mjjikooker1025

[mjjikooker1025]

Understanding Jimin and Jungkook’s dynamic and bond isn’t for those with low reasoning faculties. It takes one with a good amount of life experiences and high level of maturity to really get these two. Their dynamic has never been the simplest to understand because it has layers and depths that not everyone will understand or get. It’s no wonder they are the only two members who many people believe are not close to each other or hate each other. They are the only two who are constantly required to prove their friendship, they are the only two whose every word and action gets picked apart and analyzed so much and it’s been like this since the very beginning.

There is so much more to these two than even so many jikookers realize. There is so much more to them than this entire fandom can fathom and i’m not entirely sure we will ever know just how deep their bond runs.

Watching jikook in the documentary made me realize i know so little about those two. It made me realize those two are perfectly aware of the things they do and say. The time Jungkook went over to Jimin’s to cook in the documentary was around a few months after they created their individual instagram accounts and all members had interactions on instagram with each other, except Jikook. Not once did they like each other’s post, or comment on each other’s posts, even though they liked and commented on other’s. Many jokers got insecure at that time and worried that they broke up, while the cult and other antis claimed that, that was proof that they weren’t close in real life but as it turns out, not only were they in perfect terms but Jk was literally going to cook and hang out in Jimin’s house. While people were out here either worrying about the lack of interactions on instagram, Jimin and Jungkook were hanging out at home, cooking and eating together. They let us see them doing all these this one time but it doesn’t mean that was the only time it happened. The same way we know that back in 2021 during PTD in LA, Jikook worked out together every single day, but they only filmed their workout on one of those days. Last year, many pple were worried because Jimin and Jungkook were never seen hanging out, but my question is, how would you see them hanging out if they prefer hanging out at each other’s places, cooking together, or ordering chicken like we saw in the documentary? So many things have strengthened my belief in the point that Jimin and Jungkook might just prefer hanging out at home.

In 2020, we found out that jimin and Jk were drinking together at night and then Jk ended up with a bruised neck the next day at work. We didn’t see them hangout but they did. In 2020, we know that Jimin and Jk were together at 4am on Jk’s birthday. We never saw them hangout in 2020 but they were together. On Jin’s birthday on the 4th of December in 2020, he called Jimin on Live without warning and guess what? Jimin was with Jungkook. We didn’t see them hangout did we? But they were together. In 2021, we never really saw jikook hang out even once, but we got to find out later that while they were in LA for their concert, they worked out together every single day, ate together and Jk visited Jimin’s hotel room 3 times a day and stayed there for 2-4 hours at a time. Hell, Tae even thought Jimin’s room was Jk’s. Did we see them doing any if these? Did they even act like they did any of these? I still remember jikookers being worried at that time because “jikook looked distant” and according to some people, Jk and Tae looked way closer. Some people even said the energy between Jikook felt off. But alas, those two were TOGETHER almost all day. Again i ask, did they act like it? Nope! Did it seem like it? Nope! But that was the reality. In 2022 after they got their instagrams, jokers were being so insecure and crying on tumblr about Jk and Tae seeming so close and jikook seeming so distant. Little did we know that even though jimin and Jk didn’t ever care to interact with each other on instagram, they still going over to each other’s place and cooking or ordering chicken, drinking together and spending time together.

Do we remember last year on Jk’s Live where he invited Jimin to come over for chicken? Do you see how naturally that came out? Kinda like it was something they did all the time, and even on that Live when Jk was asking Jimin to let him come over for a Live and he could bring his stuff to shower after? You see how naturally he said that? Like it was something they did often. He didn’t feel awkward telling Jimin he will take his things to shower at his place even infront if millions of fans watching. That alone should have told people that maybe, just maybe that was normal to jikook. When we saw him cooking at Jimin’s in the documentary, it felt so natural and domestic. No awkwardness whatsoever, and even the way he walked into the house like the owned the place. If Jimin and Jungkook weren’t extremely close in real life and didn’t spend much time with each other, some of these things would never have felt as natural as they did. The way they sat eating together and talking and laughing felt so domestic and familiar. Even when some people were popping veins last year talking about “Jimin and Jungkook are not close, they rarely see each other” just for everyone to find out that somehow, these two had talked, planned and gone through the application process to enlist together as buddies. Did it seem like it? No it didn’t but that is what was going on in the real world while Jay mina and her minions on twitter swore that Jk didn’t care about Jimin enough to have his number.

Someday, people will realize that the real world is very different from social media. The reality of some of these boys is something some of us will never imagine. BTS members are not fools. They are not idiots. For the most part, they control the narrative they want us to have about them. For the most part, they control what we get to know about them. More often than not, if they don’t want to let us know something, we wouldn’t. They have years and years and years worth of media training under their belts. They are not as clueless as we think they are. The only reason we got to see Tae and Jennie in Paris holding hands is because they didn’t really care if we knew because if they really didn’t want fans to know, they never would have taken that stroll. Sometimes they can be careless yes, (they are human afterall) but 8 outta 10times, those guys are in control of the narrative.

Jimin and Jungkook could very well be in the same damn house every day but if they don’t want you to know, you just wouldn’t know. While we sit here arguing like idiots about who is close and who isn’t, they are probably reading out tweets and and laughing at us while eating chicken together watching a movie. While we are busy analyzing the shit outta their words and actions, they are probably just shaking their heads. I am not in anyway saying that the members lie to us or deceive us, but let’s be honest here, they simply don’t let us in on everything or tell us the whole truth about everything for reasons best known to them. In as much as they are idols are public figures, they reserve a right to some sorta privacy in their lives and they have a right to control the narrative especially when it comes to their private lives.

In a perfect world, us as fans should only know the idols as the idols and public figures they are and not them as people ( not unless they want us to). In a perfect world, there is no reason why we should even know who their parents are, their siblings or loved ones. Because in as much as they are public figures and celebrities, they are HUMAN BEINGS. Human beings with feelings like u and I. We are being intrusive by wanting to know who their romantic partners are, how many siblings they have, where they live etc. In a perfect world this shouldn’t happen but unfortunately we aren’t in a perfect world. So if they cannot stop things like this from happening atleast they should have some right to keep certain things to themselves and it doesn’t matter if they have to lie or pretend to do it.

As i said earlier, i really just realized that we may never be able to completely figure out Jimin and Jungkook. They don’t want us to lol but what i am 100% sure of is that, what those two share is not ordinary. It isn’t in anyway perfect but it is one of those things many of us might never experience in this lifetime.

EDIT:

When Jk enters Jimin’s house, he says “it’s been a while” and to some people, that meant they hadn’t seen each other in a while but guess what?

The date on Jimin’s fridge says March 13th 2022 which was the final day of seoul concert and we could see Jimin calling Jk and asking him to shower and come over in the documentary wearing the same clothes he had on earlier at sound check. One hearing Jk saying “it’s been a while” will think they hadn’t seen each other in a while but they were literally together hours b4 that and guess what? They were together again the next day on white day. ( I cannot post the photo cuz it was taken within their knowledge).

It’s giving that time Jimin asked Jk to come join his birthday Live while he was working out and when Jk got there, Jimin said “I missed you” even though he was literally in Jk’s studio and they probably saw each other hour or less before lol.

You just can’t figure these two out.

[mjjikooker1025]

Jikook and the Untold Narratives

As a hardcore Jikooker who deep-dives into everything related to Jikook, I always have different ideas, theories, and analyses in my mind. But most of the time, I hesitate to contextualize them, develop them into actual essays, and share them in this blog. This post you are about to read was an almost a one-year-old topic running in my head, but I wasn’t sure about writing it until the Bangtan episode for D-Day Seoul concerts came out a few weeks ago, but as a professional procrastinator, it took me this long to write. According to the title this was supposed to be about the narratives related to Jikook, and I tried rooting and analyzing them, but somehow, it turned out mostly as a long rant about hypocrisy and misunderstandings in this fandom. Anyway, these are only my opinions and observations, and I don't claim to be 100% right. I hope you enjoy reading this post.

The Narratives

What do I mean by the narratives? Are there any narratives related to Jikook? Why did I even decide to write about this? Well, at some point I noticed that we, as Jikookers, have always been blamed for falling for "company narratives". It is widely said and believed by Jikook antis that the company wants to represent Jikook as the "couple/ very close and special duo" in BTS to the point that they call the Jikook ship the creation of Bang PD himself. A specific group of antis believe this is for hiding their real relationships, and the rest of them think it's just for fanservice. They think we are fools to fall for it because if Jikook were a real gay couple, they would hide it from us because of homophobia.

I know this is literally a conspiracy theory made by them, but conspiracy theories are also theories, and like any other theory, they have to be based on some external evidence. So, where is the evidence that leads antis to the conspiracy theory of Jikook being the “company couple”? Antis believe everything Jikookers get as moments, is company content, and this content is designed, faked, and manipulated to make us believe Jikook are a couple, and based on their logic, believing the things we see instead of their conspiracy theories means that we have fallen for company narratives. I can’t deny the fact that we get lots of Jikook moments from official content, but this applies to every other duo, not just Jikook. Then what is so special about Jikook that makes antis believe there is a narrative being pushed?

The answer is the nature of the Jikook moments we get. Some of the interactions between Jimin and JK are nothing like the interactions between the other members. The high dosage of couple behavior in these interactions is not justifiable with common excuses like Korean culture, flirty friends, or even KPop fanservice. Therefore, antis need to make up another excuse, which is the conspiracy theory of the company narrative. This narrative contradicts the principle of “Gays have to hide because homophobia, duh!” which their theory is based on. Also shipping culture in other boybands always insisted on the company and management hiding the gay relationship, not pushing it. And this is another thing that makes Jikook different and special.

Let’s deep dive into this contradictive narrative. Being the company couple doesn’t stop in the company narrative and spreads much further. Let’s imagine Jikook is the official couple that the company is investing in, to make fans and the general public believe they are special and gain more money from the narrative. Then the media should follow this agenda and use them together for headlines and clicks. Then fans also have to go with the flow and make their sub-narratives aligned with this agenda. But does any of this happen in reality? The following parts of this post is going to be a long answer to this question.

Company Narratives

Does BigHit/Hybe use Jikook? pairs the two of them together more than others? encourages them to behave in a certain way? includes more interactions of them in the official content intentionally? In order to answer these questions, we need to overview the official content provided by the company. First I have to clarify that not all the official content has the same weight in this examination, and we can classify them into different categories regarding the prevalence and accessibility to the public.

The first category can be called the public content. This type of content is usually free and accessible to everyone online with just a few clicks. These are the things you get when you type the names of the BTS members or songs in a Google search, like official MVs, Bangtan episodes, Run BTS, or live performance videos, that introduced most of us to the Bangtan world. The other category is a part of the main content that is mostly not for free, like documentaries, travel shows, Army zip content, seasonal packages, etc. This content is accessible in its original form to a big group of fans who can afford to pay or know their ways to pirate.

The last category is the content that not all the fans consume despite being officially released, even a big group of them are not aware that this content exists. This group of content might be free or paid, like Behind-the-scenes episodes of the main shows, official DVDs of the concerts, and memories of each year. They are like the leftovers of the main content that for some reason, didn’t end up in the public or main content, and only the dedicated fans or chronically online ones originally consume them.

Disclaimer: This classification was all done by me, and it’s not claimed to be official or accurate. Feel free to disagree and have your own categorization and conclusion. But what is the point of this classification? As I admitted earlier in this post, we get lots of Jikook interactions in official content released by BigHit/Hybe, same as the unofficial content like Vlives/Weverse, social media posts, livestreams, or fancams from concerts or award shows, which gave us so many incredible and unforgettable Jikook moments while they were not released by the company, but my focus is on the official content and how it’s connected to the narrative of comply couple.

If you pay attention to the ship moments, you will notice that they are not equally distributed in the different categories of content I named above. In the first category AKA, the public content, Jikook moments are not much dominant, and all the ships and duos pretty much equally have their moments overall. The second category is almost the same as the first one, maybe the Jikook moments in these two categories still feel more couply and spicy compared to the others but they are still balanced because the editors usually push the extra moments to the last category.

The last category which we can call as “leftovers” is where we get the most of the eyebrow raising moments of the original content, like almost kiss or hickey. It's the content all the extra Jikook moments that had to be cut out of the main content for balancing things up, end up there, and it’s the content not all the fans follow because a big portion of this fandom is not chronically online and do not have stan Twitter/X accounts or care about Twitter trends.  For me, the best example here is the second season of ITS and how all the organic Jikook interactions were pushed to the behind-the-scenes episode with viewers one-third of the main episodes. This doesn’t mean that the main episodes of ITS2 have no Jikook moments, they do, but not more than Taekook or VMin or Jihope, thanks to the modifications done by editors.

