Taehyung's POV:

Somehow he knew that his father wouldn't exactly be happy when he got home.

It had been an awkward walk home considering Minyun was still aghast that Taehyung had gone through with an audition he hadn't even been interested in. And Tae didn't know how to tell his best friend that he had automatically been offered a chance to visit Seoul for the follow up audition; especially since Minyun had received no such offer. Something about the whole situation made the dark haired boy feel like he had betrayed his friend and had maybe even stolen his dream. It really didn't matter that the dream was centered around getting laid earlier than their college years; he had still completely stomped all over what was supposed to be Minyun's big moment.

Therefore, Tae already wasn't feeling too impressed with himself when he walked into his small, untidy living room only to find his parents sitting silently on the couch together. He noticed that his younger siblings were nowhere in sight, which was never a good sign.

His father was the first to speak, as always, his knuckles turning white from the effort of clenching his own knees. "Taehyung, I think you should come sit with us for a moment."

Taehyung reluctantly did what he was asked, trying to undo his recent growth spurt to 5 feet 10 inches by shrinking into the armchair across from the couch. He knew better than to talk first. So he waited the torturous minutes until his mother cleared her throat and finally looked up from the section of floor she had been glaring at.

"I guess I just don't understand what happened today." Her voice was clipped and it took Tae a moment to realize that her anger wasn't only directed at him. His father was also apparently on her shit-list for the day and that was really unheard of in the Kim household. His parents had always acted as a steady front; nothing that one said ever contradicted with the other. He couldn't even remember any bickering between them, much less an actual fight.

Tae shuffled his feet back and forth on the carpet and chewed a hangnail on his thumb. His mother sighed unhappily and looked between the two men sitting in front of her. "If you knew you wanted to try out for this music group." She said the word 'music' with air quotes. "Then why didn't you ask for permission prior to going. Or was it all just a ploy to back your father into a corner so he couldn't refuse you?"

He shook his head vigorously, "No, mom, I wouldn't do that. I really didn't plan on auditioning, but Doyun said I had something they were looking for and I got excited. I didn't expect for them to pass me through-"

"They what? You got through to the second audition?" Tae's father burst out loudly, startling his wife and son with his enthusiasm. It was only when he caught himself being glared at by his wife that he pulled himself back and shook his head. "I mean, I really didn't appreciate being put on the spot like that. I have no interest in embarrassing you, but you also can't strong arm me about decisions as big as this."

That wasn't what I was doing. But I guess I see where they're coming from. Just wait until they find out that to move on in the audition process I have to go to Seoul.. There's no way they'll ever let me go.

As if reading her son's mind, his mother's eyebrows shot up. "And where will this second audition take place? Because I looked up this Big Hit Entertainment company and they're based in Seoul." When he didn't answer, she scoffed and pushed off the couch to pace the few feet between the front door and the couch. "Well I'm very sorry to say this, Taehyung, but you know we simply can't allow you to just go traipsing through the biggest city in Korea.

"Even if we were willing to allow our 17 year old to do that, which we definitely aren't, there's no way we could afford the trip there, room and board, food, and the trip back. So I'm very sorry but you're just going to have to tell them no."

Taehyung felt a lump rise up in his throat. Of course he had expected this exact reaction; hell, he had even anticipated that money would be a very prominent factor in why he couldn't go. But a small part of him had held out hope. And as we all know, hope is way more painful than an initial let-down. So he nodded sadly before rising to his feet, muttered that he understood, and slipped down the hallway to the bedroom he shared with Jeongyu.

Luckily, his younger brother, being fourteen and all, wasn't in the mood to talk. So Tae yanked his school uniform off and shoved himself into his weekend sweatpants and oversized t-shirt before crawling into bed. He tried to block out the fact that across the house, he could hear his parents fighting with each other. The first fight Tae had ever heard them have in his entire life, and it was all his fault.

Minjun: Come on, Taetae. You've got to talk to me at some point.

Minjun: I'm really not mad, dude. I'm actually pretty much over the idea of being an idol anyway.

Minjun: I've heard the ladies love a man in uniform so now I'm considering signing up for the military early.

Minjun: Come on, that stupid idea isn't even going to get a response?

Minjun: If you need to talk or whatever, I'm here for you.

