Just as Namjoon unlocked the boys' apartment door and tossed the keys back to Jin, Izzy's phone buzzed in her pocket, for the second time that day. The boys stampeded into their apartment and tumbled down onto the couch and floors, falling easily into conversation as Izzy pulled the phone from the turquoise pocket of her jacket. She made sure to check the caller ID this time, and was a bit confused to see "Horshoe Cafe" painted across the screen.

"Hello?"
"Oh Izzy! I'm so glad you picked up. How are you doing? Are you alright?" Mrs.Lee rambled off at a hundred miles a minute. Izzy couldn't keep up, much less breathe fast enough to answer the questions that were being shot at her like fireballs.
"M-Mrs.Lee, hi. Um yes, I'm doing just fine now, and I am so, so sorry about this morning, I just—"
"Oh sweetie please, you don't have to explain anything. I was just worried that I was working you too hard at the cafe," the older woman paused long enough to gasp in a lungful of air. "Are you sure you're alright?"
"Yes, Mrs.Lee. I'm doing much better than this morning, thank you." Izzy sighed in relief, glad that the woman wasn't mad about her basically skipping out on work today, and that it looked like she would keep her job after this episode.
"Well good, I'm glad. But I want you take the rest of the day off," Izzy opened her mouth to protest but didn't get the chance. "Don't you worry about your afternoon shift, I'll take care of everything here, just get some rest today. Alright?"
"Uh o-okay. Thank you, Mrs.Lee."
"Not a problem, feel better," the line cut off before Izzy had the chance to say anything else.

Izzy put away her phone, blinking away the strange feeling of somehow being behind the curve, a feeling that always settled in after she talked with Mrs.Lee. Her theory was that Mrs.Lee talked so fast that space and time actually couldn't keep up and therefore bent in on themselves, which resulted in the weird feeling of being left in the dust. It was a working theory, not to mention that Izzy had come up with it when she was high, so it probably wasn't a hypothesis that should be followed up on.

"Well," Izzy caught the attention of the pile of boys in the living room, "It looks like I have the rest of the day off." She slunk up to the couch hesitantly. Sure she had been here before— spent the night even— but knowing that she now lived there made her feel strangely shy.
"Good! You need to rest today, and we're gonna make sure that you do. Don't think we forgot about this morning." Jin gave her a stern glance and Izzy shrunk under the deep brown flames that seemed to shoot right out of his eyes.
"Hey! She made a mistake," Jungkook was quick to defend her. "We all have, so don't make her feel any worse about it than she probably already does." Izzy scratched at the bend of her arm, suddenly finding great interest in the streaks of paint on the brick wall behind the couch. "Give her a break. Besides, we helped each other and we'll help her. You're not alone, Izzy." She bit down hard on her bottom lip to keep it from quivering. That was possibly the longest, sweetest thing Jungkook had ever spoken to her.

"Hey, hey, don't cry. Please don't cry! Oh sh— please, please don't cry!" Izzy pressed her curled fists against her eyes in an attempt to hold back the waterworks. Jungkook sounded so panicked that it seemed as if he might burst into tears as well. She let out an easy laugh, shaking her head a bit to swallow the tears. "I'm not crying, I promise. I think one break down per day is my limit," Izzy pulled her jacket a bit tighter around herself and smiled at the boys who now sagged with relief, probably glad that they wouldn't have a crying girl on their hands... again.

"Come on Izz, you sit by me today," grabbing her hand, Jungkook yanked Izzy down onto the couch beside him and threw an arm around her. Neither he nor Izzy noticed the narrowed eyes of an orange haired boy who sat stiffly on the scratched up wooden floor. Jimin's jaw clenched, a small crease folded between his eyebrows as he stared unblinking at the two figures on the couch.

"Hey, I'm starving, can we get some food?" Taehyung groaned and leaned on Hoseok's shoulder, pouting up at the older boy. "Yeah, I'm getting hungry too. We should get some lunch," Jin agreed.
"And it wouldn't hurt to get dinner while we're at it," Yoongi mumbled quietly, making the other boys look at him strangely. He just shrugged, not seeing the need to defend his earlier statement.
"Alright," Jin groaned and pulled himself to his feet. "Let's go get some food. Who's coming with me?" Taehyung and Hoseok immediately sprung to their feet, smiles in place, ready to go. Namjoon and Yoongi were a little slower to follow, not being quite as thrilled about having to go out again.

Izzy began to stand from the couch, only to be pulled back down onto the squeaky cushions. "And where do you think you're going?" Jin crossed his arms over his chest, looking much taller than usual from Izzy's seated perspective.
"To get food?"
"Nope. You're staying here. You need to rest," it seems that his "momma hen instinct" had kicked in hard. Jin looked so serious about this that Izzy didn't have the courage to argue.
"Okay," she just sunk further into the cushions, Jungkook's arm pulling her closer. Jin nodded happily, seeing that she wasn't planning to argue.
"I'll stay and keep her company," the youngest of the boys smiled down at Izzy with a friendly glance.

"Okay," Namjoon turned to Jimin, who still sat cross legged on the floor. "Are you coming, Jimin?" The orange haired boy hesitated, casting a shadowed glance at the couple on the couch.
"Yeah. I'm going." His knees popped as he stood. Not sparing a glance at the girl with the rum-colored eyes, he was the first one out the door.

