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theharrowing · 2 years

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Dollhouse 💛 16: Everything slips away to black

Hoseok’s job is simple: He enters the host’s body, he confiscates or terminates the target, and he gets back into his own body by dinnertime, easy peasy. Until a client comes along who becomes as obsessed with his life as he becomes with theirs, and the lines between their realities begin to blur.

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💛 Hoseok x Namjoon, Jungkook x Yoongi, Hoseok x Namjoon x Yoongi x Jungkook

💛 word count: 10.1k

💛 hired assassin au, sci-fi, body swapping, graphic violence, infidelity, body dysphoria, lgbtq, smut, fluff, angst, poly, nsfw, smut, 21+

💛 chapter warnings: frotting, ass eating, oral sex, anal sex, foursome, overstimulation, multiple orgasms, squirting, subspace, aftercare, gunfire, blood & mild gore, major character injury(!!!)

💛 beta read by @neoneunnajimin

💛 posted june, 2022 | read on ao3

Hoseok sits in his usual seat in The Boss' office across from Jeongguk, who sits at his usual seat. Beside Jeongguk is Yoongi, and across from Yoongi, sitting beside Hoseok, is The Boss. The men—all wearing crisp button-ups tucked into slacks—cradle two fingers of whiskey neat in their hands while The Boss—in some ankle-length black number that looks fit for a funeral—has a file open and resting on her knee.

On one hand, it feels strange to have Yoongi present. Until now, this was a job that was only performed by Hoseok and Jeongguk. Yoongi has been around so much lately that, on the other hand, it feels perfectly normal for Hoseok to glance up and see both Yoongi and Jeongguk sitting before him. Somehow, Yoongi's presence helps to put Hoseok at ease.

"Thanks to Jeongguk-ssi's keylogger, we have reason to believe that in three nights, there will be a large shipment of cocaine coming into Gangneung," The Boss says, setting a sheet with a bullet list on the table between them. "We don't have an exact location as of yet, but Jeongguk-ssi has provided us with a list of cryptic terms the men have been using. If any of this jogs anyone's memory, please report back. We have experts looking at the terms, as well. Jeongguk-ssi can debrief you on the rest."

Jeongguk shifts forward and clears his throat. "It sounds like only about six men will be receiving the shipment, including our fathers. Or, at the very least, Yoongi's father. There's some back and forth right now to decide if they feel both of them should be present. They plan to receive the shipment, place it in what they refer to as a warehouse, test the product and hit the streets. Everything is already pre-packaged and ready to sell once they have the go-ahead, so it's pertinent that we do not arrive too late or at the wrong location."

"Which is why it is important that we sort out what these more cryptic messages mean," The Boss interjects.

Jeongguk hums and nods. "Correct. I'll continue to monitor my father's activity in the next day or two. Unfortunately, since they are aware that we're onto them, at least to some extent, it’s not wise for me to go back into his house and snoop manually or attempt to listen in on any meetings."

Yoongi clears his throat and shifts forward, looking at the bullet list on the table between them, and mutters, "That shouldn't be necessary."

The Boss sits forward. "Oh?"

Yoongi nods and smirks. "I know the guys in Gangneung." He points to the fourth point down from the top of the list. "'Locale 648' is pier 6—where shipments are received—and 48 is most likely the unit number. They call it a warehouse, but it's actually a storage unit."

Hoseok's eyes trail between Yoongi and The Boss, and he watches with a wide smile. When Yoongi looks up and makes eye contact with Hoseok, his smirk fades into something shy and cute that makes Hoseok's stomach do a backflip.

"Your familiarity with the pier leads me to believe you've been along on at least one of your father's nefarious shipments before," The Boss teases with an eyebrow raised.

Yoongi takes a drink of his whiskey and then nods, pulling his mouth into a straight line. "I have. At least, I believe I have. My father receives a number of products from both China and Japan, and—as far as I know—everything is received through Gangneung. Some may have been nefarious, but he hasn't always been very transparent about what each shipment specifically contains, just that he has wanted me to oversee how to receive so that I could eventually take his place."

"What comes from China?" The Boss asks.

"Syringes, pill containers, pretty much anything mass-produced for the actual pharmaceutical business. Could also be cocaine, for all we know. Heroin, et cetera."

The Boss hums. "But he likes cocaine from Japan?"

"As far as I know," Yoongi says. "I've overheard him discussing the quality with his men. I'm not sure what the yakuza does differently, but he likes it to come from them."

"And there's no other pier he may receive the shipment to?" The Boss clarifies.

Yoongi shrugs. "I can't say for certain. But I know that we have received into pier 6 and that the units closest to that spot range between 40 and 50 because we have used 43, 46, and 48 in the past, making 48 a logical conclusion."

"You're very observant," The Boss says with a grin.

Yoongi shrugs, but the compliment makes him smile. "Growing up as that man's child, you have to be."

The Boss nods her head, and Hoseok finishes his whiskey in one gulp then leans forward to set his glass on the table. When Hoseok glances up at Jeongguk, he notices Jeongguk seems less confident than the others and stares at the bullet list with a frown.

"Something the matter, Jeonggukah?" Hoseok asks.

Jeongguk tears his gaze from the paper and looks at Hoseok. His eyes are wide and curious, laced with concern. "I have a bad feeling," he mutters. "But I can't pinpoint it. Some of the information on the list feels like a decoy, which leads me to wonder if the entire thing isn't one."

The Boss hums. "Suppose it is, then where would they really be going to? And how are they communicating?"

Jungkook shrugs and looks at Yoongi, who also shrugs.

"And there's no way one of you can find out more without putting yourself at risk?" The Boss asks.

Jeongguk shakes his head. "I don't think so."

Yoongi shakes his head, as well.

Namjoon has been restless since their little foursome. It is all he has been able to talk about, and as soon as Hoseok had mentioned last night that Jeongguk and Yoongi would be joining him to discuss the plan with The Boss, Namjoon immediately suggested they all go out to dinner afterward.

"If Joonie wants, we can cook for the two of you at Jeongguk's place while you two make out in the pool?" Yoongi suggests, leaning against Hoseok's desk.

Jeongguk continues to study the bullet list, but he nods along with Yoongi's suggestion. Hoseok, who stands in front of his floor-to-ceiling glass window overlooking the river, gazes between the two of them.

"I'm sure he would love that," Hoseok says.

"Perfect," Yoongi says with a smirk. "We'll be going, then? I'll stop off at the market while Jeongguk stares at this a little longer, and we'll reconvene at his around 6?"

Hoseok nods. "Sounds good."

Namjoon and Hoseok sit poolside in very tight black swim shorts. Yoongi presented them both with a pair as tight and small as his own, remembering the time in Osaka when Namjoon and Hoseok mentioned wanting to see one another in shorts like the ones Yoongi had on. As expected, Namjoon's tree trunk legs look incredible sticking out from them.

"Yoongi is such a menace," Hoseok says under his breath, standing and looking down at his legs. Never before has he worn anything so tight, aside from briefs, but even those don't hug like these do.

"You pronounced genius wrong, babe," Namjoon says as he reaches out and wraps his hands around Hoseok's thighs, pulling him close.

Namjoon looks up at Hoseok with his mouth nearly at cock-level, and Hoseok scoffs and shakes his head, looking into the house through the large glass windows to where Jeongguk sits on the island in his kitchen and Yoongi stirs something on the stove.

"Strange to see them act so domestic," Hoseok mutters, mostly to himself.

Namjoon turns his body to take a look, then turns back to Hoseok. "It's nice. Softens them a little, you know?"

"I know exactly what you mean," Hoseok responds with a chuckle.

Namjoon smacks Hoseok on the ass, pulling a yelp from him, then stands. "Well, Yoongi bought us these tight little shorts, so we may as well put them to good use and make out in the pool."

Hoseok rolls his eyes and grins, wrapping his arms around Namjoon's neck. Namjoon leans forward and leaves a soft kiss on Hoseok's lips, and Hoseok studies Namjoon, noticing how relaxed and light his husband appears.

"You seem happy, Joon."

Namjoon blushes. "Well, don't equate it to the foursome. I mean...I don't know. I'm happy to be let in on what the three of you are up to, at least a little. Once I knew I had been left in the dark for so long, it was a lot to take in all at once, and it made me feel inadequate."

"If that were the case, then the adequacy of the three of us is purely circumstantial, Joonie. We only didn't tell you because of the risks involved; I've always wanted you to know what I do for work."

Namjoon sighs. "I know. Look, it doesn't make sense; it's just how I felt."

"I never want to lie to you," Hoseok says. He believes himself as he says it, despite knowing how absolutely fucking ridiculous it seems to say such a thing. "I never want you to be left out. And whatever may or may not happen between the four of us, I want you to be happy."

"Let's take this to the pool?" Namjoon suggests, tugging Hoseok by the waist.

Hoseok nods, drops his arms from Namjoon's neck and allows Namjoon to lead the way. It is a nice hot day, and the pool is kept at a warm temperature, so they both dive straight into the deep end and slowly swim toward the shallow. Hoseok swims further and comes up near the five-foot depth, and Namjoon swims to where Hoseok is, stands tall and wraps his arms around Hoseok, pulling them chest to chest.

"Do you want things to continue between the four of us?" Namjoon asks. His voice is deep and playful, and his eyes swim with mirth.

"Do you?" Hoseok asks, raising his eyebrows.

"Does it bother you at all if I do?"

Hoseok chuckles and shakes his head. "No. Why would it?"

"I don't know," Namjoon sing-songs, pulling Hoseok impossibly closer. They had somehow managed to wade close to a wall, and Namjoon spins them just enough to press Hoseok against it. "I wasn't sure if it was a one-time-only kind of thing or if we would make it into...something else."

"Something else?" Hoseok asks playfully, wrapping his legs around Namjoon's hips.

Namjoon leans forward and plants soft, wet kisses along the side of Hoseok's neck, and Hoseok lets his head loll back, whimpering softly as the touch sends little sparks of arousal through him. "Maybe not a super regular thing, but something recurring?"

"You want it to be a recursive affair, baby?"

Namjoon chuckles against Hoseok's skin. "Do you not?"

Before Hoseok can respond, Namjoon rolls his hips, rubbing his cock against Hoseok. Hoseok gasps and groans at the discovery of how hard Namjoon is. He wants to see whether the tiny shorts can even contain an erection the size of Namjoon's, but he doesn't want Namjoon's lips to move from his neck. Hoseok decides teasing is the next best option.

"Talking about this made you so hard, baby."

Namjoon chuckles. "Being pressed against you with barely any clothing between us has made me hard, Seokie. But I admit that this little chat has me conjuring images of the four of us, so perhaps there are multiple variables to blame for my erection."

"How are we going to make it through dinner if we're already this horny?"

There's a pause, then Namjoon raises his head and says, "Looks like we won't have to."

Hoseok does his best to turn and look into the house, and sure enough, Jeongguk has his pants pulled off and is laying back across the counter with his legs over Yoongi's shoulders while Yoongi eats him out. Jeongguk's mouth is open, and he appears to be moaning loudly, and Hoseok is impressed by how well the doors and windows keep his voice in.

"I guess it's only fair if we get out some of this tension too, hmm? Follow their example?" Hoseok suggests.

Namjoon's hands move fast, tugging Hoseok's briefs down enough for his cock to spring out, and Namjoon wraps a large hand around it, forcing bubbles to the pool's surface. Hoseok reaches down and dances his fingers over Namjoon's bulge, smiling with delight at the realization that a good amount of length is sticking out from over his waistband.

"Too fucking big for these tiny shorts, baby boy," Hoseok teases.

Hoseok frees Namjoon's cock and tugs it gently to get Namjoon to step forward and close the already very small gap between them. Then he takes both cocks into his hands and strokes them slowly, rolling his palm over Namjoon's tip and watching as Namjoon's mouth falls open. The glide of his hands in the water feels amazing, and both men let out soft moans.

"Frotting like a couple of teens?" Namjoon teases, though his face portrays pure bliss.

"Your cock is so big; it's hard to do this without using two hands," Hoseok whines. He can't resist thinking about Yoongi jerking them off in the dark hotel suite and how much easier it was.

Namjoon wraps a hand around their cocks, partially engulfing Hoseok's hands, and he squeezes gently with each upstroke.

"Fuck," Hoseok whimpers and drops his head to Namjoon's chest.

Their hands stroke at a steady pace, and both men huff and whine, chasing their highs while water sloshes around them to the rhythm. Arousal pools in Hoseok, sending tiny waves through him in tandem with the waves around him, up to his fingers and down to his toes. The feeling of gently rocking in the water as they jerk each other off adds to the gentle euphoria Hoseok feels, and he wishes he could bottle this moment and experience it again and again.

"Kiss me," Hoseok whines, fast approaching his climax. He wants to feel as close to Namjoon as possible, and—since he can't stop thinking about being in the same position with Yoongi—he doesn't want to risk moaning the wrong name.

Namjoon kisses Hoseok desperately, licking into his mouth like a man starved while moaning and whining and gently rutting his hips. Hoseok swallows every sound and licks against Namjoon while his hips and legs tremble.

"Fuck, Seokie, I'm gonna come," Namjoon whimpers against Hoseok's mouth, and this alone pushes Hoseok even closer to orgasm than he had been, eager to experience his husband get off.

Namjoon's hips shake, and he sucks on Hoseok's bottom lip, moaning and whining. Their hands move faster, and the water sloshes louder, and Hoseok feels lightheaded and so close to the edge. With a loud whimper, Namjoon comes, rutting his hips up into their palms while his hand squeezes them a little more tightly.

The stroke of Namjoon's cock against Hoseok's, paired with the pretty sounds he makes, has Hoseok barreling over the edge and moaning loudly as he comes. Namjoon continues to stroke them while Hoseok rides his high, and he licks into Hoseok's mouth, swallowing his whimpers and sobs until all he has left are deep, quick breaths.

A thin white film rises to the surface of the water, and Hoseok chuckles. The rest of their come must have sunken. Namjoon lets go of their cocks, and Hoseok follows suit; then, he reaches for Namjoon's head and pulls him into a deep, loving kiss. Hoseok moans as his and Namjoon's tongues move back and forth, licking and teasing and tasting.

"You two finished?" Yoongi's deep voice calls from the house, and Namjoon gasps as he pulls out of the kiss, then he chuckles.

"We are," Namjoon responds. "Great timing."

"I didn't even hear the door open," Hoseok says under his breath, cursing Yoongi for being as quiet and devious as a cat. "I wonder how much he saw."

"I hope he saw everything," Namjoon responds as he backs up and tucks his cock into his shorts.

Hoseok tucks himself away, as well. "And why is that?"

Namjoon shrugs and smirks. "I like the idea of them watching; I want them to want us."

Hoseok, Namjoon, and Yoongi sit around empty dishes. Hoseok feels full and satisfied, impressed with Yoongi's cooking abilities, especially considering he was distracted some of the time by Jeongguk's pussy. Jeongguk has taken dishes into the kitchen to rinse and stack and returns with a second bottle of wine.

"Fellas," Yoongi says, smiling from across the table at Hoseok and Namjoon. "Thank you for joining us for dinner. It's always a pleasure to share food with the two of you; Jeongguk and I like you a lot."

Hoseok finds the expression on Yoongi's face genuine, which takes him a bit aback. Usually, there is something devious swimming in those dark, sharp eyes of his, but this time he seems to be speaking from the heart with full conviction.

"Hoseok and I like the two of you a lot, too," Namjoon says, to which Hoseok hums and nods.

"Great!" Jeongguk exclaims, clapping his hands and making everyone at the table jolt and look at him. He stands beside his chair and has filled everyone's glasses with more wine.

"So," Jeongguk continues, "are we going to fuck again, or what?"

Everyone at the table chuckles or scoffs—Hoseok scoffs—and Yoongi glances at Jeongguk incredulously before looking at Hoseok and Namjoon almost apologetically—another emotion Hoseok is surprised to see Yoongi is capable of conveying.