Minjun: No homo :P

Taehyung had tried to forget about the audition, but by the time the next Friday rolled around, he felt himself growing more and more anxious about the whole thing. Mr. Bang's assistant had left three calls already, making Tae even more glad he had only given the company his personal cell phone number instead of the family house phone. He knew he should just call them back and reject the offer, but there was a part of him that was still holding out hope that his parents would change their mind.

When he finally slumped through his front door, followed closely behind by his younger siblings, he was ready to curl up in bed and pass through the weekend like a zombie. But the universe had other plans to distract Taehyung.

"Halmoni! What are you doing here?" Eunjun shrieked into Tae's ear as she barreled past him to all-but-tackle their grandmother who was seated calmly on the couch.

The old woman chuckled and hugged Eunjun back tightly before turning her crinkled smile on Taehyung. "I'm here to see Taehyung, little one. But I brought you some snacks; they're in the kitchen." Knowing this served as her dismissal, Eunjun pecked their grandmother on the cheek before loping into the kitchen. Not surprisingly, Jeongyu had already disappeared down the hall and into his bedroom.

Uneasy about why his grandmother would be visiting solely for him, Taehyung dropped his school bag in an armchair and reluctantly joined his favorite family member on the couch. He had practically been raised by his grandmother, spending every day with her as a child when his parents went out to work their fields. He usually felt more comfortable with her than anyone, except for Minjun, but his current predicament had caused unease in all of his relationships and this one seemed to be no different.

"Hello, halmoni. How was your trip?"

"My trip was fine, young one. Your grandfather says hello and he's sorry he couldn't come with me this time." Tae nodded in acknowledgement, but, rather than meeting her eyes, he found himself staring down at this hands. There was a few seconds of silence before his grandmother reached forward to clasp his hands in her own. "So I hear that you were scouted for an idol group. But you don't seem as excited as I would have expected."

Taehyung took a shaky breath before meeting her gaze, "There's really no point in being excited about something that isn't going to happen. We both know that Mom and Dad are never going to let me go; they've already told me they wouldn't." Normally he would never speak so informally to an older family member, but he was so bitter about the whole situation that he couldn't bring himself to care how rude and juvenile he sounded.

"Well…" He expected her to scold him. Something he would have definitely deserved under the circumstances. It had taken months to convince his parents that playing the saxophone in the school jazz band was worthwhile; and that had only been allowed when they realized it wouldn't take away any time from his normal studies if Tae worked hard enough. Why can't I just be happy with what I have?

"I suppose I must ask you, why did you try out if you weren't willing to fight for what you wanted?" Tae's head snapped up at the question. He was surprised to find his grandmother smiling slyly, a mischevious twinkle in her eyes. "What's that old saying? The best things in life are worth fighting for? Is this career path, and all that comes with it, worth fighting for, Taehyung?"

Is it? Or am I just so dazzled by the possibility of being famous that I haven't even really thought about what it entails? Moving away from his family would undoubtedly be the hardest thing he'd ever have to do. He was only seventeen after all. But, if he made it into the group and the group became a sensation… He could travel home often, or even bring his family to Seoul to see him. The money alone was reason to try. Heaven knows my family could use it. I could help put Jeongyu and Eunjun through university.

But I won't be in school anymore. Would they let me finish my education? That would surely be a deal breaker for his parents. And he would have to leave behind Minjun, something he hadn't done since he'd met the boy in second grade. And, even though this was a rough patch in their relationship, Taehyung really was close with his parents when they weren't at odds with each other.

Yet, even with all of that weighing heavily on his mind, he couldn't help it. He really wanted this. Looking up at his grandmother, who had been watching him go through his silent monologue, he nodded solemnly. "Yes, halmoni. I think it is."

He wasn't exactly sure what was said.

But the next morning, when Tae stumbled half-asleep into the living room, his mother hugged him tightly to her chest before pushing him out at arm's length to inspect his face. She must have liked what she saw there, because she pulled him back to her chest and stroked his hair lovingly. "Alright, Taehyung. If this is really what you want, we'll make it happen."

Over her shoulder Tae could see his father and grandmother exchange a secret smile before turning back to their breakfasts. It seemed as though things were going to work out after all.

The morning of Tae's second audition is chaos in the Kim household.

