disclaimer: these thoughts are purely my own and in no way, shape, or form am i suggesting this is all true.
i agree with the general consensus that jungkook is talking about his inability to experience important aspects of growing up because of this different time zone/space he occupies as an idol. in some interpretations i’ve read, people are taking the “call ya, hold ya, and touch ya” literally but i think they’re also representative of emotional and mental constraints. he can’t do these things because he doesn’t know how to do them given him being an idol. how can you spend time with someone you care for when you don’t even know what ‘time’ you’re operating in? he doesn’t know how to properly navigate personal relationships not just because of his age but also because his idol status makes everything more complicated.
and the other person knows this.
oh, i can’t call ya, i can’t hol’ ya
oh, i can’t
and yes you know, yes you know
oh, i can’t call ya, i can’t touch ya
oh, i can’t
let me know
when jungkook sings this part, it’s like a confession. he’s telling this person “i want to but i don’t know how. i can’t do it.” the other person understands his struggle (maybe because they’re experiencing the same thing as him) and jungkook is looking to them for their guidance and input (someone older who he perceives has more experience?) with his “let me know.”
“let me know” = “what should i do? how do we make this work? let me know.”
“can i someday finna find my time?” = “when will i figure out how to do the things i want, with the person i want?”
i also just want to point out how intimate the words ‘hold’ and ‘touch’ are? he could have just as easily used words like ‘hug’ and ‘see’ if he wanted to express his frustration at the inability to spend time with someone that is important to him but he chose ‘hold’ and ‘touch’ instead. this is significant. his longing is more personal and intimate.
the lyrics i think a lot of people are overlooking (and just flat out ignoring b/c it doesn’t fit their narrative) are the last few lines of the final bridge and the word switch of the last chorus.
one time for the present
two time for the past
happy that we met each other
now til’ the very end
oh, i will call ya, i will hol’ ya
oh i will
and yes you know, yes you know
oh, i will call ya, i will touch ya
oh, i will
and you know
i became obsessed with these lines because they’re so specific. whereas the lyrics at the start of the song could be interpreted as something more abstract, jungkook is directly addressing the concerns of a single person here. contrary to what he said earlier about being unable to call, hold, and touch this person, he confidently tells them he will do all of these things. he’s no longer asking them for direction or their input on how he should proceed because he’s already shown this person he has figured out how to do it. this person knows.
these lines are reassuring. reassuring to the person he struggled to connect with properly in his past because of his confusing growth in the limelight. sound familiar?
but if the person already understands the struggles kook was going through, why would he feel the need to convince them anything?
this might be a reach but i want to say it’s because jungkook is acknowledging the inevitable future. there will come a time where they’re separated again, perhaps less by metaphorical time and distance but literal. now that he’s more confident about his relationship with this person and has a better idea of how to navigate the many facets of his life, he’s letting that person know that nothing will change between them, he’s happy they’ve met each other, and they’ll be together until the end.
now, with all that unpacked, why do i think these parts could be about jimin?
jimin has not only watched jungkook grow into a more confident version of himself but he’s undergone the same transformation. he had to reconcile the many versions of himself and figure out how to live his life without the restraints his idol life threatened to bind him in. more importantly, though, we can see the dynamics of jikook’s relationship played out in these lyrics.
in the choruses, jungkook is reassuring someone who understands the disorienting effects of fame, that he values their relationship. and while he struggled to figure out how to make it work in the past (inability to process budding feelings under the scrutinizing gaze of the public—sounds like early jikook), now that they’re together he is committed and won’t ever let them go.
you only need to look at the progression of jikook’s relationship over the past few years to see jungkook’s promise of “now til’ the very end” in action. from the trip to tokyo to jungkook openly doting on jimin online, on stage, and on camera (sometimes on purpose and other times, without much thought) he’s made it very clear he will not sacrifice his happiness or his time.
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