So, based on this analysis, can we say there is a narrative going on? I leave the conclusion to you, but I think there is no narrative here other than showing some fun interactions and closeness between the members. They have more of the Jimin and JK interaction moments because Jikook happen to spend more time together and interact more, and these interactions sometimes cross the platonic line regarding the nature of their relationship. I believe if BigHit wanted to palm Jikook off as a couple to the public, they wouldn’t push their couply moments into the content that the vast majority of fans don’t even know about.

Another thing we should keep in mind is that the leftover content is the most organic one, and unlike most of the moments from public or main content (for example the Run BTS episodes or Bon Voyages), there is no script involved. It’s just how members naturally interact and cameras happen to be there to film them. I’m not saying the first two categories are fake. In fact, I believe the majority of the BTS content we get is authentic, and even when there are scripts involved, it’s based on the natural dynamics between the members. If you have been following the members and listened to them carefully in the past decade, you know they are never being forced to do things together against their will, at least not after their rookie era.

Antis also bring up another argument to prove their conspiracy theory, and it is the argument that “Jikook have been paired together a lot”. I don’t have access to any reliable statistical information to confirm that Jikook had the most pairings between the BTS members, but if someone makes this claim, I can partially agree with them. This might not apply in all the eras of Bangtan group activities, but overall, this can be considered as a fact, and it has a simple explanation; Jikook get paired together a lot because they are the main/lead duo, and their vocals match very well, and they can work in sync and communicate perfectly. When a duo can do the job with great chemistry, without wasting time and energy for syncing and communicating, why the company has to give it to any other duo in the group? This is how things work in the entertainment industry, and there are no narratives and forces needed to be involved.

This is mostly about the vocal and dance projects or photoshoots Jikook have done together several times, and there have been no other examples except the potential travel show we know they filmed in 2023 that made antis stand on their conspiracy theory even stronger than before. First of all, we don’t know how and when this travel show will be aired and what agenda it will follow. Will it be this year or the next year? Will it be a whole series or just a 30-minute Bangtan episode? We know nothing until we get an update on it. We are not even sure if they traveled just for the show or if it was an excuse for Jikook to travel before their enlistment. I recommend you to read this post about an interesting theory on the travel show.

Okay, now let’s talk about the other narratives related to Jikook, the ones that were not conspiracy theories and were actually planned by the company. BigHit, as an entertainment label, debuted BTS with a narrative, and Jimin and JK, as the members and a duo, had their designated roles. At first, Jimin got the role of the macho man in the group who had to go through a physical transformation because of it. Fortunately, this harsh role changed after some time, and Jimin got a new narrative. This time, he was the awkward member who became the punchline of the jokes by losing every game, the member who got rejected several times and wasn’t supposed to debut at all.

These parts of the narrative were far from the real Jimin, but some parts were close to his real personality like he is the sweetest member, a hug and gift fairy who is there for the others. But even these positive features were misused and turned Jimin into a cheerleader and outcast who might get “left out by the heartless" bandmates he loves and supports. You may say I’m exaggerating, but these narratives are still going on to this day and feed his antis. These narratives were one of the main reasons Jimin’s successful self-made solo debut became a hard pill to swallow for the majority of fans ad even the company because they expected this triumph from any vocal line member other than Jimin.

As I said earlier, Jikook as a duo also had their narrative since their debut. This narrative was technically a roleplaying between them; Jimin was assigned to show one-sided affection to JK on camera, and JK’s role was to reject Jimin and rank him as the least handsome member. This narrative went on for some time until it stopped around 2014/2015, but the damage was already done. Some people might question this one-sided affection being a narrative by BigHit. I’m sorry, but if you think a teenage rookie idol in KPop can show real affection in public to his same-sex bandmate, the joke is on you. I know most fans believed this roleplaying, and that was where everything went wrong.

Antis may say this narrative by itself "birthed the Jikookers breed", while it did the opposite. Despite this narrative being over for years, its aftermath is still visible in the fandom, and even dramatic Jikookers use it for their “fell first, fell harder” agenda, which I find really toxic and damaging. Other than portraying JK as a mean and insensitive kid, this roleplaying with the help of the narrative of awkward Jimin, turned Jikook into something unacceptable and even cringe-worthy because “how could JK even like Jimin when he hated and rejected him for years? because Jimin is not likable and makes JK uncomfortable”. It’s ironic, but the antis who keep repeating these lies, are in fact the ones who fall for the company narratives.

If Hybe wanted to push the narrative of Jikook being in a relationship, why did they pick such an unusual approach that backfired, and turned fans against them, and drawn them to the other ships? Hybe not only doesn’t promote Jikook more than other duos but also stops them from becoming mainstream by pushing their moments to the content no one sees. Maybe this is their way of gatekeeping and protecting Jikook which I appreciate, but it’s time for this fandom to realize that Jikook has nothing to do with the company narrative, and in fact it’s the opposite.

For example, in one of the recent Bangtan episodes (public content), when JK was resting backstage at his music show, and Tae came to visit, according to the Weverse live JK had before the show, we knew they cut the part where he said “Army” was looking for his whereabouts because otherwise, it would look like he doesn’t care where he was. But in the other Bangtan episode, they didn’t hesitate to keep the part where Jimin sounded like being left out, meanwhile, we knew all of them were headed to the same destination to celebrate Yoongi’s last concert. because that’s the narrative they push, the narrative of Jimin being left alone and Jikook having nothing to do with each other.

If Jikook were the company couple, they would have sat down together to announce their ship name for the official content. If Jikook were the company couple, Hybe would not cut out their moments, and we would have gotten some content from their numerous rendezvouses during the SYS tour in the US and Europe, but we got nothing, not even for the leftover content. If Jikook were the company couple, Hybe would not released their buddy system announcement only in the Korean version of the statement. If Jikook were the company couple, the GCF videos that had started with Jimin, would have been kept that way, and wouldn’t be turned into ot7 videos. If they can’t force JK, then nothing is forced.

If Jikook were the company couple, they would not plan Yoonmin/Taekook's solo debuts at the same time to make them appear in the same promotional activities and namedrop each other. This doesn’t mean Yoonmin/Taekook are the company couple, in fact, the dumbest question is "Jikook or Taekook?" The whole point is, that there was never a ship agenda, they never tried to push any ship as the real one to the general public or common fans. But their bonds have been used a lot for clicks and clout, and as a Jikooker I am confident enough to say I was not the one falling for any narratives or mediaplay by the company or media.

Media and Jikook

It’s a known fact that all different forms of media earn money from public attention, this is what keeps them going on. I said earlier, that if Jikook were the company couple, and Hybe intended to promote them as the official duo, then the media wouldn’t lose this opportunity to chase the clout because in that case, they would have the permission to follow this agenda and use the duo for headlines and clicks, but in reality this doesn’t happen to Jikook.

I’m not saying that Jikook don’t get any media coverage, they do. The media inside or outside Korea make headlines for their duo activities like the Black Swan dance or vocal collaborations, but there are many examples that Jikook didn’t make it to the headlines while another duo did in a very similar situation. I bring an example from Dispatch that everyone knows has the closest connection to Hybe; when Jimin posted the shirtless photo of them together for JK’s birthday, this media didn’t make any headlines for it, not even as the announcement of Jimin greeting JK's birthday.

But when Tae posted the screenshot of his video call with JK the night before his enlistment, while they were both shirtless, it became a headline on the Dispatch website. If you check the Dispatch website for 2023, you will not find anything about Jikook other than their departure and arrival together for the Japan trip, even their trip together in NY was not worthy news for this outlet. Also their joint enlistment in the military, despite being the first and only case of Buddy System in the KPop industry, didn’t get much media attention or specific headlines.

Jikook have never attended any event as a duo, they never had a photocall together as a duo, and since they have never made an official name for themselves, the media can't use a duo name for them. Meanwhile, they can use “Taekook” for the Tae and JK duo in their headlines and tags because the company has permitted by making this duo name official. As I mentioned earlier, I do not believe that Taekook or any other ship is the official one, but the audacity of antis to ignore these facts and label Jikook as the company couple is just ironic.

I’m not really interested in giving examples from Taekook, but I have no other option. Everyone remembers the premiere night of the movie “Dreamers” in April last year when Tae and JK attended together and had their photocall moment. Like any other movie premiere with big stars, this event also was covered by the media, but they got the biggest attention and social media engagement because of Taekook appearing together. Even though the reports of JK being shy and having a feminine haircut caused Taekookers to think they were being announced as a couple lol, in general, it was a pleasant moment until it wasn’t anymore.

A few months later, in August, a similar event was about to happen, and the media announced that Tae was going to attend his friend’s new movie premiere along with JK. As expected, a big wave of social media engagement started, but JK didn’t show up. I don’t know if he never intended to go or if he changed his mind just before the event because according to Dispatch, his name was in the guest list. All we know is that he logged into the Bangtan official Twitter account after years and posted some random photos just an hour before the event and logged out.

After that embarrassing moment for the media, I was expecting them to stop using Taekook for mediaplay, but they didn’t stop, and again in November, the media outlets reported that Tae would attend JK’s solo concert while we knew he was busy recording his Running Man episode the same day. I’m sure the media knew it better, but chasing the clout was their priority. There are many other examples of how media doesn’t work in favor of the “company couple narrative” for Jikook, but I will stop here because this post is getting too long.

Fandom Agendas

When there is a successful narrative launched by an entertainment label, the fandoms go with the flow, and alongside accepting the main narrative they make their own sub-narratives aligned with this agenda. But in the case of Jikook, this is far from the truth. When I say fans, I mean the collective representation of a group supporting an artist, something non-fans see from the outside, not just a focus group. Yes, we Jikookers exist but we don’t represent or control this fandom. According to some unofficial polls, we are not even between the top three of the biggest groups of shippers. So, it’s safe to say the so called narrative of Jikook has not been successful. 

It’s not a secret that this fandom is against Jikook, but the discussion doesn’t end here. The sub-narratives made in the fandom have their own story. This opposition with Jikook contradicted their observations of them being close and always together, and they had to make the sub-narrative to justify it. But since they had already accepted another narrative made by BigHit, it wasn't a hard one. They decided that "Every interaction between Jikook is initiated by Jimin because he has always been in love with JK, and anything JK does is forced because he has always been uncomfortable with Jimin." This narrative and its sub-narratives caused Jimin to be labeled as the intruder and much worse names I will not mention, and it caused him to get so much hate, especially after every interaction he has with JK. It's true that he has the biggest fandom and the most devoted and supportive fans, but his anti-fans are also the biggest and the vilest ones.

JK also had his sub-narrative made by fans, and according to the vast majority of them, he is a straight playboy. I don't know where this sub-narrative comes from, maybe confessing to having a girlfriend as a teen or naming himself the "international playboy" did it for fans and made them ignore all the queerness in his personality and behavior, but this is the reason this fandom treats his "dating rumors" very differently even by his gay shippers. Army joke and say he is scared of girls, but they never make stories up about him being uninterested in women like they did for others (for example: an influencer asked Tae for his phone number, and he gave his manager's number, 100% fictional, but vastly believed as fact).

It’s actually quite funny when we see a local Youtuber is able to guess Jikook are the closest just by watching a few minutes of content, but the fans who have been here for a decade can’t and don’t want to see it, they can’t even let go of the 2013 jokes of “JK hates Jimin”, let alone accepting that they are close. They do any mental gymnastics they can to normalize, delegitimize, or ot7ify Jikook moments, meanwhile, when JK and Tae, themselves talk about drifting apart, fans dismiss it and call it fake. For example, last year, when Jikook were in Tokyo, JK was seen leaving the location of his shooting, which was a hotel different from the hotel where Jimin was staying, antis said: “They hate each other, to the point they can’t stay at the same hotel”. While a trip would have been solid proof for any duo in BTS to be close and in love, for Jikook, it becomes the reason for being distant and despising each other, and this is the hypocrisy of our fandom.

Maybe we get lots of Jikook from official content, it’s the outcome of Jikook’s closeness, but in the end, it’s Jikook themselves who confirm it with their behavior. When antis were celebrating Jikook not interacting, amid their lack of public appearance, it was JK who showed his love and support for Jimin by streaming his videos on YouTube. When antis claimed they don’t spend time together, it was JK who begged Jimin in his half-naked live to join him. He went live at his place right after the movie premiere, and musical theater, and explained the situation after Vhope did a live there. He explained Tae's claims about recording Layover at his place and talked about his delightful alone time when he was at the ski resort with Tae and his friends. He read JeonJimin comment out loud and announced that he wouldn’t stop holding Jimin. Maybe an older example is his post on Weverse right after the 2020 Taekook live apologizing for not talking much, and then a month later, when he went live with Jimin, he made it clear that he had a great time just doing the live.

These examples are countless, but there is no hope for the fans who even label the moments from unofficial content like lives and posts as planned or even forced by the company. If you think antis will let us have a happy day and enjoy the legit Jikook moments, you are mistaken. If there is Jikook, they always find a way to ruin it with their toxicity, and if there’s no Jikook, they use it to hurt us and spread their lies and fake moments on every social media platform.