His parent's had called the Big Hit office to discuss the next audition with Mr. Bang's assistant a few weeks ago. His mother wasn't super thrilled with the fact that the audition had to take place on a weekday in Seoul, but she had allowed it so as to not hurt Tae's chances by being an argumentative mother.

So it was seven in the morning on a Tuesday that Tae watched his mother fly around the house, gathering the things he and his father would need on their trip to the capital city. He was already seated on the couch, waiting for his father to shephard him out the door and towards the train station as soon as he could break away from his anxious wife. Looking down at himself, he wondered once again if he should change clothes to something more formal.

Taehyung had spent many nights with Minjun, contemplating what he should wear to the second round of auditions. The woman on the phone had told Tae's mother that the audition would not only entail singing, but would now include a dancing portion; therefore the two teenage boys had taken that to mean looser clothes would be better for movement. But now Tae was second guessing himself again as he looked down at his black, oversized t-shirt and black basketball shorts. He knew what the street fashion was like in Seoul; mostly from magazines and the internet, but still. He just didn't have anything in his own wardrobe that would suffice.

Shaking his head, he scolded himself for caring about the clothes when showcasing his talent was way more important. Unfortunately, that only spun him further into anxiety. While he had been singing as a hobby for years, dancing was an entirely new activity for Taehyung. He could only hope that he had some natural grace that would lend itself to dancing when he really needed it.

"Alright, Taehyung. We need to get going." His father clasped him on the shoulder as he walked towards the front door. He was clearly trying to get out the door quickly before his wife could think of something else to nitpick. "We're going to miss the train if we don't hurry."

Tae stood up, trying to ignore the nervous gurgling in his stomach as he pulled his school backpack (now filled with a change of clothes and a water bottle) onto his back. He had almost made it out the door with his father when he was pulled backwards into a hug.

"You're going to do fantastic. Show them how talented and amazing you are." His mother kissed his forehead softly before shoving him towards the open door. "Take care of your father. He always gets lost in Seoul."

When the two men reached Dondaegu station, it was already bustling with morning commuters. Taehyung latched onto his father's backpack so he wouldn't get lost in the large crowds of people who seemed to know their way around the station much better than the Kims did. After a small struggle, they found their train and boarded it without issue, settling into their assigned seats only minutes before it was scheduled to take off.

Tae went to put his headphones in to pass the time, but noticed his father staring at him and decided against it. As the train began to move, the older man smiled down at his son. Tae tried to see himself as his parents must have seen him. Once scrawny and pale as a child, the seventeen year old was now lanky due to his recent growth spurt and slightly golden from spending the entire summer working outside. He wondered if they would ever see him as a man, although he still had a few years to get there.

"Are you ready for your audition?" His father had always seemed so lively and sure of himself, but Taehyung could now see the wrinkles and fatigue in his face now that they were slipping away from Daegu at a quickening pace. It seemed that the man was letting himself relax a bit, something that he didn't seem to do at home where his younger children and wife could see him. Noticing his father's vulnerability and exhaustion for the first time, Taehyung became determined to nail his audition. Anything to take some of the pressure to provide off of his father.

"I'm ready."

The meeting place for the audition was pretty sketchy. It was an abandoned looking building in the middle of a street lined with equally abandoned-looking buildings. The only thing that gave any indication to the Kims that they were in the right place was the small white, printed sign in the window that read BIG HIT ENTERTAINMENT. The two men looked at each other before pushing the darkly tinted glass door inward.

Inside the studio was like a completely separate world. They had walked into what clearly served as the waiting room for the building, as there was a small, plump woman sitting behind a desk in the middle of the brightly lit room. Behind her was a hallway that led to what looked to be a dance studio based on the shiny, wooden floors and walls lined with mirrors. Taehyung noticed that they were the first one's to arrive. And their early arrival was clearly a shock for the woman behind the desk as well.

"Can I help you gentlemen?" She sounded slightly hauty as she looked Taehyung and his father up and down. Tae tried to ignore the feeling of shame he felt when she didn't seem overly impressed with what she saw.

His father cleared his throat; it was clear that he hadn't missed the look either. "Hello. My son is here for the second round of auditions. Mr. Bang and I spoke on the phone earlier this week."

The woman's eyebrows shot up but she quickly forced a smile on her face. "Of course. Well you're a bit early. No one is here yet. But you are more than welcome to take a seat and wait for your scheduled time. What name should the audition be listed under?"

