Naomi said, in a hushed tone.

“And my jacket is damaged now I have to put it in the cleaners.” You said, with a frown.

“Sounds like someone does deserve pizza.”

“With extra cheese and don’t forget Criminal Minds too.” You grinned.

“You got it chief.” Naomi gave you a thumbs up. Your phone buzzed in your pocket you pulled it out seeing it was from a unknown number.

“Hey, I never caught your name.”

[dailyaudiobible]

04/16/2019 DAB Transcript

Joshua 13:1-14:15, Luke 18:1-17, Psalms 85:1-13, Proverbs 13:7-8

Today is the 16th day of April. Welcome to the Daily Audio Bible. I'm Brian and it’s great to be back together with you today around the global campfire taking our next step forward and our next step forward will lead us back into the book of Joshua. And we’re reading from the New Living Translation this week. Today Joshua chapter 13 and 14.

Commentary:

Okay. So, there's some fascinating wisdom embedded into what we just read from the book of Proverbs today about being false, basically, about being a poser. So, maybe you have those kind people in your life, you know, people that pretend to be something that they're not, right? People who fully curate their lives for social media and you just look at them and you’re like, okay, you’ve got a perfect life, I don't have a perfect life, I don't measure up to you. But it's charade. We all…every single one of us…all of us have our struggles…all of us and our culture pulls us to live this way because we’re seeing pictures of something that has been made whole and every marketing ad that's thrown at us, right? If you will get this product you will be made whole in this way. And, so we see all this perfection. And, so, when we’re…we were pulled toward being false in so many areas of our lives and often this kind of behavior is really just our insecurity and wounding speaking or our attempt to get an identity by comparing ourselves to somebody else and ultimately what we're after is that we are perceived differently than we really are, that we are perceived as our ultimate best self, not as we normally live because everybody else seems to be doing better than we are; however, when the whole cultures posing then all we are as people is a house of cards that’s gonna eventually tumble down. And the book of Proverbs gives us a little bit of a riddle concerning this kind of posing, right? So, “some who are poor pretend to be rich. Others who are rich pretend to be poor. The rich can pay around some for their lives but the poor won't even get threatened.” So, if we look at all of the options that are laid out in these couple of sentences we see that there's only one scenario that is completely unsustainable and it's those who are pretending to be more than they really are. So, let’s go back through it. “Some who are poor pretend to be rich.” So, there posing. “Others who are rich pretend to be poor”. They’re also posing but they’re pretending to be less than they are. “The rich can pay a ransom for their lives. The poor won't even get threatened.” So the truly poor have nothing to worry about, they won't be held for ransom. The truly rich don't have much to worry about, they can pay the ransom. It's the one pretending to be more than they are that would find themselves in trouble in this scenario because they’re pretending to be rich and if they’re held for ransom, they’re poor, there's no escape. So, may we consider what's being presented us in the book of Proverbs today. In what ways are we exposing ourselves by pretending to be more than we are when we have been given full permission to be nothing more or nothing less than what is true. In fact, what we are invited into through the gospel of Jesus is the honor of living noble and true and not having anything to hide.

Prayer:

Heavenly Father, we invite You into that. We confess that we’re posers in certain areas of our lives, some to greater degrees, some to lesser degrees but we acknowledge that there is a pull toward falseness and what we’re learning for the Proverbs is that that simply exposes us. It's not real, it doesn't let us live true, it only exposes us to further danger. So, Holy Spirit, come into this. What are the ways that we are over embellishing who we are or trying to pretend to be an ideal of ourselves that we think would be perfect when the only perfection we will ever find is my becoming lost in You where our identity is You? Come Holy Spirit we pray. In Jesus’ name we ask. Amen.

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And that is it for today. I’m Brian I love you and I'll be waiting for you here tomorrow.

Community Prayer and Praise:

Hi, this is Johnny Silver from Colorado and I am not the greatest Christian or believer, but I am a believer and today it’s not about me, it’s about my friend Nick at school. And we’re in junior high and he’s going through a very rough time and I told him that we’ll have a big community, have a bunch of people to back him up because this is __. His family is in a court case and he’s going into foster care for 1 to 6 months at least. And I’m adopted, I was in foster care but I was a very lucky person and God helped me through it and __ family. __ and my parents, they…they…my dad’s in college and so my mom said __. And so there’s a lot of things like that going on __ and we’re not able to bring him in properly. And, so, I’m just asking you as the DAB community to please pray for Nick and with everything that he needs and support because he’s going through such a rough time with just him and he needs somebody, and he needs God’s guidance __. When I heard about this and just helping to the best of my ability, but I need more, and I need more people to help me. So, I just need you all to pray for him and to help him find the right home and the right family and to help his family get through what’s going on to live a blessed and full life and what he can do for others as well as what others ca do for him. So, I just ask to pray for him and just have a wonderful day and I pray with you guys. All right. Bye-bye.