Antis have the upper hand in social media because Hybe failed the so-called Jikook narrative, and it not just didn’t become the mainstream ship of Bangtan, but also fans turned against it. Despite this failure, Jikook still bothers antis so much, and they try hard to fight it and its shippers, but these fights and attacks are limited to social media. Whatever they do on social media, the hashtags they trend, the lies and hateful tweets and comments they leave out, are not gonna affect what Jikook have in real life because Jikook are real people, and against all the odds and real struggles, they are together and closer than ever.

[mjjikooker1025]

Hello my lovely angels! Long time no see..well I've been drowning in course work whilst trying to figure out court hearings hehe, also I have formative assessments starting next month, please wish me luck😭 and once again Nel has digressed sorry🙈

OMDS the story, please im so mad at myself for gate keeping this fic from me, only I am to be blamed, cause why I have i visted this fic 15 TIMES on my A03 and I never read it before like waaa 🙂

Please this story!! Lawyer jiminie!! CEO kookie!! Enemies to lovers! YOU HAVE MY ATTENTION🤍 this story has my heart! Please do give it a chance, it deserves all the love🤍 also please read tags:)

[mjjikooker1025]

Love Defined - Jikook

I read this post about a man who lost his wife of 55 years. His two adult children took him back to the cemetery at 11pm, per his request, the day of the funeral. He hugged her tombstone, cried and talked to her. He was able to let her go that night. He told his kids that he was glad she went before him. That way she did not have to suffer the loss of him and try to continue life alone without her mate of 55 years.

His daughter said I understood what true love is; It is far from romanticism, it does not have much to do with eroticism, or with sex, rather it is linked to work, to complement, to care and, above all, to the true love that two really committed people profess ".

I immediately thought of Jimin and Jungkook. Yes, they are young and in their sexual prime….but their love for each other goes so much deeper than sex. Just like what the women said above, I see her definition exhibited by Jimin and Jungkook daily. From their friendship, their partnership, to their commitment over the years. They have been each others family and support through the good times and bad times as they navigated the world as singers and dancers in one of the most popular bands of all time.

To me, the ultimate declaration of commitment to each other was when they enlisted together. They not only support each other, but they also depend on each other. They have been together for 8-10 years. They have experienced life together as a couple and been through more than most couples who have been together 20+ years experience (other than children….I hope kids will come in the next 10+ years for them). Once they finish this major tour starting next fall, I believe they will semi-retire from BTS group activities and concentrate on solo careers, personal projects and personal relationships.

[mjjikooker1025]

can you do a post about jikook's dynamics?

jikook’s relationship is really complex, in a way. all the bickering and teasing, but also sweet moments, are explained really well in their aspects:

jimin’s sun square jungkook’s moon -  “there can be strong attraction, but in time, plenty of disagreements. each person can find the other selfish at times, too demanding, or too over-bearing. although they may feel like they belong together in some way, it can be a problematic union” this aspect explains the literal push and pull between them.

jimin’s venus square jungkook’s uranus -  “attraction is strong, but there is something inconstant in this partnership. It may be that the feelings run hot and cold, or that circumstances are such that their feelings for one another are interrupted often. freedom and space should be liberal”

these may seem negative, but they also confirm just how strong the attraction between each other is, maybe even too strong at times 👀

jimin’s moon sqaure jungkook’s pluto - “strong physical and emotional attraction, passion is sometimes uncontrolled, with possible possessiveness or jealousy”

but at the end of the day, there’s something that keeps them together, makes the relationship agreeable, and balances out the strong aspects i mentioned above:

jimin’s sun conjunct jungkook’s venus - “it’s not only about love, it’s about like. they go well together, they love each other, and feel good, happy and radiant in each other’s company. there is much attraction, especially on the part of the venus person” in other words, jungkook’s libra venus attracts him to jimin’s libra sun. in jungkook’s eyes jimin is ideal~

[mjjikooker1025]

The Chicken or the Egg: Jikook Travel Show

This is my unhinged theory. It is just a theory. I state nothing as fact except the things that I actually listed that are facts. Enjoy!

___________________________________

For those of you who really don’t want to read all of this, I will open at the close with a brief summary.  I propose that there was never a chicken at all.  It was always about the egg and only the egg.  The chicken was just a clever ruse.

Thank you for reading.  You may scroll on. Have a wonderful day💜

___________________________________

Some of you appear to still be reading. Ok. For those of you are inexplicably still here, I will carry on with my convoluted theory of eggs and chicken (all this talk of food is making me hungry). I think I want some chicken and eggs.

So, let’s start shall we?

When I first started stanning BTS back in November of 2014, I immediately learned about this thing called mandatory military service. MY IRL who pulled me into ARMY life spoke about it often, almost as a warning to me of what I was getting into. 

As an American, the concept of mandatory service was foreign to me because our draft in the United States has been dormant since Vietnam in the 70's.  But as I learned more about the SK culture and the precarious “active war” situation that they were living in, I began to understand more about why the country deemed mandatory service necessary.  

Even though I knew all of this, it still didn’t really register in my mind exactly what it would mean down the road. In my mind, it was sooooo far down the line, that I wondered if I would even still stan BTS by the time it happened. I had no idea that I was embarking on a life long journey that would change my life forever. My IRL friend who was Korean, warned me from day one. She told me to protect my heart and be ready for the day that they would eventually have to leave. She insisted it was a thing, a thing that could tear my heart out if I wasn’t ready.  (Needless to say even with nine years warning, I still wasn’t ready when it actually happened)

But in addition to the warnings that she gave me about everything else, she also mentioned something casually in passing.  I believe her exact words were - “Yeah and they probably won’t be able to tour much either in the 6-12 months before they serve because they are not allowed to leave the country just before they enlist.” 

Pin that thought because it will be important later.

I accepted all of this back then, not fully understanding the impact it would have on me later.

Now let’s skip to later.  

Jikook has always stood out to me as “careful” about revealing what REALLY goes on between them; except during the rare times when they just can’t help it.  They willingly give us hints - some to garish to overlook. They give us enough to come to the conclusion that they have a relationship that is possibly romantic. But overall, they are careful not to share too much. It's not because they particularly care what we think, but because they are protective of the true nature of their relationship in general. There are things they show us and things they don’t.  It all depends on their comfort level.

But it wasn’t until late December of 2024 that I realized just how truly stealthy and protective they really are.  Forgive me for not remember the exact dates, but I believe it was late December 5th when we learned of their plan to enlist together.

And this is when we learned that despite months and months and months of planning, plotting, paperwork, interviews and work behind the scenes, they never gave the fandom a single clue about what they had planned for MS.

In fact, to the world at large, Jikook appeared to really embody the spirit of individuality of Chapter Two. We saw them with other friends, other members, in other cities, but never together. For us who were watching it all play out, it appeared as if Jikook barely saw each other, barely spoke and were living their "true lives" which did not involve always being together. 

Think about it - they wouldn’t even do Tik Tok challenges together even though they did them with everyone else.  Sometimes they would even tease us by doing the same challenge in the same building with different people. Think about it. It was so strange and Jikookers were giving them the bombastic side-eye because we knew something was off.

They kept their distance and really fooled some of us. Let’s be fair, both were busy with their own projects. Jimin truly was working.  Jk was truly working.  They were putting together incredible projects for us - both of which were some of the best music and performances of my lifetime.

Still, there was a perception in the universe that they were spending less time together and barely even talking. Jk spending his time begging JM to come and see him and even crying at some points and dressing up for white day - didn't help matters either.

But we soon learned that there was a much greater plan in play. As the saying goes, we were playing checkers, but they were playing chess. In my opinion, allowing the fandom to think that there was some sort of natural drift between Jikook as part of Chapter two was very intentional. However, Jikookers were never fooled. Even with what we saw in chapter two, most of us Jikookers knew they were in constant contact because our Spidey senses told us.  We are in sync with them and we know how they move behind the scenes. We know their history. We understand their preference for each other. 

 But even the most dialed in Jikookers never saw the buddy enlistment coming.  It shocked all of us, to the point where we spent days and days trying to verify if it was really possible. We were bamboozled because the truth of what was really going in the background was nothing we could have imagined.

Was the entire fandom victims of a con job? Yes. Yes we were.

This entire scheme was very well-played.  Very well organized, very Jikook-ish and I applaud them.  They protected their plan vehemently which probably aided in the success of the overall scheme. And I call it a scheme because it takes alot of work, forethought and planning to keep this kind of information away from ARMY. Given all of the leaks, even out of the military, the planning had to be coordinated from the very highest level.  And I think we all know why they kept it a secret.  It’s just further evidence that they know how toxic this fandom can be and how toxic fans (or even supportive fans) could have intervened and caused significant problems for them and their bid to enlist together. I mean GOD FORBID, members of other ships send protest trucks to military bases to keep them from enlisting together. In fact, someone can remind me in the comments, but didn’t another ship send emails directly to the military demanding that they not be allowed to serve together?  Wasn't there even a formal complaint against them?

Well it didn't matter. Because by the time we found out, it was too late for anyone to sabotage their plan. Again I say WELL PLAYED JIKOOK! If this information had been leaked earlier, it could have easily affected their ability to get approved for this very competitive program. But these two were so skillful in the execution; so methodical and intentional which proves just how much they wanted this to happen.  Its a sign of how desperately they wanted to be together.  Hats off to Jikook. 

But here is where I get back to the topic at hand - the egg and chicken situation.  After all was said and done and Jikook learned that their bid for buddy enlistment had been approved, we started to see them act a little less “careful” didn’t we?  After months and months and months of their keeping their distance and seemingly not spending any time together, we suddenly saw them together alot. I mean ALOT alot.  It felt like a switch was flipped and the coast was finally clear for them to return to baseline. The mission was completed and there was nothing that fans could to do to change the outcome. So for the first time in a looooooong time, they made their interactions public because it was safe to do so.   

[On a side note, my heart breaks when I think back to how much JK was missing JM and how many times he begged him to come over or got overly excited when he saw him in the comments. He single handedly held a three hour launch party for FACE. He's just such a sweet man and JM means so much to him. (In a later post, I will talk a little more about just how much JM also missed Jk during their time apart. But that will be in another post.) Jk's behavior during their down time was a reminder that these two are organically joined at the hip. Denying themselves the ability to be together was a great sacrifice within itself.]

I don’t have all of the receipts or the exact dates for when Jikook suddenly began their private travels, but I think you get the point. They were everywhere together.

They kicked off this season of togetherness in the BIGGEST way possible. Jimin showed up in NY for JKs debut.  This was the start of Jk's solo career and he was so nervous.

And then out of the blue without any warning, Jimin showed up. Remember that picture of him stepping out of the van in NY with those sexy freshly waxed legs? My guy was ready for ANYTHING.  Smooth and sexy.

Not only was Jimin there, he seemed to be very discreetly traveling to some of JKs venues with him. We learned later when Jk was absolutely ambushed by the interviewer, that JM was likely there with him on the GMA set.  Jk pretended not to understand what she was asking even though he knew damn well she said Jimin’s name. He waited for the translator in order to buy him more time to think of his answer. Remember the infamous gesture towards the back stage when he answered the question about Jimin?

But YES, Jimin was possibly there on set with him, we can reasonably assume even though we don't know for sure. And once again the fandom was stunned. Out of nowhere, he showed up at the most important moment of Jks life.  So many people tried to downplay it and say he was there for EVERYBODY. And he was there for as many of the members as he could be. But that doesn't mean his presence at Jk's premier wasn't special.

I would argue that Jimin's visit to NY with Jk was very special because of what happened next. Jimin didn't just go home.

There was constant garbage being spewed about how Jk was working and JM was there by coincidence because he was working too. Although we never got confirmation that JM was working at all. And we know for a fact that Jk had a few days off where he WAS NOT WORKING just before traveling to London. The answer to if they were working or not working matters. I will share later.

And guess what JM did? He stayed with Jk during his time off. We were stunned once again when we saw them leave NY and go on a private vacation, isolated away from everyone, including management per some of the reports. Jimin gave us the first official clue, but it was to be the last that came directly from them.

The first clue that they were alone together on vacation came quite accidentally. But it didn't stop there. For FOUR looooong days we had no idea where they were or what they were doing. It was a complete mystery and they once again went into stealth mode. The only reason we knew they traveled to Connecticut was because of more witnesses who barely knew who they were. We know staff was with them on the boat. But when they were seen in the convenience store and then in the bar, they appeared to be alone. (Not sure if we verified that, but going off of what I read at the time)

And look here, there is a low quality camera in JKs hand. Considering how much he likes to film and how talented he is, it seemed odd to me at the time that he would have such a mid-level camera instead of asking one of the staff members to bring his personal equipment. Strange right? Well, I have an answer for you - keep reading.

These two disappeared and not a soul knew where they were. Well played Jikook. Another successful game of chess while the rest of us are playing Go Fish.

