Chapter Text
Jimin is human. In appearance, at the very least. He has long legs and a slim waist, his figure constantly adorned with tight bodices and suits he had gotten tailored to fit him exactly. Jimin's eyes are sultry and warm, kind and expressive, and his lips are pouty and pink. Jimin always stands tall, his back as straight as an arrow, his gaze focused as he watches over the lobby of his hotel. Pristine, that’s how he would describe it because it is. Perfect in every way, from the shimmering gold balustrades to the shined marble flooring.
The person who ensures everything is up to standard is none other than Kim Taehyung, Jimin’s closest friend and most trusted concierge, and if Jimin is a little bit in love with Taehyung, then that’s entirely his business and nobody else's.
Taehyung wakes up every day at 5 am. He dresses in his suit, his waistcoat perfectly pressed, the stripes sharp and straight and all in line as they go from his waistcoat to his trousers. His white button-up glows in the hotel's dim lighting and is almost as bright as his dazzling smile.
The guests adore Taehyung almost as much as Jimin does, and that is to say, Jimin tends to get a little jealous of them. There had even been an incident where he had kicked a ghost out for flirting with Taehyung and then had vehemently denied it even to those who had heard him yelling at the poor spirit. But Taehyung seemed oblivious to the attention, and Jimin was thankful for that.
Each day they spend together, Jimin is constantly on the edge of confessing. Whenever Taehyung chuckles deeply, his eyes scrunching up all adorable, Jimin bites his tongue. Whenever Taehyung leans over his shoulder, pouting his pretty lips and asking for a bite of whatever it is Jimin is having for lunch, Jimin struggles to resist the urge to kiss him. He can’t, because Taehyung is his best friend, his most loyal employee, and as far as Jimin is aware, he has never dated anyone in his life, and Jimin is sure he must have his reasons.
It’s the start of the season, what is called Autumn in the human realm, but is the most popular time for supernatural creatures to take breaks in preparation for Halloween. The hotel is known as the most luxurious place to spend a few weeks, and it is very hard to get a room. There are spas and ornate Grecian baths, massage rooms, and banquets every day, beyond the hotel is the gardens, acres of carefully manicured flowers and trees and hedges, as well as a busy market manned by creatures of all kinds, selling wares and mysterious items, and the most beautiful hills, reaching far beyond the horizon, right to the edge of the pocket dimension the hotel had been constructed in.
Jimin could usually be found standing atop the balcony, looking down into the lobby where guests mill about, checking in and out, and being escorted by various bell boys. He keeps a watchful eye on everything at all times, if something is going down in the kitchen, he knows, if a guest is trashing a room, he knows. Whether it’s by instinct or supernatural ability, he doesn’t disclose, nobody knows. It would seem to onlookers that the people at the hotel liked to keep secrets, and for the most part, it is true.
Every night, after the sun has set and the guests are mostly resting or out haunting, Jimin returns to his room, climbs into his fireplace, and disappears.
Now to say he spends his nights in hell sounds like quite the exaggeration, and if Jimin were an average hotel manager, perhaps it would be, but he isn't, and so he does. He reports to the devil, a blackened creature with skin like burnt charcoal, and eyes as red as blood. He supposes some would call him a demon, but Jimin hates the name, he's simply doing the devil's work, ensuring the creatures of chaos that he had handcrafted to wreak havoc on the world were looked after, and well-rested.
The assignment had been given to Jimin, a rather peculiar demon, who was so bored with life in hell and had annoyed the devil so much with his constant sighs that he had been given one of the few assignments not on earth, and not in hell. The hotel, built in a pocket dimension by Jimin himself, had become his safe haven. He would report back most evenings, telling the devil, who had honestly become rather invested in the running of the hotel, stories about guests and new leisure activity ideas, and more often as of late, stories of Taehyung.
He would always smile, his cheeks bunching up and his eyes shining whenever he would mention Taehyung. The stories could vary from Taehyung executing a perfect fire drill, to Taehyung helping a lonely ghost accept his new role in the universe with a lovely conversation over a mug of tea, or to Taehyung wearing a different style of tie one day.
'Jimin,' The devil says one day, leaning forward on his blackened haunches, 'just how did a human end up working for you?'
'Oh, it truly is the work of fate!' Jimin exclaims, jumping up, prepared to act out the scene as he had rehearsed earlier that week in his room. 'It's a long story-.'
'Shorten it.'
'Very well sir.' Jimin beams. 'I had placed an advertisement in the ghoulish newspaper, hoping it would circulate enough for someone to apply.' Jimin starts, 'and one day, after hours of exhausting interviews with just the absolute worst candidates, there a human appeared, stumbling from the fireplace, confused, perhaps scared, but perfectly timed. I was enamoured, it was love at first sight. I wiped the soot from his face, and asked him how he had gotten here.'
'And what did he say?' The devil smiles, his long fingers curling around the arms of his throne.
'He had been cleaning an outbuilding belonging to his great grandparents when he had happened upon an ancient rune. It had transported him to the hotel instantly, and when I explained there was a job opening, he asked immediately if he could be interviewed and I hired him on the spot.'
'You didn't find it suspicious?' The devil asks, quirking an eyebrow. 'He could have been sent by the heavens to foil your business.'
'Absolutely not, every bone in that man's body is genuine. He works hard, he's loyal. I would lay down my life for him.'
'Well, you have always been rather dramatic.' The devil scoffs, 'now go, it’s late, go look after your pet human.'
