writetomyheart | [TEAM FOUR] Hope Dangles on a String Like Slow-Spinning Redemption

Hello!
Sorry it took a while, this is not yet finished, but I like how I ended it here haha.
You're next,

The night had brought him hope in the form of a lone home in the middle of the dessert.

Jimin has been walking under the harsh weather for days now that he feels like he's delusional already, the fatigue and longing for interaction, a human, an animal, anything, straining his mind and soul.

He spots it from a far, the only infrastructure he has seen in miles and that's saying a lot considering how many 'cities' he has already passed. From afar, it looks like a small home, but it gets bigger and bigger the closer Jimin walks toward it.

It's not a mansion per se, but Jimin hasn't seen a building in so long that this building seems absolutely humongous for him. It's like those suburban houses in American films. A white picket fence, cobalt stone pavement and colorful flowers decorate the front porch; it's even complete with sprinklers watering the grass.

As soon as Jimin sees water, he tries to run. He feels like he's running, but he's not exactly sure. Everything feels heavy, but he's trying his best. All Jimin wants is water. Jimin manages to step on the grass, yet fails to reach and feel the water. So close, yet so near.

The last thing he sees before he becomes unconscious is a pair of curious brown eyes.

Jimin feels warm. No. He feels on fire. Jimin feels extremely hot he can't breathe. He gasps for breath as he opens his eyes, forehead beaded with sweat. He's on a bed.

When did Jimin get on a bed?

Alarmed, Jimin looks around the place. He's all alone in a room and the only sound he can hear apart from his breath is the sound of the humidifier wheezing and the constant low buzzing of the air conditioner. It's a sparsely decorated room - with just the bed, a side table and a wardrobe cabinet pushed to the far end of the room. There are no trinkets nor paintings whatsoever. The room resonates calm, nevertheless, with its powder blue walls and matching sheer white curtains that go well with the mahogany floor boards.

Jimin groans; his body feels extremely sore, all that travelling putting a toll on his body now that he has access to comfort. Now that he thinks of it...somebody changed his clothes. Gone are his tattered dirty clothes and is now replaced by a soft yellow cotton shirt and comfortable pajama bottoms.

He wants to be alarmed and he wants to hunt down whoever touched him, but he also wants to just maybe lie down a few more minutes. Like 5 more minutes please. Please.

Jimin is fast asleep once again before he even knows it.

This time, Jimin wakes up to the smell of food. Or rather his stomach wakes up all his other internal organs because food is more important than sleep. He pulls the blanket off of him and storms towards the kitchen. It's a big house, despite how minimal the decorations are. The walls are white in the hallway while the staircase is mahogany. There is no personal trace of ownership; except for a painting of a boy playing by the beach hung at the bottom of the stairs.

Jimin doesn't pay much attention to it; body craving for food it has been deprived of for days. He moves pass the living room and the bathroom and goes directly to the open kitchen connected to the dining room.

The kitchen is clean if not for the ingredients carelessly strewn all over the counter table. Unlike the rest of the room, the kitchen is complete with appliances and other kitchenware. Surrounded by pale yellow and white tiles, the wooden counters stand out in a good way. It's not what takes Jimin's breathe away though.

It's the man standing in front of the gas range and cooking what smells like ramyeon. His back is to Jimin, but it's the man's built that Jimin is in awe of. Built arms and a tiny waist, Jimin can also make of the man's tattoos crawling from his right forearm to his shoulders. Hell, he could make a lot of things from how thin the man's white shirt is and how low his pants are hanging on his hips.

Jimin tries to move further, but his arms get caught in the counter. And that's how the man spots him: Hissing a curse as he winces in pain with his pink hair and soft yellow cotton pajamas.

The man merely stares at him for a second and just says, "Oh you're awake" like Jimin has been living with him for so long now. He gestures Jimin to sit at the makeshift dining area in the middle of the kitchen as he moves the food in the pan onto a plate.

It's omelette, a messy one, but Jimin thinks it smells like the best food in the world. The man puts the plate in front of Jimin and gives him a bottle of ketchup afterwards. Jimin murmurs his thanks and immediately thanks the man, all pride thrown out the window.

Jimin outright moans. Like unabashedly moans. He notices it too late when the man just stares at him and giggles.

"I'm so sorry, it's just that I haven't eaten proper food for so long-" Jimin stammers. "I'm so sorry-" to which the man responds by shaking his head and encouraging Jimin to continue eating. "It's okay, don't worry, I'm glad you like it, Jimin hyung."

This grabs Jimin's attention.

"You know me?"

"Of course I know you, you're Jimin hyung."

"How do you know me?"

"Just."