"Kim Taehyung," He was glad his voice came out steady. He definitely didn't want to show the woman that her coldness had gotten to him. "My audition isn't until 2, but we don't know our way around Seoul and we didn't want to risk getting lost so we came early."

This was a lie. They had come early because they didn't have anywhere else to go. They had eaten their lunch early on the train and would eat their packed dinner on the train ride back. So there was no reason, nor way, they could go to a restaurant to pass the time. They didn't even have a hotel room to veg out in while waiting.

He noticed his father didn't correct the lie, but he felt a slight pang in his chest when he saw his father fighting back the same feeling of shame that Tae had. This isn't right. We shouldn't be feeling like this. But logic never won out over feelings for Tae.

"I understand. Well, go ahead and have a seat. I'll call for you when it's time."

Tae and his father settled in the corner two chairs farthest from the desk. He flashed a small apologetic smile at his father before sticking his earbuds in his ears and allowing himself to zone out.

Jungkook's POV:

Jungkook was miserable.

He hadn't expected the transition from Busan to Seoul to be quite as hard as it was. He missed his parents and his older brother; he missed his childhood bedroom that was much larger than the small bunk he was now allotted in the even smaller apartment that served as his new home. He missed the few friends that he had managed to hold on to for years despite how closed off he kept himself. Hell, he even missed his old school, where most people ignored him but he could move comfortably through the hallways without feeling judged. Before moving to Seoul, he didn't have to question the motives of the people around him. He wasn't constantly on display, being assessed and judged as to whether he was still the right choice as the fourth addition to the upcoming idol group. In Busan, he wasn't constantly on edge about how young and out of his element he felt.

It didn't even help that the others, Namjoon (RM), Hoseok (J-Hope), Yoongi (Suga) and Seokjin (Jin) were nice enough guys. They tried to include him as best as they could, but the age difference was just too severe for him to not feel entirely inferior in every way. Not to mention, he was pretty sure the way he felt so greatly intimidated by all of them came off as closed off at best, or stuck up at worst.

It wasn't that he particularly hated his situation, but on a day like today, it was extremely tempting to just give up and go home.

"Jungkook, you really need to get up now. We're going to be late." Namjoon's voice softly drifted to the youngest boy's bunk from where he stood in the bedroom doorway. "Everyone's waiting on you so we can leave."

Sighing to himself, Jungkook flung his body over the railing of the top bunk he had been laying in for going on 3 hours. When he reached the ground, he kept his eyes hidden behind his bangs as he shuffled to the suitcase he had been living out of for months to find some clean clothes. Pulling out a pair of shorts and a t-shirt that smelled like they'd only been worn a couple of times, he finally glanced up at the tall, lanky guy that still stood in the doorway.

Namjoon smiled awkwardly at the younger teen, gesturing nonchalantly at the clothing he held. "Get dressed and meet us downstairs okay?" Jungkook knew that Namjoon had noticed his awkwardness when it came to dressing in front of the other guys. He just tried not to let his embarrassment show as he waited for the door to click shut, signaling that he was alone.

Why am I like this? How hard would it really be to just, act normal? Jungkook had always been shy and introverted, but without the buffer of his older brother, who had seemingly always served as an ice breaker when it came to meeting people, he just couldn't break down and talk to the other guys. They really do seem nice. And they want to talk to you too - well, maybe not Yoongi necessarily. But even he doesn't seem like one to spit on people who try to talk to him.

When he finally arrived downstairs, the guys were bickering lightly about whether or not they should be forced to attend the auditions that were taking place at the studio that afternoon.

"All I'm saying is, if they want us to trapse all the way down there, we should get some say in who they bring in. I know they want more people, but the group dynamic we have now is working out- well, for the most part-" Jin cut himself off when he saw Jungkook slink up to the group.

Jungkook tried to ignore the pang he felt in his stomach at the realization that maybe they hadn't even wanted him to join the group. Everyone else seemed to notice his train of thought, and Namjoon quickly threw his arm around the younger boy's shoulders. "I think everyone they've picked so far has been working out great. Mr. Bang seems to know just who we need, so I trust his judgment completely."