"Is that what you want, Jeonggukah?" Namjoon asks, leaning forward with his elbows on the table and his chin on his hands.

Jeongguk leans forward, palms down on the table, towering over Namjoon. His voice is low and dripping with sass. "Obviously that's what I want."

"And how do you want it?" Yoongi asks, swirling his wine and holding it to his nose. He takes a sip with his head turned and eyes gazing up at Jeongguk.

Jeongguk reaches for his wine and takes a sip, then surveys the group before meeting Yoongi's gaze and saying, "I want all of you at once."

Hoseok bites back a gasp, feeling sparks of arousal course through him as he grins and mutters, "Greedy boy."

Jeongguk hums. "I want you to fuck my ass, hyung. With Joonie-hyung in my pussy and Yoongi-hyung in my mouth."

Namjoon stands, sending his chair back with a loud scrape against the hardwood floors. He leans on his hands, mimicking Jeongguk's stance. "That so, baby?"

Jeongguk's eyes widen, and his mouth falls open, just for a split moment, long enough to shatter his dominating presence and make him falter. Then he tongues the inside of his mouth and smirks. "Yes."

Yoongi downs the rest of his wine and stands, doing so a little more gently and without making as much noise with his chair. "Is this something you guys are comfortable with?" Yoongi asks.

Hoseok turns to Namjoon, whose eyes haven't left Jeongguk. There is a fire blazing in his gaze that Hoseok knows all too well. "I am," he says and nudges Namjoon, who mutters, "So comfortable."

"Get upstairs and strip for us, baby," Yoongi commands.

Jeongguk finishes his wine and turns away from the table, making his way to the stairs. As soon as his footsteps begin to travel up, Yoongi turns to Hoseok and Namjoon, chewing on his lower lip.

"I didn't expect this to happen again so soon, but as long as we're all feeling good about it," Yoongi says, trailing off while he eyes up Namjoon. "Seokah, do you mind going upstairs prepping Jeongguk while I suck your husbands thick fucking cock? Is that okay?"

Those familiar vines in Hoseok's chest grip tightly, and he actually feels jealous of Namjoon. It is not as if Hoseok is disillusioned with thinking he alone could be the center of Yoongi's attention, but he misses those brief moments when he was. Hoseok reminds himself that the more Namjoon experiences, the less guilty he needs to feel for what happened before in an attempt to swallow his pride.

And with that thought, Hoseok smirks and says, "Of course," before finishing his drink and making his way through the living room toward the stairs. Hoseok can hear Yoongi's soft but quick footsteps round the dining room table, and he can hear as Namjoon mutters, "Hey there, handsome," before their lips crash together, and they let out muffled moans in tandem.

Yoongi is handsome. He is handsome and sexy and perfect and overwhelming, and Hoseok wants him to himself—wants to be the subject of Yoongi's desire. How long has it been, Hoseok wonders, since Yoongi called him baby. When was the last time Yoongi pressed his body against something and forced his way into Hoseok's personal space, crowding him physically and mentally.

Hoseok had walked up the stairs to Jeongguk's room on autopilot while thinking about Yoongi, and now he stands at the top, listening for one more sound to make him jealous before he makes his way to Jeongguk's room. A deep, shattered moan falls from Namjoon's lips and echoes through the home, and that is all Hoseok needs to take a deep breath in and out and continue on his way.

When Hoseok reaches Jeongguk's room, he finds him sitting on the side of his bed naked, gripping the edge of his mattress while looking down at the floor with a dazed, distant stare. He almost looks sad. Hoseok stops in his tracks, and Jeongguk rips his gaze from the floor to Hoseok.

"Oh," Jeongguk mutters, letting out a shaky exhale. "You came."

Hoseok approaches and drops to his knees before Jeongguk, gently placing his hands over Jeongguk's knees. "Of course I came, baby. Is something the matter?"

Jeongguk clears his throat, blinks, and grins. It is disarming how he flips like a switch, and Hoseok swallows a lump in his throat. He squeezes Jeongguk's knees gently, with the hope of easing whatever storm brews inside him, but Jeongguk spreads his legs, baring himself to Hoseok and says, "What did you come here for, Seokie-hyung?"

"I came here to prep your tight little ass, Ggukah," Hoseok responds, attempting to match Jeongguk’s energy but struggling to ignore whatever it was he walked in on. "Unless there's something on your mind—"

"Perfect," Jeongguk interrupts, sliding out of Hoseok's grasp and getting onto his hands and knees in the center of the bed. Glimmering between Jeongguk's spread cheeks is a bright yellow gem, and Hoseok's mouth drops at the sight of it.

Hoseok stands and begins to unbutton his black dress shirt, untucking it from his slacks and shrugging it onto the floor. "Already started without me, baby?"

Jeongguk wiggles his ass in response, and Hoseok works open his belt, then his fly. Jeongguk's ass is so perky and round; Hoseok wants to sink his teeth into the soft flesh and make him purr. Jeongguk whines impatiently and swishes his hips once more, making Hoseok chuckle as he drops his pants to the floor, steps out of them, and makes his way to the bed in his briefs. Already his cock is beginning to tent the tight fabric.

"How long have you had this in, baby?" Hoseok asks as he gets onto his knees behind Jeongguk and places his palms on both cheeks, spreading him wide.

Jeongguk gasps and lets out a soft moan. "Since before dinner."

"When?"

"B-before you guys got here."

Hoseok leans forward and softly bites onto one of Jeongguk's cheeks, smirking when Jeongguk hisses and whines. Hoseok groans against Jeongguk's skin, "So slutty, baby. Prepping yourself ahead of time for us."

"For you," Jeongguk corrects.

Hoseok loosens his grip on Jeongguk and sits back, taking in the sight before him. Soft, supple skin and taut muscles—Jeongguk is a sight to behold. With the pad of his index finger, Hoseok gently traces over the lowest point of Jeongguk's back, between his cheeks and over the plug that sticks out from him. Hoseok gives the plug a gentle tap and says, "Just for me, hmm?"

"Y-yes da—hyung."

A swell of affection and arousal courses through Hoseok. Gently, he takes the end of the plug between his fingers and gives it a tentative tug. Jeongguk whines and his legs tremble; the point of contact is too dry, but the feeling still seems to affect him positively.

"You can call me daddy," Hoseok says sweetly. "Lube, baby?"

"Near my medication, daddy," Jeongguk mutters softly.

Hoseok looks over his shoulder, and sure enough, there is a bottle of lube sitting bedside, right next to Jeongguk's tiny refrigerator full of hormones. He backs off the bed and leans to the side to grab the bottle, then opens it and squirts some between his fingers, rubbing it to warm it as he returns.

Back on the bed, behind Jeongguk, Hoseok begins to rub the lube between the base of the toy and Jeongguk's rim. Then he sets the bottle on the bed and gives the toy another tug, this time a bit harder.

"F-fuck," Jeongguk whines.

"Yeah? You like that, baby?"

"More."

Hoseok squeezes and slaps Jeongguk's ass just enough to make a crack that echoes throughout the room and gives him a little sting, but not enough to make Jeongguk scream; he lets out a soft yelp.

"More what, baby?"

"More stimulation," Jeongguk whines. "Please, daddy."

"You want me to fuck this tight little ass of yours so badly that you're already whining, baby?"

Jeongguk lets out a sob. "Yes, daddy."

Hoseok tugs and twists and pushes the plug, getting the lube between it and Jeongguk's skin and stimulating Jeongguk enough to make him whine pretty, pitchy sounds. Hoseok tries not to overthink why Jeongguk wants him to fuck him in his ass so badly. He figures it is because Namjoon is too big and that he has had enough of Yoongi that Hoseok is the default—after all, Hoseok wonders, how could he possibly compare to those two?

"What if I just tease you and have Joonie fuck you with the toy in you instead?"

Jeongguk lets out a high, exasperated whine. "No, daddy, please. I need your cock. I like the way you fuck me and I need it in my ass."

Hoseok's heart pounds, and when he says, "You li—" his voice falters, so he quietly clears his throat to try again. "You like the way I fuck you, baby?"

"Yes, daddy. I haven't been able to stop thinking about you; I want you in my ass."

Pride swells in Hoseok and he tugs on the plug a little harder, pulling it out just a bit. Jeongguk whispers, "Please, please, please," and Hoseok can hear as his fingernails dig into the sheets, already from so little stimulation. Although teasing Jeongguk and making him whine is enticing, Hoseok's cock throbs against his briefs, desperate for attention. He gently tugs and twists the plug until Jeongguk's tight ass releases it, and he lets out a pitchy moan.

The plug was larger than Hoseok expected, and he shoves three fingers into Jeongguk's hole, groaning from how wet at tight he is despite gaping open.

"Fuck, Jeonggukah, you feel so good. And still so tight, baby."

"Please fuck me, daddy," Jeongguk whines.

Hoseok wonders if he should get started without the others when he hears two pairs of feet running up the stairs. He turns in time to see Yoongi—naked and sweaty—slide into view and crash into the door, sending it slamming open into the wall. Namjoon appears seconds later, also naked, sweaty and blotchy around the chest and neck—how he looks after he comes.

"Have fun?" Hoseok asks, wiggling his brows at his husband. Namjoon blushes and nods.

Yoongi approaches and grips Hoseok by the hair with both hands, tugging him until their noses graze. Every nerve on Hoseok's body is alight from Yoongi's touch, and he feels elated and relieved to be in his hands again.

"Your husband has a huge cock," Yoongi groans, smirking. "Listen," he says, then opens his mouth widely. Faintly, Hoseok can hear his jaw clicking—something Hoseok has experienced time and again from sucking Namjoon off.

"Happens to the best of us," Hoseok mutters, gaze set on Yoongi's lips in hopes of a kiss.

Yoongi chuckles, then whispers, "Quit staring and fucking kiss me."

Hoseok leans in and licks over Yoongi's lips, moaning as Yoongi's mouth falls open for him. Yoongi tastes like himself—like bittersweet affection and conflict and desire—and he tastes like Namjoon's come. Hoseok licks every bit of Yoongi's mouth that he can reach as if to pull all traces of Namjoon out until all that is left is him.

"Daddy," Jeongguk whines, and both Hoseok and Yoongi break the kiss and respond with a low hum. "Fuck me!"

Yoongi chuckles and releases Hoseok, and when Hoseok looks to where Namjoon is standing with his cock in his fist, there is a look of something in Namjoon's eye that Hoseok cannot quite read—almost like sadness or confusion. But Namjoon blinks, and it is gone, replaced with his classic, sweet smile.

"Come over here, Joon," Hoseok says with his hands open. "Sit on the bed against the headboard so Jeongguk can ride you?"

Namjoon nods and chews on his bottom lip then approaches. Rather than get on the bed, Namjoon leans into Hoseok, taking him by the hair and kissing him deeply, with intent. This kiss feels different from the way Namjoon typically kisses, almost possessive.

Worry seeps into Hoseok. Worry that his husband knows something. Worry that he is upset with Hoseok for sharing such a deep, needy kiss with someone who isn't him. But now is not the time to dwell, so instead, Hoseok moans into Namjoon's mouth and twirls his tongue over his.

Hoseok reaches out and grips Namjoon by the thighs, making Namjoon fall slightly into him. When Namjoon pulls from the kiss, Hoseok looks at him with wide eyes and a soft smile—with a smile that thanks Namjoon for hanging the moon in the sky.

"How are you feeling, baby?" Hoseok asks.

Namjoon hesitates, then smiles back. "Good," he mutters, looking between Hoseok and the others. "I feel good."

"Good."

Namjoon climbs onto the bed and positions a few pillows so he can lay at an angle against them. As soon as he sits back, Jeongguk climbs to him, straddling his hips and connecting their lips in a sloppy, desperate kiss.

"Please," Jeongguk whimpers, pressing his forehead into Namjoon's. "Please, can I fuck you, Joonie-hyung?"

Namjoon chuckles a soft, nervous sound and nods. "Of course you can, baby. Let me feel that pretty little pussy stretch around my cock."

A chill shoots down Hoseok's back from Namjoon's filthy words, and when he turns to see how Yoongi is holding up, he finds him staring at Namjoon, equally affected. A loud moan rips through the room, and Hoseok's attention is turned to Jeongguk sinking down on Namjoon.

Jeongguk lifts his hips and presses them down and up and down, little by little until he is fully seated. Hoseok wonders if fingerprints will be left behind on Namjoon's shoulders from how hard Jeongguk already seems to be gripping onto him.

Hoseok wastes no time crawling behind Jeongguk and lining his cock with his ass. Jeongguk gasps and rolls his hips back, presenting himself to Hoseok, and Hoseok smiles widely as he grips Jeongguk's cheeks in both hands, spreading him open and appreciating his beautifully stretched ass.

"Please," Jeongguk whimpers, grinding down on Namjoon's cock. "Please, daddy, please fuck my ass."

"Oh he's daddy, now?" Yoongi growls as he kneels beside Namjoon and takes Jeongguk by the jaw and hair.

Jeongguk whines and continues to grind and roll his hips. Namjoon's eyebrows are knitted, and his mouth hangs open as deep sounds trickle from his mouth. Hoseok grabs the bottle of lube from where he left it on the bed and squirts it into his hand, then coats his cock. The squelch makes Jeongguk push his ass back once more, and Hoseok smacks one of his cheeks with an open, sticky hand.

A pitchy moan escapes Jeongguk, and he trembles forward on Namjoon, making both of them whine. Hoseok decides he is tired of waiting and presses his cock in past the tip and pulls out, reveling in the loud, desperate sound that Jeongguk all but screams. Hoseok rocks his hips gently, pushing and pulling until he can fit enough of his length to begin to fuck Jeongguk .

"Ready?" Hoseok asks, leaning to the side to make eye contact with Namjoon.

"Ready when you are, daddy," Namjoon says with a bit of a teasing tone at the end.

Hoseok pulls out and Namjoon pushes in, and Jeongguk moans and trembles so loud and so hard that Hoseok almost wonders if it is too much for him to take.

"Fuck, fuck, please," Jeongguk begs. "Please, it feels so good. Fuck my ass, daddy!"

"Get over here," Yoongi commands, yanking Jeongguk's face to his cock. "Gonna have to stuff that slutty fucking mouth of yours so you can't call someone else daddy."

Hoseok picks up his pace, slapping his hips against Jeongguk's ass while Namjoon's thrusts meet the underside of Jeongguk's thighs. Jeongguk muffles loud moans and whimpers around Yoongi as his legs shake hard between them. Hoseok thinks he can feel Namjoon's thick length as they fuck Jeongguk.

Three cocks slide in and out of Jeongguk in a lewd, wet chorus of skin slapping against skin while three men groan and grunt and the other whimpers muffled, choked sobs. Jeongguk's ass squeezes Hoseok so tightly he worries he will come too fast at this pace, but he can't for the life of him imagine stopping; it is far too fucking good.

Yoongi's hips are so close to Hoseok that he could reach out and grab them if he wanted. But he doesn't. He doesn't even so much as look at them. Jeongguk's face is so close to Hoseok's—his mouth swallows Yoongi's cock down, so, so close, and Hoseok has to stare at a point ahead on the wall to ignore the proximity to him. He closes his eyes and focuses on his pleasure and on the sounds Jeongguk attempts to make and tries to forget how close he is to Yoongi's body.

"Seok," Namjoon says, and it pulls Hoseok from his thoughts.

Hoseok looks down to find Namjoon grinning like an idiot, mouth agape and forehead covered in sweat. The vines squeeze around his ribs, threatening to pierce his lungs as he realizes he was so in his head about Yoongi that he didn't even think about how Namjoon is right there.

"Yeah, baby?" Hoseok pants.

"Switch? I wanna pound this pussy until he's screaming."

