Meet the BROTHER

When Jungkook walks into the apartment, he sniffs the air and catches a burnt smell. He takes off his shoes, hangs his coat, and hears "Boogie Wonderland" blasting from the kitchen. This isn't Yoonji's style—she doesn't cook or listen to this music.

He walks into the kitchen, the smell of burnt becoming even more distinct. Then, he shifts his gaze to the table, where an unfamiliar guy is sitting. What the fuck?

"Who are you?"

The guy looks up and puts a finger to his lips, signaling him to be quiet.

Is he serious? Looks like a weirdo. Hair all messy, a pencil behind his ear, another one in his hand. He scribbles something on a piece of paper, then stops to sing along to the song, and resumes scribbling. God, what a weird dude. It's a shame he's so good-looking.

"Who are you?" Jungkook asks louder.

The guy looks up. "Huh?"

"Who are you?!" Jungkook raises his voice over the music.

"Taehyung."

Seriously? Taehyung. Okay. And?

Jungkook feels a touch on his shoulder. He catches a whiff of a familiar perfume. It’s Yoonji.

“Baby, don't mind him. It's my crazy brother. He just arrived from Germany today, and he's still looking for a place to stay.”

Jungkook sighs in relief. So, he's not some weirdo who broke into their home.

"And what's that burnt smell?" he asks.

"Oh, that's coffee. I made some. Help yourself if you want," Taehyung replies without looking up from his writing.

"Very kind of you, Taehyung," Jungkook replies, looking at the spilled coffee from the stovetop espresso maker. He glances back at Taehyung. He's busy writing, sticking his tongue out in concentration, then lifts the paper with a smile.

Oddly, Jungkook doesn't feel annoyed with this guy, even though he's created a mess in their kitchen.

The music keeps playing, switching from "Boogie Wonderland" to "September" by Earth, Wind & Fire.

Yoonji sighs loudly, and takes Jungkook's elbow, leading him into the living room.

"Sorry, Kookie. I had no idea he was even coming. He's always... unpredictable."

"I didn't know you had a brother."

"Sorry, he's just... Weird. We don't really connect. I love him, but... It's just really hard for me with him."

"He looks funny."

"No, he's not funny. He's batshit crazy, Jungkook. Stay away from him.”

But Jungkook wants to know Taehyung better. He does look kinda funny. After learning that Taehyung isn't some random guy who barged into their home, Jungkook feels both relieved and genuinely interested. He's never met someone quite like him.

Ignoring Yoonji's comment, Jungkook goes back to the kitchen. Taehyung is at the counter, pouring more coffee and doing a little dance.

"Taehyung, turn down the music. It's too loud," Yoonji says from somewhere behind him.

"Yoonji, 𝑚𝑒𝑖𝑛𝑒 𝐿𝑖𝑒𝑏𝑒, you know I can only focus when the music is blasting. I'm almost solving this problem!”

"What problem are you working on?" ask Jungkook.

"The P versus NP complexity classes." Taehyung shrugs, heading back to the table.

"I have no idea what that is, but it sounds cool," Jungkook remarks.

"Really?" Taehyung smiles, a beautiful smile. Jungkook finds himself thinking that he wants to see that smile more often.

"It's one of the central open problems in algorithm theory, an unsolved problem in mathematics."

“Seriously?”

"Yeah."

Yoonji sighs again. The last thing she needs is for Taehyung to drag Jungkook into something.

“Kookie, let's go grab something to eat?"

Jungkook feels his stomach growl. "Yeah, sure. Taehyung, you coming?"

Yoonji sighs once more, rolling her eyes. But Taehyung just nods, focused on his math problem. Yoonji sighs again, this time with a bit of relief.

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