When the five boys arrived at the studio, after walking quickly from their apartment in the brisk fall weather that made Seoul seem even more sterile than normal, they were not surprised to see the waiting room of the studio packed with nervous looking, skittish teens. The already small room seemed to shrink exponentially with so many people jammed into it, and it was all Jungkook could do to not peace out back through the door and head home. So when Yoongi nudged him with his shoulder and inclined his head towards the studio at the back of the building, he nodded quickly and began to barrel through the crowd.

"Where did you audition?"

"-from a little town down south, you've probably never heard-"

"I just can't believe I'm actually here!"

"-they'd be lucky to have me honestly. I've already been scouted by the Big Three-"

Jungkook shook his head, trying to ignore the buzzes of conversation that circled around him. He couldn't help but remember the fear and nerves he had felt on his audition day. It had only been months ago, but somehow it seemed like years had passed due to how training made each day seem both longer and shorter at the same time.

When he finally reached the entrance to the studio room, he was relieved that only approximately 10 boys had been allowed in as the first set of the day. He slipped towards the corner of the room, settling on the floor with his back to the wall of mirrors and began stretching his legs. They had already been told that part of the audition was to lead one of the dances they had been learning during their trainings, so Mr. Bang and the other producers could observe the auditioners dance skills both outside and inside of a larger group.

"Anybody stand out to you immediately?" Namjoon asked as he collapsed ungracefully beside Jungkook on the floor. He turned a closed-lip smile on the younger boy and gestured to the ten boys scattering around the room in small groups, chattering to each other.

Looking around quickly, Jungkook felt his eyes settle on one particular guy, standing by himself near the door. The kid was clearly around Jungkook's age, and seemed to also be around his height. His dark, natural hair was cut in a somewhat fashionable way that allowed it to flop into and over his eyes, but really just looked like his mom had done it. He wasn't dressed particularly well and his simple clothes and dark hair had almost made him disappear into the small crowd around him. But what struck Jungkook, other than the fact that the boy was by himself and had made no effort to make friends, was how outlandishly good looking he was underneath his mop of hair.

And it wasn't the kind of good looking where the person is so aware of it that it immediately turns you off. The boy seemed shy, based on the fact that he was looking down at his feet and working his bottom lip with his teeth. No one that looks like that and is aware of it would be nervous for something like this. At the very least, he could be an asset visually. Even throughout his own audition process, Jungkook had come across his fair share of full-of-themself guys who knew exactly how far their pretty face could take them. And for some reason he was relieved that this kid didn't seem to give off that vibe. Jungkook cleared his throat and shook his head at Namjoon, "Not particularly."

But Namjoon followed his gaze to the loner boy and fought back a smile. "I noticed him too. Seems like he could be a real asset if he has any talent to back up his looks."

Jungkook tried not to blush at the way the older boy casually mentioned scoping out another dude. This was part of the reason he really liked Namjoon, who consistently reminded him to call him by his stage name, Rap Monster. He was so secure in himself that off the wall comments like that didn't even phase him. It was something Jungkook was determined to work on, a mental list that was seemingly always growing.

"I guess so, but don't we already have a visual?" Jungkook glanced around until he found Jin, standing in the middle of small group of auditioners, flinging his arms around excitedly as he talked to them. They seemed to be soaking up his every word, which Jungkook knew is a key way to the oldest hyung's heart.

"Yeah, Jin-hyung is the visual. But we all know the group could use some more beauty to cancel out this mug." Namjoon cupped his own face with his hand and squeezed his eyes shut tightly, smiling with stretched lips once again.

Before Jungkook could think of a non-compromising way to argue, a producer stood up in the front of the room and whistled loudly to get the room's attention. "Alright, Group 1, today we will do the dance portion of the audition first. You will learn a current piece of choreography before performing it with the group members that you hope to join. Boys if you could please join me."

Lining up in front of the group of auditioners, the five members introduced themselves accordingly before stepping backwards to let the producer finish his spiel on how they would then move on to the singing portion. Jungkook felt his eyes continually drifting to the boy from before, even though he tried to fight it.

He was startled at one point to see two dark eyes staring right back at him. He felt frozen for a few moments in the intense gaze, but finally was able to pull his eyes to the scuffed floor underneath his feet. He tried his best to ignore the butterflies in his gut that had erupted as soon as the dark haired kid had smiled widely at him.