Hi DABbers, this is Kara from Denver and I want to focus this call on a prayer for moving and relocating. I heard Maggie May call on the line. It was so nice to hear your voice Maggie May. I hope you can hear the full DAB. I would try restarting my phone, maybe check…if you’re on a phone…or restarting your computer or device. The DAB used to do that for me when I first started listening for some reason. It works now. So, I don’t know, but it was so lovely hearing your voice and you sound great. And I just…I have a move coming up myself and I’ve been in the place I’m in now for three years and about a third of that I was using. I’m in recovery now and a lot has gone on in this place and there’s really a lot I need to leave behind when I move. And I just want to pray now. Yeshua, son of my Father, my heavenly Father, please sanctify this move Lord. Let the old life die and a new one begin with this relocation. With this change of scenery, let me see You a new Yeshua. Surround me with Your love as I remember You in the way that I arrange my new place, when I see my new neighbors, let me remember You. Give me eyes to see You in this new environment. Sanctify the kitchen, the living room, the bathroom, the bedroom, and every nook and cranny in this place. Be with me Jesus, be my roommate and I welcome You to be my most awesome roommate in this new place. Changes can be jarring, they can be exciting, and also stressful…

How you guys doing, it’s the Prodigal calling in. I just want to say that I’m praying for all the people struggling with marriage problems. I had them for years. They got so bad my wife left and it’s irreparable. So, if you’re still together just work hard at it, pay attention to it. I didn’t, and I just thought I was right and couldn’t have been more wrong, turns out. So, that’s leads to the reason I’m calling today. I was convicted at church today. Just came up…knocked me down like I was hit by a 2 x 4. Every single bad thing that’s ever happened to me in my life, every single sin, every single bad decision, every single…you name it…catastrophe has been a direct result of my pride, including, up to and including the loss of my marriage, the loss of my beautiful wife. And it’s all been about my pride. I’ve been…for some reason I grew up thinking I was better than everybody else, or I could do better than everybody else, or whatever. Maybe it’s the way I was raised. It really doesn’t matter, it’s just the way it is. And, so it just struck me just like lightning at church today. So, I want to confess and today is the first day of Holy Week. It’s a day of reconciliation and went and confessed to the priest and…good guy…good guy. He said, “you know John, humility tuff, but you need to work on it. And, so, I’m praying and I ask your prayers for me to be more humble, not to like be more successful but so I can make up for all the mistakes in the past. But I just want to let you know I’m praying for all of you all, Blind Tony, Joe the Protector, happy grandpa day, and everybody, Viola, Victoria Soldier, you name it, you guys know who you are. Your beautiful people and for everybody else who’s struggling out there, all I can say is I’m praying for you all every time you make a call. So, know that I’m praying for and you might not hear from me. And my voice is always terrible. So, anyway, you all have a blessed day. Love you all. Bye.

Hello Daily Audio Bible family, this is Bridget from New York City. I’m calling to pray for Emmanuel and Selena. Emmanuelle God’s with you. I know what it is to be a wife and to stay to a husband. My husband…I wanted a divorce and when there are children involved…it’s just painful. So, Lord I just…I cover this marriage Father. Lord I just pray for both hearts involved in this marriage Lord. I pray Father for Karina right now Lord God and I ask You Lord God to touch her heart Father God. Lord we are so emotional as women and we do get to a place where we become so weary Father that we want to give up completely but Father I pray Lord that You did not give her that spirit of giving up, that You do not let her give up on her marriage Father, that she would look at her children, that she would look at the long-term effects that this would have Father, that she would look at the covenant that she has chosen to stick by because she decided to marry this man Lord God. I pray Father Lord for a softening of her heart towards her husband Father God. I pray Lord for her to see him in a new light. I pray that the anger would be completely subsided Lord God. I ask You to give her a heart of forgiveness Father God. I ask You to give her a heart of discernment Father God. I pray for Emmanuel Father God, not to give up on her Lord God. I pray that Emmanuel Father God will have strength to receive the hurt and the pain, that she shares the truth and I pray that Father God she would share every single thing that is in her heart so that she can let out what is troubling her Lord. As Your word says Father God that when we confess it heals us Father God. So I pray that she confesses her pain. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Hey DAB brothers and sisters this is Byron from out in Florida. I need your help with something. As a lot of you know, my wife suffers from anxiety and depression as well as chronic pain and fatigue from fibromyalgia and I’ve done my best to support her in that and support my family as we go through that but it is hard and yesterday a wrinkle developed which I won’t get into here that pushed me a little past my limit to soon and I reacted in a way that I regret. So, now I’m having to…needing to patch things up with my wife as well as deal with this new development. And, as always, I appreciate your prayers and encouragement. By the grace of God, I’ve been able to take care of my family, take care by wife and all of the other responsibilities that I have, and she’s never stopped being good, He’s never stopped being there. And, so, that’s why I come here, ask for you guys prayers. But it is hard, and I just need to get my eyes back on Him and stop looking at the circumstances, but He’s good and I’m maintaining. I love you all and I’ll talk you later. Bye.

