off the road. (m) jjk.
part three. part four paring. older brother's best friend x reader genre. street racing, angst, slow burn, etc! word count. 2.1K+ summary. racing was his life and nothing was more important until you came into his line of fire... status. ongoing ⭒☆━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━☆⭒
looking up at him, i meet his gaze, and for a moment, time seems to stretch out. his dark eyes study me with a quiet intensity, unreadable yet piercing as if he’s seeing straight through me. the weight of his stare sends a strange unease crawling down my spine. i feel exposed like he knows more about me than i’m willing to admit, even to myself.
i take a small step back, trying to create some space, but the moment i do, i collide with someone behind me. my breath hitches, and i whip around in surprise, only to find jimin standing there, watching with an amused expression.
“i see you two have met,” jimin says, his voice light, but there’s something under it—something i can’t quite place. his eyes flick between us, and there’s an almost playful tension in the air. “y/nnie, meet jungkook. jungkook, meet y/nnie.”
i force a polite smile, my heart racing as i give a small, hesitant wave. “nice to meet you,” i say, trying to sound casual, but the words feel awkward as they leave my lips. my pulse quickens, and i try to focus on anything but the heat creeping into my cheeks.
jungkook doesn’t say anything right away. he just nods, his expression calm—too calm, like he’s already figured me out. it makes my skin itch with discomfort. the room falls into an awkward silence, thick and lingering, as if we’re all waiting for something to break it. my fingers twitch at my sides, desperate to do something, anything, to shatter the tension.
without another word, i quickly slip off my shoes and brush past them, making my way to my room. as i walk, i feel the weight of the silence follow me, pressing in on my back. the door clicks shut behind me, and i exhale sharply, leaning against it for a moment.
something about jungkook unsettles me—not in a bad way, but in a way i can’t explain. he’s not who i expected him to be, and i can’t figure out why that’s bothering me so much.
sitting on my bed, i stare at the ceiling, my thoughts swirling. jungkook is moving in. with us. the thought sends a chill down my spine. i squeeze my eyes shut, trying to push away the uneasy feeling gnawing at me. i don’t like change. i never have, especially when it’s sudden and unexpected. now, there’s an unfamiliar presence settling into the place i once considered safe—a place that used to be just jimin and me.
from the other room, i hear the rustling of boxes, followed by jungkook’s voice, sounding faint and distant.
“your sister seems... quiet,” he comments, his tone light but with something underneath—something curious, almost probing.
jimin hums in response, his voice casual as he stacks empty boxes near the door. “she’s always been the quiet type, i guess,” he replies with a shrug. “she keeps to herself.”
the words hang in the air, and for a moment, it feels like i’m being examined from the outside, like i’m something to be figured out. it’s unsettling, and i don’t know why.
after what feels like forever, i finally set my phone aside. the soft glow of the screen fades, leaving me in the dim light of my room. my stomach growls, a quiet reminder that i haven’t eaten in a while.
pushing myself up from the bed, i stretch, my joints popping from staying in one position for too long. as i move, i notice a few plushies scattered on the floor—probably knocked over in my restless shifting. i pick them up one by one, tossing them back onto the bed before making my way toward the door, hunger now pulling me from my half-dazed state.
i grab my jacket, slipping out of my room quietly, the apartment eerily still. the silence feels almost suffocating as i tiptoe through the dimly lit living room. and then i see him.
jungkook.
he’s sprawled out on the couch, fast asleep, his body loose and unguarded. i freeze. he looks different like this—unguarded, vulnerable, his sharp features softened in sleep. his hair falls messily over his forehead, and i can see the piercings that i hadn’t really noticed before—his lip, his eyebrow, the multiple in his ears. he looks almost dangerous, untouchable, but right now, he seems distant, detached from that intensity.
but for some reason, i can’t look away. i study him for a long moment, trying to make sense of this version of him—this side of him that feels softer, more human. there’s something magnetic about the way he looks right now, and i can’t quite figure out why it pulls me in.
shaking myself out of my daze, i zip up my jacket and grab the keys. as quietly as i can, i slip out the door and make my way to the elevator and down to the lobby. the cold night air hits me the moment i step outside, biting at my skin. i pull my hood up, tucking my hands into my pockets as i walk toward the convenience store. the streets are quiet, the neon signs buzzing faintly in the silence.
i grab a basket as i enter, nodding to the old lady at the counter, who greets me with a smile. i wander the aisles, absentmindedly picking out a few onigiri for jimin before pausing.
jungkook.
i stare at the basket, the weight of his presence in my mind making me hesitate. he’s a guest. a stranger in my home. i don’t owe him anything.
and yet, without thinking too hard about it, i grab a few more onigiri and toss them in.
as i pay and head back outside, my phone buzzes in my pocket.
minnie <3: hey, where’d you go? you: just grabbed some food, coming back now :p
shoving my phone away, i start the short walk back, the city’s quiet hum filling my ears. tonight feels different—like the air is charged with something. maybe it’s just me.
reaching the apartment, i punch in the pin code, the soft click of the lock signaling my return. i push the door open, and everything looks the same, but somehow, it feels different—shifted, somehow.
walking down the hallway, the hum of the elevator fading behind me, i try to shake the unease that clings to me. the quiet of the complex feels almost oppressive, and the sound of my footsteps seems louder than usual. i fumble for my keys, pulling them out of my pocket and inserting them into the keyhole. the satisfying click of the lock turning follows before i push the door open.
i toss my shoes to the side, walking into the apartment. the familiar scent of home hits me, mixed with the smell of jimin’s cologne and the faint warmth of the air, but the atmosphere feels off today. the unease i can’t shake still lingers.
i make my way to the kitchen, finding jimin sitting at one of the island chairs, absorbed in his phone. he doesn’t notice me at first, but when i step closer, he looks up, a smile spreading across his face.