Fuck, Namjoon is so sexy sometimes it takes Hoseok by surprise. "Yeah, of course, baby."

Hoseok pulls his cock from Jeongguk, watching as his hips jerk back, chasing the feeling. Namjoon slaps Jeongguk's hip, and he says, "Turn around, baby."

Jeongguk whines as he lifts his hips from Namjoon and scrambles to get off his lap, head still bobbing on Yoongi's length. Namjoon wiggles out from under Jeongguk and crawls around Hoseok, and Hoseok crawls to where Namjoon just was. Jeongguk finally releases Yoongi's cock gasping, and turns around, half-laying on Hoseok as he lines himself back up.

"We've all seen how Namjoon fucks Jeongguk," Yoongi snickers. "It might not be safe for my dick to be in his mouth."

Arousal pools in Hoseok as he opens his lips wide and taps Yoongi on the hip, offering himself. Yoongi turns and chuckles, pulling his mouth into a smirk at the sight. "Yeah?" Yoongi asks, and Hoseok nods his head. Above him, Jeongguk crashes against Hoseok's chest with a loud moan. Jeongguk lays with his head next to Hoseok's, and Namjoon snaps his hips forward.

Hoseok stays as still as he can while Yoongi slides his cock into his mouth. He lets his eyes flutter closed as Yoongi rocks his hips, and Namjoon's thrusts rock Jeongguk's ass enough to swallow his cock. Everything about this is so perfectly overwhelming; Hoseok can only imagine how Jeongguk feels.

Namjoon was not lying when he said he would fuck Jeongguk until he is screaming. Hoseok worries his eardrum might blow from the sounds ripping from Jeongguk's chest. Though, he couldn't be bothered to try to do anything about it at the moment with Yoongi fucking his mouth. It is not as hard as he knows Yoongi could fuck his mouth, but it is hard enough to have drool dripping from Hoseok's lips and to have him feeling like a used little fuck toy.

It is not long before Jeongguk is sobbing and coming, trembling and squeezing Hoseok's cock tightly. Hoseok holds his breath in an attempt to keep himself from coming too fast, then worries he might black out. Namjoon fucks Jeongguk through his orgasm, causing the poor boy to convulse and speak in tongues. The squeeze on Hoseok's cock is incredible and threatens to push him over the edge.

"Come on, baby, once more for me," Namjoon growls, punishing Jeongguk's poor pussy as the boy whines and sobs and gasps out silent screams.

"Fuck, gonna come, Seokie," Yoongi grumbles, gripping onto Hoseok's hair tightly. "And you're gonna fucking swallow it."

Hoseok sucks his cheeks in eagerly, already desperate to swallow Yoongi's come. Jeongguk's body has more or less gone limp across Hoseok's chest, and Namjoon leans in and sweetly asks if Jeongguk is still with him, chuckling when Jeongguk mutters a weak, "Yes, oh my god, please don't stop."

Yoongi groans loudly, grips onto Hoseok's hair tightly and shoves his cock so far down Hoseok's throat he fears he might choke. But just as soon as he constricts Hoseok's airway, he pulls out and thrusts in gently, spraying his release across Hoseok's tongue. He tastes tangy and sweet, and Hoseok allows it to pool on his tongue and coat his taste buds. When Yoongi pulls out, panting and covered in a pretty sheen of sweat, Hoseok sticks his tongue out with a smile to show Yoongi the mess he has made.

Yoongi places his hand over Hoseok's throat and growls, "Swallow it."

As Hoseok swallows, adam's apple bobbing beneath Yoongi's light grasp, Yoongi cracks a smile. And when Hoseok opens his mouth to present a clean tongue, Yoongi smirks, then leans forward and spits into Hoseok's mouth.

"Good boy," Yoongi groans and sits back on his heels.

"Fuck," Hoseok whines, orgasm catching up to him now that he is no longer preoccupied with Yoongi's cock shoved in his throat. "I'm gonna come."

"That's it, Seokie," Namjoon groans, still fucking Jeongguk at a punishing pace, sweat dripping from him. "Fill that slutty fucking ass with your come."

"My god, Joonie," Hoseok whimpers, bucking his hips languidly as arousal builds and builds and bursts. The feeling is so intense he sobs and digs his head back into the pillow below him, filling Jeongguk with his release.

Namjoon's thrusts slow, and he lifts Jeongguk by the hips, allowing Hoseok to pull his cock out and bumble his way out from under the limp body above him. Yoongi, who lays on his side, welcomes Hoseok with open arms, and Hoseok cuddles up to Yoongi, then turns to watch Namjoon tower over Jeongguk and fuck him into the mattress.

Jeongguk squirts, screaming bloody fucking murder and slurring out unintelligible words, and Namjoon praises him and fucks him through another intense, squirting orgasm. When Jeongguk settles, his eyes are glazed over, and he lays like a rag doll.

"Still with me, baby?" Namjoon asks.

Jeongguk shakes his head no but mutters, "Yes."

Namjoon slows his hips. "Say my name Jeongguk."

"Namu—Namj—Na-Namjoonah."

Namjoon chuckles, dimples poking into his cheeks.

"Where are you, baby?"

Jeongguk pouts, and his head falls to the side. "Clouds.”

"Does Jeongguk usually enter subspace?" Namjoon asks Yoongi.

"He has, but it's a little different. Usually, it's from pain, like spanking or flogging, and he doesn't tend to become so...gone."

Namjoon nods in understanding, hips still rolling gently. "Does he usually squirt?"

"Usually?" Yoongi asks with a chuckle. "No, it only happened a few times. You have a magic cock, Joonie."

Hoseok hums in agreement, and Namjoon smiles at him softly before turning his attention back to Jeongguk.

"What would you like, Jeongguk?"

Jeongguk mumbles something far and away, and Namjoon brings his hips to a stop. He smiles sweetly at Jeongguk and covers his forehead in kisses.

"Don't want to fuck him if he can't form a sentence," Namjoon says sweetly. "I think it's safe to say he got his."

Yoongi sits up, releasing Hoseok and whines, "You didn't though."

"Too bad neither of you are stretched," Namjoon pouts.

Hoseok gets onto his knees and reaches for Namjoon, who is already being tugged over by Yoongi. Yoongi wraps his lips around Namjoon's cock and moans loudly, and Hoseok gets below Yoongi and licks up and down the length of Namjoon's shaft, tasting Jeongguk's sweet and slightly bitter release before gently taking Namjoon's balls into his mouth.

Namjoon moans and whimpers, and it is not long before he is coming into Yoongi's mouth, presumably for the second time. Hoseok eagerly licks up the drool and come that slides down Namjoon's length, and when Yoongi releases his mouth from Namjoon, Hoseok pulls Yoongi close and licks the come off his tongue.

"Holy fuck," Namjoon groans. "That is fucking hot."

Namjoon leans forward to lick into both of their mouths, then, after a bit, Hoseok leaves the two of them to make out while he crawls from the bed and gets a warm towel, eager to at least attempt to clean Jeongguk off until he is more alert to get into a bath.

When he returns, Jeongguk is lying half on his side and half on his stomach, clinging to Yoongi, while Namjoon lays behind Yoongi, gently running his fingers over the expanse of Yoongi's hip and thigh.

"Gonna wipe you off a little, okay, Jeongguk?" Hoseok asks, and Jeongguk mutters something in response. Hoseok takes it as an affirmative and gently cleans Jeongguk's ass, collecting some of the come that has already begun to drip out. Then he returns the rag to the bathroom and gets into bed with them, laying behind Jeongguk with the intention of waiting for him to come down from subspace.

All four of them lay in a pile in the center of the bed, sticky and panting. Hoseok gently runs his fingers up and down Jeongguk's side, easing him back to earth as he clings onto Yoongi like a lifeline. On the bedside table, there ia a vibration from what Hoseok assumes is a phone, and he turns to find the source.

"Shit," Yoongi says under his breath. "Jeongguk's shot."

Hoseok sits up, twists in the direction of the table, and reaches for Jeongguk's phone. He silences the alarm and begins to reach for the refrigerator. He can sense Yoongi struggling to figure out how to get out from under Jeongguk without disturbing him.

"I got it," Hoseok says. "I had to do this a few times while jumped."

"Oh," Yoongi mutters, "alright."

Hoseok picks up the small glass medicine vial and rolls it between his palms to gently mix the formula, just in case any separation has occurred. He opens a new syringe and sticks it into the top of the vial, then slowly draws the medicine out, to the necessary level, adjusting the plunger to let all the air out. Then he turns back toward them and holds the syringe up to show Yoongi, who nods with approval and returns to babying Jeongguk.

Yoongi softly mutters to Jeongguk that Hoseok will give him his medication, and Jeongguk responds with something unintelligible to Hoseok. Hoseok uses an alcohol wipe to sanitize a spot on the back of Jeongguk's arm, and Jeongguk lightly flinches from the feeling of the cold pad.

Hoseok hopes Jeongguk doesn't react even more to the poke of the needle, though he imagines it is quite different to experience a shot from oneself and from someone else...but then again, he is not sure. The few times he gave Jeongguk his medication while jumped were too nerve-wracking for Hoseok to judge it against any other experience—not that he can even remember the last time he had gotten a shot from a doctor.

"Shot time, baby," Hoseok says softly as he pinches the skin and sticks the needle in. Jeongguk hisses but doesn't flinch, and once the medication is injected, Hoseok pulls the needle away and turns back toward the table to deposit the syringe into a special container Jeongguk has specifically for used needles.

Hoseok sighs. He cannot decide if he and Namjoon should go home or if they should stay a little longer to look after Jeongguk. He is beginning to stir more and seem more present, but it is hard to know what kind of aftercare he will need, and Hoseok doesn't want to just leave him and Yoongi alone.

"Stressed?" Yoongi asks.

Hoseok turns to find Yoongi looking at him over Jeongguk's shoulder. Namjoon is still curled around Yoongi's back, holding him tightly—he may or may not be asleep.

"I guess I am," Hoseok mutters and turns his body to face them, crossing his legs. He runs his fingertips over Jeongguk's skin like he had been doing before, drawing random patterns over his ribs and back. "I'm not usually so worried before a mission, but this time it's getting to me. Maybe it's because you two will be there...I'm not sure."

"Too much at stake?" Yoongi drawls, watching Hoseok intently.

"I guess so. If anything happened to either of you, it would be devastating."

Yoongi chuckles and shakes his head. "Don't worry about me. I grew into this. So did he," he looks down at Jeongguk, then back at Hoseok. "We'll be fine, and everyone will make it home in one piece. I'm sure of it."

"I hope you're right," Hoseok says, letting out a deep breath.

Yoongi gives Hoseok a smile that is so gentle it surprises Hoseok, and he softly mutters, "I am."

"In position?" The Boss calls over an in-ear communication device.

"Affirmative. Everyone is in position and ready for the target to arrive," Hoseok responds softly.

Hoseok feels out of sorts; he is not used to completing a mission in his own body. At least his nerves have calmed since he has arrived at the pier, and he feels more confident than he had been in the last couple of days. Jeongguk and Yoongi are also in position with several men from Hoseok's team, and Yoongi has already proven himself to be a great shot, so Hoseok is not as worried for him. But he is worried.

The night before, Jeongguk picked up information between Jeon and Min describing the route their men would take, and with the exception of that route, they have men stationed at all other entrance and exit points to and from the docks and have even gone so far as to stage construction work being done near one of the busier entrances to keep all bystanders out.

It is irresponsible to exchange gunfire in such an open, public space where civilians have so much access to and from, but The Boss guarantees the security is on top of it, easing Hoseok's mind. They are, after all, a faction of the government.

As far as Hoseok can tell, the boat with the shipment arrived twenty minutes ago, and now they wait for the old men and their crew. From where Hoseok and his men are positioned, behind a large stack of metal containers, he cannot see Yoongi and Jeongguk, who are behind a similar shield with more men. He wishes he could speak to them, give them words of encouragement and see their smiles.

Instead, Hoseok thinks back to laying in a pile on his bed while Jeongguk came out of his subspace and demanded love and affection, whining until all four of them were squeezed into his shower like sweaty, buff sardines. Hoseok finds it hard to believe how, not long ago, Yoongi and Jeongguk were threatening to blackmail him if he didn't fuck with them. He wonders how much of their fathers have rubbed off onto them to make them so sheisty and manipulative. Now that Namjoon is in the equation, everyone seems fluffy and sweet, like suddenly the four of them are a family.

"There's movement from the open route," The Boss reports.

Hoseok takes a deep breath in and out. "Heard."

"Confirmed, it is them," The Boss says. "It appears to just be Min Hyunsuk and Jeon Jaebeom. Hold your positions until instructed. We have eyes on the boat, and on the approaching vehicle."

Hoseok closes his eyes, mentally preparing himself for action. "Heard."

The eyes The Boss mentions are men watching CCTV footage at the pier and all around the perimeter of the storage facility, as well as agents stationed throughout the area. The plan is to let the men get onto the boat and retrieve their shipment and then take them out once they are on dry land. With the exception of Min and Jeon, the instruction is to shoot to disarm and knock down. While they would like to speak to the old men and lock them up for the rest of their miserable lives, if they are killed during this mission, then they are killed, and that will be that.

Time seems to crawl while they wait. Hoseok sits and listens to his breathing, trying as best as he can to keep his lungs steady; anxiety is deadly at a time like this. He listens as the men pull up and get out of their car and as they talk quietly amongst themselves and walk onto the pier toward the boat. And then all is silent once more, only the creaking of boats and the ropes that anchor them as water sloshes against the machinery and shore.

Hoseok feels extremely far away from home. Namjoon is staying in a hanok nearby, so Hoseok doesn't feel quite so distant from everything, but there is a comfort to knowing you are close to home, which feels like a long-forgotten concept as Hoseok stands behind a metal barrier waiting to draw his weapon. Even after this mission is complete he will crawl into a bed that isn’t his, and it stresses him out.

The men Hoseok stands with are stoic—faces blank of expression and impossible to read. He wonders how much shit you have to see on the field to become so glazed over. He wonders if they are ever able to shut it off—if they have someone at home for whom to shut it off. If it weren't for Namjoon, Hoseok wonders if he would become like them. He his grateful that he has not become like them.

"The old men are on the move," The Boss instructs. "Our eyes only see the two of them and one other man. They appear to have a pallet on which crates are stacked, with the other man leading and pulling the product to shore. We want guns on the old men and for someone to restrain the third man once he opens the storage unit, preferably once he is inside inside."

Hoseok can hear the sound of the small wheels on a pallet lift moving along the wooden pier. Between where he is and where Yoongi and Jeongguk are is the entrance to the storage unit, which is nearly a straight shot from the pier. Ideally, the man who steers the pallet lift will enter, giving Hoseok's team enough space to fire on and either kill or apprehend the old men. Pallet lift man will take cover inside the unit, and one or two agents will be able to apprehend him. Ideally.

"Hands on your weapons, fellas," The Boss says.

Slowly, as silently as possible, everyone stands tall at the ready. It is Hoseok and four men on his side, and Yoongi and Jeongguk with four men on the other side—more than enough to handle two old men and a lackey. If there are others on the boat, the eyes have not seen them, but it is such a small vessel, there would only be room for one or two more. The sound of the storage unit being unlocked and opened echo through the quiet, emptiness of the space and Hoseok takes in a slow, deep breath, mentally preparing himself.

"Product is in the unit at your five and seven; old men are hovering at your four and eight," The Boss says, then after a pause, "Move now."

There is a long, sturdy step stool on which two of the men stand while Hoseok and the other two men move around the barrier. As soon as Hoseok has his sights on the old men, their guns are drawn and they are shooting at the agents that are overlooking the barrier.