[iheartmoonrise]

Over-analyzing ‘Something Great’

‘One day you’ll come into my world and say it all’

He cannot say, or can he? An (over) analysis of ‘Something Great’

This journal looks into the songs written mostly by Harry and Louis, with an emphasis on ‘Something Great’, a song that, I believe, is a bit under-appreciated in the fandom of Larry Stylinson. By studying the lyrics closely, this journal aims at reinforcing the idea that Larry is real. It is written in the spirit of reach but cute, and it celebrates #loveislove, #loveisequal, #LGBTQ, and, of course, the love between Harry and Louis that deserves to be out and proud.

Love denied in the official narrative I want to start this by drawing your attention to ‘Something Great’. There are arguably a number of Larry songs (songs that suggest a relationship between H&L, and were often written by/for them), the most famous among which are ‘If I Could Fly’, ‘Strong’, ‘Home’, and, from Harry’s solo album, ‘Sweet Creature’ (hello stage B), ‘Two Ghosts’, and the one that he (obviously) fell in love to - ‘What Makes You Beautiful’. ‘Something Great’ is from One Direction’s third album ‘Midnight Memories’ (2013). The twelfth song, unlike other hits in this album, seems less well-known, and one cannot find a live performance of it on youtube (I couldn't find a live performance of ‘Home’ either) . However, looking closely, ‘Something Great’ is immensely rich in both the lyrics and the form. It was meticulously written by Harry and two songwriters. The words/ images chosen were repeated in many other Larry songs. Bearing in mind that ‘From the Dining Table’ (the tenth song) is Harry’s personal favourite in his solo album, for a song like ‘Something Great’ that seems under-appreciated, it is likely that it actually tells us more about, well, something great, than others, if we listen to it carefully.

First thing that sticks to my mind after hearing it is Harry’s solo part where he sings

Is it too much to ask for something great?

It indicates (1) something great in life is denied; (2) regardless of the difficulties, one doesn’t give up pursuing it. The two elements repeat themselves in ‘Home’, where the lyrics are

Is it so wrong Is it so wrong that you made me strong

Here, again, something empowering is deemed ‘wrong’.

The parallels between the two songs make me think how 'IICF', ‘Strong’, ‘Home’, ‘SG’ share the same trait which is the love depicted in the songs are, in fact, not unrequited. They are somehow hindered and denied by something big - something that is uncontrollable, something the lovers cannot manage. This thing is not their feelings towards each other. The love is never unrequited. The love is answered and the feeling is mutual. However, there is something that stops them from asking for more of this love, that stops them from telling others that this is the one that makes me strong.

This force - unexplainable, obstructive  -  is not something between the lovers; it is something exterior. It is the official narrative that is governed by a larger institution: the company, the society, the culture. It denies the love; it denies the very existence of something great.

Home in fluid forms

What poses an interesting contrast with the exterior is the interior, which takes the form of ‘home’ in many songs written and loved by Harry and Louis. There is, indeed, a trace of home in ‘SG’ although it is not explicitly mentioned:

I’ll say we’re better off together here tonight

The ‘tonight’ echos the lyrics of the iconic ‘Home’, in which the singer suggests, ‘It’s alright calling out for somebody to hold tonight’ when the date with a girl doesn’t work out because ‘there’s something missing in her eyes’.

The images of 'home' and 'night' join together in more than one songs. In ‘Two Ghosts’, Harry sings:

The fridge light washes this room white, Moon dances over your good side.

The beautiful lines depict a domestic scene where there is moonlight, a fridge, and two lovers.

Home is a place where one feels safe and is in control of things. It has a door that separates the interior from the exterior. It keeps the unfriendly out of the door. Meanwhile, it locks the secrets inside. Home, nevertheless, does not only exist in one form as a place with a set address. In 'From The Dining Table':

Woke up alone in this hotel room, Played with myself where were you?

