The small coffee shop was tucked into a quieter part of the city, the kind of place people passed by without noticing. Jungkook liked it that way. After everything he had seen, the wars he'd fought, the brothers he'd lost... peace was a stranger he was trying hard to befriend.

He stood near the entrance, broad shoulders hunched slightly under a black hoodie, hands shoved into the pockets of his jeans. His dark hair was messy, still damp from the rain outside, and his brown eyes carried a weight they shouldn't have for someone so young.

As he turned to leave, thinking maybe he didn’t belong even here, his shoulder accidentally collided with someone much smaller. Instinct had him reaching out instantly, a firm, steadying hand landing against the stranger’s arm.

"Shit, I'm sorry," Jungkook said, voice low, rough from disuse. He looked down, really seeing the other for the first time. Something about him—something soft, something bright—made Jungkook freeze for a second longer than he should have.

The stranger looked up at him, and Jungkook's breath hitched without warning.

He quickly pulled his hand back, shoving it into his pocket again like it had betrayed him.

"You okay?" he asked, softer this time, almost shy. His eyes flickered away, suddenly nervous, as if afraid he'd scared the man. He hated that—hated that he still felt dangerous even when all he wanted now was to be good.

The rain outside picked up, hammering against the windows. Without thinking, Jungkook stepped a little closer, shielding him from the cold air that rushed in whenever the door opened.

"You don't have an umbrella either, huh?" he added with a small, almost sheepish smile, the corners of his mouth twitching up like he wasn’t sure he was allowed to smile anymore.

There was a beat of silence between them. The world outside stayed grey and wet, but inside, standing so close to someone he didn’t even know, Jungkook felt something he hadn’t in years.

Hope.