Archive of Our Own

Some people had the audacity to say that music composition was easy. He was not crazy enough to believe them, but he was crazy enough to give it a try even though he knew nothing could be farther from the truth. Bang Shihyuk had offered him the opportunity. He had taken it. Soon he would be Bangtan Sonyeondan's Jeon Jeongguk: singer, rapper, dancer, producer, composer, and maknae. 

Except he wasn't quite sure where to start. He was not the sole person working on this track - he was praised often by the company for his talent but not enough for him to be left completely on his own for a track, not even Yoongi had such a privilege - but he was still stumped. There was a basic layout before him, a simple tune ready for him to tweak and alter and add to as he pleased. But he did not know where to start. 

He sat in front of the keyboard and laptop. Sometimes inspiration would hit him and he would begin to alter the song. Add his imprint to the simple melody. But, replaying it on his headphones, it did not seem right. Something was off. The song was not as smooth as it was meant to be, did not carry the melancholic feel it was meant to have. How did Yoongi do it? Tomorrow and Let Me Know had captured the mood perfectly, transmitted feelings in a way that even he was moved. They were so good, so good that he kept replaying the songs over and over on his cell phone for weeks. If only he could create something half as good, he would be more than satisfied with himself.

Before he knew it there was no one left in the offices; all the small cubicles were empty. Every computer screen was pitch black save for his own. This late into the night and yet he could see no real progress in the track. He rubbed the back of his neck, trying to undo the stiffness that settled there after hours of sitting upright. Should he just go back to the dorm for the night? There was already a slight burning sensation behind his eyes, already a slight heaviness pulling at his eyelids. It was not like he wasexperiencing bouts of inspiration either, not enough to merit staying up all night before it slipped away. So going back home to sleep it was.

Jeongguk entered the dorm only to find Taehyung sprawled on the living room floor, cereal box in one hand while the other held his cell phone. Jeongguk took off his shoes, not bothering to align them properly since no one else did, and hung his jacket on one of the hooks before walking quietly towards the other, nudging him with his socked foot once he was close enough.

"Hyung, back so early? Shouldn't you be working on your track?" Taehyung paused the Haikyuu episode he was watching before turning to stare him, still laying on the floor.

"An artist should not be rushed." He said, deepening his voice as much as he could manage, purposefully emphasizing his satoori. 

"So you're stumped too?" 

"No. I'm just done for the day."

His face must have betrayed him, contorted in a way that revealed himself to the other because not soon after answering Taehyung had sat up, grinning. He brought a handful of cereal to his mouth, chewing loudly as he wiggled his eyebrows at him.

"Is our Jeonggukkie stuck?"

"A little, I guess." 

"Don't beat yourself too much about it. Just let it come to you."

"We have a deadline, hyung."

"And you should focus more on the song than on the deadline. Relax, inspiration will come. If not, ask Yoongi hyung for help - he's always cooped up in the studio, maybe he knows the secret to milking one's muse." At the mention of the elder, Jeongguk looked towards their bedroom door. "He isn't home."

Jeongguk rubbed at his eyes, sleep creeping in on him already. He began walking towards their room, but turned back once he noticed Taehyung wasn't following suit. The other met his stare with a smile.

"Jimin's not back either." That was all that needed to be said for Jeongguk to understand. He muttered a 'good night' before sauntering into their room and throwing himself at his bed, not even bothering to remove the clutter of things he always had littering its surface.

Through the thin walls, he could hear the familiar voices of Hinata Shouyou and Kageyama Tobio along with the crisp crunch of cereal. He slept like a rock anyway.

Jeongguk hit the back button for the umpteenth time, groaning and hitting his head softly against the keyboard. The lady working in the cubicle next to him turned, lips pressed into a thin line and eyes glaring. He apologized out of habit, not really paying attention. He was still trying to think of a way to make his track work. The other people involved with producing it had already seen the little progress he had made. Had already scolded him for it. Had already made sure to remind him of the incoming deadline over and over.

It's not like he had made zero progress. He was not that useless. He had added a few instruments in, changed a couple of parts in a way he could say he was satisfied with. But the track was still lacking. The song was not tinted with sadness like it was meant to, it did not have the softness and gentle swing that would convey the feelings of heartbreak, disappointment, and almost resignation. 

The song was sad alright. Sad in how lacking it was, Jeongguk felt. And that was not the sad he was looking for. Every time he replayed the song he felt his frustration piling up. All those hours, all that hard work and it still sounded like this? It was no wonder the people around him were annoyed. He'd been hitting his head against the piano keys frequently this past hour. These past few hours, actually. 

