【 Jungkook 】

Soft hums in the form of a pretty melody could be heard inside the otherwise empty convenience store as you were in the midst of restocking the shelves, using this quiet time without any current customers to properly organize the items in an appealing way whilst of course also ensuring all product expiration dates were sorted in the correct order. Though just as you were about to begin sorting through the last few boxes and drink crates, the soft sound of chimes could be heard as the door to the store opened, revealing none other than one of your favorite coworkers whom cheerfully greeted you with a playful ''Hii, I've come to finally rescue you from this place!'' on her way in; signaling that it finally was time for the shift change.

Jungkook: Darn I thought I'd manage to unpack all of these before you got here Haneul-sshi, sorry I'll finish these up before I go—

Haneul: Oh please don't, I was hoping you'd leave at least something for me to do, or else I'll literally be bored to death in here tonight— now off you go Jungkook-sshi, you've worked hard today as well!

She then proceeded to flash you a bubbly yet also reassuring smile before heading behind the counter to go clock in and pull on her vest, and all though you felt bad about leaving the remaining workload to her, you knew there was honesty in her words as the nights typically tended to feel insanely boring if there wasn't anything to do but quietly sit around and wait for 7 hours.

So without further ado, you nodded and dusted your hands off in defeat whilst allowing a breathy chuckle to emit past your lips— uttering out a playful ''Alright, well I'll leave the rest to you then noona'' which earned a soft giggle out of her as you also made your way behind the counter to go fetch your things from the small staff room in the back; not forgetting to grab the bag filled with close to expiration date food items, with the exception of some newly expired but still safely edible ones which your manager had given you when clocking in earlier today— having insisted that you'd take them since they were just going to get thrown out otherwise.

Nonetheless, after hanging up the vest you had worn on its designated hook and pulling on your coat and scarf, it was now time to finally clock out and leave as you quickly bid goodbye to Haneul before making your way out and into the cold; the big specs of snow which slowly fell from the sky almost immediately beginning to land on your hair and clothes as you strolled down the semi-busy streets, hiding away your cold hands into the warmth of your pockets in an attempt to somewhat shield them from the chilly weather while snuggling in closer to the warmth of your scarf.

Thankfully your apartment complex was only a 10-minute walk from where the convenience store was located, so it wasn't all too long before you eventually reached the building and swiftly scurried inside— only to sigh and mumble out a soft and somewhat disappointed ''Again?'' after noticing the 'Under maintenance' sign which once again was plastered onto the elevator doors; this had become somewhat of an inconvenient reoccurrence in this old building, yet it still somehow managed to surprise you every time the elevator was out of order for some given reason.

Either way, you defeatedly began heading up the dreadful flights of stairs— admittedly feeling a bit out of breath by the time you ultimately reached the 12th floor and dragged your weary feet over to your apartment door, mumbling out a breathless ''Sheesh I really need to work on my stamina...'' whilst tiredly typing in the pin code and heading inside; immediately being greeted by the almost deafening silence of the dark and cold apartment as you took off your shoes and outerwear— flipping on the kitchen light switch while gently placing down the bag of food items onto the kitchen counter.

A tired sigh escaped past your lips yet again as you then proceeded to grab yourself a bottle of water from the fridge— screwing off the cap before gulping down some of the refreshing cold liquid whilst leaning against the counter, momentarily admiring the view of the city lights and busy streets outside which could be seen from your windows. Though when you finally came to notice the tall figure silently stood to the very right of your peripheral vision, you couldn't help but instinctively flinch whilst gasping out a genuinely startled ''Holy shit—''; accidentally ending up dropping the water bottle onto the floor as you eyed the male in disbelief whom currently was leaning against the entrance of the kitchen with a sheepish grin on his lips

Taehyung: So this is where you live huh?

You groaned softly before swiftly scurrying to pick up the bottle you had dropped, attempting to wipe away some of the water that had been spilled onto the floor whilst briefly glancing up to flash the male a displeased glare

Jungkook: Yes it sure is, so what the hell are you doing in here?