He didn't smile back of course. That would have made too much sense. It was clearly a much better idea to simply ignore the guy all together and instead focus on J-Hope, who was now excitedly moving through the simplified choreography that the auditioners would need to perform.

Every once in a while he allowed himself a glance at the boy, finally coming to the conclusion that he would call him number 6, since that was the number pinned to the boy's t-shirt.

Number 6 wasn't bad at dancing, but he wasn't particularly good at it either. He was seemingly middle of the pack and as such, was being just as ignored as everyone else who was struggling through the dances. Jungkook knew the plan was to only accept one person from the day's audition and he tried to convince himself that he wasn't disappointed that Number 6 didn't seem to have a chance in hell at being that select person.

When the dance portion was finally done, the lead producer lined the auditioners up in a row and had them sing a few bars of a current pop song of their choice that they felt would fit their voice the best. It was no surprise that the first few uncreatively chose the latest Big Bang track. Jungkook, who was sitting between Suga and Namjoon on the floor, stiffened as Suga leaned over his lap to hiss/whisper to the others, "If I have to listen to this song all day, I'm going to lose it."

Then it was Number 6's turn. Jungkook tried to watch without any particular interest as the boy stepped forward out of the line. If he was shaken by having to sing in front of the others, it wasn't obvious. He flicked his tongue across his lips quickly before looking towards the main producer, asking with his eyes if he should start.

It was his voice that caught Jungkook so off guard. And based on how his bandmates stiffened and how Suga's chronically bowed head shot up to listen, they felt just as surprised. Number 6's voice was much deeper than they had all expected; it certainly didn't fit with the feminine, elf-like face it was coming from . When he hit the lowest points in the indie song he had chosen to sing, his voice reverberated through the room and Jungkook could feel it buzz through his body.

Jungkook couldn't help but stare at the singer, and was glad to find that the boy's eyes were closed in concentration. Does anybody catch my eye? Yeah, Namjoon, someone definitely does. Jungkook reeled himself back from the thought and dug his fingernails into his palm until it hurt. The pain served as a punishment for.. Well, he wasn't exactly sure what he was punishing himself for, but he felt the nausea that normally came in these situations subside and he was able to breathe again.

When Number 6 finished, he stepped back into line quickly and bowed his head as the next person moved forward to begin. Jungkook didn't really pay attention to the next four singers. He instead feigned disinterest in everything that was going on around him by picking at a stray thread on his shorts until Mr. Bang, who had at some point slipped into the room, clapped his hands together.

"Alright, Group 1. Thank you so much for coming out today. If you are selected, we have your information and will give you a call."

They all began to disperse and move towards the door.

"Can someone please round up Group 2 and bring them in for the next round in five minutes?" Mr. Bang called out to the various producers mingling around the perimeter of the room.

Jungkook stood up and wiped non-existent dust off the seat of his pants before turning to his group mates. They were already bunched up, their heads together, talking quietly about the performances they had just seen. Too shy to simply join them, the sixteen year old stood awkwardly off by himself, watching the producers hustle around the room.

"Excuse me." A deep voice assaulted Jungkook's eardrums from behind him, causing him to jerk forward suddenly. Of course it was the guy from before. Number 6. And up close he was even better looking, regardless of the sweat that was matting his long hair to his forehead and the nape of his neck. Jungkook was close enough to notice the small freckle on the tip of his nose and was just about to say something about it when the boy motioned under his foot. "You're standing on my bag."

Looking down, Jungkook saw that he was in fact standing on the strangers backpack strap. He yelped softly and moved his foot off of it. "I'm sorry. I didn't see it laying there."

Before he could think to pick it up and hand it to the kid- you know, how a gentleman would handle the situation- the boy had already pulled it up to his chest from the floor. When they met eyes again, Jungkook felt the same stirring in his stomach from before. Just say something to him. Work on that chronic shyness you keep getting lectured about. And it really seemed like the boy was also expecting for Jungkook to say something, so when he didn't, and just stood there staring at his feet, Number 6 cleared his throat awkwardly and turned to walk away.

"Hey there! Your audition was really impressive!" It was Namjoon of course, already sticking his hand out in greeting towards Number 6. Why did it seem like he had a sixth sense for Jungkook being awkward? He always seemed to swoop in at the right moment so the 16 year old didn't come out looking like a mute psycho. It reminded him of how his older brother had been their entire life; somehow serving as the translator for Jungkook whenever he was too awkward to function as a normal human being. "I'm Rap Monster, nice to meet you."