It is as if the hotel room was a place that the singer lives with his partner. The hotel room where they part ways (in the case of this song), is a place where the singer later brings in some random girl ‘who looked just like you’. The hotel room is there, before the one-night-stand happens. In this sense, it is no more different from saying ‘Woke up alone in my flat … woke up with the girl who looked just like you in my place’. Talking about secret little rendezvous, here you go:

But if you like causing trouble in hotel rooms

This line from 'Perfect' indicates we are going to be perfect for each other if you travel a lot and know how to cause trouble (and get away with the punishments) in hotel rooms. The prerequisite for us to be partners-in-crime is that we are able to spend a lot of time together. Either having a tender moment at home or having fun in hotel rooms, in the end, someone needs to be there in the first place as a roommate and/or a travel companion.

Be it a home with a postal number or a hotel room, as long as someone great is there, the space is surely becoming a place that feels like home.

Lost is mutual

Outside of the home, it is, however, a malignant space. Without the walls and doors that safeguard, the exterior space is where getting lost seems unavoidable.

In ‘Something Great’, the second line is

You say we'll be together even when you're lost

It seems baffling at the first sight as how, one wonders, can people be lost when they are together with a loved one? The almost paradoxical state of being reappears in 'IICF':

When you’re lonely and forget who you are

The above suggests a more curious condition where the person the singer fly right back home to is somehow at sea with his/her self. The destination is clear yet it is also questionable (‘lost’, ‘forget’).  Going ‘Home’, it is as if getting lost was a predicament that had to be taken into consideration (‘When you’re lost, I will find the way/ I will be your light’).

It is important to note that being lost is, in fact, suffered not by one of them only, but by both of them. In ‘Sweet Creature’, the protagonist confesses he gets lost too:

When I run out of road, You bring me home.

Later, he stresses they are in this dilemma together:

We don’t know where we going, but we know where we belong.

As we consider that the exterior condition is what reduces them into this condition of being lost, it is possible to see being lost not as that they lose their ways (due to their directionlessness, no pun intended), but as that they are forced to lose their true selves, or that they are forced to receive and to accept (however unwillingly) a fake identity ('womanizer'), a false image ('boyfriend'), and a faux heteronormative narrative.

The uncomfortable silence

The unexplainable exterior force which stops them from being who they are takes a toll on their life, taking its main form of stopping them from saying what they want to say.

I am stumbling, looking in the dark with an empty heart.

The struggle to utter is prominent in Harry’s solo album. From ‘Tongue-tired like we’ve never known/ Telling these stories we already told’ to ‘We haven't spoken since you went away/ Comfortable silence is so overrated./ Why won't you ever say what you want to say?/ Even my phone misses your call, by the way’ to ‘I always think about you and how we don't speak enough’. Even in ‘Sign of The Times’, there are: ‘We don't talk enough/ We should open up’. In Louis’s ‘Miss You’, there is something curious going on as well: ‘And we can’t even be on the phone now/ And I can’t even be with you alone now’. It suggests the failure to talk freely often comes together with the physical state of being in two places. Therefore, it may be argued that not being able to be together is, in both Harry and Louis’s songs, closely linked with the inability to talk freely.

This is why ‘Something Great’ is a song that deserves more attention (and more streaming), because it is all about a lover’s wish for his partner to be vocal. While to talk or not to talk is one of the important motifs in H&L's songs, ‘SG’ stands out because it screams the wish to say it properly. Indeed, the beginning of the song literally put a ‘say’ in each clause:

One day you'll come into my world and say it all, You say we'll be together even when you're lost, One day you'll say these words, I thought you'll never say. You say we're better off together in our bed.

To understand the politics of being vocal, one cannot miss the drama Harry created during his Tour on Live. There had been a couple of times when he teased the fans by playing the prelude of 'IICF' (and in the last shows, that of ‘Girl Crush’) before saying ‘the next song I’m gonna play is "Just a Little Bit of Your Heart"'. Let’s look at the lyrics of 'JALBOYH':

I don't ever tell you how I really feel 'Cause I can't find the words to say what I mean.

Here, the silence is due to the fact the singer cannot confess his feelings. It portrays a protagonist who is okay with the fact that the one he secretly loves is not with him. He blames himself for that as he cannot put his feelings into words. It is a typical scenario for unrequited love. However, as I have argued in the beginning, the love depicted in Harry and Louis’s songs are everything but unrequited. It is unfair to blame the fact that two lovers are not together on themselves. While the song leaves an impression that the reason why the protagonist cannot say what he wants to say is his failure to confess love, the reality may be that he cannot talk about love because he is not allowed to talk about it.