The unfazed entity merely began to calmly pace around the place with a look of amusement, essentially inviting himself to explore the privacy of your home whilst speaking in an unbothered manner, almost seeming proud of this apparent accomplishment

Taehyung: Simple— I saw you walking down the street just now so I followed you here!

His cheerful tone earned another faint groan out of you before you eventually whined out a mildly irritated ''There has to be some type of rule prohibiting you from doing this ghostie'' whilst rubbing at your temples lightly, yet the male merely shook his head in denial whilst flashing you another one of his annoyingly bubbly grins

Taehyung: Nu-uh, at least none that I've been made aware of! This sorta thing didn't really come with a rule book— nor a guide one for that matter...

Jungkook: Yeah evidently. Sheesh— and here I was thinking you had disappeared back at the bus stop...

He momentarily stopped his curios pacing to glance over at you with a teasing expression, raising an amused eyebrow as his tone came off as somewhat cocky while he spoke

Taehyung: Oh my— sounds like someone missed my presence~

Jungkook: Certainly not, I was actually enjoying the lack thereof.

The males teasing expression quickly morphed into a pouty one as he muttered out a displeased ''You're no fun...'' before grumpily crossing his arms, though his mini tantrum didn't phase you one bit as you merely shrugged, mumbling out a response in agreement to his words while simultaneously beginning to put away the food items which still were laying on the kitchen counter

Jungkook: Glad you've noticed, I promise my life isn't entertaining so just do us both a favor and go haunt someone else ghostie.

However, when you turned around to grab the last bento box which you were going to put in the fridge, you were met by the sight of Taehyung now being stood right behind you, curiously holding up said item while reading off the label— pointing at it while his brows soon furrowed with a hint of concern

Taehyung: Hey, aren't these expired?

You raised an eyebrow at the unexpected sight whilst hesitantly mumbling out a ''Well yeah, but they're still edible...'' before snatching it out of his grasp and putting it into the fridge— only to turn back around and bewilderedly eye the male whom still had his eyebrows furrowed

Jungkook: How were you even able to pick that up just now— shouldn't you go right through things?

Taehyung: Not necessarily— of course I typically go through stuff, but I can still pick up some inanimate objects if I want to.

There was a brief silence that lingered in the room as you merely just gazed at the male in sheer disbelief whilst trying to process this absurd newfound information— an amused scoff soon escaping past your lips as you eventually spoke up

Jungkook: ...Congratulations, you've officially upgraded from ghostie to poltergeist?

Though the male shook his head in denial while defensively uttering out a ''I beg to differ, hypothetically a poltergeist— and especially a powerful one, could still touch you humans. Meanwhile I on the other hand—'' before suddenly proceeding to finish demonstrating his point by reaching his hand out to grab your arm— only for it to go right through, sending this cold breeze-like feel through the very spot on your arm he just had attempted to touch; the demonstration making your doe eyes widen slightly in fascination as you softly whispered out an amused ''Woah...'' before hesitantly raising your hand to try and touch the other— obviously with no success as your hand merely went right through the unfazed male's chest.

An amused chuckle soon bubbled past Taehyungs lips as he watched while you made a couple more stubborn attempts to somehow touch him; evidently finding your stubborn acts of curiosity somewhat entertaining

Taehyung: You're awfully fascinated for someone who supposedly doesn't believe in ghosts ya know... Are you really the same person who called me a dumb illusion he wishes would perish?

The reminder of these harsh words which you had uttered to him during your second encounter with one another urged you to sheepishly rub at your nape, quietly clearing your throat as you avoided eye contact whilst mumbling out a quiet yet still slightly remorseful ''Hey, I already apologized for that... sort of?''— earning another low chuckle from the other male whom uttered out a borderline sarcastic ''Riiight, sure you did. But the point still stands nonetheless, Mr.Skeptic.''  before a teasing smirk tugged at his lips.

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⬆️ Ggukie in this chapter after seeing Taehyung appear in his apartment.