Jeongguk and Yoongi, along with two men from their side, wait for the old men to run out of bullets and are able to apprehend them without the team shooting either of them, and while the old men are certainly displeased, they do not put up much of a fight, allowing themselves to be escorted into a vehicle that approaches from one of the closed-off routes. Two more vehicles should be arriving as well, with more agents and a medical unit, though it seems they will not be necessary unless something goes wrong with apprehending the third man.

"Excellent work, men," The Boss announces. "Hoseok’s team, apprehend the man who took cover in the storage unit. We have more agents on foot coming to make sure the boat is empty."

"Heard," Hoseok says, surveying the area before heading into the storage unit.

The room is the size of a spacious one-car garage and has several pallets with crates stacked around, but is otherwise fairly empty. Hoseok takes the lead with his weapon drawn, walking in and toward the right; he can see a foot sticking out from behind a stack of crates.

"Come out with your hands up," Hoseok instructs and watches as the foot retreats.

Two agents run ahead of Hoseok to detain the man while he hangs back and waits. Hoseok sighs to himself, pleased with a mission well done—it could have gone a lot worse than it had. His agents argue with the man a bit before they get him onto his feet, and Hoseok approaches one of the crates on the pallet that he assumes the man brought into the unit—the one behind which he cowers. Hoseok tugs on its lid and finds that it is surprisingly easy to lift off. As he peers inside, he realizes it is empty.

"Uh, we may have a problem," Hoseok announces.

Just then, Hoseok sees movement from the far corner of the storage unit and reacts in time to dodge a bullet shot in his direction.

"Fuck!" Hoseok says, ducking beside the crates. "We have guests! Storage unit at position eleven from entrance; unknown number of men."

"Agents, move now!" The Boss instructs.

Hoseok no longer has eyes on his men, but he can hear more agents approach and enter the storage unit. Gunfire is exchanged, and now with backup, Hoseok stands to return fire. The sounds of bullets blasting from their chambers and striking men, both on their bulletproof vests and on their bodies, fill the space.

Metal rips through flesh and organs, squelching loudly and sending the men crashing to the ground, grunting and groaning and pulling wooden crates down with them. Hoseok cannot tell who is falling and who is standing; still unsure how many men had been hiding in the corner and unable to see all of them in the dark, so he focuses on one of the men who is closest to him and who has his sights on him, too.

Hoseok fires a shot straight into the center of a man's forehead and time seems to slow, giving him a moment of self-reflection. Shooting a man in the face used to affect him. He thinks of Namjoon and Yoongi and Jeongguk to remind himself that he does have a heart as the sound of the man’s body hitting the concrete floor with a dull thud makes him smile.

As he lines up another shot on another man, hitting the man in the throat, he does his best to tell himself that he is a person capable of compassion and that not being fazed by this is not a character flaw. He also does his best to bury how exhilarating it feels to kill a man, thinking about how it must have been over a month already since the last one.

Shouting comes from outside that pulls Hoseok's attention in that direction, and in that split moment of distraction, he is hit. He doesn't believe it at first; he practically feels nothing. The impact of the bullet makes him jolt and lose his balance, but he assumes he was shot in the vest. Hoseok falls against the wall and slides to a seated position on the floor, and that is when he feels his blood run hot from his hip.

"I'm hit," Hoseok says. "In the side."

"Hoseokah!" Yoongi's voice shouts over the line.

"Min, stand back!" The Boss instructs. "We have emergency units on sight; they will approach as soon as we have the all-clear from inside the room."

"Fuck that," Hoseok hears Yoongi mutter through the communication line, followed by the sound of a car door slamming.

Although Hoseok is not in a lot of pain and he does not think he is bleeding too quickly, he feels dizzy. He presses a hand into the wound and keeps his eyes on the men who continue to fire with his weapon drawn, held in one hand in front of him.

Then, suddenly, it is silent, and Hoseok thinks he will hear the all-clear from his team when a man clad in all black approaches and lifts his weapon on Hoseok. Hoseok fires, hitting the man in his shoulder, and the man jerks backward, then takes a step closer and sneers.

It pisses Hoseok off that he is not as good of a shot one-handed while increasingly disoriented, and he takes in a deep breath and does his best to line his weapon up with the man's head.

"You're Hoseok, aren't you? You're the guy who all of these fallen men tried so hard to protect." the man says. "It’s a shame you walked so easily into our trap. We're going to have fun torturing you."

Hoseok opens his mouth to respond—to ask if all of his men are dead or perhaps to tell the guy to go fuck himself. Maybe to taunt the guy to just fucking shoot him here and now, he isn't sure—he is completely fucking delirious. But before he has a chance, a bullet flies through the man's temple, spraying his blood on Hoseok's face, and the man crumples to the floor.

"Like fucking hell you will," Yoongi's voice sneers, then he is in Hoseok's periphery coming in and out of focus.

"Shit, Seok, you're losing a lot of blood," Yoongi mutters.

"Im-p-possible," Hoseok slurs. "I'm holding the w-wound."

"It's a deep wound, Seok. Hold still."

Hoseok scoffs at the thought of not holding still; where else would he go? Silly Yoongi, he thinks. He hears cloth ripping and watches as Yoongi fumbles with something with his brows knit in concentration. Despite his face pulled into a deep frown, he looks so fucking pretty. Hoseok wants to reach out and touch Yoongi and tell him how pretty he is, but he doesn't have the energy.

"I’m going to try to pack the wound to stop the bleeding and it might hurt," Yoongi says, and before Hoseok has a chance to respond, there is a sharp, aching pain in Hoseok's hip, where he has been shot. Hoseok hisses and grunts and does his best to sit still, and when the pain subsides a little, Yoongi grabs onto Hoseok's arms and wraps them around his neck.

"I got you," Yoongi says softly, calmly. "Hold onto me."

Hoseok wraps his arms around Yoongi's neck as best as he can and takes a deep inhale of Yoongi's scent, and he tries to tell Yoongi that he feels safe and that he is happy Yoongi is here, but only loose vowels come out.

"Fuck, Hoba, stay with me," Yoongi says.

Home, Hoseok thinks. Or did Yoongi say Hoba? What's a Hoba, he wonders, then decides he must have said home. Hoseok thanks his lucky stars that he is home in Yoongi's arms.

Yoongi stands up straight with Hoseok's face nuzzled into his neck, and as the room spins around Hoseok at a dizzying speed, everything slips away to black.

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#hoseok smut #namjoon smut #yoongi smut #jungkook smut #bts smut #bts poly #yoonkook #yoonkook smut #namseok #namseok smut #hoseok x namjoon x yoongi x jungkook #fic: dollhouse

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byneddiedingo · 2 years

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On the Beach at Night Alone (Hong Sang-soo, 2017) Cast: Kim Min-hee, Seo Young-hwa, Jeong Jae-yeong, Mun Seong-kun, Kwon Hae-hyo, Song Seon-mi, Ahn Jae-hong. Screenplay: Hong Sang-soo. Cinematography: Kim Hyung-ku, Park Hong-yeol. Film editing: Hahm Sung-won. On the Beach at Night Alone is narratively simple: An actress recovering from an affair with her married director that caused a scandal goes to visit a friend in Hamburg, Germany, and then returns to the city of Gangneung in Korea, where she visits more friends and, over many cups of soju, reflects on her life and affairs. But though the film is mostly talk about love and sex and other matters of relationship, it's larded with puzzles and arresting details, including two (or possibly three) endings. The first section of the film concludes on a beach in Hamburg, where the camera pans away from the actress, Young-hee (played by Kim Min-hee), standing alone, and looks at her friends walking away. Then the camera pans back but Young-hee is gone, and when the camera pans farther, we see Young-hee being carried off, slung over the shoulder of a man. We don't know who the man is, but she and her friend had earlier been accosted by a man wanting to know the time of day; when they don't reply, he walks off in disgust. And later, walking through the park, they spot the man again and run away. Is Young-hee's apparent abductor the same man? We get no answer, and the screen turns black before the second part, in Korea, begins with Young-hee sitting in a movie theater, lingering for a while after the lights come up and the theater empties. After meeting with some friends, she moves into a hotel that overlooks the sea. On the balcony outside, a man seems to be washing the windows of her room, but he has no soap or water or sponge or squeegee, and keeps "washing" the same spots over and over. Neither she nor her friends seem to notice this man, who also appears later, again simply standing unnoticed on the balcony. Later, when her friends leave, she goes out to the beach where she lies down and falls asleep. She is wakened by a man who turns out to be a member of a film crew working with the director with whom she had the affair. Eventually, she meets the director again and they have a conversation at the dinner table, where he gives her a book that seems to have a special significance for them. But there's a cut and we see Young-hee again lying on the beach, where she is again awakened by a man who, as in the previous awakening scene, tells her it's dangerous. This time, she tells the man that she was just dreaming, walks off alone, and the film ends. How to assimilate these eccentric, enigmatic moments into the film as a whole, with its extended dialogues about relationships? Because of its talk about sex and love, On the Beach at Night Alone has been likened to Éric Rohmer's "Six Moral Tales" films and to Richard Linklater's Jesse and Céline trilogy. But it reminds me more of the skewed reality of Michelangelo Antonioni's films, such as L'Avventura (1960), which never answers the questions about Anna's disappearance, or Blow-Up (1966), which never solves the central murder, if there was indeed one. Is the mysterious man who carries off Young-hee or the one who lingers on her balcony just a projection of her frustrations? Or are we misguided in even asking such questions?

#On the Beach at Night Alone #Hong Sang-Soo #Kim Min-hee

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yuzurk · 5 years

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「 Gangneung Get Away 」

⇢ request received: @aronrk !

The wind rustles through her hair as they drive down the roads to Gangneung. Beside the music from the sound system it’s quiet and Yuzu doesn’t quite have the heart to break the silence.

She had asked Aron a couple of times if he was really going to be okay with KT for taking a whole weekend off to take his girlfriend out of town. Not that he would tell them the reason of course but to go not only against one but two rules lined down in his contract was admittedly something the Fool wouldn’t have expected from her Emperor.

Yuzu looks at him as he drives, deciding to trust him when he said it’d be alright even when both of them knew he technically wasn’t supposed to go. They place they were going to seemed pretty off the radar too so they should be fine to walk around, not worrying about cameras or anyone recognizing this KT Rookie of hers.

A smile widens across her lips as she decides to toss all worries aside, letting a small spark of pride flame up instead at him showing a bit of the rebel within.

#aronrk #gangneung get away;#para;

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dat-town · 4 years

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love passes by

Characters: Hyunjae & You

Setting : childhood friends to lovers feat good old mutual pining and a sprinkle of angst

Summary: Hyunjae was too easy to fall in love with. Too bad you knew it was bound to end in a heartbreak.

Words: 4.7k

Partly inspired by his A to BoyZ video, IU’s When love passes by cover.

Gangneung was a relatively small town by the beach, where most people made a living of fishing or something related to that and countryside tourism. You never had the ambition to leave for a bigger city, to live the infamous Seoul life because you were content with the simple one you had.

After finishing high school, instead of pursuing further education, you started working as a waitress at your family's fried chicken restaurant. You used to do the same during summer breaks, so the regulars knew you already, greeted you as if you were their daughter just the same. Living in the suburbs of the town made it feel like a lovely village where everyone knew everyone and other than the mass of tourists in the summer season no new faces arrived. Nobody that could have turned your life upside down.

Not until Lee Jaehyun.

He wasn't a totally new face per se, but still, it had been years since the town had seen any of him and now he was back.

"Kwak Auntie's family visits her for the summer. Have you heard? Nobody knows why all of a sudden. We haven't seen them in years," you overheard a few murmurs in the restaurant about the news but didn't give it much thought even though the ahjumma lived right next to your family's home. You knew that if something was indeed going on, you would get to know it in time. And how right you were about it!

"Hm?" You looked up from your food when your mother called your name during dinner and she looked at you like she always did when she had something to ask. She always looked so apologetic about it even though you rarely said no because you had never been the rebellious kind and her requests weren't huge things either.

"You know, Mrs Kwak's daughter and grandson will come to town for the summer. I was thinking since you and Jaehyun used to play together, it would be nice if you could show him around, so he would see a familiar face."

You gulped down the spoonful of rice before nodding, throat closing up in a way that threatened to suffocate you.

"Sure," you croaked out, digging your own grave.

Truth was, seeing Hyunjae again was dangerous to your fragile heart but in such a small neighbourhood it was inevitable, so you might have as well bitten the bullet and taken it.

You just didn’t expect it to happen so soon, so sudden.

"Petite!"

The familiar, playful voice called your old nickname so affectionately that your lips trembled as you forced a smile, halting your movements. You needed to take a breather before turning around to face the boy who had grown into a young man over the years. After all, you had been sixteen and hopelessly in love with him when you had last seen him.

“Hyunjae...”

The name you used to call him fell from your tongue naturally as you saw him jogging up to you on the sidewalk a corner away from the street where you both resided and you felt your heart do a silly flip (or more like a slip) in the confines of your ribs as you caught the sight of him.

Your childhood friend had been handsome already once he had grown into his lanky limbs, face thinning with the years, eyes ever so mischievous but the good span of seven years that had passed since you had met matured his features. He was even taller, shoulders wide and his soft brown hair was styled sideways, still letting a few locks fall into his forehead. His thin lips were pulled into a wide smile and the dark of his irises sparkled with a giddiness. It was almost like he hadn’t changed a bit. He still wore clothes a bit too big on his slim frame, long, elegant fingers disappearing in the sleeves of his white shirt. His smile was so bright it outshone the Sun and small wrinkles appeared around his narrowing eyes. You needed to remind yourself to breathe.

“I heard you’re back… for the summer,” you fumbled with the words clumsily like a puppy learning to stand on its feet. Truth be told, you had no idea how to act around him without being awkward. You should have been over it, way over it, but seven years had passed and all those messy teenage feelings were back.

“Yeah, yeah I guess I am,” Hyunjae chuckled and the echoing sound of it messed up your heartbeat.

Oh if he knew how he made you feel! But despite him being so straightforward and sharp about everything else, he seemed so oblivious to your feelings that it made your heart ache. You had convinced yourself that he knew, he knew about it all too well and didn’t bring up only to save you from embarrassment, to save you from a hurtful rejection. You also convinced yourself it was better this way: he always left after all. He lived on the other end of the country and you didn’t want to be anyone’s summer fling.

“Where are you going?” Hyunjae inquired curiously, hands slipping deep into his pockets, eyes expectant as they were searching for yours but you refused to look up.

“Just running a few errands,” you shrugged and lifted the bag in your hand with a container full of fresh kimchi from Mrs. Kim a few streets down.

“For the restaurant? Gosh, I missed your mother’s fried chicken! Hers is the best. Just don’t tell my mom,” the boy next to you joked and you got startled when his fingers grazed against yours around the strap of the bag. You were so taken aback by the sudden action that you let go instinctively and the boy took the baggage from you.

“I can do it,” you protested, reaching for the strap after a moment of shock but Hyunjae’s mouth curled up in a smirk as he raised an eyebrow in challenge.

“Good luck taking it from me.”

For a second long you held the eye contact but then you were the first one to give up, of course you were. You turned your head, feeling your cheeks heat up at the depth of his dark eyes and his laughter filled the quiet streets with life. His steps resumed and you needed a moment to catch up under the scorching Sun.

“Have you been well?” he asked, sounding curious and your heart wished to tell him how much you had missed him all this time but it was too pitiful.

“Same old, same old. You know, nothing much changes down here. I’ve been doing well,” you answered instead because really, you had no complaints. Your life wasn’t exciting at all but you didn’t need it to be, you didn’t need heart attacks like Hyunjae to come more often than they did. Which also came to the fact that he was indeed there after all these years and you wondered why all of a sudden. However, you didn’t want to push, so your voice was kind and your tone was tentative as you asked: “And you?”