But there was more. The next trip that also popped up as a surprise was the trip to Japan.

We know for sure that JK was working. So that checks the box. It was work. We saw one of the most intimate moments between the two of them that we've seen since 2018. And they were looking VERY VERY VERY coupley during that Japan trip.  To the point where someone thought JM was JKs blond girlfriend. It was truly a jaw dropping moment. Where we even saw them matching again, like old times.

These pictures and the magnetic pull that you can SEE between them, plus the news that they were enlisting together but still traveling alone together WOKE UP THE WORLD!

In addition, by this time it was mostly undeniable that Jimin was NOT working on anything official. Yet we all kept hearing references to their "travel show". And the question kept popping up amongst Jikookers. why are they working so close to the time of their enlistment when they should be spending time with their families. Why is this "travel show" so important to them?

So now you're thinking, did this crazy bitch just put "travel show" in sarcastic quotes? Yes. Yes I did. Keep reading.

And then there was Sapporo, the most romantic getaway location that two couples can escape to in Japan. It was yet another seemingly romantic getaway with just the two of them where they COMPLETELY DISAPPEARED! We saw noting. Not a single sec of footage or photos from this trip. (other than the airport stuff) Once again, Jikookers gave the bombastic side-eye. Our lot can always tell when something is not quite right.

As someone who invests most of my time in thought equity, I thought alot about these sudden trips. We were constantly being told they were for work. It’s work. Nothing but work. "Travel show" this, and "travel show" that. We were told not to read anything into it other than work.  And that’s when a conversation from 2015 popped right into my head. I asked myself the question - How is it that JM and Jk can travel all over the world when they have just a few weeks left before they have to report for service?  Why are they allowed to leave the country at all? This question plagued me. I even tried to reach out to my friend who told me about this because I had to know. She had never thought about it either. From everything we both knew, soldiers who were about to enter the military could NOT leave the country at all, no exceptions.

Well in typical nerdy-as-fuck Dawnie fashion,  I jumped head first into Korean military code of ethics and Military Manpower Administration to find answers.  Which of course led me to the Enforcement decree of the Korean Military Service Act. What I found changed everything for me. It fundamentally shifted how I perceived the final weeks of Jikook travel patterns just prior to the enlistment.

Let’s get into it:

Please keep in mind that I am not an attorney. I am not a Korean citizen, nor military, nor anything that makes me an expert in this area. I am just reading and researching and drawing my own conclusions. I listed my references so that you can read and draw your own conclusions as well. The entire MMA code is there for you to study.

But the way that I interpreted this: Anyone between the ages of 25 - 27 who has NOT yet fulfilled their military service duty must receive an overseas Travel Permit. Contrary to what I was told back in 2015, members CAN INDEED travel overseas within 12 months of service.  They just have to get permission.  And that makes sense because we know that our guys have been all over the world. Article 145 and 146 are referenced below. This applies to all members because we know they all traveled and none of them at the time of this post had completed their military service.

BTS is not exempt.  If they were, then they would be exempt from serving at all.  They get the same treatment as everyone else, which means they had to get permits to travel.

The next thing I stumbled upon was HOW permission was granted. What were the circumstances under which they would be allowed to go to either Japan or United States? And this is where I broke out into feverish, uncontrollable Jikook giggles. 

There was only ONE way that the members could qualify. Check out #7. THEY HAVE TO BE WORKING!

Ok, let's land this plane shall we?

I don’t know about you, but if I wanted a reason to travel on romantic vacations with my sexy boyfriend to other countries and spend quality time alone while showing off my freshly waxed legs, I could easily pull out a go-pro camera and say that I was “working”. 

Are you following me? Are you picking up what I'm putting down? (My dad says that all the time and I never know what the hell he's talking about)

Now don’t crawl up my ass with your complaints, because this is just my theory.  

For many of these trips JK was working. But JM WAS NOT.  We've already established that he had no verifiable schedules. Sure he may have done a little something here and there, but nothing that matched up with the full timelines that he probably had to add to his travel permit. So how was he allowed to go? The only way he could be granted a travel permit so close to his enlistment is through a working assignment in the country to which he was traveling.  Remember Jk said that the "travel show was not planned." It just kind of happened. 

My theory is that it wasn’t planned because the travel show was just a chicken. 

So Dawnie are you saying the travel show wasn’t really real? Yes, I am. The "travel show" was an event that was never really meant to happen.  It became a convenient excuse to justify them being able to travel for a work trip. The chicken that was just a clever ruse to hide the real intent of this last minute travel.  

But the egg is what actually came first.  And what exactly was the egg? The egg was the very romantic travel between two members who wanted some freaking time alone. They needed to make up for lost time.  They needed to say things that they hadn’t been able to say before.  They wanted to relax in each other’s arms without the world peering in. They wanted their last moments of freedom to be with each other.  Jk had repeatedly begged for JM and JM had repeatedly said no out of necessity. But do you really think there is a world where JM wouldn't give JK exactly everything he wanted? Especially given how miserable they both seemed to be without each other.

Ok so am I possibly over stating this? No, not really.  I don't claim anything sexual happened or that they got married or any other such speculation. But I do claim that this egg - was indeed a very intimate trip based on whatever intimacy means to them. In fact all of the trips were, possibly even the one to Jeju island.

Why else would they spend this time alone at such a pivotal moment when they should have been with their families, pets, parents, friends?  They needed this time together.  And the wildest part is that they knew they were going to be together for 15 loooong months yet they had these very private days alone anyway. We cannot compare the time they spent alone to the time they will spend by each other's sides in military service. We all know that they will have to adopt completely different personas and methods of interaction once inside the military. 

So the last few days alone before going in, allowed them to be themselves and interact organically.  If you don’t believe me - take a look at just how CUDDLY they were after returning from Sapporo. (Jk was fresh off of filming with Usher -another tribute that I feel was for Jimin). But it was their first time seeing each other publicly since their Sapporo trip. It's that same post-vacation cuddly bliss that we saw right after GCFT. I mean just look at them!

HELP!

There is absolutely NO reason to hold his hand! You didn't just meet. You don't need to introduce yourselves. They do this whenever they want to hold hands. We all know. HELP!

HIS FULL FACE IS IN JIMIN'S CROTCH and Jimin just allowed it. How comfortable do you have to be with someone to casually allow this and not flinch or wince or jump AND keep your hands behind your back like nothing is happening. Yet a few minutes ago they shook hands like they just met. Give me a full break LOL!!!

What in the hungry hungry hippo is going on here? This is soooooooo clingy. Keep in mind, at the time of this filming, these two presumably hadn't spent quality time with each for almost an entire year up until they were finally able to travel together. They missed each other alot and it shows.

I am going to link a full video for you down at the end, but watch at 0:34 JK is rubbing his back and they are staring at each other so hard that Namjoon has to break them up and bring them back to earth. Y'all WTF? I am flabbergasted by their post Japan behavior YET AGAIN! You cannot tell me that these two did not bond ever more on that trip. My point here is that these two were acting like they were about to separate for years and never see each other again. But in reality, they were off to the same damn place where they would be stuck together for 15 months. This is why I believe in the egg - not the chicken.

The "travel show" is real and I believe we will get it. However, I don't feel the need to see it like other Jikookers. The reason I am not super amped to see it is because I truly believe it was their egg, their private time. Sure there will be some fan friendly moments that they will have to show us to prove they were on "work" trips. But I think the truth of what those trips meant to them can be seen in their final goodbye above. The smiles, the chemistry, the stares, the reconnection that they so badly needed. That is the true purpose behind those trips and in a way, I wish they could always keep them private. The show within itself is not as it appears to be IMO. It really is just a thinly veiled cover up for two people who wanted some alone-time with each other without having to explain to the world why they needed it.

When it comes, I will watch it of course because I love these two with my entire heart. I will watch anything they share with me.

Again, these are only my theories. We won’t really know for sure what went on until we get the actual travel show.  But again, JK already told us it was a mess and it was unplanned. And that is because it was just a chicken.  Now I shall close where I opened. The age old question of which came first, the chicken or the egg?  The egg of course. The love that these two share, the companionship, the preference for each other, the willingness to sacrifice for each other is the egg. It has always been the egg and it has always come first no matter what.  Everything else we see is a life spawned from the fertile core of their bond. I've always been a feverish delusional Jikooker, but these days my thoughts are grounded I the reality of what I see right in front of me. These two chose to be together during one of the most volatile times in our global. history. They chose the front lines just so they could be together. They sacrificed everything just so they could be together. They will forever be linked by their decision to serve together. I am not even sure any other Idols have ever done this. I tried to find some, but I couldn't. SO they may very well be the FIRST to ever do this. They set history together. They made sure that forever their names are spoken together.

Lastly, I leave you with this. How long have they been planning this? I suspect it was a very long time. My very last theory is this.

Do you remember how strange it was that JM and JK were the lead characters in the Magic Shop? In fact Jimin owned the Magic Shop. Why was there so much emphasis on the storyline between Jimin and Jk? Well guys, I think this is the answer. I think it was back here where they started planning to enlist together. It's also the answer to why they were the only two names listed in the Magic Shop archives.

It is my theory that Magic shop was indeed about Jikook making the decision to commit to enlistment together. I also believe THIS is why they were the only two names listed during the last Magic Shop scene where they closed the files. (Pic above). Remember how mysterious that was? Well I think we finally have our answer.

Well that is all I have for now. Thank you for reading all of this. I love you, be healthy safe and happy please. See you next time.

[mjjikooker1025]

Okay you should know by now that I'm weak for enemies to lovers tropes, but my loves when I say I have a new fondness for magical/witches fics! I am not lying! And this story right here has my WHOLE HEART! Like please the tension! The love! The angst! The portions! Omds I read it one sitting and I did not even do my coursework but who cares cause this story was INCREDIBLE🤍🫶🏻 please do give it a chance and read tags :) jikook here are just everything!!

My brain keeps saying, "NEL you gotta study!!" But my heart tells me to keep reading😭

[mjjikooker1025]

After a horrible break-up, Jimin moves in with his bestie Tae and a younger man named Jungkook. And even though he is newly single, Jimin is having a very hard time not falling for the sweetheart that is Jungkook. He's so caring and thoughtful of Jimin's feelings, and the older man just wants to swoon over how sweetly Jungkook treats him.

But when Jimin has an unwanted reunion with his toxic ex, Jungkook swoops in to defend Jimin's honor, showing the older man a side to him that Jimin never knew existed. Where did all these muscles come from? What do you mean he can fight? Gone is the innocent baby gay JK who dresses in oversized hoodies and jeans. In his place is a sexy muscle bunny, who also harbors a secret crush on his new roommate.

Seems like moving in with Tae turned out to be the best decision of his life.

Despite the angst in the middle of the fic, this is really quite a fluffy and domestic story. Jimin is absolutely smitten with JK. And who could blame him? JK is just as whipped, and is more than happy to show Jimin that he can be the man he deserves.

Everyone in this fic is VERY gay, and the brunches that Jimin, Tae and Jin have are hysterical.

I'm probably doing a horrible job at summarizing this cuz I'm quite stoned on pain pills, but I promise this is a great story.

[mjjikooker1025]

What Is Like Crazy About?

Since the day "Like Crazy" was released, I wanted to post about it, but couldn't get the time to focus and do a comprehensive analysis. Finally, right before the first anniversary of this masterpiece, I got the time, and the post is ready now. Before starting off, I have to remind you of the fact that a work of art can be interpreted in many different ways, and none of those interpretations are necessarily right or wrong. Every work of art contains a message that is the artist’s main intention from that creation, but the artist doesn’t have to explain it to the audience because a true work of art speaks for itself, even though not all audiences can receive it thoroughly.

I know that in the past year, so many different types of analyses and theories were made by fans to explain this song, and most definitely, I couldn’t keep up with all of them. Therefore, I’m not claiming my analysis to be a breakthrough, and you might have read most parts of it somewhere else. In this post, we are going to discuss “Like Crazy” from a lyrical and conceptual point of view, trying to find out what message or messages Jimin wanted to convey by creating it.

About “Like Crazy”

“Like Crazy” as the title track for Jimin's first solo album, "FACE", stole the hearts of millions of fans and locals around the world, and inarguably became one of the most successful pop songs of the year 2023. I can talk for hours about how beautiful and successful “Like Crazy” is, and how it broke KPop boundaries and countless records. But, in this post, we are going to break to the surface and talk about the meanings and motivations behind this song and answer the questions like “How this song was made?” “What was Jimin's intention in writing these romantic lyrics?”

As I mentioned earlier, artists usually don’t directly address their main message and their intention in creating a form of art, but many of them speak about the motivations and inspirations that led them to the creation. Jimin hasn’t talked much about the sources of inspiration behind individual tracks of “FACE”, but I guess “Like Crazy” was an exception for him because he revealed on several occasions that he was inspired by “Like Crazy”, the movie. And this piece of information is the key to our analysis:

"I tried to express the feelings of that movie. You know, the somewhat complex, somewhat lonely, somewhat happy emotions. I tried to express all these ambiguous and subtle emotions in a slightly sexy way, but I’m not sure how it’ll end up being received by people.”

