Sticks and Stones • Park Jimin

xv.

Jimin stared down at his phone during the break in class and watched his screen explode with notifications.

J-?: guysguysguys we have a sub today

TaeSlay: bruh I'm literally three seats away from you, I know

J-?: yeah but not everyone else does!!

TrashMonster: ...

Tsunderekookie: why do you think we would even care about your sub?

J-?: OUCH

TaeSlay: shots fired

PrettyBOI: is your sub more attractive than me?

J-?: woah hold up I'm straight

PrettyBOI: not the question

PrettyBOI: your sub, assuming he's a guy, is he more attractive than me?

J-?: no??

PrettyBOI: then idc

TaeSlay: Jimin you're so quiet

Jiminty: hi

TaeSlay: a new challenger is approaching

J-?: 🎵🎶🎵

J-?: now is my chance!

J-?: I'm your hope

J-?: I'm your angel

J-? is typing

Tsunderekookie: so Jimin what's up w you

J-?: DAMN IT JUNGKOOK

J-?: JSUT ONCE LER ME HAVE THIS MIMENT

Tsunderekookie: sure, you can have this miment. Have all the miments you want. Whatever a miment is

J-?: MOMENT*

J-?: I MEANT TO SAY MIMENT

Tsunderekookie: I already told you j-nope, you can have all the miments you want

J-?: MOMENT*

Tsunderekookie: lol even autocorrect hates you

TaeSlay: someone is slaying and it ain't me rn

TrashMonster: savage

Jimin: hi

TaeSlay: XD that's all Jimin says

Jimin: hi

Tsunderekookie: shut

Tsunderekookie: nvm forget it

Jimin: hi?

Tsunderekookie: I said nvm

TaeSlay: a new challenger is approaching: passive-aggressive kookie

TaeSlay: anyone want a bite?

Tsunderekookie: shut up you overrated alien

TaeSlay: excuse me? Who are you calling overrated? (The alien part is right tho)

Tsunderekookie: just the kid who failed his last English test bc he put bitch instead of beach and the teacher thought you were calling her a bitch and gave you a 0

TaeSlay: shIT yoUre Not EVeN iN mY clASs HoW dID YoU kNow That shdkxnduyxdnsnx

Jimin started laughing to himself, closing his eyes and just imagining Tae and Jungkook in their classes button mashing their phones.

"Something funny?" a voice asked.

"Yeah," Jimin said instinctively before trying to recover. "Shit. No." He opened his eyes to see Kyung-soo sitting on his desk.

"Something is off with our little Jiminie today," Kyung-soo purred before glancing at Jimin's phone. "I wonder what it could be?" Without hesitation, he grabbed Jimin's phone and started scrolling through the messages. "What are these? Friends? Hmm."

"Give it back," Jimin said, reaching for the phone, but Kyung-soo gave him a look.

"I don't think so." Kyung-soo grinned. "I don't like it when you have friends. But I don't think that'll be a problem after I tell all of them what you're really like."

Jimin froze. "No, please," he said weakly. He didn't want the Jimin he was in the classroom to delete the Jimin he was with his new friends. "Don't talk to them."

"Beg," Kyung-soo commanded coldly.

Jimin swallowed and bowed. "P-please, Kyung-soo. D-don't tell them anything." He shut his eyes tight and clenched his fists, hoping that Kyung-soo would act like a human for once and let the matter drop.

"All right," Kyung-soo said after making Jimin stand still for a whole minute.

"Really?" Jimin asked, looking up and swallowing. A small smile appeared on his face.

Kyung-soo wanted to erase that smile. "Sure." He held out the phone to Jimin but pulled it away at the last second. "If you do everything I tell you."

Jimin got still. He wasn't sure what Kyung-soo would make him do. Something humiliating, perhaps. Or something awful, something he couldn't live with.

But if he had to give up the new Jimin he'd been working on creating...the one who wasn't the punchline of every joke, the one who laughed without reserve, the one who smiled without fear...

Jimin didn't think he could survive anymore. Not without the other Jimin.

So Jimin swallowed.

And then he said, "Okay."