“Good. Seoul keeps me busy as always,” he said but he was short on words, didn’t tell you much, nothing specific and you were too afraid to ask, so instead you thanked him for his help with the container when you reached your house. It felt awkward not to know how to say goodbye. Your mother might have asked you to show him around but you weren’t kids anymore, he didn’t need a helping hand to get to know a town he had already been familiar with and you didn’t want to become a bother. But as soon as you turned around to go into the house, hand already on the handle, the boy called after you.

“When is your next day off? We could hang out a bit, catch up,” he suggested casually and it gave you a feeling similar to nausea.

“I’m free on Monday,” you told him and closed the door behind you so quickly that you missed his bitter smile.

The beach sand burnt under your bare feet.

“Remember when we were playing tag around here?” Hyunjae brought up suddenly and you hummed, grateful to the ice cream in your hand to cool you down a bit. You walked closeby, arms almost brushing, sharing stories here and there, nothing serious though, nothing that could have ruined the light atmosphere.

“Yeah. You always cheated,” you scoffed but with no malice and the gasp the boy let out was playful as well.

“Not my fault that I run faster,” he objected to your accusations to which you rolled your eyes.

“You just have longer legs,” you argued and as you started bickering about something so trivial like this, you could feel the tenseness melt in your bones and looking at him didn’t hurt that much anymore. By the time you both devoured your sweet treats, you had walked along the beach up to the famous white lighthouse and the ground turned more rocky than sandy. It didn’t stop the boy from chasing you to prove a point and laughter bubbled up your throat as you looked over your shoulder while trying to find your balance on the colder surface.

Hyunjae threatened that he would catch you and you weren’t going to let him, but you didn’t pay enough attention to the slipperiness of the rocks as you jumped from one to another and before you knew you lost your stable point. You had already gotten ready to land on your butt in the shallow sea water, but before that could have happened, slim fingers wrapped themselves around your waist, holding you in place. Hyunjae caught up with you just in time and the giggles stuck in your throat as he pulled you back into safety, close to his chest, looking down at you with worrisome eyes.

“I told you I’d catch you,” he murmured and you gulped. Oh how you wished he would have been there to catch you when you fell (deep in love with him).

Hyunjae became a regular at the restaurant your parents owned. He was always doted on, getting free treats just because he flashed a pretty smile. Or maybe it was because of his neverending compliments on which you called him out after a while.

“No, for real! Fried chicken became my favourite because of this place, so let me enjoy it,” he insisted and let out a moan at the taste of the crispy meat and you let out a laughter before running off to serve another customer.

You slowly got used to having him around, having him keep an eye on you from across the place. Sometimes he was there for hours long, a notebook in front of him, pencil in hand, hovering over the table, only looking up with a bright and mysterious smile when you walked by to refill the water jug on his table. He never showed you what he was working on.

Sometimes he stuck by until closing hours and then, no matter how much you objected, he stole a wet cloth for himself and helped you wipe off the tables, turning the volume on the radio up, having fun around the place. It was indeed more fun with him there, you had to admit and if it wasn’t for you fearing your heart, you might have admitted it out loud.

“Come on, dance with me,” Hyunjae held a hand out just when you wanted to get a mop and clean the floor but he saw through your weak protests and took your hand in his.

Your parents and other employees had left already, it was only the two of you for once in this cozy place you knew as your second home. An English song you liked came up on the radio and the boy had you twirl and laugh as you stumbled around in-between tables as if you were in a ball room. When he pulled you close and you felt his heartbeat over his chest, eyes boring deep into yours, you told yourself you only imagined the hammering speed of his heart and the longing of his eyes. It made it easier to laugh it off and to let go of his hand when the song ended.

Just one song, for that much you could let yourself be in love.

Again. Still.

Warm sand stuck to your water-soaked feet as you watched the waves play with your toes every other minute. It was getting dark, you were supposed to go back soon after another day off spent together. The silence wasn’t heavy, just nice and cozy, just like being next to him. So you didn’t expect him to tell you anything grande. Not until his quiet voice got lost in the wind.

“I dropped out of college,” he said, as if it was final but his voice wasn’t sad. You didn’t know what to say. Sorry? It sounded weird because turning your head to look at him, he didn’t seem like hurting. Just maybe a bit afraid of judgement. There was an answer on the tip of your tongue but he was faster. “I wanna do art. Something to let my voice heard. Business is not for me.”

The words felt rushed, as if he wanted to explain himself but he should have known better: there was nothing to explain to you, he didn’t need to.

“You’re still young. You have plenty of time to find your way. Don’t waste it on something you don’t like,” you said trying to soothe his pain, trying to mend his wounds and the smile he gave you had you catch your breath in the throat.

Suddenly he looked much older than your teenage selves. Suddenly you felt like adults who shouldn’t have made rash decisions and while you were okay letting life go with the flow, enjoying the calm serenity of your seaside days, Hyunjae had always had big dreams and big ambitions. He had grown out of this town, he belonged to the city with its buildings reaching for the skies.

“Tell me about your art,” you spoke up before he could have done anything that made your heart falter even more. You turned back to the sea, watching the Sun set on the horizon while Hyunjae told you about how he had picked up on drawing first and then photography. You listened to the way he talked about what he liked in these and there was a surreal kind of jealousy building in your chest as you realized he was in love with art.

“You could show me one day. If you’d like to,” you whispered and you thought the waves washed away your wish but the stars seemed to listen as Hyunjae didn’t even take his eyes off you.

It wasn’t the first time you were in his room but back then it was a child’s room, now it was just a guest room with barely anything personal. You felt like walking in a territory you weren’t supposed to but Hyunjae acted very casual, telling you to make yourself home while he brought drinks and snacks. Sitting cross legged on his bed, looking out of the window, seeing the same as you see from your own window made you feel some type of way.

The boyish smile that pulled on his mouth when he got back just added to it but then he pulled out his sketchbook and camera, laying them both on your lap, letting you look over them, seeing into the depth of his art. You were in awe at the way he was able to capture the sea and the sunset or the way he made ordinary things like an empty street seem serene and beautiful. It struck you even harder when you flipped through his drawings made with nothing but pencil and yet so delicate and amazing. Your hand trembled though when you found a few drawings of you.

“I was just messing around and you were there,” Hyunjae shrugged, skipping a few pages full of you as if you had been on his mind just as much as he was on yours.

You didn’t ask why though, you didn’t dare.

Yet, you agreed when the boy asked whether you would stay over for a movie night and he put on his favourite superhero film before settling on the bed next to you. One movie turned into two and then a whole marathon, him lending you more comfortable shorts and an oversized shirt to wear to bed. Both of you knew you could have just gone home to change but somehow you didn’t have it in you to reject his offer. So you sat by the headboard of his bed next to him, in a soft white tee smelling like his laundry detergent, smelling like him, while watching Tony Stark save the world again.

Summer was passing too fast.

You knew you were getting too attached with each second. You knew you should have stopped it before it was too late but you were already too deep, especially after that day in the arcade.

Hyunjae was still sometimes a kid at heart and you couldn’t say no to him when he dragged you into the corner arcade, playing a few rounds of games, giggling so loud as if he had the time of his life. He even promised to win you your favourite Pokémon plush but after wasting ten thousand won you stopped him from trying, telling him it didn’t matter that much but he wasn’t one to give up.

“Give me your hand,” he said as you were sitting on a wooden bench waiting for the bus to come and you frowned as you looked at his determined face. You let out a small huff of a sigh and gave up already. Hyunjae was too stubborn, so if he didn’t want to tell you why, he wasn’t going to no matter how much you begged him to. You held your right hand in front of you with palms up but the boy’s gentle fingers quickly turned it over, nails grazing over the back of your hand before you felt something cold slide onto your index finger. You could only stare when you noticed the thin band of pink toy ring he just put onto you.

You blinked at him, seeking the warmth of his brown eyes on you but when he looked back at you, his mouth was already pulled up into a mischievous kind of smile, washing away any other emotions.

“See? I won you something,” he said triumphant and you were too taken aback to notice the matching silly plastic ring on his hand.

You had always had a fascination with summer rains but you would have never thought you would be caught in one with the boy who made your heart beat so abnormally.

The two of you were out on the beach, running around in the warm sand bare feet, splashing water to each other and laughing about some story he was telling you before you would have let out sounds of shrieks at the cold raindrops on your skin. It didn’t take even a minute for the downpour to turn into a storm, pouring enough water on you to soak your clothes through.

“Come, let’s find a hideout,” Hyunjae grabbed your hand, your slippery fingers fitting perfectly as he pulled you away from the beach but both of you chuckled by the time you made it under a balcony to catch your breath. You were quietly panting as you watched the storm move the trees and sunshades.

“I told you it was going to rain! You never listen to me,” you nudged the boy’s shoulder next to you but only then you noticed that you were still holding hands, fingers intertwined and there were so many unsaid questions in your eyes as you looked up at him. His hair was almost in his eyes, the brown mop sticking to his pale skin like second skin while the raindrops looked like pearls against his smooth features and sitting on his eyelashes. He was the most beautiful daydream you had ever seen.

Hyunjae called your name, gently, almost like a stroking touch and a breath got stuck in your lungs as you kept eye contact. You felt yourself drowning in his eyes and you weren’t sure you shivered because of the chilly breeze the storm brought. Those dark orbs on you had something serious in them, something that pinned you into place.

Hyunjae’s thumb stroked your wrist and the sharp inhale of air he took had his mouth parted, had you follow the movement with your eyes, only to have him take a step, impossibly closer to you. You needed to raise your chin to look into his eyes and when you saw him leaning down, your eyes fluttered closed on instinct.

It felt like dreaming, the drawn out moments, until a loud thud made you open your eyes.

“Yah, come inside, both of you will get cold!” The ahjumma from the nearby café yelled at you and embarrassed, with pink ears, you stepped away from Hyunjae. On your lips you were missing the feeling of something you never experienced: his kiss.

You didn’t talk about it. Hyunjae didn’t say anything even when he walked you home after the storm passed, so you just watched him go with a thudding heart.

But you should have been a fool to not notice how he avoided you the next couple of days until you got enough of this weird awkwardness between the two of you and you went over to the neighbouring house only to face unexpected news: the house was on sale. It was clear on the table displaying a phone number and when you pushed your way through the entrance, you only saw wrapped up and covered furniture. Mrs. Kwak was moving, that much was obvious. That must have been why her family came: for a last time. You couldn’t let that pass without comment, so knocking on Hyunjae’s door, you didn’t even greet him.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” you raised your voice immediately. There was a storm inside you threatening to spill and you could barely hold it together. He was never supposed to stay, you knew that much but to act as if this summer was like any other when in reality it was your last together was unfair. To you at least.

“I just wanted a chance to say goodbye before we leave,” the boy gulped, shoulder tense and eyes swimming with sadness. But you were too busy fighting your own demons, the hurt in your body, the ache of your heart to care about that.

“You should have told me nevertheless. How was I supposed to find out that you will leave next week and never come back?” You questioned harsher than you wanted and seeing Hyunjae’s face crumble made you guilty right away.

“Why are you so angry? You knew I was going to leave. Like every single time! I never made you believe otherwise. I didn’t want to give you hope when I can’t stay,” he said and arguing from the two sides of a doorstep really made it feel like you were on opposite poles of the absolute truth, yelling something that the other wouldn't have heard anyway. All you could hear were excuses while he only heard accusations. His question - Why are you getting so angry? - rang in your ear and you just wanted him to understand, finally, after all these years.

“That’s exactly the problem! You always leave,” you claimed, putting the blame on something that you had known from the get go, so in that sense you should have been blamed just the same but Hyunjae with that desperate darkness in his eyes seemed to get it.

“No, the problem is what we make it to be. The thing is: you belong here and I don’t. I’m just passing by like summer, I come and go like the ocean waves but you never asked me to stay,” he said through gritted teeth, leaning closer. He looked very cozy in the shirt over his tee, off the shoulder as he kept his balance on the door frame. At his words, you felt like air was knocked out of your lungs but if someone then Hyunjae knew exactly how to take your breath away. “Why do you think I haven’t visited in the last few years? Why haven’t I told you I’m in love with you?”

“You… what?” you blinked because his words didn’t make sense. Not to you, not now and the boy you had known all your life was standing in front of you as if he had been standing at the edge of a cliff before diving forward until your back hit the wall of the corridor behind you. With a hand on your neck, he tilted your head and pressed his chapped lips against yours so gently and so loving that you had the urge to cry. It was a goodbye you knew, so no matter how sweet it tasted your salty tears broke your heart.

“You’re being unfair,” you told him as you shoved him away until he stumbled back. You looked into his heartachingly beautiful eyes one last time. “You never asked me to leave with you either.”

After Hyunjae left, the town got quiet and calm again.

Your days were just the same and you claimed you didn’t want anything more no matter how pitying your own mother looked at you. It was like she knew yet you didn’t want to share your heartbreak story with anyone. You told yourself it would go away and months after months it seemed you were right.

On winter nights, you missed his warmth and in spring you wished he would be there to see the cherry trees bloom. When songs reminding you of him played on the radio you could smile again after almost a year and then you only thought of him from time to time when storms passed by the beach, the sea and the rain singing their own ode to him. You convinced yourself you moved on, almost believed it was better this way until news of someone buying the house next to you came.

“What? It can’t be bought by just anyone,” you looked at your mother in horror after she told you that the house is going to be turned into a studio and abruptly, you stood up from the table.

Mrs Kwak’s house was a part of your childhood, a place you cherished and treasured as it held many of your memories with Hyunjae: hide-and-seeks, movie nights and a kiss desperate and regretted. You didn’t want a stranger there who would do who knows what. It was irrational, you knew that much but you just couldn’t help it, the urge to do something. So you took the welcome tarte from your mom and got out of the house before she could have protested. You walked up straight to the van of the moving company and asked where you could meet the new owner. One of the guys from those who carried those brown boxes pointed towards the sea. There, on the beach sat a man in the sand, knees pulled up and hugged close to his chest.

Your heart skipped a silly beat as you got closer because you knew this silhouette all too well. You almost dropped the dessert in your hands when he turned around, looking straight at you.

“What are you doing here?” you asked in a trembling voice, trying to hide the childish ring on your finger in the meantime but Hyunjae always had sharp eyes and the small movement made him crack a smile. A heartwarming, genuine one.

“Staying.”