Like Crazy, The Movie

First of all, we need to keep in mind that “Like Crazy” is a completely original song, and Jimin has not used or sampled any songs, lines, or dialogues from the movie in his lyrical or visual concepts (even the intro and outro dialogues in the song were original and not from the movie). If Jimin had not stated his source of inspiration directly, the only hint that could have led us to it would be the title of the song, which duplicates the title of the movie since the title never appears in the lyrics.

So, Jimin chose this specific name for his song and announced his source of inspiration to make it clear that there is a straight and strong connection between the song and the movie. He made it clear that this connection is 100% conceptual and emotional, and if we want to know what “Like Crazy” is about, and what ambiguous and subtle feelings Jimin is talking about, we have to redirect the analysis to the concept of the movie, “Like Crazy”.

As we all know, “Like Crazy” is a romantic movie, and Drake Doremus directed it casting "Felicity Jones" and the late "Anton Yelchin" as the main characters, Anna and Jacob. Doremus based the storyline of this low-budget movie on his experience being in a long-distance relationship with his partner and developed it into a 90-minute-long movie, which was released in 2011 and became relatively successful.

Anna and Jacob

A few days before the release of “FACE”, I was informed that the title track, “Like Crazy” is based on a movie of the same name. After learning this fact, I had to re-watch it because I couldn’t remember anything after a decade, and I had some questions like: “What was in this movie that made it so special for Jimin?” “How would Jimin feel watching this?”. Having this mindset helped me to see the movie differently, but before explaining those new insights we need a short storyline of the movie:

Anna is a British exchange student in LA, where she falls in love with Jacob, an American student, and they start dating. Anna, blinded by her love for Jacob, overstays her student visa and consequently gets banned from re-entering the United States. After experiencing a forced LDR, Jacob flies to London to visit Anna, and her father suggests that getting married might resolve the issue, but they are not ready for this big step. Jacob goes back to LA and basically chooses his job over Anna, but after some time, they realize that they can’t be apart, and they decide to get married. Six months after the marriage, when the time for the appeal of Anna’s ban comes, it gets rejected, and they lose their last hope of being together. Again, they go back to their sad lives, but after some time, Anna is finally offered a visa, and she leaves everything behind to reunite with Jacob. The ending scene shows how this separation has damaged their relationship, and things will never be the same.

The movie portrays the hardships of a long-distance relationship and the damage the separation can do to two souls and their connection. I think the recent movie by "Celine Song" named "Past Lives" was partially similar to like crazy, but also there was a big difference; unlike Nora and Haesung in “Past Lives”, Anna and Jacob don’t leave it to fate, they don’t forget about each other and don’t settle down with others just because their love seemed difficult or impossible.

They found true happiness only next to each other and did everything against all odds (especially Anna) to take that back. Maybe if Anna and Jacob weren’t in love like crazy and were more mature and realistic, they would end up like Nora and Haesung (Sorry if this spoiled that movie for you), but they didn’t and made their own bittersweet ending.

Many people claim that “Like Crazy” is a breakup movie with a sad ending, therefore, Jimin’s song also must be a breakup song. But, first of all, the ending can somehow be considered an open ending. We don’t know what happens after the shower scene, but we see them together, in each other’s arms, and this is not a totally sad ending by any movie standards. Other than that, Anna and Jacob became separated a few times, but they don't officially break up by choice, their separation is the result of contractual rules and laws, made by society.

This movie, as its director explained, might be originally about a long-distance relationship, but also the main relationship in this movie can be seen as a relationship that gets strained by laws and regulations, it’s about the rules and imaginary borders that decide if two people can be together or ban them from it. It’s a story of the “love against law”.

A Heterosexual Love Story?

When “Like Crazy” was released in theatres back in 2011, it got positive reviews for good acting that made the movie feel sweet and intimate with mostly improvised dialogues. Meanwhile, the negative reviews were focused on the plotline of this drama, calling it far from reality. Other than the fact that Jacob could have easily resolved this issue by taking his job from LA to London, in reality, the couple wouldn’t have faced this much difficulty over the legal complications, especially after getting married.

The fact is, straight couples usually never face this kind of hardship, and governments take that easy on them otherwise, there wouldn’t be so many sham marriages around the world just to get citizenship. So, the idea of a couple getting separated by law is not common, and that’s why many people called this movie implausible. But, a queer person can familiarly receive this implausibility, like when they want to be with someone forever, but the laws don’t let them.

Could it be this feeling that made “Like Crazy” special and a source of inspiration for Jimin? Or was it something smaller like the Santa Monica beach scene? I have no answer, I only make theories, and I think it’s better to leave the movie here and start the lyrical interpretation to see how these words and feelings can get connected.

The Lyrics

[Intro]

(I think we could last forever (I'm afraid that everything will disappear Just trust me)

As I said earlier, this intro is not a dialogue from the movie, but the narrators were told to do it based on the audio from the movie that was sent to them. So, hypothetically, it’s Anna and Jacob having this conversation. He is afraid of losing everything, but Anna assures him that if he trusts her, they can last forever. In the MV, we see Jimin standing in the crowd, but the time goes in reverse, and through a transition into his eyes, we see him sitting alone. Weirdly, the outro of the song is playing in the background here, but we will figure out the reason later.

[Verse 1]

Korean Version, Translated

She's saying Baby, don't think about it There's not a bad thing here tonight Baby, it's fine if you leave Stay with me, just for today

English Version

She's saying, Baby, come and follow me There's not a bad thing here tonight Save your reasons all for later Stay with me a little while

Anna asks him to follow her and assures him that everything is fine, it’s fine if this is not going to last long. It’s not the time for reason and overthinking. The gendered pronoun here refers to Anna, but we will know more about her in the next verses. It is worth mentioning that in the primary handwritten lyrics by Jimin, there was no “She” and it was modified later considering the dialogues added to the intro. Anyway, we know Jimin didn’t release these drafts in his album for no reason.

In this part of the MV, we see Jimin sitting alone in a room, and with a flicker of lights, the room is filled with mud. Suddenly, a muddy hand of a girl grabs Jimin’s hand and leads him to a party. There are several symbols in this part, the lonely room is Jimin’s reality, and the party is his dream. The mud symbolizes dreams and desires that leave their trace on your life and soul.

[Verse 2]

Korean Version, Translated

Watch me go Drenching myself all night (Away) So that even the morning Gets drunk and doesn't arrive

English Version

Watch me go Now, I sink down, all alone away Where am I? A dark haze clouding up my eyes

From here, we don’t see the girl because Jimin and the girl became one. She was her reflection from the beginning, the side that leads him out of his loneliness, and allures him to his dreams and desires, tempts him to be careless and stop thinking too much. Some say she is Jimin’s Anima, but these lyrics never go to the deep levels of the subconscious to reach the Anima. She is his feminine side that is a tangible side of him, and Jimin’s asymmetric makeup gives it away. Also, the mirrored moves between Jimin and the female dancer in “Like Crazy’s” choreography made it clear that the feminine presence in this song is Jimin’s reflection.

[Pre-Chorus]

Korean Version, Translated

As the loud music I get faded out A cliché story like a drama I get used to it Have I come too far to find the me that you used to know Yeah, I know You know I know (Ooh)

English Version

I can hear the voices listening Don't know who they are Trying to take the pressure off Been reaching for the stars Tell me, will I find myself again? When I go too far? Yeah, I know You know, I know (Ooh)

Jimin enters the party and starts drinking, dancing, and having fun with the others. He laughs and enjoys himself in the crowd and trusts the supposed strangers, but the confusion doesn’t leave him alone. He feels lost, and as the lyrics say, he is worried about going too far and not finding himself again. The two opposite sides of him are conflicting. It’s the contradiction between "fear and desire", between "pain and numbness", between "loneliness and losing yourself", and between "reason and dream" that leaves him confused.

[Chorus and Post Chorus]

Korean Version, Translated

I'd rather be Lost in the lights, Lost in the lights I'm outta my mind Hold onto the end of the night Every night You spin me up high The moon with you in its arms Let me have a taste Give me a good ride (Oh, I'm fallin', I'm fallin', I'm fallin') Oh, it's gon' be a good night (Oh, I'm fallin') Forever, you and I

English Version

I'd rather be Lost in the lights, lost in the lights I'm outta my mind Can you help me numb the pain? Each night, you spin me up high Emotions on ice Let me have a taste Give me a good ride (Oh, I'm fallin', I'm fallin', I'm fallin') Oh, it's gon' be a good night (Oh, I'm fallin') Forever, you and I

In this part, he confesses which side he really wants to follow. He wants to go out of his mind, lose himself to the desire, and leave the reason behind. It’s the escapism that saves him from loneliness and the pain of real life. The chorus is the sexy and at the same time, the most poetic part of this song, especially where he is spinning up high in the arms of the moon.

The last line of the post-chorus, “Forever you and I” which also repeats in the last part of the interlude, is crucial because it declares that Jimin is not talking about vagrancy or promiscuity. He wants it all with his significant other, the only one who can help him numb the pain of real life and escape it. But this escapism has its consequences, and we see all that mud flush out of every corner symbolizing it. This scene artistically ends with Jimin facing his reflection in the crowd. The question is, is this reflection the same significant other, or is it Jimin himself? We will get the answer in the next part.

[Verse 3]

Korean Version, Translated

The me, reflected in the mirror Is going crazy endlessly I'm feelin' so alive, wasting time

English Version

All my reflections, I Can't even recognize I'm feelin' so alive, wasting time

His fear of losing himself was true, and it's happening now. This duality confuses him and makes him question his reality. Which side is the true Jimin? He doesn't care anymore because this escapism makes him feel alive.

Here in the MV, we see Jimin facing the reflection, and it immediately cuts to the restroom scene where he faces his literal reflection in the mirror and talks to him about not recognizing him anymore. Then, the restroom being dismantled symbolizes his state of mind. "The reflection of myself in an unfamiliar appearance" was the concept of "his "FACE" which was a whole album about Jimin himself.

[Outro]

This will break me This is gonna break me (Break me) No, don't you wake me (Wake me) I wanna stay in this dream, don't save me Don't you try to save me (Save me) I need a way we (Way we) I need a way we can dream on (On, on, on) (Alone again What's the point?)

Jimin knows the consequences of losing himself but embraces it. He knows it's gonna break him but doesn't want to wake up from his dream. He knows everything will collapse but doesn't need a savior. He wants to stay in that dream, but he knows it's impossible, and sooner or later, he will be dragged out of it.

Is there a way to cut all the connections to the real world of loneliness and stay in this dream forever? We get the answer in the MV, and it's not positive because suddenly, everything goes backward in speed, to where we started (remember the outro being played in the beginning? That was the clue).

He goes back to his lonely room with a muddy hand. Did his hand get dirty from a touch of his reflection, or was the muddy hand in the beginning his own hand? Is he trapped in a loop? Maybe. Maybe this wasn't his first or the last time coming back from that dreamland, and it was the reason for so much mud accumulated in his room. He is a regular in that dreamland and he can't quit.

Conclusion

It's understandable if this analysis of the movie, lyrics, and the MV didn't guide you in any direction, and maybe you are even more confused after reading it all. But don't blame yourself because Jimin already told us that, his emotions for this movie are complex. So, don't look for just one answer, maybe we are not supposed to end up with one conclusion, and this song also can have multiple interpretations and meanings. But what are these meanings?

If you pay attention to the lyrics and the MV you will realize that despite them being aligned and in sync, the lyrics have more connection to the movie. While filming the MV, Jimin mentioned that things (scenes of the MV) didn't happen like this in real life, which was an obvious fact, because this song is clearly not about being the life of the party and stuff like that, and has more internal meanings.

In "Like Crazy", Jimin talks about the loneliness of his real life, the isolation and limitations he experienced during the pandemic, and maybe other times. But Jimin finds an alternate reality, where he can be himself, be free and careless, and forget about the future. This alternate reality is rooted in two possibilities: The feminine side, and the significant other. The feminine side is what we face in the MV, and there are not many signs of it in the lyrics.

The feminine side appears as a muddy hand and a presence at the part that faces Jimin and becomes one with him as his reflection. The idea of "bigender" is nothing new in the concepts that Jimin has offered on different occasions, from his fake tattoos in ARMY-Zip 2019 to the performance of "Filter" in 2020 and his photopholio in 2022, he has expressed this fluidity in his work, and I think the visual concept of "Like Crazy" with his different makeup in the MV and the choreography was the epitome of it.

What about the significant other? As I mentioned in the analysis of chorus parts, "Forever You and I" Can only be interpreted as his exclusiveness to someone who is his significant other. This person is the one who saves Jimin from his loneliness and assures him about their happy ending. This person has no doubt in them lasting forever and only wants Jimin to trust him to take the lead and let that happen.