A sigh escaped his lips as he looked over the track's layout on the computer screen. Something was missing and he could not quite pin point it. He needed someone else's input. Realizing this, he plugged his flash drive to the computer. Saved a copy of the track on it then began to shut everything off. He heard sighs of relief as he left the cubicle.

Music pulsed through the practice room. Pulsed, because the volume was so high it was impossible to make out what song it was. Instruments and vocals were reduced to nothing by the overwhelming beat that reverberated throughout the room and even made the walls shake a little. He was not surprised at all when Jimin did not notice him entering. The dancer was working on some routine he was not familiar with, one that was not part of the group's current repertoire. Jeongguk was halfway through the room before Jimin abruptly stopped moving his body to the resounding beat and ran to the stereo to turn off the music.

"Jeonggukkie!" He shouted in excitement, running towards him and almost pulling him into a hug before restraining himself remembering he was all sweaty. "What brings you here?"

Jeongguk turned towards the door at the other end of the practice room. "Need Yoongi hyung's advice on the track."

"He's locked in right now." 

"How long?"

"A few hours. I wouldn't bother him right now. Come back later?" And Jeongguk knew he it was his only option. Well, he could knock on the door anyways and demand the elder's attention. But he was locked in the studio and that meant he was inspired and more engrossed in his work than usual. Interrupting him now would only earn him Min Yoongi's anger; something all of them tried to avoid at all costs.

He let out a sigh, looking back at the closed door. What else was there to do but go back and see if he could manage some more progress?

In all honesty, Jeongguk felt like smashing his head on the keyboard. Repeatedly. 

It was late night once again, he was the only one left in the office. Surrounded by empty cubicles. With no other workers around he could beat his head into the keys without anyone issuing a complaint. But he didn't. Although he really, really wanted to. Especially when the song replayed automatically through his headphones, its melody lacking and harmonies clashing. 

He looked over at the clock. It was late, late enough for Yoongi to have exhausted whatever idea had come to him earlier that day, but still early enough for him to still be at the studio. Jeongguk nearly ran all the way to the practice room.

There was no one in the practice room when he entered. Jimin must have gone home. Or Taehyung must have dragged him back, which was more probable. He walked towards the studio's door at a slow pace. Stood in front of it, flash drive in hand, for five full minutes before knocking on the door. 

The door opened abruptly, making Jeongguk jump. Yoongi stared at him, still seated in his office chair with his grip on the doorknob. There were dark bags under his eyes, but otherwise he seemed wide awake. 

"Need something?"

"Ah, um..." Why was he being like this? Was it because he was nervous about what his hyung would think of his track? Jeongguk knew it wasn't any good, but he knew better than to think Yoongi would mock him for it. His hyung was harsh, that he could attest to from first-hand experience, but he was always constructive with his sharp criticism. 

"Jeongguk" He snapped out of his train of thought, suddenly realizing he never really answered. 

"Give me a hand?" Jeongguk said as he held out his flash drive, hoping the elder would understand him. Yoongi opened the door wide, sliding his chair back into the studio. Jeongguk closed the door behind him while the elder settled himself in front of the computer. He held his hand out, palm up and Jeongguk complied. 

Not even looking at him, not even saying a word, Yoongi opened the file and the familiar frustrating track rang loud through his headphones. He listened to it in silence, expression serious and brows pinched together in concentration. It was a short track, it did not and was not supposed to hit the three minute mark. Yet the two minutes it entailed seemed like an eternity to Jeongguk as he stood watching the other's reaction. Yoongi maintained the same expression throughout the entire song.

"Well...?" Jeongguk asked once it was over, straightening his posture and squaring his shoulders. Yoongi set the headphones on the desk, turning to analyze the younger's face.

"It's not bad, being your first track. But something's missing."

"And that would be...?"

"I'm not sure"

"Hyung --"

"Sit down," He motioned towards the office chair as he sat up, "we'll figure this out. I had too much coffee so I'm not sleepy anyway."

Jeongguk did as he was told, sitting down on the chair Yoongi had been sitting in moments before. It was warm, he noted, trying to distract himself and not feel self-conscious as the elder settled himself behind the chair, leaning over him to reach the computer and trapping Jeongguk in between his arms. 

"The song's supposed to be soft, right? It should flow better. And it's still pretty bland. This part is sort of empty." He moved the mouse, cursor circling around a particular section of the song Jeongguk had no idea how to fill.

"I know. I've tried adding some instrumentals to it but none seem to fit." Yoongi hummed in acknowledgement, eyes trained on the computer screen. He added a few things to the track then moved to put one of the headphones over Jeongguk's head and another over his own. 

They both listened intently as the song replayed. Both turned  to face the other as it finished, shaking their heads. No good. Yoongi leaned over Jeongguk again, erasing what he had done and adding a different instrument to the same part. Again, neither was satisfied with the end result. And thus began a cycle of endless tries and retries. Gradually, they pressed the back button with more and more force, they listened to a part shorter and shorter of the track before twisting their face in distaste and deleting what they had done.