#hyunjae x reader #tbz x reader #the boyz x reader #hyunjae scenarios #6daysofhyunjae #i managed to write sth for him eventually #happyhyunjaeday #stories

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wvsyaname · 3 years

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okay hi and hello 🥴 this is a little late but i literally just got home lmao. anyways this is kim yejin aka the girl you hit up if you want a buddy pass on jeju air (which is basically the spirit airlines of korea but that’s neither here nor there.) feel free to like this intro and i’ll be sure to slide into your ims . anyways to the tl;dr.

bio / stats / connections (i literally don’t have any of these yet bc i’m a lazy girl but when i do i’ll link)

kim yejin, useless pisces girl from gangneung originally not too much to say about her life growing up bc for the most part, it doesn’t really matter does it?

a couple things to say about it: working class fam and her parents are def the kind of people who got married because there was a baby on the way and like whatever love they had for each other died within the first 5 years of their marriage even though they stayed married but like what are you gonna do though? though def did have an effect on yejin’s perceptions on relationships in the future bc her dad was not a nice guy and p distant and she probs like seeks out some sort of belated approval from her dad in every man she’s dated in her adult life while like living in absolute terror of ending up like her mom

she’s got an older sister who’s honestly a bit prettier and more like idk charismatic than yejin and has a family of her own now and roots and stuff and a place to call home by far BUT yejin was the talented daughter, the talent being she was actually p gifted at piano growing up and was so good she like earned her way into yego like yeah fancy fancy

though she’s done fuck all with that education as an adult bc she dropped out of chugye university like a semester shy of graduating simply bc “piano stopped being enjoyable”

and you know her parents who had so much pride in their daughter bc she was like “the one non-disappointing part of their marriage” were as u can imagine incredibly disappointed and tbh her dad still doesn’t talk to her bc he’s still mad at her decision and all the time she wasted but whatever long story short they cut her off even though they were never really providing anything to begin with but it’s symbolic or whatever

and yejin decides fuck them, fuck everyone i’m gonna run off and create a new me only she’s broke so the furthest her money gets her is daejeon where she knows an old friend from school and like she def desires a more transient life like she wants to see the world! she wants to drink wine in paris and kiss her lover in the rain in new york and whatever but bills are real and life is expensive and she’s got nothing so she gets a job at a shitty airline as a flight attendant bc that’s the closest thing she’ll get to seeing the world which isn’t too bad bc sometimes she goes to japan or taiwan or china and sometimes even vietnam and thailand so she sees a little of the world even if it’s sometimes just from the bedroom of shit motel

and like adult life hits her hard def not the stuff she dreamed about doing and seeing when she was just some kid in a dorm room in seoul but at the same time doesn’t really regret it bc at least she’s not miserable and losing passion for one of the things that really gave her the greatest joy in life and she’s like v much in charge of her own life or as much as anyone can be when saddled with like debt and a shitty job and living paycheck to paycheck but like she gets fun little souvenirs and knick knacks so alls well that ends well i guess

anyways still has like the same dreamy/romantic sensibility that told her “hey quit your nice fancy school that you’re only at bc you have a full ride scholarship! who needs a degree! go run away from your life it’s fine!” so basically she’s still and flighty girl who would rather run from a problem then deal with it properly but like she sees the world the rose colored glasses so that’s fun on a purely superficial level and is charming in it’s own way

also rip to her neighbors bc the nicest thing she has is an upright piano in her apartment (that she’s still making payments on rip) and she likes to play it at odd hours during the day so if you hear schubert at 7 am and then chopin at midnight you know who’s door to go bang on

#stnintro #INT.#rip this is a little long bc i'm a long winded person

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drivingsideways · 3 years

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For the ship and one word thingy, of you're still doing it(and thank you!) . Seunghyo and Seunwoo, exhaustion.

Hi anon! Sorry this is a bit late, and I'm not sure this will quite be what you were looking for, but I hope you'll enjoy the snippet. Once again, I'm setting this in my "Where Your Treasure Is" 'verse, but this works as a prequel to the first part of that series and is gen or pre-slash if you squint (or have read the rest of the 'verse!)

This is set post-canon, premising that Seon-woo gets a life-saving surgery, and Gu Seung-hyo is still with Hwajeong group but in an overseas posting. He's also dating Lee No-eul.

cw: mentions of physical disability, depression

The nurse is carefully unstrapping the prosthetics when there's a knock on the door, and a quiet voice says, "May I come in?"

Seon-woo looks up, startled. In the doorway is the last person he'd expected to see this morning, or indeed, for a long while.

"Gu sajang," he says, surprised. "Good morning," he adds, belatedly remembering his manners.

"Good morning, Ye Seon-woo-ssi. Is this a bad time?" Gu Seung-hyo asks, "I can come by later."

"Almost done," Seon-woo says, gesturing for him to enter. "I've just finished my exercise round for the morning."

The second leg is off now, and the immediate lessening of the weight makes him sigh unconsciously in relief, as he leans back into the pillows. It's been a month into the physiotherapy with the prosthetics, but he's still not used to it- neither to seeing the world from a different height, nor the strain on his back. He much preferred the chair still.

"I'll see you at 4," says Nurse Jang, with a smile, and he dredges up one for her. She's his favourite: a real sweetheart, with deft hands and a wicked sense of humour. She bows politely to Gu Seung-hyo, who bows back, before he takes the chair by the bed.

"I didn't know you were in town," Seon-woo says, "I thought No-eul-ssi mentioned you were in Indonesia."

"I have some meetings here this week," Gu Seung-hyo says, "And some free time. I hope this isn't an imposition on yours."

"My time has less value than yours, Gu sajang," he finds himself saying, "It's very kind of you to come by."

He curses himself inwardly the moment the words are out of his mouth. That had been well short of the inane courtesy that he should have responded with; that kind of self-deprecation wasn't as harmless with Gu Seung-hyo, as it might have been with another, less perspicacious man.

"Kindness has little to do with it, I'm afraid. I've been given a task," Gu Seung-hyo says smoothly, "I'm merely an errand boy."

He rises, holding out a brown paper that Seon-woo hadn't noticed before, toward him.

"From No-eul-ssi," he says, "Since she's unable to visit this week."

It's cherry tomatoes, which he knows come fresh from the little vegetable garden that No-eul's got going in her backyard in Gangneung.

Seon-woo smiles.

"Please help yourself," he says, holding out the bag to Seung-hyo, who looks hesitant but then picks one out, gingerly, as he seats himself again.

"You don't like them?" Seon-woo asks, as he roots in the bag, looking for the ripest one.

"I'm don’t usually snack in between meals," says Gu Seung-hyo.

Seon-woo nods; somehow that seems entirely in character. "It's nice though," he says, "To break the rule once in a while."

"Yes," Gu Seung-hyo says, and the corners of his eyes crinkle a little as he continues, "Though, as you know I'm rather fond of keeping them."

Seon-woo can't help chuckling at that, and the crinkles get more pronounced.

Silence reigns for a few minutes as they munch on the tomatoes; sweet with just a hint of tartness beneath. Gu Seung-hyo studies the room as he takes a second tomato, when the bag is proffered. It's not very large, but there's a long window which overlooks the garden of the rehab facility, and lets in the warm sun in the afternoons. The window sill and the small desk is covered in the detritus of Seon-woo's stay: books (from Choi Seo-hyun, mostly), a stuffed toy (No-eul), board games (which he plays with Jin-woo during his daily visits, flowers and snacks (eomma), a picture of the three of them taken at a cousin's wedding three years ago.

"This is a nice place," Gu Seung-hyo says, thoughtfully. "A good location, and they have good staff and equipment, it seems."

"Yes," Seon-woo agrees, wondering if Gu Seung-hyo's ever-ticking brain was thinking of a business opportunity. "I was lucky to get a place here after the surgery, it's always full, because they're competent but not very expensive. I have Chief Joo to thank for it, he pulled strings on my behalf."

"Did he?" Seung-hyo says, neutrally. "I'm glad it worked out."

Seon-woo nods, and attempts to concentrate on the sweetness of the tomato, and not the bitter aftertaste of pity.

It's hard though, getting harder every day, to not—

Gu Seung-hyo's studying the view from the window now, peering through the glass, hands shoved in his trouser-pockets. He's dressed in his customary three-piece suit, this time a light grey with a fine pattern, over a crisp white shirt and a navy tie. Conservative, reliable. Seon-woo wonders whom he was meeting today- some oldish government type, he assumes.

"Are you in a lot of pain?" Gu Seung-hyo asks, suddenly, turning back to Seon-woo, startling him out of his thoughts. "Sorry, " he adds, taking in Seon-woo's surprised expression. "But I thought it was better to ask it straight, than attempt to infer."

"It gets better or worse," Seon-woo says, "but there's always some. It's—" he shrugs. "I'm doing as well as could be hoped, at this point."

"The prosthetics—"

Seon-woo shrugs. "They'll take time to get used to," he says, "It still feels strange. The ones I'm trying out are among the best on offer, but the cutting-edge stuff is only available if you're in some clinical trial."

"Who's doing that here, in Korea?"

"SNU, for one," Seon-woo says, "They're really out there in terms of their ongoing projects. But it's hard to say when one of those will become commercially viable."

Seung-hyo nods, thoughtfully.

He smiles at Gu Seung-hyo. "But it's boring to talk about me, you should tell me the news of the wide world."

Gu Seung-hyo's sudden smile reminds Seon-woo that he's a handsome man.

"Do I need to? Isn't that what the internet and that tablet by your bed is for?"

Seon-woo acknowledges it with a half-smile. "Then tell me stories," he says, surprising himself, "Of your adventures in the wild jungle of corporate life. I suppose the new assignment must be a relief after the drama at Sungkook."

"It's more what I'm used to," Seung-hyo acknowledges, and then easily, as if they were friends, "but I admit I miss the challenge of dealing with the eccentricities of top-notch medicos."

The crinkly-eyed expression makes a reappearance. The man was quite unfairly charming when he chose to be, Seon-woo notes; he'd forgotten that, somehow, in the year since he'd last met Gu sajang.

"Your successor isn't faring much better, I think, the last I heard."

"No doubt your brother has nothing to do with that situation," Seung-hyo says, gravely.

Seon-woo laughs, "Nothing at all."

Talk drifts from Sungkook, to other things- Seung-hyo's new role, Korean chaebols, the economy, the Blue House's current occupant and the prospects for the next elections which are less than a year away, books that they discover they're both fond of, and music, and somehow, before Seon-woo realizes it, it's lunch time. There's a knock on the door- it's the kitchen staff with a tray of food. The young woman pauses when she sees Seung-hyo and asks if they'd like another tray.

Seon-woo, mortified by the realization that he's probably upset Gu sajang's schedule irrevocably, is just going to decline, when Seung-hyo says, "It looks delicious, I think I'll have some, if that's not a bother."

"No problem at all," says Min-joo-ssi, with a pleased smile, "We have extra trays."

After she leaves, Seung-hyo says, "Do you feel like having lunch outside in the garden? It's a fine day. I noticed there are some tables set out."

"Uh," says Seon-woo, "I've already made you late."

"Not at all," says Gu Seung-hyo, blatantly lying without missing a beat- another talent that Seon-woo had forgotten he had- "I'll call someone to get a chair."

He's already at the desk phone, quickly dialing the extension after a quick check of the list tacked on the wall, and somehow, before Seon-woo can quite process it, they're outside, under the shade of a garden umbrella, watching butterflies flit, and the bees stagger, punch-drunk, among the roses that are in outrageous bloom.

Seung-hyo eats heartily, Seon-woo notices, without affectation.

He looks up at that moment, to meet Seon-woo's eyes. "You must be bored of the food here," he says, looking a bit rueful.

"They try their best to vary it," Seon-woo says, "and eomma always sends dinner or breakfast with hyung, so I don't have too much to complain about."

Seung-hyo nods, though something flashes in his eyes, that Seon-woo has no way to parse.

A silence falls between them, as they finish the meal. It's not an entirely comfortable one—and Seon-woo feels compelled to occasionally make a remark of some kind to break it, as he becomes more and more conscious of the passage of time. Gu Seung-hyo doesn't look at his watch or mobile even once.

"Do you mind showing me around the grounds?" Seung-hyo asks, after they are done.

Seon-woo looks at him in surprise. "There's not much to see," he says.

"A walk might do me some good," Seung-hyo says, "I'm afraid I might have overdone on the meal."

"You should snack more often," Seon-woo says, smiling at him, "That might prevent these situations from arising."

"Shall we?" Seung-hyo asks, rising from the chair. "Where do I put away the trays?"

So they make their way toward the rear entrance of the kitchen to hand over their trays, Seon-woo wheeling his own chair, and Seung-hyo keeping pace with him. After, Seon-woo directs him toward the southern end of the property, toward the area where there are some tennis courts and even a basketball court set up for the residents who might be able to play.

It's just after lunch, so the courts are empty.

"You used to play," Seung-hyo says.

"Yes," he says, surprised.

"No-eul-ssi mentioned it," Seung-hyo says, "She said that your brother and you made a formidable duo on court."

"Is that so?"

Seung-hyo slants a smile in his direction, "Well, her exact words may have been that you were both bastard cheaters."

"Sore loser," Seon-woo says immediately, "She hated it when she lost."

"She's surprisingly competitive about some things," Seung-hyo agrees, and the accompanying smile is a revelation, starting up an ache beneath Seon-woo's ribs.

"I hope you'll be able to play again soon," Seung-hyo says, "The next time I come by, we should have a game."

"Sure," Seon-woo says, "Next time."

"Seon-woo-ssi," says Gu Seung-hyo, "You can say no, if you don't want to."

Seon-woo looks up, startled.

Seung-hyo is smiling wryly. "I'm quite good at it, so I should warn you it won't be an easy game. You should consider it carefully."

"Is there anything you aren't good at?" Seon-woo says, a trifle acerbic.

"Cooking," Seung-hyo says, immediately, and then adds, reflectively, "And the care of tiny creatures."

"What happened to the dog?" Seon-woo asks, immediately concerned. He's seen enough photos of the creature thanks to No-eul to justify the feeling.

"Oh nothing, Nighty is, as the kids say these days, living his best life. He's eomma's dog now, barely acknowledges me."

Was that a hint of petulance? That was unexpectedly amusing. But there was something a little wistful in it, as well.

"You aren't home," Seon-woo finds himself- consoling- the man. "It's quite natural."

"I'm aware," Seung-hyo says, "And it's fine. It's good, actually. Like I said, caretaking isn't one of my talents."

Unlike compartmentalization, Seon-woo thinks. I wish I had that.

"Shall we head back?" Seung-hyo's voice breaks in. He hadn't realized that they'd been standing there in silence for a while. "You seem tired."

There's something oddly gentle about the way he says it, something that makes Seon-woo both want to punch a wall, and break down crying.

It takes him a minute to gather himself, before he nods.

"Seon-woo-ssi," says Gu Seung-hyo, "Is there something you want to say?"

Seon-woo looks up at him.

Gu Seung-hyo's face is watchful, cautious, but not closed off.

Seon-woo looks away, across the empty basketball court.

"I regret the surgery," Seon-woo says, aloud, for the first time. "I wish I had never let myself be talked into it. I should have had the courage to—let go."

Seung-hyo doesn't respond for a long minute. Then, with a sigh, he says, "But there's so much to let go of. And why should you?"

Seon-woo turns to him, but Seung-hyo isn't looking at him either. Instead, he squats, running his hands over the rough grass at the sidelines.

"I don't suppose you could understand," Seon-woo says, softly.

"No," says Seung-hyo, "You're right, I don't. But it's not your disability or its consequences that I don't understand. It's that I've always wanted everything that this world could offer, and I'm determined to have it. Whatever it takes. I don't accept any other possibility."

He turns to Seon-woo after a minute of silence.

"An uncle of mine once told me that it was better to be alive than dead, and to be born than not at all," he offers.

"Was your uncle a priest?"

"A foreman in a factory that made precision tools. He worked forty years there for the same company, before he retired to a fishing village."

"Close," notes Seon-woo, and Gu Seung-hyo gives him one of his genuinely warm smiles, that he's only seen in photographs No-eul had sometimes shared.

"I'm selfish," he says, "about the world, and my place in it. I have an outsized ego, perhaps, to insist on my significance in the face of the vast unknown. But I am convinced that there's one thing only I can do, and that is to live my life to the fullest."

"The universe has been benevolent to you," Seon-woo says, "You're her favourite. You know, as a pep talk this is remarkably bad."

Seung-hyo smiles, a quicksilver flash of amusement.

"If you wanted a pep talk, you'd talk to your psych," he observes. "Or someone who's invested in keeping you alive, for one reason or the other."

"I'm exhausted by people trying to fix me," Seon-woo admits. "You're a nice change."

"I don't think you need fixing," says Gu Seung-hyo, "I suspect you have problems that need to be fixed. Like the rest of us."

"Is that how you see yourself?" Seon-woo asks, diverted. "As a problem solver?"

Seung-hyo shrugs. "It helps me to think of the world that way," he admits. "A series of problems that I can apply my mind to."

"Sounds exhausting," Seon-woo says, not quite kindly.

Gu sajang seems unperturbed. He shrugs out of his jacket and spreads it on the grass, before sitting down on it.

"It is, sometimes," he responds. "But there's that ineffable component called luck," he adds, "Sometimes the problems sort themselves out."

"Hashtag blessed," says Seon-woo, "Do you have a social media account?"