The other boys followed behind him, waving goodbye to Izzy and Jungkook. Jimin didn't speak, not even once the apartment door was shut and they were walking quickly down the sidewalk. He didn't want to talk. He didn't want to think about the troubled girl that he left behind in that apartment. Or the arm around her that wasn't his. But most of all, Jimin didn't want to think about why he was jealous.

As the six boys walked through the South side, Jungkook and Izzy sat awkwardly on that squeaky, old couch.

"You know," Jungkook began, clearing his throat, "For as long as we've had you with us, I don't think me and you have ever really talked." He was right. Izzy knew that she wasn't great at getting along with new people, but those people didn't usually point it out.
"Uh yeah, I guess you're right," Izzy admitted, a bit sheepishly.
"Let's play a game!" His sudden exclamation made Izzy jump in her seat.
"Um what kind of game?" The hesitant undertone of her voice made Jungkook smile and release an airy laugh.
"Let's play thumb war," he suggested.
Izzys eyebrows scrunched. "Okay, but what does thumb war have to do with us not talking?" Her head tipped to one side as Jungkook's face hardened in concentration.
"You're right," he admitted the flaw in his plan just before his face lit up. Izzy could practically see the lightbulb appearing over his head. "Then let's ask questions while we play." This made sense to Izzy, so she nodded and the couple adjusted themselves on the couch so they faced one another.

Jungkook reached out and grabbed Izzy's hand, winding their fingers together into two interlocking fists.
"Ready," Jungkook began as their thumbs posed for war.
"Set," Izzy's eyes narrowed.
"Go!" Their thumbs flailed around wildly, trying to pin the other down.

"So, questions?" Jungkook asked.
"You start."
"Okay. What's your favorite color?"
"Really?" Izzy gave him an 'are you kidding me' look in response to the most generic question known to man.
"Just answer it," their thumbs still struggled against each other.
Izzy rolled her eyes, "Gray." Jungkook shot her a weird look but she just shrugged it off. "Alright, my turn. How long have you known the guys?"
"Um," he hesitated, looking deep in thought for a second. Izzy used his moment of distraction to try and pin his thumb down but he wiggled out of her hold at the last second. "Nice try," he smirked at her, "I've known the guys for about five years." Izzy nodded, and prepared for his next question.
"Tell me your real name?" She was momentarily startled at the question, but decided to fire one back.
"Tell me what you guys do for work and I'll tell you my name." It seemed like they didn't have normal jobs, and yet they never gave the impression that money was an issue.
"Nope. It's a secret."
"Well so is mine."
"But a name shouldn't be secret."
"Neither should a job, but here we are."
"Fair enough," Jungkook sighed. "Hey, should we up the stakes in this game?" His thumb twisted around hers and he almost won, but Izzy managed to wiggle out of it.
"What did you have in mind?" This could be interesting.
"Winner gets to ask one question and the loser has to answer, truthfully."
Izzy considered the proposal before nodding, "Deal." She took a deep breath, and retreated into her thoughts, trying to come up with another question to ask him. Unfortunately, she was snapped out of her concentration when a calloused thumb pinned hers down to their joined hands.
"Yes!" The boy cheered at his victory, eyes crinkling happily while Izzy rolled her own.
"Alright, alright, what question are you going to ask me?"

Jungkook's face turned contemplative, a look that Izzy found strange on him. She liked it better when he smiled. Suddenly his face lit up again and it made Izzy crack a grin. "Okay, I've got one." He didn't speak for a minute, just examining the face of the girl that sat in front of him, hands folded in her lap.
"Well?" One of Izzy's eyebrows rose a bit.
Jungkook beamed. "Can we be friends?" The question caught Izzy off guard and look of surprise slipped onto her features. Meanwhile, Jungkook sat awaiting her response, chewing anxiously on his bottom lip. Izzy realized while looking at him, that despite his confident outward appearance, he was just as nervous and awkward as she was when it came to meeting new people. One corner of her mouth tilted upward.
"I'd love to," the happiness shining in his eyes was infections and Izzy found herself smiling back at him.

She didn't foresee the sudden hug that she was being engulfed in, but she hugged Jungkook back just as tightly as he held her.
"Okay," his warm breath blew across her ear, "Now that we're officially friends that means that you call me Kookie." He pulled back from the hug, hands still resting on her shoulders. "Okay?" He looked too happy and adorable for her to say no to him. As if she would ever say no to a friend.
"Okay... Kookie," another bright smile lit up his face.
"You know, I haven't had any friends besides the guys for five years now," he admitted in a quiet voice.
"Well, I think you're the first real friend I've ever had," Izzy replied wryly. "So I guess we both needed a friend." Kookie looked down at her, an indecipherable emotion crossed his features before he threw his arm around her and pulled Izzy into his side again. Neither one of them felt the need to say anything. They sat in a comfortable silence on that old couch, and for the first time in a while, they both felt at ease.

Jungkook turned on the TV and Izzy smiled a bit, wondering if making friends was always this easy. Izzy leaned her head on Kookie's shoulder as he flipped through the channels. She shut her eyes, knowing that Jin would scold her if she didn't get at least a little bit of rest while the other boys were out. A soft song playing on the TV filled the room as Izzy drifted off, leaning further into Kookie's warm body.