It was during a particularly longer pause, Yoongi busy glaring at the screen with his hand hovering over the mouse, that Jeongguk turned to see the second office chair resting empty by his side. Right, they had two of them in the studio. The realization made him more aware of the arms around him, so close he could feel the warmth of the other. Made him too much aware of the chest lightly resting against his upper back. Made him hyper aware of how close the other's face was to his.

"Hyung," he began with a tight voice, and only continued once the other gave him an inattentive grunt, "there's another chair..."

He turned his head, muttering a 'what' before freezing. His eyes widened a fraction as his nose all but touched Jeongguk's, his bangs brushing against the other's face. 

Given the shocked expression, Jeongguk had expected him to put some space between them. Fast. But he didn't. Yoongi stayed where he was, face close to his, warm coffee breath blowing at his face. Maybe it was the lack of sleep, maybe it was the pull of the sandman at his eyelids making him see things - but was the distance between them lessening?

A nudge of a nose against his confirmed it was. Indeed, it was.

"Jeonggukkie," The haze of sleep was now making him hear things. When did Yoongi's voice become so low and - God forbid - husky? It was his drowsy mind inventing things, making things up. Because his voice was never like that, never so --

"Want to take a break?"

Why was his mind imagining everything but actual rest? Was it the close proximity? The tone of his voice?  His drowsy mind was seeing things, hearing things, feeling things. This was not real, could not be. Why would it be? It was impossible. Unreal.

The warmth of the touch was gone.

His jump out of the chair was Olympic-worthy. His stumbling over the carpet and eventual fall was not. Strong hands grasped at his shoulders, though, preventing him from falling flat on his face. But he felt maybe tumbling onto the floor would have been better, given how quick the touch left once he was standing. How quick the other was to put distance between them. Yoongi was already at the door, hand almost at the knob when Jeongguk found his voice.

"Hyung," He stopped dead in his tracks, palm hovering above the doorknob "15 minutes?"

He turned with a smile. 

"Ahh, Jeonggukkie, I've been working all day." A hand on his shoulder, the curve of his lips now more of a grin. "I'm tired. I need more than that."

Before Jeongguk knew, their lips were mashed together. The hand on his shoulder slid behind his neck, bringing them close and forcing him to lean down to make up for the height difference. Yoongi was so forceful he had to actually hold onto his shoulders to keep from falling as he dragged him further and further downwards, biting at his lip in punishment when he resisted for fear of dropping to the ground.

Yoongi pulled at his shirt with his other hand, hard, causing Jeongguk to fall over him as he collapsed onto the couch behind him. Their lips never disconnected, Yoongi would not permit it. Any time Jeongguk tried to lift himself, to part for a chance to breathe, his arms would lock behind him and drag him towards the older. Hold him close. Air was a necessity, however, and eventually Jeongguk forced their lips to part, gasping for air. 

Jeongguk was not drowsy anymore, for obvious reasons, but he still doubted his ears when he heard something akin to a whine come from the elder. He froze, breath still erratic, eyes wide as he stared at Yoongi. The rapper would have none of that, however, and was quick to pull him down once again, this time to focus his entire attention on his earlobe.

He couldn't help but let out a gasp when Yoongi put his plug earring between his lips, engulfing it in his mouth, playing with it with his soft, warm tongue. He could feel the curl of the other's lips against his ear. Felt the way he bit into his lobe while one of his hands rubbed and twisted the other lobe between long fingers. Jeongguk's head settled itself on Yoongi's shoulder, groaning. Breathing becoming more erratic and groans louder as Yoongi's other hand slipped under his shirt. Just as smooth lips brushed against his neck, Jeongguk felt himself be pushed back as the elder sat up, arms locking behind his back to keep him from falling off the couch.

"Piano" Yoongi gasped out, eyes wide with realization "The track needs some piano"

It was Jeongguk's turn to whine, pushing him onto the couch and kissing him full force, teeth clashing. Yoongi did not seem to complain, groaning into his mouth and pulling him closer. Jeongguk was quick to part, however, and also fast  to nestle his head on the crook of Yoongi's neck, teeth biting into pale skin with the full intent of leaving a mark. Lips curling upwards as the other's head lolled to the side, exposing even more skin. Biting with even more force, sucking at the marks already forming even harder as moans began to fill the room.

At some point, Jeongguk pushed Yoongi to the side, laying both of them down the length of the couch. Sharing soft kisses and gentle caresses as they squished together to avoid falling off. 

"Think you can finish that track now?" 

"Yeah"

"I was serious about the piano part"