"I've hired a very competent firm to run my PR," Seung-hyo says, "Though they insist that I post at least one cute picture of my dog or my mother every day. I believe I have a respectable number of followers."

Seon-woo laughs.

Seung-hyo looks up at him, with a raised eyebrow.

"Likeability is a problem that's not too difficult to solve these days," he remarks.

"Another win for the universe's favourite," Seon-woo murmurs, "Hurrah."

The silence that follows lasts a while, but oddly enough, doesn't feel awkward.

"Thank you," Seon-woo says, finally. "For your time today. I'm afraid I've messed up your schedule."

"You were the only meeting on my list."

"You're dressed to meet a government bureaucrat type—" Seon-woo starts, incredulously- and then stops, outraged.

And this smile- pure mischief, that makes him look ten years younger- is something he didn't even know Gu Seung-hyo was capable of, he thinks, and close on the heel of that, he looks like someone I could be friends with.

"You didn't mess up my schedule," Gu Seung-hyo says again, "I don't have those kinds of luxuries in my life."

Seon-woo huffs, looking away. He feels hot under his collar, and it has nothing to do with the afternoon heat. He wishes he had more experience in dealing with this kind of thing- the kindness of strangers was one thing, but Gu Seung-hyo's place in his life was ill-defined.

What rot, says a voice in his head, he's the enemy.

It sounds suspiciously like Jin-woo hyung.

But Seon-woo doesn't have that kind of luxury in his life, either, or the inclination for it. Whatever lay between them- Gu Seung-hyo's time at Sungkook, his ongoing relationship with the love of Seon-woo's life- that was a past perhaps best laid to rest. Life was constant turmoil, and to fight against the current of it in this matter seemed a pointless waste of energy he didn't have.

"Tell me more about this research they're doing at SNU," Seung-hyo says after a minute, and Seon-woo takes the out offered. Sooner than Seon-woo had thought, it's almost time for his second round of physiotherapy.

"I have to get back," he says, "I don't want to make Nurse Jang wait."

"Of course not," says Seung-hyo, as he rises, folding his jacket neatly over his arm. "Shall we?"

They head back, slower than strictly warranted, as the conversation continues.

Nurse Jang is waiting for them at the door.

"Ah, Ye Seon-woo-ssi, I hope you had a good day today," she says, "with your friend."

It seems pointlessly rude to correct her; what was he going to say anyway—

"Yes," he says, not looking at Seung-hyo, "I did."

But he can't resist a glance, and catches quietly pleased look on his face, though, perhaps, to a stranger, it wouldn't look any different than his normal expression.

Somewhere between strangers and friends, he thinks, that's where they were.

As Seung-hyo makes his farewell, Seon-woo says, impulsively, "Next time, we'll play a game."

"Sure," says Seung-hyo easily, "Basketball?"

"Hmm, I prefer strategy games."

There's a glint in Gu Seung-hyo's eyes that Seon-woo finds highly entertaining.

"Loser pays for a meal," he says, recklessly.

But there was something, Seon-woo thinks, to be said for making plans for an unknown tomorrow.

'Deal," says Gu Seung-hyo, holding out his hand, " I'll be seeing you then, Seon-woo-ssi."

"Yes," says Seon-woo, as he shakes the proffered hand, "See you soon."

#jtbc life #writing things

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sxfterhearts · 4 years

Text

20. [9:40 am]

28A… 29A… Ah, 30A! You thought to yourself as your eyes glanced over the seat numbers slightly above your line of sight, your feet finally coming to a stop beside your reserved seat.

Much to your dismay, it was a window seat, facing in the opposite direction of the train’s movements. It was also one of the few face-to-face seats on the entire KTX train, with a table between the two pairs of seats which were facing each other.

You groaned internally. As much as you liked having a proper surface for writing or doodling in your journal, you didn’t like sharing. You much preferred having your own privacy while glancing out the windows, watching the greenery and the countryside pass by in a colourful blur, with soft tunes to accompany you on your journey. It’s fine, you reminded yourself, trying to stay positive, it’s only two hours, no big deal…

You hauled your backpack over your head and into the overhead compartment with practiced movements. Pulling out your travel necessities, which included your fully-charged phone, a pair of wireless earphones, a large, ice-cold Americano and your trusty journal, you settled into your seat for the rest of the morning. A part of you wished that the seat in front of you wouldn’t be occupied, while another part of you contemplated whether it was better to just try and fall asleep for the remainder of the train ride to Gangneung.

You quickly dismissed the latter thought, as the scenery throughout the train ride was too good to miss. You could deal with a couple of awkward silences and accidental glances with the unlucky stranger who reserved the seat opposite yours. Besides, it was your first time visiting your parents in two months – you weren’t going to let anything sour your mood.

The last-minute trip to Gangneung, your hometown, was planned just two days ago, as you were graciously granted two days of paid leave by your manager. After finally submitting the last tax return for your clients, your manager had treated the entire team to a congratulatory dinner and gave everyone a few days of leave to make up for the never-ending client meetings and late nights spent slaving away at the office desk during the tax busy season. You were overwhelmed with joy once your manager announced the news, pulling her usually stoic self into a tight embrace under the yellow glow of the pojangmacha, a tent bar selling alcohol and street food, due to the heightened levels of alcohol within your system.

Giggling to yourself at the memory, you reached out for your phone and typed a message to your mother to inform her that you were about to depart Seoul. It was a message that she read and replied immediately with her usual “Be careful, dear, and have a safe journey.”, which you missed dearly during the busy season. On off-periods, you would make the effort to visit your parents once a fortnight. You moved to Seoul for university a few years back and found a job in the bustling city, leaving your parents and the family’s bicycle store behind in the coastal neighbourhood. Sometime in your early twenties, your father experienced a mild health scare and had to close the store during his month-long recovery. This made you realise that as the years went by, your parents were not getting any younger. With that in mind, you tried to clear your hectic schedule to spend as much time with your parents as possible.

“This is the 10:01am number 811 KTX train bound for Gangneung. The train will be departing shortly.”

The familiar female voice flooded the carriages of the train and distracted you from your thoughts. The seat in front of you was still unoccupied. You held on to the tiny glimmer of hope that it would remain that way for the rest of the journey, despite knowing very well that the summer holidays were approaching, turning Gangneung into an ideal weekend getaway for tourists and locals alike. The prospect of spending the next few days basking in the summer sunshine, helping out at the bicycle store and frolicking in the sea excited you to no end. After long hours cooped up in the office, you were looking forward to spending your break in the great outdoors.

“28… 29… 30, 31! Here it is, Mark, 31A and 31B. Dibs the window seat!” A cheerful voice spoke in English, pulling you out of your delightful daydream. Before you could turn your head to face its owner, a bright streak of reflected rainbow dancing across the table caught your eye.

“Okay, Bella,” A deep chuckle originated from the man standing beside your seat. “Wait a sec, pass me your bag, honey.”

Your eyes traced the source of the deep timbre notes of the American-sounding voice. What you found was a man, dressed in an oversized white shirt and black ripped jeans, who was placing the girl’s pink Barbie bag into the overhead compartment. Even though he was wearing a cap, you could make out his cherubic features and the gentle smile he directed towards the girl.

The thought that he was a bit too young to have a daughter crossed your mind for a split second, but you quickly shook it off to return the little girl’s excited smile with a polite wave. She was wearing a cute pink dress and looked to be about six or seven years old. The pair got comfortable in their seats, just as the announcement informed the passengers the doors were closing.

The man sitting diagonally opposite of you took off his cap to reveal a head of blonde hair. He met your gaze, and you watched as a surprised look flashed across his face. As the two of you exchanged polite greetings, you couldn’t shake off the thought that you had seen him somewhere before.

A phone chirped, signalling an incoming call. It was a call for him. He answered it, and you looked out the window to give him some privacy and not seem too nosy. You wracked your brain for answers. Did he work at the café I frequented? Or was it the Chinese restaurant that I ordered takeaways from? No… You mused silently. Maybe he’s the cashier at the convenience store near the apartment… But that doesn’t seem right either. Wait, is he-?

“Bell, your Mummy wants to speak to you.”

“Yes, Mummy! Mark said…”

You drowned out the rest of the conversation to refocus your thinking. You sneaked another glance at the man in question, only to find half of his face covered by his laptop screen as he tapped away furiously. It seems like it’s him… You adjusted your position several times to get a better look at his face without seeming too suspicious. Blonde hair and shiny helix piercing, it must be him.

The person you were referring to was someone you’ve only ever seen from afar. There was usually a safe distance between you two on your morning subway ride to the office, with him leaning casually against a pole and you standing steadily in the middle of the crowd. The closest you’ve been to him was when you were running late, and you happened to share the elevator with a blonde-haired man from the eighth floor of your apartment. He always had the top button of his crisp button-up undone, a tie hanging haphazardly over one shoulder and his headphones sitting snugly atop his blonde head, while munching on a piece of burnt toast. You had never encountered this strange gentleman until mid-May, so you assumed that he had recently moved into the floor below you. The two of you never exchanged words either, as he was always busy shoving down his breakfast, but you would always bow politely to each other. Unbeknownst to him, you were intrigued. Not many office workers were brave enough to sport such a striking hair colour, and you had to admit, it suited him perfectly.

You just never expected him to have a child.

“Mark!” The girl, Bella, whined while grabbing his hand. Your ears were still getting accustomed to hearing English after so long. The last time you were surrounded by native speakers was during your six-month-long secondment to the New York branch of your company. “Do my hair, pretty please! I want two braids.”

The man, Mark, sighed in fake annoyance, playfully poking her cheeks. “Yes, Your Highness. Hand over your other hair tie.” A part of you wasn’t used to how the girl didn’t address him with honorifics, but you busied yourself with your phone, pretending that you weren’t eavesdropping on their conversation.

“I thought you took them for me when we left your house.” She huffed, clearly unsatisfied.

“Nope, I only have one with me.”

Your fingers reached for the simple, black hair tie around your wrist. “Here, you can borrow mine.” Smiling, you handed it over to Bella, who accepted it with a grateful smile.

Mark leaned down to whisper in her ear, unable to hide the surprised smile on his face. “Thank the pretty eonnie in Korean.”

“Thank you, eonnie!” Bella chirped, so excited that she was practically bouncing in her seat.

“You’re most welcome.” You said in perfect English, intrigued at Mark’s earlier interaction with the girl.

He proceeded to divide her hair into two even halves, combing her dark locks with long, thin fingers. Expertly, Mark separated the first half into three parts and began to braid. He stuck out his tongue cutely in concentration, trying his best to not mess up.

“Don’t move so much, Bell.” He scolded lightly when the girl pulled out her colouring book and painted the sky a light shade of blue with large strokes of her coloured pencil.

“You’re pretty good at this. Mark, right?” You commented.

“Yeah, guess it comes with practice. I’m Mark, by the way. We never got to introduce each other properly. Your name is…?”

“Y/N.”

“Ah yes, Y/N. It suits you well. Always so prim and proper in your blazer and kitten heels. I must seem like a fool to you, with my tie undone and all.”

You laughed at his self-deprecating humour. This man is funny, and he can braid hair. His wife sure is a lucky woman, you thought. “No, not at all. Where do you work?”

Light conversation regarding your respective careers ensued. You found out that he was also working at a company close to yours, which explained the frequent encounters on the train. He moved in about a month ago from another side of the city because of his new job. When the conversation about work dwindled, you shifted the topic to the girl.

“How old is she?”

Mark secured the first braid with your hair tie, smiling to himself, satisfied. “Bella, how old are you?”

“I’m six, Mark! How could you forget?” The girl sat up from her position to shoot daggers with her eyes at him.

“I’m sorry, kiddo. Come, turn to the other side so I can finish this up.” He moved her to sit facing the window instead and starting on the second braid. “She’s six,” Mark turned to you and answered with a sheepish expression. Before you started to wonder what kind of father would forget his daughter’s age, he continued, “Bella doesn’t visit very often.”

Your eyebrows quirked upwards in response. Does that mean he was… divorced?

Mark saw your confused expression and hastened to add, “She’s my niece.” You let out a breath that you didn’t even realise you were holding. “My sister and her family came over from LA to visit me.”

It all made sense to you now. “Right…”

“Her parents wanted some alone time so I’m taking her to Gangneung for a day trip cos she wants to visit Jumunjin beach and take some pictures.” He paused, and went on to mouth, “She loves BTS.”

“The bus stop near the beach? The one on their album cover?” You wondered, knowing exactly which photo spot he was referring to. “It’s about a bit of a drive from my parent’s bicycle shop. I took a couple of days off to visit them.”

“You’ve seen the bus stop? That’s so cool!” Bella’s ears perked up.

“Sit still, honey.” Mark reminded sternly as he got closer to the end of the braid.

You nodded eagerly. “Yup! They’ve got a map of a BTS bus route with their album names as the bus stops.”

“Don’t encourage her, Y/N…” Mark groaned as he tied the second braid. He inspected his handiwork and seemed very proud of himself.

“Well, I have a suggestion,” You started carefully. “How about this? I can be your local tour guide for Gangneung today. I can show you the best photo spots, the most popular places to get your daily coffee fix and even get you a discount for bike rentals so you can cycle around the beach and the lake!”

The two of them nodded eagerly at your proposition.

It was a long, eventful day. The three of you had visited a hanok café, took way too many pictures at the Jumunjin bus stop and breakwater where they filmed Goblin, dipped your toes in Gyeongpo Beach and cycled around Gyeongpo lake. Your parents had immediately taken a liking to your new friend Mark and his cute niece, even insisting on packing them a container full of kimbap and banana milk for their journey back to Seoul.

“Thank you so, so much for today, Y/N.” Mark whispered as the three of you sat at the train station, waiting for their train. Bella had already dozed off with her head on Mark’s lap. It was an adorable sight. “We both had a lot of fun.”

“Not a problem at all. I enjoyed showing you around and visiting touristy places. I got to see my hometown in a different light.” You faced him, giving him a sincere smile.

He returned you with an equally bright smile that showed off his cute, pointy canines. “Let me take you out for dinner or something. You know, to make it up to you.” Mark’s ears began to heat up and were painted in a faint tinge of red. “Let’s exchange numbers.”

“Sure!” You replied. Was he asking me out on a date? You wondered. “I’ve been craving sticky barbecue ribs since I left the States.”

“I know a good place. How about next Saturday night?”

“I’m free.”

“Great, it’s a date.”

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notebookfilledwithscrabbles · 4 years

Text

PyeongChang 2018 - 6-minutes warm-up before FS by NHK

Translation post 31

Original language: Japanese

Translator’s note: This is not a word-for-word translation. I paraphrased some of the things said in the broadcast to clarify the main point.

Announcer: Takaki Toriumi. He has been working for NHK since early 90’s and done play-by-play announcement for NHK Trophy many times.

Commentator: Takeshi Honda. Former single skater. Two-time Olympian and World bronze medalist. First 4CC champion and six-time national champion. He is also the first Japanese skater who landed a quadruple jump in a competition. He is now coaching in Osaka. He had been training in Ice Rink Sendai in early 90’s with Shizuka Arakawa.

(The camera captures Yuzuru Hanyu standing-by at the rink side while people in the venue are waiting for Adam Rippon's scores)

Toriumi: Finally, group 4 is coming up next.

(The camera captures Adam Rippon in the Kiss and Cry)

Toriumi: Adam Rippon's scored... 171.41 for free skating and 259.36 in total. Adam Rippon is currently in 4th place after 18 skaters finished skating.

(The camera captures Yuzuru Hanyu at the rink side again)

Toriumi: Nathan Chen, Vincent Zhou, and Mikhail Kolyada (t/n: are ranked above Rippon) in this order. Now, finally, this moment has come.

(Hanyu takes off his blade covers and touches them with his forehead)

Toriumi: Here comes the time to fight.