He keeps saying to his significant other that there is no future. They can't be together forever, this is just a temporary situation, and despite finding comfort in each other, they should not get attached because they will forced to be separated. It's not like Jimin doesn't believe in this love, he does and has the same wishes and dreams, but he keeps getting dragged to the real world where the rules govern.

This part is just a personal opinion as a Jikooker, but I did this analysis in my head last year when "Like Crazy" was newly released and had no intention of making a connection between this and Jikook, until "Seven" came out. We all know JK had no hand in making the sexy lyrics of "Seven", but after watching the MV (which had nothing to do with the lyrics), I couldn't unsee the fact that the concept of Seven's MV looked so much like a response to "Like Crazy's" lyrics. Still, we don't know if gave any ideas for the concept of the MV, but considering his record of working as an MV director, it's not impossible.

This is all I could say about "Like Crazy", a masterpiece that is still thriving in the charts and still touches people's hearts because it comes from real and deep emotions that Jimin had in his heart. That emotion got us the moment we listened to it for the first time, even though verbalizing it is never easy, no matter how many analyses and reviews we write.

The End.

[mjjikooker1025]

Strangers to lovers

Boxer Jungkook/Ballet teacher Jimin

After a match that turned fatal, Jungkook vowed to never get back in the ring again. To help him cope with his guilt, his therapist suggests picking up a hobby he normally wouldn't try. JK laughs ballet off at first, even if the dance teacher is a blonde spitfire hottie.

Charmander is one of the elite Jikook writers. I can't really do justice to this plot because there is so much going on in both their lives that is full of angst and trauma. JK trying to be a good father to his young daughter, who he hasn't been able to be around, the guilt and grief he feels over the death of his mentor, and Jimin giving up his dream of dancing professionally to take care of his parents.

There's also a sequel that the author recently finished.

[mjjikooker1025]

“I don’t think you even breathed during that last song. You went to find him, didn’t you?”

Jeongguk kept his eyes on the floor, moving the brush from side to side even though he didn’t have much to sweep anymore. “Well, yes. But I liked his voice, that’s all.” He didn’t need to tell about the magical pull he felt while he was watching JM sing.

“What did it look like?” Yoongi asked. He had been fetching a bottle of whisky and placed it now on one of the tables. He sat down, taking four shot glasses from his pockets

“I didn’t see his face.”

Yoongi glanced up from under his brows while he was pouring all of them the traditional end of open mic night shots. “No, his voice.”

Jeongguk leaned on the brush and closed his eyes, trying to bring the image the song left him to the forefront of his mind. “Bright, soft edges, light pastel yellow with some pink on the sides.

“Ooh, pastel and pink,” Taehyung said. “Not your usual monochromatic scale this time.”

Or,

Mysterious JM turns up at the open mic night of Music Store, mesmerizing everyone and starting a line of events that end up changing everyone's lives.

[mjjikooker1025]

This has got to be dumbest anon i’ve ever seen.

https://www.instagram.com/p/C2CazRAp2cm/?igsh=dnA1aDY1N29jd3Fh

She confirmed her relationship with Pdogg Jimin's producer and she's only following Jimin among members that means they have met up before. Do you think Jimin will be in a gay relationship if everyone around him is in hetero relationship ? His freinds producers members cousins etc all are having gfs and he's acquaintance with them too. So won't he be having a gf if he's seeing this around and meeting up with their gfs ? Doesn't make sense for only him having bf in a freinds group.

Sure thing Anon... all my friends are rich doesn't make sense that I'm broke😩

All my gay friends are married. Doesn't make sense that I'm still waiting to be cuffed😕

Generations of my family going as far back as Eve's patchy skin straight..... doesn't make sense I'm gay

With logic like this your mom must be so proud🤭

Well done

[mjjikooker1025]

"we are different from other companies and BTS are making their own music and are being genuine" is a marketing argument. Their trademark if you will. It is what was ment to give them a edge to make a dent in the kpop market, since the company was starting from nothing and it's a highly competitive market. Again, it doesn't mean it's a complete lie. They did have them involved in the music and they did capitalize on their chemistry. It's very clear they bounce of each other naturally. Now they also were kids trusting the team on what they needed to do to succeed. During rehearsals, BangPD used to stop freeze the recording at any time and make them start all over if they weren't perfectly aligned (shoulders at the same height when jumping, etc....). So if the script said "hold each other's hand" they would do it and even add a slap on the butt maybe because they are comfortable with each other and there's nothing wrong with holding each other's hand any way. They are very very comfortable with each other's, more than any group I've ever seen. But physical intimacy doesn't mean sexual attraction. The other aspect you need to take into account is that SK is so homophobic, they don't see men being touchy with each other as any indication of their sexuality, because being gay is so unnatural they first think of locker room behavior. Of course some would still raise an eyebrow when seeing Jikook level of interactions. But if anything they did couldn't be brushed aside, there would be a scandal. So are they hiding in plain sight or are they just extremely close and playing it up because fans like it ?

They are entertainers, it's their job. Not just singers, entertainers. I would suggest you consider them as actors in a TV series. Their chemistry was so good the writer wrote more and more scenes for them and then they were even encouraged to improvise because their chemistry is this good and now most of it is improvised. Now, are they together off screen ? That would be their private life we know close to nothing about.

This part right here. I actually keep this in mind all the time when I watch content. I try to remember that they may not view things through the same lens as I do. There are people in my life that did not pick up on anything sexual/romantic in BTS/Jikook interactions. They just see a group of guys that were close. But I have also been with those people when they saw similar closeness between a male and female and immediately their thoughts went to “are they dating?” I have to remember that many people see life through a heteronormative view.

You’ve made some great points. Thank you for sharing. I truly appreciate it.

[mjjikooker1025]

Very well said to the point it made me cry. Songs can be for fans but it doesn’t mean it’s about them.

The Untold Truth of "Letter"

Back in 2021, 2022, or even early 2023, if someone had told me about the possibility of JK having vocal credits in Jimin's solo album, I would have called it wishful thinking at best. But it happened, and we got the song "Letter" (AKA Dear Army) as a hidden track in Jimin's first solo album, FACE, with back vocals by JK, and his name written invisibly in the album book.

The perfectly matching vocals of Jikook, with the heartfelt lyrics and soft instruments, undoubtedly made one of the most beautiful songs of the year, which could break many records for Jimin and his album if it was released in the streaming and buying services. The release of Letter as a hidden track in Jimin's solo album raised many questions and debates among Jikookers, and as someone who barely scrolls in the Tumblr app, I know I'm a bit late for the party, but I may or may not have some notes to add to the already made discussions. FYI, these are my analytic views and speculations, I am fully aware that this song has been named "Dear Army", and Jimin called it a "Fan song" on different occasions. So, I do not intend to ignore that and diminish Jimin's expression of love for his fans.

What's a Hidden Track?

Before getting into "Letter", we need to understand what a hidden track is. Well, the definition is pretty clear; When a song is not listed in the official track-list of a music album, but it exists in (some versions of) the physical printed CD, cassette, or LP, it's called a "hidden track". 

Hidden Tracks of BTS

There are several techniques and reasons to "hide" a track in an album, but in the case of BTS discography, the hidden tracks exist for a specific reason, and I'm going to explain it with the only examples we have. The debut album (2013) and Love Yourself: Her (2017), are the only BTS albums including hidden tracks, and if we ignore the skits in each album, "Path" and "Sea" are the only hidden songs BTS ever released. So, these two songs must have something(s) in common and different from the other BTS tracks that caused them to end up as a hidden track. To find that common factor, we need to check their lyrics first:

Path

[Intro: RM] Yeah, wassup? You know, time flows like stars (Check it, check, check, check, check it out) [Verse 1: RM] I started from imitating Eminem, Garion, Epik High To writing my own raps Now I see that I’m already at Hongdae My lyrics back then were all (****) Bossy But we dunno, we dunno When I dreamed without anyone to stop me Reality tied me down and trapped me inside Oh, my youth trapped me My hot heart lost to my cold mind (Damn) As I blindly told myself my decision was right I don’t know whether it’s an angel or a devil, but it says to me "Do you really have any plans to rap properly?" (Yes or no?) I didn’t have more time to hesitate and didn’t want to be stupid So I came here and three years passed by Some say art is long, life is short But for now, art is life Life is sports, just do it, uh [Chorus] If I had chosen a different path, would have I been any different? If I stopped and looked back (Oh hey ya, hey ya) What will I see at the end of this road? Where you should’ve been standing? (Oh hey ya, hey ya) [Verse 2: Suga, Suga & Jungkook] A long time passed and by 2013, I was a trainee for three years I was a high school student who grew overnight (I became a child) White hair grew from my desires and one by one my many friends (Parted ways with me) I spent my time in Seoul alone without a family (That was my third spring) I thought my worries would disappear with my debut ahead of me I closed my eyes to the present that had nothing to change But the reality was different, even as my family and friends tried to stop me I walked into the tunnels that shed no light on my own I thought I would be alone (Why?) As it turns out, there weren’t seven bare feet but we were wearing the shoe named Bangtan We’ll have to go forward, take one more step, become newer And that’s how I spent my fourth spring in Seoul (Whoa) [Chorus] If I had chosen a different path, would have I been any different? (Hey) If I stopped and looked back (Hey) Oh hey ya, hey ya What will I see at the end of this road? Where you should’ve been standing? (Oh hey ya, hey ya) [Verse 3: J-Hope] 2010, the year I walked towards Seoul! I just loved to dance, and now I’m standing on top of the stage Until then, I overcame many pains and scars to prepare myself I survived with my belief to bend, not break, and ran for three years Let the stars inside my heart shine! Now shine on me differently Write “Bangtan” on the paper world I walk my future with more lights on Give a smile to that far future (Ha, ha)

As you can see, the lyrics are simple and self-explanatory, so I guess we don't need any lyrics analysis, and the description section of the Genius translation I used here, says it all:

“길 (Road/Path) follows the member’s decisions to become idols in the Korean music industry. They recall their different upbringings from listening to hip hop in school to the hard years of being trainees under BigHit Entertainment. BTS pose the questions of how their lives would be different if they made a different decision, and they ask themselves what the future entails. A very introspective track about their career for a debut album, BTS display their thought processes as they enter the music scene.”

Sea

[Intro: Jungkook] Oh, ah, yeah [Verse 1: Rap Monster] I just started walking and ended up at the sea I'm looking at the coast from here There's endless sand and the rough wind I'm still looking at a desert I wanted to have the sea so I swallowed you up But I'm even thirstier than before Is what I know really the ocean? Or a blue desert? [Refrain: J-Hope] I don't know, I don't know If I'm feeling the waves right now, yeah I don't know, I don't know If I'm being chased by the sand wind, yeah I don't know, I don't know Is this the sea or the desert? Is this hope or despair? Is this real or fake? Shit [Pre-Chorus: J-Hope] I know, I know, my hardship right now I know, I know, I'll overcome I know, I know, open me up It's the place I can rely on Think positive, I'm swallowing my dry spit Even if I'm nervous, even if I'm in a desert I'm in the beautiful Namib Desert [Chorus: Jimin, Jin] Where there is hope, there is always trial (4) [Hook: V, Jungkook] Where there is hope You know, you know You know, yeah yeah (2) [Verse 2: Suga] I thought this was the ocean but it's a desert A medium-sized, ordinary idol was my second name Countless people get cut from broadcast But someone's empty spot is our dream They say some of these kids can't make it cuz their agency is too small I know, I know, I know too Times when the seven of us had to sleep in one room With foolish hope that tomorrow will be different before we fell asleep We saw the mirage in the desert but we couldn't grasp it Praying that we'll remain in this desert till the end Praying that this isn't truly our reality [Verse 3: Suga] In the end, we reached the mirage and it became our reality The scary desert became the ocean with our blood, sweat and tears But why is there this fear in between the happiness? Because we know too well that this place is really a desert [Refrain 2: Suga] I don't wanna cry I don't wanna rest No, who cares if we rest a little? No no no I don't wanna lose It's always a desert I told you everything Then I'll just be more depressed [Chorus: Jungkook, V] Where there is hope, there is always trial (2) [Hook: Jimin, Jin] Where there is hope You know, you know You know, yeah yeah (2) [Bridge: Rap Monster] Ocean, desert, the world Everything, the same thing Different name I see ocean, l see desert I see the world Everything's, the same thing With a different name It's life again [Hook: V, Jungkook] Where there is hope You know you know you know yeah (2) [Chorus] Where there is hope, there is always trial

Compared to “Path”, we have more innuendos and metaphors in “Sea” because of Namjoon’s lyricism (it was supposed to be in his mixtape at first), but as the description says:

"It discusses the hardships BTS has experienced since debut, particularly struggling to compete with groups from other, larger agencies. In this song, BTS reflects on these hardships, fearing that their global fame and success could leave as suddenly as it arrived."