Regarding the ‘teasings’, I would argue Harry did that because he may no longer agree with his position in 'JALBOYH'. It is never the lover’s fault. It is the exterior force that makes them believe they are the ones to blame, whereas they have nothing to be sorry for. Contrary to 'JALBOYH', 'IICF' is about a wish to fight against the odds, to fly back home, and to ask the lover to listen as the protagonist takes the initiative to talk:‘Pay attention, I hope that you listen/ 'cause I let my guard down’.

This is when 'Medicine', an unreleased song Harry played during Live on Tour, becomes so interesting. In the previous songs, it is all about a wish to be vocal (‘Something great’), or still struggling to say it properly (‘FTDT’ ‘Missing You’). ‘Medicine’, however, celebrates a night out when someone is finally being ‘persuasive’, that is, not only vocal, but on-the-point vocal:

If you go out tonight I’m going out ‘cause you are persuasive.

Although there is no concrete evidence that the vocal one in this unapologetically fun song is Louis, it does not impact that this song is wild as the boys are certainly having a blast thanks to one of them being ‘persuasive’. They are, in the end, mastering the power of talking (and, indeed, mouth). Voice, vocal, and mouth join together in this song about male sexual pleasure. It shows how being vocal is empowering, and mouth, when mastered by oneself instead of being controlled by others, releases and receives pleasures.

Scriptless: Make America Gay Again

Going back to ‘Something Great’, one phenomenal thing to note is the form of this song, where in the end, Louis sings ‘You are all I want/ So much it’s hurting’. The solo performance certainly leaves an impression that he is the one who is asked by the other to ‘say it all’. It is, of course, also possible to see Louis’s solo as part of the monologue of the singer himself. But here, rather than argue if it is a reply to the request in the beginning of the song, I want to draw attention to the ‘all I want’ part - it is ‘all I want’ that links the two songs (‘IICF’ ‘Girl Crush’) with ‘JALBOYH’.

In ‘JALBOYH’, the protagonist is satisfied with ‘Just a little bit of your heart is all I want’; in ‘IICF’, it’s much more than a little bit of your heart, as your heart has become a part of me: No way that I can live without half of my/your heart:

I’m missing half of me when we’re apart [...] I can feel your heart inside mine, I feel it, I feel it.

‘Girl Crush’ is all about what ‘I’ want to be. It is loud and clear: I want to be that girl, ie. your lover:

I want to taste her lips, Yeah, 'cause they taste like you, I want to drown myself, In a bottle of her perfume, I want her long blonde hair, I want her magic touch, Yeah, 'cause maybe then, You'd want me just as much.

The protagonist is no longer okay with being a ‘fool’ when ‘you’ are with her. He wants more than that. He dances and he smirks and he sings loud and proud:

The boys and the girls are in, I mess around with him, And I'm okay with it

The controversial part about ‘Medicine’ is whether Harry (as he pointed to himself when singing the song many times) did ‘mess around with him’ or not. As the song first came out it was hailed, interestingly, as a ‘bi anthem’. Although it seems clearer now that it is ‘him’ rather than ‘them’, it would stay mysterious until an official studio version is released and the official lyrics is out. But we have known better than to buy into the official narrative by now. In ‘Something Great’, it has already been suggested that what is being put out there is not what it seems:

The script was written and I could not change a thing, I want to rip it all to shreds and start again.

It is, therefore, the live, the fluid, the scriptless that is more exciting and telling. And nothing beats the interactions between Harry and the fans during the tour. The scriptless part is where he went wild: the one with the gay-vodka, the one when he helped Pilar to find a girlfriend, the one he outed his fans (twice) after he got the permission to read their signs (‘come out because of you’); the one he waved a ‘Make America Gay Again’ and smirked behind the flag. Oh. And the one he waved the rainbow flag in the very LGBT-unfriendly Singapore. Check: Harry Styles is Gay Culture: A Study by Freddieismyqueen, you’ll know what I am talking about.

He cannot say it, but he finds a way to say it. They both do. On behalf of the fans, Harry said ‘Because of you, I’m coming out tomorrow.’ ‘It’s my birthday. And I’m gay.’ ‘Tina, she’s gay! Tina says … she loves it.’

Because talking is empowering; to say it properly is to be free.

May I read the sign? It says: I’m gay and I love you! I love you as well. I mean, we are all a little bit gay, ain’t we?

                                           --Harry Styles, Live on Tour, July 14, 2018, L.A.