Most days Jimin and Taehyung work in close proximity, bouncing off of one another with banter and smiles. Jimin enjoys all of those moments immensely, and he feels as if Taehyung does too. The hours of admin are Jimins favourite, an excuse for him and Taehyung to lock themselves away during the off-season and just hang out. Filing paperwork used to be Jimins least enjoyable task, and now it is the one he most looks forward to. They drink hot tea and eat cakes sent up by the kitchen, and just enjoy the quietness of each other's company. Sometimes they stay up so late that Taehyung falls asleep right at Jimins desk, and he has to carry the man bridal style to his room for a proper night's sleep.
On those nights, Jimin crouches next to his bed after tucking him in. He places a gentle kiss on Taehyungs cheek and whispers his adoration in the few moments Taehyungs attention isn't focused solely on the hotel or his work. Sometimes he thinks he spots Taehyung smiling, but Jimin just assumes he's only seeing what he wants to see.
It's a week before the highest point of the season, and Jimin is already so busy with hotel duties that it's overwhelming. He's back and forth from the lobby to his office every twenty minutes, double-checking bookings after a lobby boy had taken some and written them into the system incorrectly, and then checking the deep clean of the rooms and the kitchens is progressing well enough.
Taehyung is doing the same, and they're so busy that they can't even get lunch together, and have to eat whenever they get a spare minute or two.
By the end of the week, Jimin is frazzled and tired, and when he hears that same awful lobby boy calling his name from beyond his office door, Jimin almost ignores him.
'It's Taehyung sir, he's been injured.' The boy yells, though it's barely louder than his insistent knocking, Jimin hears just fine and is up and out of the room in seconds.
'Where is he?' He yells, 'tell me, boy, and hurry!'
'The lobby sir, one of the guests brought him down.'
Jimin runs down the three flights of stairs from his office to the lobby and finds Taehyung, sitting in one of the chairs, passed out.
'What happened?' Jimin demands, dropping to the floor next to his concierge and feeling his forehead. He's warm, but not too hot.
'He was checking in on a guest that was supposed to check out today-.' The lobby boy begins.
'And they were some kind of a vengeful spirit.' Another guest, a tall monstrous-looking man continues. 'I heard yelling, and came out to see what was happening, and the spirit had thrown him from the doorway, against the wall. He hit his head, I carried him straight here and-.'
'Where's the spirit?' Jimin asks, standing up. There's fire behind his eyes, literal fire, burning with anger and contempt.
'They're still in the room I-I believe, s-sir.' The lobby boy stutters, bowing his head and stepping back to leave space for Jimin.
'Get some water for Taehyung, and bring him to my room. I'll be back.'
The group watch as Jimin glides towards the staircase, an audible gulp making its way around all of them. In the following days, rumours circulated from those who had been staying on the same floor, some were far too crazy, and some were just crazy enough to be believable. The only thing many could agree on was that nobody ever heard from that spirit again and that his screams were ear piercing, and stopped as suddenly as they had started.
When Jimin returns to his room, Taehyung is in his bed, face scrunched up and lips pouted prettily. Jimin rushes to his side, informing everyone else to return to their rooms. He holds Taehyung's hand and waits patiently for him to wake up.
The pocket dimension seems to shift and sway with Jimin, his arms and legs aching, but his resolve to be right by Taehyung's side never fading. Before all of this, the hotel, Jimin wouldn't have ever thought he could care so deeply for a human. He'd always seen them as fragile, which they are, and boring, especially when compared to the demons and angels Jimin had met in his time. But Taehyung, as many had said upon meeting him, is just different in a way that nobody can quite explain. He has an air of wonder surrounding him at all times, a calmness, but also a kindness ever-present in his smile and eyes. Jimin stares at Taehyungs sleeping face, and even now, he can see all of that.
'Hmm.' Taehyung groans, the noise loud in the silent room. He stirs and tries to open his eyes. 'Min?'
'I'm here!' Jimin gasps, 'how are you feeling? Are you okay?'
'Head hurts.' Taehyung frowns, taking the hand which had grown sweaty in Jimin's and bringing it up to his face. He rubs at his forehead and chews on his lip. 'What happened?'
'Drink first.' Jimin helps Taehyung sit up a little and holds the glass of water to his lips. 'You were attacked by an angry spirit.' Jimin explains, 'who has been dealt with and who will never be coming back, I can assure you of that.'
'I remember going up to the room, but nothing after that.' Taehyung says, his voice cracking a little. 'How long was I out?'
'A few hours?' Jimin guesses, 'I honestly don't know, I haven't moved since they brought you here.'
Taehyung glances around now, and then down at his body, he takes the sheets of Jimin's bed in his hand and feels them carefully, a smile making its way to his face.
'You really stayed with me?'
'Of course I did.' Jimin says.
'I'm very lucky.' Taehyung decides, 'to have someone as good as you in my life, loving me like this.'
Jimin meets Taehyung's gaze and a realisation hits him suddenly. Taehyung knows that Jimin loves him, and Jimin thinks Taehyung loves him back.
Oh.
'Oh.' He whispers.
'Yeah.' Taehyung blushes, and before he can clarify; before he even needs to speak another word, Jimin is jumping into his arms and crushing him in a demon-strength hug.
'All this time?'
'I thought I was obvious.' Taehyung admits, 'I thought you were too, though. I didn't think it needed to be said.'
'It needed to be said!' Jimin whines. He's sitting in Taehyungs lap now, full lips pouting, 'I didn't know!'
'Well, it's not as simple as I would like it to be.' Taehyung says.
'And why not?'