Common Denominator

These two lyrics have one big thing in common, and it's the topic they are discussing. They talk about the members' struggles, fears, hopes, and dreams career-wise. I was thinking maybe these issues are something they can only share with their longtime fans, not the general public, therefore, they decided to release them as hidden tracks in the physical album for their real fans who buy them, something like the difference between Weverse and Instagram, I guess? Then I realized that’s something Namjoon has mentioned himself to Billboard Magazine, in LYS: Her interview:

And if fans are so lucky to own the physical album, they’ll hear two hidden tracks at the very. Why keep them secretive?

"I think they’re hidden because you have to be a real fan of BTS to understand them. Otherwise, you won’t. Otherwise, you’d like to be, “Why are they feeling so confused about things? They’re good?!? They’re No. 1 somewhere, they have so much stuff, why are they worried?” People always talk about that. But if you are a true fan of BTS and you buy the album and you listen to the hidden track — if you are an Army and we spent time together from 2013, 2014 — they could understand. It’s kind of more special, more closer, to our true hearts"

What about "Letter"?

In conclusion, hidden tracks for BTS, are something between them and their real fans who know about the path they have wended, therefore they can open up to them through lyrics and talk about their fears and struggles and ambitions without being judged or misunderstood. Also, we have to debunk some of the misconceptions going around (especially after the release of FACE) about hidden tracks. For example, some claimed that Letter is made for fans because hidden tracks are always supposed to be “gifts” for fans. This claim obviously can’t be true when you are able to listen to a hidden track legally, only by purchasing the physical album. Gifts are supposed to be free of charge, like Promise, Still with You, Christmas Love, My You, and so on. 

Then what about “Letter”? Why this song is a hidden track in Jimin’s first solo album? Did Jimin want to say something by hiding this track in FACE? To answer this questions, we need to pay attention to the lyrics and how the song was made:

 [Verse 1] What should I say? And how should I convey it? I'm really not getting my words right I know it sounds so clichéd So that it's not taken lightly Let me say it to you properly [Chorus] I say oh-oh, I hope you can be happier You, who stretched your hand out to me whenever I fell I say oh-oh, I'll hold it now (I'll hold it) So when you feel like crying, you won’t fall [Verse 2] After all this time has passed Will we still be the same? Just like we were when we first met, hmm-mmm If we are together, even the desert could turn to a sеa Just like how we were then, oh-hoo-ooh [Chorus] I say oh-oh, I really hope that it’ll last forever You, who felt like a warm spring to me in a cold winter I say oh-oh, I'll always cherish it All those moments between you and I [Refrain] Baby, don't leave Just stay by my side, yeah To you, who see me bigger than what my little self is (to you) So that I can give as much as I’ve received (oh-oh) So that I can keep my word (oh-oh) Don't worry, just stay by my side, yeah (Yeah) We don’t know what the future holds (holds, yeah) And that’s scary and makes us afraid (oh-oh) But don’t forget that we’re always together (don't forget) [Outro] I know it sounds so clichéd So that it's not taken lightly Let me say it to you properly

The Feelings

If you compare these lyrics to "Path" and "Sea" you can clearly see the differences, and except a mention of "sea and desert" there's nothing in common between them. Letter is not a monologue about career issues, it's a romantic song. These lyrics are expressing the feelings and addresses them to an audience and appreciates them. But how was this song made?

According to Jimin, at first, SMF Pt2 was supposed to be the last track of his solo album, but in their YTC promotion and recording era when they announced that they have planned to put their group activities on rest, Jimin decided to express his feelings of the moment through a letter, and turned that letter to song lyrics. Producers liked the song so much and decided to add it in his album and that’s how “Letter” was born. Although Jimin didn’t explain much about those “feelings” and left the conclusion to us like a true artist, we all know that this song is totally different from the other tracks in his album.

All the tracks of FACE are dark and sad. Jimin’s first album is all about himself, and he talks about the painful emotions he had as an artist and a person in the past few year, but with “Letter” there is a different story. Recording Academy admitted this and wrote:

“Though the EP is technically only six songs, the physical version has an additional “hidden” track called “Letter”. The song provides an intimacy that stands out from the other FACE tracks, capturing Jimin in his best form. The lyrics are poignant and vulnerable as Jimin pleads for someone to stay (“Baby, don't leave Just stay by my side, yeah”) The biggest surprise though? Fellow BTS member Jungkook contributes vocals to harmonize with Jimin.”  

A Fan Song?

“Letter” being a “Fan Song” is a stated fact by Park Jimin himself, and there can’t be any arguments about it, but that fact doesn’t mean Jimin made this song with the thought of fans in his head and all about them. In one of my old posts, I said that a faceless crowd can’t be the muse for a romantic song, especially when that song has a "standing-out intimacy".

Another reason for calling "Letter" a fan song, is the fact that it starts at 6:13 of the album, the numbers that remind us of the debut date of BTS. We can't call this a coincidence because we know how thoughtful and punctual Jimin is. But don’t forget that 6.13 is more of BTS time than ARMY time. So, as much as you call this track a song for fans, it can be called a song for his fellow BTS members.

Why JK?

Now, let’s address the elephant in the room. Why JK was a part of this song? Did it mean something for Jimin, or did he have no other options? Jimin said that FACE is an album about himself, and he didn’t feel right about featuring other artists in it, that’s why he decided to record SMF Pt2 all alone and do all the rap parts by himself instead of featuring Yoongi in it. He collaborated with several producers and songwriters (including Namjoon), but there was no featured artist in the whole album.

About the background vocals of the album, he did most parts by himself, and for the other parts, he worked with artists who already had credits in his album, such as BLVSH, Sumin, and James Keys. But JK didn’t have anything to do with Jimin’s album. Jimin was fully capable of doing the background vocals of Letter by himself, as he did for the first parts of the song. Jimin never really explained why he decided to have JK in the song, other than saying their voices match. This known fact doesn’t give us much information, but we can have our speculations. 

Closer Than This?

Another thing that questions the idea of “Letter" being inspired by fans, is the existence of “Closer Than This”. The newest release of Jimin is the exact definition of a fan song, the lyrics are straightforward and directly address the fans and leave no place for speculation. If CTT is the result of Jimin getting inspired by his fans, then “Letter” must be inspired by something different because these two songs are not comparable. 

The difference becomes more obvious when we look at the initial version of the Letter lyrics in Jimin’s drafts. I wonder what the Grammy journalist who called the final lyrics of “Letter” intimate would have said if they read this: 

You hugged me tightly Only you who protected me Hold my hand, hold my hand tightly You who reached out my hand You held out your hand to me

We don’t know what was going on in Jimin’s mind when he wrote these, but we can see that the initial lyrics have been moderated, and the intimate parts, which clearly refer to a person, didn’t end up in the final lyrics. FYI, I’m doing a lyric analysis here, and this is not a complaint or conspiracy theory because Jimin said that he liked the way the final version came out, and it's all that matters.

For Fans, Not About Fans

So far we made it clear that "hidden tracks" are not about fans, they are for fans like any other BTS song, but the hidden tracks are a secret between the artist and the fan, something that only the true and dedicated fan can understand, and this applies to Jimin's "Letter".

Jimin gave up on many records for streaming and buying by releasing this song as a hidden track in his album. So, there must be an important message in this song that he wanted to convey to the true fans. He did his share of being thankful to fans by CTT, and I don't think he needed to do it twice in a year.

Maybe you prefer to think Jimin just made this song for ARMY and hid it in the album as a surprise or because it didn’t match with the whole concept of FACE, and you might not be wrong about any of that. But, don’t forget that he didn’t explain anything about this, and we both are just making assumtions.

Yes, maybe Jimin didn't acknowledge JK being a part of Letter in his promotion era, but JK did everything he could for his share. A few hours before the release of FACE, he started a live and played a part of it with his guitar, and months later, he watched Jimin's live performance for Festa while harmonizing with it and reminding us that he knows the lyrics very well. In Jimin's documentary he was very supportive and even teased for a live performance with him in future.

Why Just Jikook?

Jimin and Jungkook are not the only members of BTS. But I don't know why everytime Jimin or JK do something with romantic undertones, the fans (OT7 ARMYs, to be more specific) immediately try to label it as "About ARMY". I usually don't see this energy with the other five members. I'm perfectly sure they are also very grateful for ARMY, they have released several songs about them, and they would have loved to collaborate in a fan song with Jimin, too.

Then why Jimin only included JK in Letter? Why he wanted to sing for "ARMY" with him? Unless we assume Jimin's gratitude towards ARMY has connections with JK, and I don’t even want to bring up 2019 "I am army" jokes. But "Letter" is the song the most optimistic Jikookers didn't expect to exist. You may try to ignore and normalize it, but you can't deny the fact that Letter proved Jikook's unbreakable connection as two harmonic colleages, long time friends, and inseparable souls.

#jikook

[mjjikooker1025]

Strangers to lovers

Finding true love and learning the meaning of life all in one night.

Very light angst, mostly fluff and philosophical discussions.

[mjjikooker1025]

https://www.tumblr.com/jeons-catalyst/736712838697123840/jimin-and-jungkooks-love-isnt-perfect-and?source=share

Honestly you jokers make me laugh sometimes. How do you continue sitting here thinking your dead fanservice ship is real? were you living under a rock this entire solo era? it was taekook everywhere doing everything together while it was clear that jikook didn't even see each other except when they had work. Taekook is real and if you people hadn't fallen so deep into the company's fanservice ploy, you would have seen it.

Taekook hung out with each other plus their friends all the time, Jk shared his songs with Tae first, the always were updated about what the other person was doing like a couple, unlike jikook who didn't know each others schedules. Jk sings romantic songs for his Taehyungie hyung all the time, they sleep together, tae even sends jk voice memos of his snoring, jikook went on a trip but didn't even stay in the same hotel room and didn't even eat together, what kind of coupe is that? But look at the way taekook kept going to private places together alone and with friends that is what a real couple does.

Y'all should stop thinking that jikook going to the military together as buddies means anything. Jk wanted to do special forces like Tae but couldn't because of his tattoos and had no choice but to go with Jimin and i'm sure he didn't even really want to do it because he looked so sad on the day they enlisted.

Teakook is the real couple and has always been. The company keeps trying to push the jikook agenda but we can see right through them because taekook always make sure they tell us themselves what they are to each other. They left signs for their supporters before they left. JK liked a taekook edit on tiktok and Tae posted a facetime screenshot with Jk while they were both shirtless, and he also posted a photo with Bam which proves that they are together even more than we know. Meanwhile there was nothing from Jimin because he and JK do not interact much in real life and probably don't even visit eo houses. Jikook is not real and will never be real and if you had any sense, you would have known they are just fanservice. They don't even really like being around each other and y'all know it yet you continue to ship them because you just cannot accept that you lost to taekookers. Do you really think a real couple will enlist together in the military in the first place? y'all are so dumb, no wonder we call y'all jokers.

Now that the holidays are over i can finally answer this extremely senseless ask i got a few weeks ago. I want to take my time to answer this so i’ll go step by step.

“were you living under a rock this entire solo era? it was taekook everywhere doing everything together while it was clear that jikook didn't even see each other except when they had work. Taekook is real and if you people hadn't fallen so deep into the company's fanservice ploy, you would have seen it.”

No anon, jokers weren’t living under a rock but it seems like you were. You have the audacity to ask if jokers didn’t see taekook hang out for a few months in the solo era when u and your breed continued shipping taekook even though u didn’t see them hangout outside of work without other members for almost 10 freaking years? What did y’all have to hold on to all these years Jimin and Jungkook were joined at the hip? NOTHING! But you leeches didn’t let go of ur delusions did you? Yet u have the guts to question gloat about taekook hanging for the first time in years within a 6month period when all other members were busy and taekook were the only two not really working on anything? You have balls anon. Huge balls.

Also, just incase u didn’t notice, Jungkook and Taehyung are friends and do u know one of the things friends do? They hangout. Hanging out and doing fun activities isn’t something exclusive to couples and these taekook hangouts might have looked a lil sus if they atleast hung out by themselves and not with an entire convoy of V’s friends. What do they do? Do taekook have sex with wooga squad in the bedroom too? You honestly think that any sensible person would feel insecure because of taekook who go snowboarding with friends and Tae and his friends decide to go back home leaving Jk there alone? That sounds like couple behaviour to you? U think even the stupidest part of my brain would suspect that taekook is real when there is not even a single piece of evidence pointing to these two ever spending any couple holidays or birthdays together alone? U think i’d shake in my boots when taekook attend a movie premiere together and have drinks with friends but both end up going back to their respective houses, with one passed out drunk and the other going home to start a Live at 4am? Which couple does that? If u go out and have a fun night with ur partner and have drinks after, wouldn’t u wanna, i dunno….cuddle and spend the rest of the night together? Why should i ever get the idea that taekook is real when Jk was all alone on white day this year while Jimin was promoting in the US and Tae was right there in korea, yet Jk went Live and spent almost 5 hours with ARMY? So on this couple holiday, Jk choose to spend time with Army instead of cuddling and kissing his “boyfriend”? You think Taekook is real because they do normal things that friends do but don’t do the things which are exclusive to couples and i am the joker? Lol.

