Chapter Text
“Hold the door!” A voice shouted across the lobby. You looked up from your phone as the elevator doors began to slide closed in front of you. “Please!”
Without much thought, you reached a hand out to stop the doors, watching as halfway across the lobby the (quite attractive) guy who had initially yelled was nearly tripping over himself in his hurry to reach the elevator. A second man (equally as handsome) was quick to follow the first, hands holding on to the back of the first one’s shirt, as though that would keep him from falling behind his quicker friend.
Your lips twitched up in amusement at the sight straight out of a cartoon as you patiently held the door open for them. A couple other people in the lobby were watching the two with disapproving looks, probably unhappy for the noise in the usually quiet place.
“Thank you!” The second man wheezed out as the two clambered into the elevator. He sent you a boxy smile (even though he was bracing his hands on his knees). You returned with a small smile of your own, nodding your head in acknowledgement.
“What floor?” you asked while they gathered their bearings. The doors began sliding shut again, and this time you let them.
“Fifth.” The first man huffed, not nearly as winded as his companion, but still sufficiently tired out from the scramble to be out of breath.
“Mm, same as me.” You took a step away from the buttons, resting your hands on the metal bar behind you. “In a hurry somewhere?”
“We’d be late for a meeting if we waited for the elevator.”
“Ah. Glad I could help.” You let the conversation rescind naturally as your mind wandered to more pressing matters, like worrying about finding a new roommate.
This wouldn’t be something you’d be worried about if your dearest friend and previous roommate hadn’t left you all alone in the apartment. But Rose had done just that, and so, with a vague explanation, orders to find a new roommate, and a kiss to your forehead, she was gone. So you’d taken it upon yourself to contact your other friends for information. One of them had found two people that came as a package deal, who were looking for an apartment and wouldn’t mind having a third roommate to split the bill. The friend vouched that they were good people.
So here you were, on your way to your friend’s apartment to meet these new potential roommates and see if they were a good match. Not particularly something you were looking forward to, seeing as meeting new people was not your strong suit, but still something that had to be done, because firstly, you had promised Rose you would find a roommate, and secondly, you wouldn’t be able to afford living in your two bedroom apartment by yourself. Even though Rose had left you a large enough sum to tide you over for another month or two, it wouldn’t last forever.
The elevator dinged and you filed out first, steps confident as you headed straight in the direction of your friend’s apartment. The two guys behind you hesitated just outside the elevator, heads swivelling this way and that as they figured out the orientation of the apartment numbers. They must be new to the building.
Deciding to ignore them for the moment, you knocked on your friend’s door. You heard footsteps shuffling behind you: probably the two guys walking past you. You moved a little closer to the door to give them some more space. The door opened and your friend greeted you happily. You paused in your little wave as their eyes drifted past your shoulder. Following their line of sight you found the two guys standing right behind you. Your eyes darted between them and your friend in confusion. It only clicked when your friend spoke up again,
“Taehyung, Jungkook! Welcome!”
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After that initial meeting, you’d interviewed them both over the phone, and you had to admit the two were your best option as far as roommates go.
You’d narrowed the list down to either them or an eccentric college student, and if you were being honest with yourself, you really didn’t want to take the chance of rooming with a partygoer. So today you were going to meet Jungkook and Taehyung to show them around the apartment.
It was still rather early in the morning when you heard the knock at your door. You opened the door with coffee in hand, hands fumbling over the elaborate lock Rose had insisted on getting.
“Good morning!” Taehyung greeted you with a boxy smile. Jungkook mumbled the same greeting just a little ways behind him, wide eyes taking everything in.
“Morning.” You said, opening the door a bit wider to let them in.
The apartment wasn’t particularly large, but it was enough for two people to live comfortably without working everyday just to get by. Three would fit just as comfortably if two were willing to share a room, and that meant even less financial burden on each individual.
The living room, dining room, and kitchen were essentially one big room, and they were the first thing you see as you walk through the door. The only thing separating the kitchen from the dining and living rooms was the kitchen countertop with your very modest decor of a knife block in the form of a human figure, courtesy of Rose, and a ceramic brachiosaurus as a paper towel holder.
Neither you nor Rose had much of an eye for decor, but she had insisted on adding some personal touches to the place.
That was also part of the reason your curtains had a bright floral design.
Jungkook and Taehyung had diligently followed you around the apartment as you showed them the kitchen cabinets and the view from the window. Jungkook had complimented the curtains.
Next there was the little hallway that led to the bedrooms. To the left was the bathroom, small but functioning, next to it was your room, the smaller of the bedrooms, and across from the bathroom was the doorway to the second bedroom.
You led them into the second bedroom, ignoring the ache in your chest from how blank the room was. You could still imagine Rose’s chaotic order in here, with string lights and dried flowers taped to the walls.
“This one’s the bigger of the two, with plenty of closet space.” You explained, opening up the closet to demonstrate. You suppressed a laugh as Taehyung stuck his head inside, presumably to inspect it. Then you turned their attention to the bed and couch, “The couch is a sofa bed, so you can unfold it and use that, but it’s admittedly not the most comfortable.”
“I don’t mind taking the sofabed.” Jungkook piped up, looking around the room with a small smile.
“That’s definitely not a good idea for the long term.” Taehyung argued, squinting at the sofa bed as if it had personally offended him.
Jungkook shrugged in response, unbothered.
“We can always sell it and replace it with a proper bed.” You took a sip of coffee. “If you guys move in within the week I could probably get one before the month is over.”
“Isn’t that expensive?” Jungkook asked, taking another peek into the closet.
“Yeah, sorta. It’s just that I’ve got enough saved to cover next month’s rent, so if you guys move in that money could go towards a new bed.”
“But that’s… your money?” Confusion colored their faces.
“Yeah, but it’s gonna be our apartment, and I’d breathe easier knowing you two are comfortable.” You said, absentmindedly playing with your mug’s handle, “Call it a personal flaw, if you will.”
The two exchanged a look you couldn’t quite decipher. The tour continued and ended quickly, and soon they were shaking your hand, promising to call you soon with their verdict.