It definitely wasn't jealousy that Jungkook felt when he watched Number 6 reach out to shake Namjoon's hand. And that jealousy definitely didn't get worse when he watched a boxy smile spread across the guy's face at the same time.

"Kim Taehyung, nice to meet you."

Taehyung… Jungkook made a mental note of the name for… reasons yet to be determined.

"This is Jungkook; he's a little shy, but I'm sure he's glad to meet you too." Fire rushed up Jungkook's neck and set his cheeks ablaze with embarrassment. Shooting a glare at Namjoon, he nodded his head at Taehyung without really looking his direction.

Therefore he missed the smile that was twitching at the edge of Taehyung's mouth and how the other boy was definitely more amused at Jungkook's embarrassment than making fun of it. "It's nice to meet you, Jungkook."

He didn't get a chance to reply before a producer appeared to shoo Taehyung out of the room to make way for Group 2. They didn't even get a chance to say goodbye, but with any luck, it wouldn't have to be the final time they saw each other.

"Well he seemed nice." Namjoon smiled happily down at Jungkook. The younger boy nodded silently before leaning down to tighten his shoe laces. Namjoon was in no hurry to drop the subject, even as ten new auditioners filed into the room. "His singing was better than his dancing. And we could use a lower voice to play off of you and Jin's higher ones."

When Jungkook didn't reply, Namjoon shrugged. "I don't know, we'll have to see who they pick."

The day dragged on extremely slowly. Despite being busy the entire time, doing the choreography with each of the 11 groups, the minutes just seemed to lazily tick by for Jungkook. In comparison to their normal schedule, the day was fairly easy; and normally Jungkook would be ecstatic about missing his classes at his new school. Yet he still found himself itching for the last group to finish so he could go back to the dorm and sleep.

When it was all finally over, and the five guys were packing up their belongings and preparing to walk back to their apartment in the dark, Jungkook was antsy and ready to leave. He had managed to forget about his encounter with Taehyung was it? (as if he didn't have it memorized) when he was busy, but now that his mind was free to wonder he found himself mentally critiquing all the ways he could have seemed like less of a buffoon. It was frustrating that he was still thinking about it in the first place. Who was this guy and why did he decide to occupy so much space in Jungkook's brain? Maybe it was better that he didn't think about it too hard.

He tried to not rush the others, but he was getting slightly peeved with the way Suga was laying spread out on the floor with no clear intention of moving.

"I felt like we saw some real potential today, you know?" Namjoon was chattering to Jin and J-Hope as he mopped sweat from his forehead. "Anybody you guys liked in particular?"

J-Hope nodded enthusiastically, "I got to talk to a lot of them and they all seemed pretty chill. Some of them really can't dance but that's clearly not a problem since we already have to deal with you two."

Jin and Namjoon guffawed loudly together before beginning to argue with J-Hope about how much improvement they were already seeing with their dancing. Jungkook shook his head at their antics. This was what he had always wanted right? A big family with ever present older brothers that he could tease and would tease right back? That's how his family had been before his older brother had left for college; before the house had turned quiet and lonely and all of his parents' attention had been shifted onto him.

Normally that wouldn't have been a bad thing, but his first few years as a teenager had been marked by a chronic shyness and inferiority complex that he just couldn't shake. It had been his older brother's suggestion, one night over the phone, that Jungkook should try out for some of the idol production companies in Seoul. He had thought that pushing through the fear and skittishness would help the younger boy get over it. And while it worked when he was actually performing, the day-to-day interactions were still hard to navigate on his own.

"You coming kid?" Suga's voice snapped Jungkook back into the present. All four of the other guys were watching the maknae with varying levels of concern on their face.

"Yeah, I'm coming. Sorry. I just zoned out for a second."

"No problem. Let's get home so we can eat. I'm fucking starving." Suga groaned as Jin's face lit up. "No way. Tonight we're getting takeout. I'm not waiting three hours for you to cook when we could have it hot and delivered in less than one."

Jin was clearly gearing up to argue with Suga about the benefits of a home-cooked meal when Mr. Bang sidled up to their group with the clear intention of keeping them for a bit longer.