“Jk shared his songs with Tae first, the always were updated about what the other person was doing like a couple, unlike jikook who didn't know each others schedules. Jk sings romantic songs for his Taehyungie hyung all the time, they sleep together, tae even sends jk voice memos of his snoring, jikook went on a trip but didn't even stay in the same hotel room and didn't even eat together, what kind of coupe is that? But look at the way taekook kept going to private places together alone and with friends that is what a real couple does.”

Anon, Jk shared his songs with Tae first and didn’t share it with Jimin first yet guess what? The Jk who didn’t share his song with Jimin first, knows almost all the lyrics to Jimin’s songs. The jk who didn’t share his songs with Jimin first kept up with every single song Jimin put out in chapter two and he did this ONLY for Jimin. Jikook may not share their songs with each first (as far as we know) but Jk knows about Jimin’s songs enough to not turn off his songs halfway because he doesn’t know the lyrics. I dunno about you anon, but I wouldn’t bother learning the song lyrics of someone i don’t give a tiny rats ass about.

Also anon, it doesn’t help coming to jikook spaces to boast about Jk doing thinks for Tae that he does for everyone else. What makes singing for Tae so special if he does the same thing for Jin and other members? And for the millionth time anon, bangtan boys have all slept in the same bed with each other at some point so they know each other’s sleeping habits to an extent. Come back here when u find out that Jk sneaks into his hotel room with Tae. Come back here when u find out that Jk chooses to go be by Jimin’s side in Jimin’s hotel room when he is lonely and bored. I can proudly hit my chest and say Jk has snuck into a hotel room with Jimin and i can say Jk visits Jimin’s hotel room an unhealthy amount of times and not only can i prove it but i can also say, these things are EXCLUSIVE to jikook. Is Tae the only one who Jk has slept in the same bed with? Is tae the only one who Jk has sang to? Is Tae the only one who Jk has hung out with? So what makes these interactions with Tae so special or sus if Jk does it with other pple? Jinkookers can also say Jk sings to Jin, namkookers can also boast about Jk looking at Namjoon like he fell from the sky Hopekookers can also boast about Jk clinging to Hobi and cuddling him, jokers can boast of all of this so what makes these interactions with Tae special?

Jikookers can say Jikook went on a trip or trips together ALONE and we can prove it. Can you? Can u prove that taekook have been on trips together alone? Aren’t you pulling all that out of your ass? Or are u counting the hangouts with 6478368 other people as couple trips? Why are we the ones called Jokers when we are not the ones making shit up outta our asses? See you sitting here confidently talking about taekook being on trips but if i ask for one single piece of evidence, you will start writing fanfics😂. Also, if Jikook didn’t sleep in the same hotel, how exactly did Jimin hear Jungkook snoring anon? Did they have some sorta wireless device or was it via telepathy? So u rush to believe an unknown Japan article that got tips from some random fans but questioned the article in a whole ELLE Magazine that confirmed Jennie and Teahyung’s relationship months ago? Lol.

“Y'all should stop thinking that jikook going to the military together as buddies means anything. Jk wanted to do special forces like Tae but couldn't because of his tattoos and had no choice but to go with Jimin and i'm sure he didn't even really want to do it because he looked so sad on the day they enlisted.”

Honey, if Jk couldn’t go to the special forces with Taehyung because of his tattoos, why didn’t Tae who had no limitations look for another unit where Jk could apply and do the buddy system with him? And before u say “a real closeted couple in a homophobic country cannot enlist together” do they announce to the ministry of defense that they are a couple before enlisting? Wouldn’t a couple who have been together for years while dating under the watchful eyes of millions of pple all these years atleast be well experienced in hiding their relationship by now? Wouldn’t anyone want to go through the thick and thin with their significant other? Who would have an opportunity to spend probably the hardest 18 months of their lives with their partner and not atleast try? Y’all spent the entire solo era yapping about taekook being inseparable and jikook not even being friends but only coworkers yet those two chose each other to be strong and weak together. They choose each other to rely on in this extremely difficult moment just like they have always done and if you and ur dumb breed had been paying any attention to jikook all these years, you would have noticed that those two always seem to find their way to each other when it matters most.

If Jk didn’t want to enlist with Jimin then why did he? Even if he couldn’t join the special forces like his “boyfriend” then why didn’t he enlist alone? Why did he choose to enlist with the person “he isn’t even friends with irl”? You taekookers don’t see how incredibly stupid you sound? If jikook enlisting together doesn’t mean anything then why have you cultists been popping veins about it? Why do y’all spend every waking moment coming up with 456383 theories about why Jk had to enlist with Jimin? If it really means nothing to you, why the hell are y’all developing high blood pressure over it? Why were some of your fellow cultists having literal meltdowns over two people u believe are not close enlisting together? If u really don’t see how stupid you sound, then i cannot help u.

“Teakook is the real couple and has always been. The company keeps trying to push the jikook agenda but we can see right through them because taekook always make sure they tell us themselves what they are to each other. They left signs for their supporters before they left. JK liked a taekook edit on tiktok and Tae posted a facetime screenshot with Jk while they were both shirtless, and he also posted a photo with Bam which proves that they are together even more than we know. Meanwhile there was nothing from Jimin because he and JK do not interact much in real life and probably don't even visit eo houses. Jikook is not real and will never be real and if you had any sense, you would have known they are just fanservice. They don't even really like being around each other and y'all know it yet you continue to ship them because you just cannot accept that you lost to taekookers. Do you really think a real couple will enlist together in the military in the first place? y'all are so dumb, no wonder we call y'all jokers.”

Anon, are you trying to convince me or urself? If you honestly believe that taekook is the real couple why do you even bother coming into jikook spaces to write essays? When are you pple going to come up with something more creative that this whole company or fanservice nonsense? So u cannot even bring urselves to atleast admit that Jikook are friends, u only have to follow this senseless narrative of the company pushing jikook? So when u look at Jikook, they act too much like a couple that u can’t even be like other shippers who say they are just friends and nothing more? You see the gay too but since u cannot bring urself to call it what it really is, u start putting blames on the company and Jimin? Ok anon.

Again, if taekook left signs for their supporters then what are u doing on my blog anon? Are u not satisfied with the signs that were left for you? What does it matter if jokers believe in jikook? How does that affect the price of fuel anon? If you think Jk liking a funny edit of himself and his bandmate and friend on tiktok is a sign then what are we jokers supposed to say about GCF in Tokyo anon? What are we supposed to say about Jk waking up at 4am to watch Jimin when he missed him? What are we supposed to say about how loud Jk was for Jimin during Face era? What the hell are we supposed to say about the fact that once again, jikook choose each other to go through another milestone of their lives together anon? At this point don’t u think jokers should be crazy with glee anon? U are blabbing about a screenshot which did nothing but show that a “couple” who were about to be separated from each other for 18months didn’t even bother to spend their last nights together hugging and kissing each other but only facetimed each other instead? Like NORMAL friends do? How is that something to gloat about anon in this case anon? Or did u just see two half naked insanely handsome guys and your brain lost function as usual? Wouldn’t u expect that a couple who are about to be separated for a very long time would choose to spend every single moment they can together? Yet you are happy with your couple only facetiming each other the same morning Tae was supposed to enlist which shows that they didn’t even spend Tae’s last night as a civilian together? If i were you i wouldn’t be bold enough to boast about something which once again proves what any sensible person already knows. TAEKOOK ARE JUST FRIENDS!

Jikook don’t visit each other’s houses yet we had Jk in bed almost begging for Jimin to let him come over and shower there kinda like it is something he does all the time? I wonder why Jk didn’t ask for Jimin’s address since they don’t visit each other. I wonder who was at Jk’s place on his birthday in 2022 visiting him even though his “boyfriend” wasn’t there. And if i ask u to prove that Jikook don’t visit each other, i’d get shit outta your ass as usual wouldn’t I?

Anon, if u believe taekook is real and jikook is Fanservice, fine. You are entitled to ur own opinions no matter how stupid they may be but do us jokers the favor of keeping your stupidity within ur own spaces. We are never going to agree and unlike you, i can actually backup my points with facts so the next time you think of coming to Joker spaces to spew your stupidity, think again. You think you are coming here to change our minds but we will end up knocking you out of ur delusions (if you are not already far gone).

Just a piece of advice taekooker anon. You stan two boys who have an amazing bond. I am a jikooker but taekook’s bond makes me soft as hell. They share something which is equally beautiful even if it isn’t romantic in anyway. Instead of pushing ur fantasies unto these guys who have both made it clear on several occasions that they are JUST friends, learn to appreciate what they actually are. A relationship doesn’t have to be romantic for it to be superior you know. All you taekookers do is push ur own fantasies unto taekook, u project unto them, ignore the things they say about their bond and hate on other pple around them who they love and care about all because of something that u created in your head.

Nobody knows for a fact if Jikook is real or not but after seeing everything Jimin and Jungkook have done to and for each other EXCLUSIVELY all these years, it is crazy to think that those two are with any other members of the same band. Just crazy!

[mjjikooker1025]

Shout out to young JM who wanted Jk so bad it had him looking like a stage 3 clinger & shout out to Jk who has done everything in his power to keep that beautiful man once he had him & now a stage 6 clinger. Congrats. I keep thinking about when they were in NY the Megan BTB & how all those bags are sitting there & Jk instinctively grabs 2 and you see JM realizing Jk has his & doesn't have to get one, when the other members are holding theirs. SNIFFS. Its Jj carrying JM's bags & his shoes when they come off his feet. Rubbing his shoulders at any given point, cause one he wants to touch JM, but also knows JM is in pain all the time. Its him cooking the biggest pancake for JM & telling JM of course, you know I'll do it, when JM asked him to cook for him. Or only buying birthday presents for JM. Its him telling JM in front of the world, I'm your fan & hyping everything he does. Its him wanting to cut something cause he doesn't want JM's hand to get hurt or when Vmin were playing with a yoyo, it was JM who was given a lecture on Safety by Jk, about his fingers hurting & this is how accidents happen. Not a word when Tae was playing with it, but the minute JM gets it, his anxiety & boyfriending kicked in, just like when Tae was gonna flip his food & Jk said don't fling it at JM. Jk Coming after Suga with a Frying pan. Bulldozing RM out the way messing with JM. Physically moving Suga away from JM. Bulldozing past Tae to stand directly in front of JM & stare directly at him, when he was thanking Army for an award. Damn, he's just giving a TY speech, not accepting a nobel peace prize, Calm down. The way he guides JM walking up the steps or lets him walk ahead of him. The way he could hear the nervousness in JM's tone & he turns & nods and stares JM down giving his UN speech. Just reassuring JM with his little head nod, I'm here, beside you, you got this & if you notice it was when Jk turned to him when JM let out that deep breath/shudder & said sorry & had to shake it off. Just seeing JK's reassurance almost caused him to loose it. The way the others teased JM over it & Jk jumped to his defense, ready to take on all his Hyungs, but it was him in the end, who couldn't remember when he took a picture with Tae & said it was the day JM said sorry, it was all that stuck in his head. Every little detail he remembers. Even Jimin's grandma's birthday. There within 1 minute when JM called him on his bday live, dropping everyone. Even When he's missing JM he takes it public in front of millions and shows where his heart lies. Who owns his heart. Who he loves & doesn't care if he looks like a fool, as long as people know he's a fool in love. Look at how he chose the buddy system with JM, when he knew he had options & he & JM are complete opposites when it comes to thrill seeking. And how he has made himself look even more sus & clingy, by even saying anything about other branches (BTW his wants are valid and its very much okay if he wanted to do other things) but he still didn't go through with it & instead went through a timely process and enlisted with JM instead. Didn't even enlist on your own that would give you independence and thrills and instead followed JM with the buddy system to hell.

The things we do for love. And If he hasn't told JM yet that he is in love with him, which I am sure he has and or JM at least feels it, but if he hasn't, I hope he gets the courage too one day, cause doing all this, plus following someone to depths of hell, is an awful lot of loving on one person, for it to be for nothing. To do all this for someone, then go home empty handed. What a hell you have to live in that you created for yourself. FYI, I think JM is just as in love with Jk and he appreciates everything, because Letter says it & that he plans to give it all back, what he's received, and I know JM is a man of his word. In fact, I'd say Jk is pretty damn satisfied & gets it back, cause he's still there, standing next to JM, just like he promised. I've never rooted so hard in my life for two people, but these two, I hope it all works out for them and Whatever kind of love it is that they have for one another. I hope it lasts forever.

Damn the onions got my eyes😭😭😭😭🤧