“hi-hi, what’d you buy?” he asks, his voice light and cheerful, a stark contrast to the tension i still feel in the air.
i place the plastic bag on the counter and open it, revealing the onigiri i grabbed for him and a few snacks i’d picked out for myself. “i just bought some onigiri for you... and a few snacks i wanted,” i murmur, my voice a little quieter than usual, betraying the strange heaviness in the room.
jimin smiles, grabbing one of the onigiri and unwrapping it. “thank you, y/nnie,” he says, his gaze lingering on me for a moment, almost expectantly. it feels like he’s waiting for something, and i’m not sure what it is. i shift uneasily, my thoughts still tangled, before i begin unpacking the rest of the snacks.
suddenly, i hear soft shuffling from behind me. i glance over my shoulder to see jungkook waking up from his nap. his hair is a mess, tousled in every direction, and his eyes are half-lidded as he blinks, still heavy with sleep. he rubs his face and stretches, looking like he’s just emerged from a dream he can’t quite remember.
for a moment, he looks like a child, dazed and unexpectedly endearing. the sharp edges of his usual intensity are softened by sleep, and i can’t help but pause, watching him for a second longer than i intended. this side of him, vulnerable and unguarded, is so different from the aloof person i met earlier.
our eyes meet briefly, and the intensity is gone. this time, there’s only quiet curiosity, and something in his gaze makes my heart skip a beat. i don’t know why, but i suddenly feel the weight of this moment.
“did i fall asleep?” he murmurs, his voice thick with sleep. there’s something unguarded in it, and i’m caught off guard by how different he seems.
jimin answers, his voice still casual as he chews his food. “yeah, you did.”
jungkook stretches, and as he does, a soft groan escapes him. “i didn’t mean to nap this long…” his words trail off as he slowly sits up, still looking a bit disoriented.
i watch him, trying to make sense of this new version of him, this side i’ve never seen before. and somehow, i can’t shake the feeling that this, right here, is the real jungkook.
the quiet tension in the room lingers, even after jungkook finally fully awakens. he rubs his eyes and yawns, the sound strangely comforting in the otherwise still apartment. i’m still unsure of what to make of him—his sudden presence in our home, the strange pull i feel around him.
jimin’s voice breaks through my thoughts, light and playful. “are you gonna eat, or just sit there looking lost?” he teases, offering a half-smile. he always knows how to shift the mood, no matter how heavy it feels.
jungkook chuckles softly, still looking a little out of it as he pushes himself off the couch. his movements are slow, languid—nothing like the alert and sharp way he had carried himself earlier. as he approaches the counter, his eyes flicker to the onigiri i had brought back. “did you buy this for me?” he asks, his tone low, almost guarded.
i blink, unsure of how to respond. he doesn’t seem annoyed, but there’s something in his voice that catches me off guard. was i supposed to offer this to him? i didn’t think about it when i picked them up. it felt automatic—like i just did it, without really considering what it meant.
jimin, thankfully, answers for me. “she grabbed it for you,” he says, a little too casually. “thought you might be hungry.”
jungkook stares at the food for a beat, his gaze flicking between me and the onigiri. there’s something unreadable in his expression, but he reaches for one without further comment. as he unwraps it, his eyes meet mine again, lingering for a moment longer than necessary.
i’m not sure why i feel the urge to avoid his gaze, but i do. it’s like there’s too much weight in that brief exchange, too much unspoken.
“so, what’s the plan for tonight?” jimin asks, breaking the tension. “you need anything koo? we should probably get things sorted for your stuff too.”
i glance over at jungkook, and for a split second, i can see the weight of the day settling in his eyes. it’s a quiet thing—his exhaustion, the strangeness of moving in with two strangers. i can’t help but wonder how much he’s actually settled into this situation. he’s barely spoken more than a few words since he arrived, and even now, he seems like he’s floating through the motions.
“i’ll be fine,” jungkook finally replies, his voice still thick from sleep but steady. “i don’t need anything right now.”
the silence stretches again, uncomfortable in its own way. i chew on my lip, unsure of what to say or do. i never realized how awkward this would be—sharing space with someone who feels like an outsider, even if he’s family to jimin.
jimin grins at me, clearly sensing the unease between the three of us. “well, we’ve got all the time in the world, right?” he says with a laugh, his cheerful attitude always trying to smooth things over.