"How did you all think today went?" He waited for them all to give non-committal nods and shrugs. "Good to hear. Well, I've got to be honest. The producers and I are at a bit of an impasse with which way we're gonna go from here. No one can seem to agree and it's understandably hard considering how many we saw today. Did anybody stand out to you guys?"

I could say something about Taehyung… Maybe it would give him an edge since his dancing didn't really stand out. But.. Why would I? Jungkook continued to argue with himself about what his motivations would be for mentioning a boy he had just met to Mr. Bang; as he did so, Jin and J-Hope started in enthusiastically about those who had impressed them over the course of the day.

He finally decided that he wouldn't say anything; it would be strange for him to talk openly in the first place, much less about his preferences for who would be added to the team. Scuffing his shoe along the wooden floor, he listened to the older guys make suggestions.

They would never really understand how much effort it took for Jungkook to even make small talk; the act of seeking out conversation with someone he wasn't already comfortable with sometimes drained him completely. And talking to a crush, not that he'd ever had one that was a real person rather than a celebrity, would probably destroy him completely. It was by luck alone that Jungkook's initial obsession with Namjoon, after seeing him in the parking lot outside of Big Hit's office, had turned into a platonic admiration rather than a giant, embarrassing man-crush.

As if he had sensed that the younger boy was thinking about him, Namjoon turned to pull him by the shoulders into the group of conversing men. "Jungkook and I were particularly interested in the guy with the low voice from the first group. What was his name-?"

"Taehyung." Jungkook sputtered out suddenly, surprising everyone including himself. "Kim Taehyung was his name. I think that was it, anyway." He added the last bit just so he didn't seem as crazy, but he knew he had the name correct.

Mr. Bang smiled kindly at the maknae, "I found him intriguing as well. He was our surprise auditioner in Daegu. If one of the assistant producers hadn't convinced him to audition, he would have completely gone unnoticed."

"Were you impressed with his audition today? Enough for him to be a contender?" Namjoon asked Mr. Bang the question so confidently, Jungkook again found himself to be jealous of the older boy.

"I don't think I was here for his particular group. But if you two think he's worth looking at, I'll make sure to take a look at the tapes. What about you guys? Did you notice him?" Mr. Bang directed his attention at Yoongi, Jin, and J-Hope.

Maybe it wasn't such a big deal to bring the guy up. I won't get my hopes up or anything, but he seemed cool and his voice was impressive. And he seemed to be basically my age, which would be really awesome.

Suga commented on what he could remember of Taehyung's voice. Mostly that it had been surprisingly deep, especially considering his assumed age. Jin hadn't necessarily noticed him, but pointed out that he was confident in the other boys' opinions. And J-Hope kindly fibbed about how his dancing hadn't been too awful, but could definitely be improved upon.

By the end of the conversation, Jungkook was feeling pretty good about the bug they had planted in Mr. Bang's ear. He still wasn't quite sure why he was so adamant about Taehyung being chosen for the group, but he had ultimately decided to roll with it. When it was all said and done, and Mr. Bang had once again promised to look at the tapes, the five of them wondered out onto the darkened, abandoned street to trek home.

It was almost midnight at that point, and they could all feel themselves getting more exhausted as each minute passed. There wasn't much talking as they stumbled down the increasingly familiar streets to their run-down apartment building, but occasionally Yoongi moaned about how he was still hungry. He didn't get much of a response though.

When Jungkook shuffled into their apartment behind Namjoon, pulling the door closed behind him and toeing his shoes off his feet, he realized that, while he was just as exhausted as he was every other night, he was the happiest he had been since moving to Seoul. He tried not to think about the reason and just bask in the unfamiliar feeling, but the face of one particular auditioner kept materializing in his mind.

"I'm going to head to bed. See you guys in the morning." He muttered loud enough for Jin and Yoongi to hear him even as they stood bickering in the small studio kitchen.

He barely heard the harmony of "goodnights" out of his hyungs before he closed the bedroom door behind him. Deciding to forgo putting on official pajamas, the dark haired teen climbed the ladder to his bunk and flung himself down on his stomach. He buried his face in his pillow and sighed to himself.

It didn't take long for him to fall asleep. And his dreams picked up right where his thoughts had left off: Kim Taehyung.