FOR ALL ETERNITY [ TAEKOOK] ?

The scent of roasted espresso and burnt ambition filled the café as Jimin darted from the counter to the machine like a caffeine-fueled blur. The bell above the door chimed.

He didn't look up. "Welcome. What can I get y—"

His heart did a weird flip.

It was Yoongi.

Gone was the usual crisp three-piece suit. In its place: a plain black hoodie, dark jeans, messy hair, and those signature silver studs crawling up his ear like sins waiting to happen. Jimin's breath hitched before he could slap himself back into reality.

Yoongi leaned on the counter like he had every right to be there.

"Wow. If beauty were a crime, you'd be serving a life sentence."

Jimin blinked. "I— What?"

"You heard me. And you look illegally good with that apron on. Makes me want to confess my sins and then commit new ones."

Jimin's face went straight red. "Don't start. I told you not to come back here."

"Yeah," Yoongi shrugged. "And yet here I am. Either I'm a bad listener or you're magnetic."

Jimin scowled, arms folded, heart racing.

"Go flirt with someone else. This isn't a soap opera, and I'm not your sad little barista side character."

Yoongi smirked. "Nah. You're the main character. I'm just here trying to get written into your story."

"Stop," Jimin muttered, eyes darting toward the espresso machine.

"Why?" Yoongi said softly now, his voice shedding the charm. "You think I'm joking. That this is some game. But I've been coming here for six months, Jimin. Six months. And I haven't asked for your number, or your name, or anything in return. I've just... been here. Hoping you'd give me more than a cold stare and a sugar packet."

Jimin laughed, but it came out bitter.

"You work for Jeon Corp. You're rich. You probably drive a car that costs more than my café. And I'm just some random guy you flirt with on your lunch break. One day you'll get bored, and I'll just be a story you tell someone at a rooftop party."

Yoongi's smile vanished.

"You think I'm that kind of person?"

"You all are."

Yoongi's hands curled into fists on the counter.

"Stop acting like you know me. Stop building entire heartbreak stories in your head with me as the villain. I liked you. I still like you. You've made me feel like a beggar for affection. You know how humiliating it is to stand in the same place every day, pretending your rejections don't hurt?"

He stepped back, shaking his head.

"I'm not here to win you over with stupid lines. I came because something about you feels like a place I want to stay."

His voice cracked at the edges now.

"But if you really believe I'm just like every other guy with a paycheck and a pretty smile... then maybe I am wasting my time."

He turned.

And this time, he walked out for real.

Jimin didn't call after him.

He couldn't.

He just stood there, hands trembling around a coffee cup he hadn't realized he was holding.

"I think I messed up."

One tear slid down his cheek, quiet and devastating.

At the kims: