namjoon stepped into the classroom and froze almost instantly when he looked up. it was huge and intimidating room— far larger than any of his high school classrooms had been. the rows of seats filling the space seemed infinite as he glanced up at all the possible places he could sit.

he had been up almost the entire night before, agonizing over this exact moment; walking into class on his first day of college.

he had been thinking a lot the night prior and ended up making a plan to sit right in the front of the room. that way he could be alert, focused, and ready to catch every word his professor would say.

but now, standing at the entrance of the room, that plan seemed almost absurd. the front row was already full of students, and the thought of squeezing past all of them to sit under his professor's watchful gaze made his stomach churn.

with all things considered, he knew he wouldn't have the courage to sit in the front row.

all he really wanted was to blend in with everyone else.

he wanted to be normal.

yet, with what felt like a thousand students staring down at him, he couldn't help but feel like a complete outsider, sticking out like a soar thumb.

he started to panic a little, eyes darting around the room to find any empty seat where he could disappear.

just as he was about to scramble up the stairs to the back, he felt a hand grab onto his shoulder. he flinched slightly, before turning around.

and standing there was a tall, professional-looking man— almost as tall as himself.

"you must be namjoon," the man said, with a smile, his tone smooth and reassuring, "i'll be your creative writing professor this year."

namjoon straightened up immediately, before replying,

"y-yes, of course, professor kim," he said, bowing, "it's nice to meet you."

the professor chuckled,

"likewise. i hope you enjoy the class."

namjoon nodded stiffly and turned back to the daunting lecture hall, his cheeks burning.

his first impression was already off to an awkward start.

he made his way near the back, and eventually settled on a seat far away from the cluster's of students all chatting in groups.

he was a little early, so he pulled out a well-worn book from his bag. he picked up right were he left off, letting the words on the page soothe his nerves.

reading was always namjoon's favorite past-time— an escape from the chaos of the world surrounding him. it was just about the only thing he had found that could take him away from all the stress and anxiety off every day life and put him in a new world.

so, it wasn't hard for ten minutes to pass by almost instantly, namjoon making it through a whole chapter before he heard a soft voice speaking to him,

"mind if i sit there?"

namjoon looked up, and for a moment, it was like the world around him stopped.

his cheeks heated up and he swallowed dryly.

standing before him was- quite possibly- the most beautiful boy he'd ever seen.

he was so... angelic. he had a round shape to his face, which portrayed a look of innocence. his lips were pink and plump, puffed out in a slight pout. his facial features were soft, with rounded eyes and a button nose. he had a small, yet strong figure. having muscle, but also being shorter, made him look both manly and adorable at the same time.

"it's fine if you don't want me to," the boy said, laughing awkwardly, "i can just go find another seat—"

"no!" namjoon blurted out, far too eagerly.

the boy blinked at him, clearly a little confused,

"no?"

"i mean— uh— yes. s-sorry... of course. sit here," namjoon said, moving his bag over to create more space for him, dropping his book in the process, and losing his page.

if it wasn't obvious enough, namjoon had awful social anxiety. and if you mix already being terrible at communicating, with being flustered by a cute boy, you end up with a namjoon system overload.

not a pretty sight.

the boy bent down to pick up the book before namjoon could move, handing it back with a small smile.

and namjoon couldn't meet the other's eyes as he took it from his hand, nervously,

"t-thanks," he said, immediately flipping through the pages, pretending to search for the lost spot he was at.

nice going, namjoon.

this is the last time he's ever gonna ask to sit by you.

you're such a dumbass.

"nervous for your first day?" the boy asked, pulling the small desk that was attached to his chair forward and setting his notebook on it.

is he talking to me?

namjoon looked over at him, then immediately turned his head back.

bad idea.

jimin was smirking at him.

"uh— i'm f-fine... i guess."

"doesn't look like you're fine," the boy said, with a teasing tone, leaning in slightly closer, "you're trembling."

namjoon just clasped his hands together tightly in his lap, trying to calm himself down.

i really need to be taking more medication.

"i guess... j-just a little nervous."

"well, that's okay," he said, with an encouraging smile, "it's your first day of university. i bet you don't have any friends yet, do you?"

i didn't have friends before college, either.

"well... yeah. i don't," he started, fumbling over his words, trying to think of a way to make it sound less pathetic, "but—"

"liar," the boy interrupted, with a playful scoff escaping his lips.

namjoon looked over at him, clearly confused.

"you've got me," he said, smiling big.

it took namjoon a minute to process jimin's cute remark, but as soon as he did, his cheeks heated up and a small smile formed on his face.

namjoon quickly darted his eyes back down to his book, feeling a little embarrassed.

"what's your name?" the boy asked, suddenly.

and namjoon's brain short circuited.

my name?

what's my name?

he just stared at the boy, his mind blanking for a moment, before he finally stammered,

"it's... uh... n-namjoon."

"namjoon," the boy repeated, like he was testing it out, "you know... i've never met anyone named namjoon."

namjoon just swallowed, unsure of how to respond,

"i like it," the boy finally said, smile widening.

namjoon's face turned an even darker shade of red,

"oh. t-thanks."

jimin just nodded, still smiling, before speaking up with a cheerful tone,

"i'm jimin. the 'ji' part means purpose and the 'min' part means affable. and my family name is park... like... park your car," jimin said, laughing at his own joke.

namjoon let out a small laugh before he could help it. as soon as he realized it, he cleared his throat dryly, his face feeling hot out of embarrassment. it almost surprised him— it was rare for him to laugh with strangers like that.

silence fell between them for a moment and namjoon was trying to think of something he could say, fidgeting with his book nervously.

jimin was doodling small little designs onto the corner of his notebook with some colored gel pens, before he stopped suddenly and looked over at the other.

"do you want me to... like, go sit somewhere else?" jimin asked, feeling like he might have been annoying the boy who just wanted to read his book in peace, "i don't want to bother you or anything."

namjoon's chest tightened with the thought of jimin leaving. he opened his mouth to speak, but he hesitated, not sure how to phrase what he wanted to say.

"no," he finally managed, shaking his head, "y-you're not bothering me."

jimin didn't respond, instead just offered him another small smile and a subtle nod, before going back to doodling in his notebook.

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hey guys! i'm back with another fic and i couldn't be more excited to dive into minjoon again🥹 writing about them always brings me so much joy, and this story is especially close to my heart. i'm so excited to share it with you and hope you enjoy it as much as i have enjoyed writing it so far! <3

psa:: this will probably be a long one lol