(Hanyu hands the blade covers to his coach. Loud cheers go up responding to his image on the overhead screens)

Toriumi: Loud cheers went up when they showed this image on the overhead screens as well. The six skaters of the final group are now taking the ice! Yuzuru Hanyu will skate fourth in these six.

(PA announcer introduces skaters in the final group)

Toriumi: An Olympic athlete from Russia, Dmitri Aliev. He delivered his best short program. Boyang Jin of China, who scored his personal best yesterday. Patrick Chan of Canada, the silver medalist from Sochi. And now, Yuzuru Hanyu. Javier Fernandez of Spain. Shoma Uno of Japan. Anyone in this group can win a medal. These six skaters are competing at such a high-level.

Toriumi: Now, the six-minutes warm-up has started. Can Hanyu deliver his best performance and win two-consecutive titles?

(Skating order for group 4 appears on the screen)

Toriumi: Aliev, Boyang Jin, Patrick Chan, Yuzuru Hanyu, Javier Fernandez, and the last skater is Shoma Uno. Yuzuru Hanyu is taking the lead. (t/n: after the short program) His score was 111.68. He is now in the top position being ahead of Fernandez by 4.10 points. The point difference between Shoma Uno in the 3rd place (t/n: after the short program) is 7.51. Now, Mr. Honda...

Honda: Yes?

Toriumi: What draws our attention first and the most is how Hanyu will perform his FP.

Honda: Well, in the free program, they have to do more quads and skate longer, executing 13 elements in the four and a half minutes. So, naturally, the key is to minimize the point loss.

Toriumi: Judging from what we have seen in the practice sessions, his program will include two 4Ss and two 4Ts, four quads in total.

Honda: Yes.

(Hanyu lands 3A+2T Rippon)

Toriumi: He landed a 3A now. How do you see it?

Honda: I think he is moving very smoothly. It looked like his usual 3A.

Toriumi: It is his specialty. He landed an exquisite 3A yesterday. Didn't it receive full marks?

Honda: Yes, it did.

Toriumi: He landed such a 3A. In the practice session this morning, although he had 40 minutes, he cut it short to 25 minutes to get ready for what was coming up next. What do think about how things have been going so far?

Honda: Well, I guess that seeing his practice this morning, they decided that that was enough, that he was ready and left early.

(Hanyu lands 4T+1Lo+3S)

Toriumi: Oh... He did a quad now.

Honda: That was a quad+1Lo+ 3S combination.

(Hanyu goes back to the board to get hydrated and goes back skating)

Toriumi: Yuzuru Hanyu had been away from the ice for two months due to the injury in his right ankle, but in the short program yesterday, he delivered a massive performance and made us wonder if he had indeed been injured.

(PA announcer introduces Hanyu. Loud cheers go up in the venue)

Toriumi: Again, they are showing this image in the venue as well. Today, they opened this Gangneung Ice Arena to the audience at 8 in the morning, and we saw many ladies bringing Japanese flags. The official practice this morning was open to the public as well.

(Hanyu saves the landing of 4S)

Toriumi: Oops, Hanyu staggered a bit now.

(PA announcer introduces Fernandez)

Toriumi: Javier Fernandez is on the screen. Mr. Honda, I would say he is one of the biggest rivals. (t/n: for Hanyu)

Honda: I agree. Judging from the way he has been practicing, he must be in very good condition.

(Fernandez lands a 4T)

Honda: He is also an entertainer and capable of earning high marks in components scores, so naturally, he will get high score.

Toriumi: Right... He is a two-time Worlds Champion. This Javier Fernandez and Hanyu have been learning from each other under coach Brian Orser.

(Uno lands a 4F while PA announcer is introducing him)

Toriumi: Now, Shoma Uno. Although this is his first Olympics, he got very good score yesterday. His short program earned 104.17, which is very close to his personal best. What do you think about his conditioning so far?

Honda: I think he has been doing great. Physically, he is looking normal, and he is jumping quads as usual... Ah, he is trying to attempt a 4Lo now...

Toriumi: OK, let's take a look... Well... he is planning to do 4Lo, 4F and 4T today...

Honda: Yup. Two 4Ts in the second half.

(Uno pops the loop)

Honda: He is attempting a quad... Hmm. He could not get in the rhythm of his jump.

Toriumi: He could not get in the rhythm this time. Shoma Uno is planning to do four quads of three types today. If he can nail these jumps, he will, of course, get in the medal contention, and he is capable enough to contend even for the gold.

(Uno fell on 4Lo)

Toriumi: (T/n: He went for a) Quad... Hmm. He got down on his knee. The warm-up will end in 15 seconds.

(The camera captures Kolyada, Chen, and Zhou in the green room)

Toriumi: Currently, Nathan Chen is in the first place. Vincent Zhou is in second place, and Mikhail Kolyada is in third place. Nathan Chen managed to land five quads today for the first time in the history of the Olympics.

(End of 6-minutes warm-up. Hanyu marks Salchow and skates toward the exit)

Toriumi: The warm-up has ended. Hanyu is going to skate fourth. Uno, sixth. How would they spend the time until their performance?

Honda: Well... After all, I hope they will take a bit of rest to calm down and boost their focus again.

(Hanyu receives his blade covers from Orser and put them back on, then goes to the backyard with his coaches)

Toriumi: Yuzuru Hanyu is going after the second Olympic title. If he manages to win, he will be the first one to accomplish the feat in 66 years.

#figure skating commentary #PyeongChang 2018 #yuzuru hanyu

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missguomeiyun · 5 years

Text

I’m back from Korea

I feel like October didn’t happen at all .. but at the same time, it happened & it happened too quickly =/

I was away for 2.5 weeks in Korea, & then when I came back, it was a mini series of night shifts so I practically did nothing. .. & by the time I realized it, it was Halloween & I was working evening shifts so I didn’t go out. O_O it has been 1 crazy month. But November is here now, & things are returning back to normal: my vacation withdrawal is over, & I have some “normal” combo of shifts, & it’s time to say bye-bye to the hot weather. It’s gonna be great~

Okay, let’s be real: I’m never “over” a Korea trip lol the other day, I was really craving that budae jjigae. The struggle was real. So I made it for lunch ^^

For my 1st return post, I’ve decided to keep things simple & just share a brief summary of my 2.5 week-long trip with you!

Day 1-4: I stayed at my usual Seoul home, Namsan Hill Hotel. I was unable to book a longer stay at this place =( These 1st few days, I revisited some places in Seoul: Namdaemun (for hand-cut noodles called “kalguksu”); Sinchon/Ewha Womens Univ area/Hongik Univ area for shopping & ; Gyeongbokgung area for Tongin Market & some art museums; Insadong/Samcheongdong/Bukchon Hanok Village for some relaxing strolls around traditional Korean housing. Some new places I went to include:

- a cafe called “Kopi Han-yak-bang” (lit. trans.: “coffee Korean pharmacy”). Look it up! It’s super cool! The owner believes coffee has a healing power, just like traditional herbal medicine, so the cafe is like a vintage herbal medicine shop/pharmacy. It feels as if you’re entering a movie set rather than a cafe.

- The Skyfarm for brunch! Pretty place with amazing view of Seoul.

- Seongsu area for industrial warehouse cafes. It was a valuable & memorable experience bcos Seongsu used to be an area for large factories (making of leather products & shoes, & car-fixing shops), but it’s revitalizing & the large factory spaces are now being converted to hip coffeeshops. Many of which do collabs with local/emerging artists & fashion designers so there’s lots of artsy things to see in these coffeeshops.

- Seoul Forest. There’s like a picnic area, some basketball & tennis courts, walking trails, etc. .. I had a convenience store goods dinner in the picnic area, & watched the sunset there.

Day 5-8: I moved over to Savoy Hotel located in the heart of Myeongdong. It’s ~15min walk away from Namsan Hill Hotel. Great location but also quite loud. My options were slim when I was booking stuff, & I needed to stay close to Seoul Station bcos I arranged 4x 1-day trips! I didn’t realize it at first but then I was like, “I have 4 back-to-back day trips right now.” I was essentially out every day from like 0700h to 2100h.

Trip 1: Paju~ for Heyri Art Village & Provence. I have been to these places before & really liked it so I went back, esp Heyri Art Village. After the day trip, I met up with 2 of my coworkers for K-BBQ in the Hapjeong area.

Trip 2: Jeonju~ I only went to 1 place in Jeonju & that was the Jeonju Hanok Village. It was raining all day that day. However, it was still very enjoyable. The village was a beautiful place, & under the rain, it looked even more picturesque.

Trip 3: Incheon~ for Incheon Chinatown & Wolmido, which is an island connected to Incheon via a highway. Due to its close proximity to China, Incheon became a major port for trades back in the day, & the Chinese immigrants basically settled here, hence it’s the largest Chinatown in Korea. I met up with my friend Ji Yoon in Chinatown & we spent some time catching up.

Trip 4: Gangneung~ For the annual Gangneung Coffee Festival; its title was “Voices of Coffee” this year! It was held at the Gangneung Olympic Ice Arena. I can’t recall how many shots of coffee samples I had that day, but it was a lot. I also went to the Anmok Coffee Street, which is a line of cafes along Anmok Beach - all the cafes face the beach so the view is pretty. Even more so on the day I went bcos it was cloudy =]

Day 9: remained in Seoul today. Went to the Seoul Botanic Garden, which opened its doors in May 2019. Very pretty displays~ Huuuuuge space too. It was like Telus World x Muttart Conservatory x Devonian Botanic Garden. Lots to see, & if you go, allot more time for yourself here. & then in the evening, I camped out by Yeouido Hangang Park for the annual Seoul International Fireworks Festival, which was named “Life is Colourful” this year. So many ppl! I was expecting that before going but it was beyond my imagination. It was truly an experience- the streets were blocked off for pedestrian traffic & literally, it took like 10mins to move 5meters after the show as over! Then at the subway station nearby, there was a bottleneck, where apparently the capacity inside the underground station was reached so we needed to wait outside the exit.. . still, it was fun!

Day 10-12: 1 way train ticket to Busan. Yes, train to Busan ;) I was safe though hehe Busan was beautiful! In hindsight, I should’ve spent more time here but . .. NEXT TIME! I went to BIFF Square & Gukje Market, which was like across from my hotel, Stanford Inn Busan. Gamcheon Cultural Village was super cute; although I would hate being a resident there =/ The Busan Int’l Film Festival was happening then, & I visited the Expo & Convention Centre for the film market. Can’t go into the exhibition, but that whole area was filled with ads/posters of BIFF - it was a big deal! It was cool to witness such a big event & to experience the sheer scale of it. I then went to Shinsegae Centum City, which is the largest shopping complex in the world. Haeundae Beach was also cool. I went on a cloudy day & it was awesome! That same evening/night, I checked out the Jagalchi Fish Market, which is the largest seafood market in Korea. It has 7 floors total, with 3 underground parking levels :O On the last day, bcos I only had the morning available to do stuff, I had Busan fish cake for breakfast & strolled in BIFF Square again.

*Note: I actually hit all the things on my itinerary EXCEPT for the Busan Museum of Art, which was closed on Mondays =( but the security guy let me in to see the lobby bcos he knew I was a tourist. Thank you!

Day 13-17: Flew from Busan Airport to Jeju Airport. I used more time than needed for the whole process- turned out foreigners have their own line at the Busan Airport, so it’s faster than locals. There’s also a domestic terminal & international terminal, so from arrival to being checked in & through security.. . it took less than 25mins. It was great! In regards to Jeju, I did the following:

- stayed in Jeju City for the arrival afternoon/evening, with my hotel being Astar Hotel. Had a street food dinner at Dongmun Market; they were having this night market/festival event so a bunch of street food stalls were open from 7pm-midnight. Smelled like heaven haha

- I did my 1st hike ever on Hallasan Mountain, specifically the Gwaneunsa Trail, & I reached the peak. It was.. . hard. I can’t say I particularly enjoyed it; however, it has proven to me that I am a land person, & I belong in museums, cafes, & street walking lol. Look up the details of the trail! Was it ambitious of me to go on this for my 1st hike ever. .. without any hiking gear? I went with what some ppl would consider gym shoes, a hoodie, leggings, & a backpack with water, juice, kimbaps, 2 bananas, 6 mandarins, & some snacks (cheese crisps & pineapple cream-flavoured crackers).

- The day after the hike, my legs were still okay. But it was my glut that was starting to get sore XD I went to Osulloc Tea Museum & Innisfree Jeju House. The aesthetics <3

- Went to Black Pig Street for black pig bbq. I was hoping a restaurant or two was taking solo-diners & thankfully, the 2nd restaurant I asked did! I ordered pork neck instead of pork belly - it was quite tender & kinda chewy, actually. Later that evening, I went to the Tamra Cultural Festival 2019. It was neat~ There was an outdoor night market, as well as a stage for cultural dance/play/music.

- Jeju Island is actually quite small, & it takes approx. an hour from 1 side of the island to the other side. Thus, for my 3rd (full) day, I went to the Jungmun (Jeju City is north of the island; Jungmun is south coast) & visited the Yellow Cafe, Chocolate Land, Ripley’s Believe It or Not Museum, & Yeomiji Botanical Garden.

- From Jungmun, I took a local bus to Lee Jong Seop Street in Seogwipo, the next city over. The street is very pleasant & chill, with artwork along the street, coffeeshops & eateries, as well as little gift shops. Totally my thing! It reminds me Bukchon Hanok Village in terms of vibe, but minus the traditional housing look. The Seogwipo Olle Market is nearby, & is a great place to buy Jeju souvenirs. The pricing, I heard/read, is cheaper than Dongmun Market in Jeju City - it is true! There are also less tourists here, which was what made it enjoyable for me, personally.

- Only the morning on my last day was free for activities bcos my flight to Seoul was early afternoon. I visited the area around Jeju City Hall, which was ~20min walk from my hotel. It was a very leisurely morning, where I sat down & enjoyed coffee at Coffee Finder & had a build-your-own-ramen bowl at a place nearby. The architecture of Coffee Finder was unique; it used to be a 2-floor house, with like a driveway/sidewalk. But the ummm first floor ceiling/second floor flooring was knocked down so there’s a “hole” in the middle of the cafe. The cafe has very homely vibes as the placement of tables/chairs are in what was (at one point) rooms of the house. It’s open but also you can get some privacy at the same time.

Day 17-18: Back to Seoul, & stayed at Namsan Hill Hotel~ Itaewon is a must! I need to go to Passion 5 every time lol. & I also revisited the Leeum Samsung Museum of Art bcos I like it. & then I had my last day as a “free” day, where I didn’t plan ANYTHING. I’m a very intense planner & when I go on trips, I literally plan to the minute haha & guess what, I ended up in Hongdae. Honestly, it’s my kinda place. Sadly, the transportation situation there isn’t convenient for the rest of my itinerary, or else I would choose a hotel that’s in the vicinity. I nearly spent 2.5 hrs at Coin Su Noraebang haha I realized that if you score high enough, time gets added to your paid time :O I can’t let that go to waste =P

There ya go, Korea 2019!

PS: I haven’t decided what/how I’m gonna go about posting my trip. .. There are wayyyy too many photos & it will take me a million yrs to write/upload. Perhaps expect unexpected Korea posts scattered between my regular posts :P I will, however, share with you the coffees I’ve had in Korea. I tried diff ones, from franchise to small local cafes, adventurous flavours & the typical black Americano. I didn’t have any poor experiences but there was 1 particular one that I will likely never order again - tbh, I should’ve expected it but I still went for it anyway *shrugs* so I guess it was all my fault haha ok, I’ll ttyl~!

#korea #korea travel #travel korea #korea trip #korea 2019 #solo travel #vacation #seoul #busan #jeju island #paju #incheon #gangneung #jeonju #tourist

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ksoap-ie · 5 years

Text

ASTRO OK READY - PT 4 // Ha-Eun (Sun)

Masterlist

Hey everyone! I hope this was okay! I’ll start writing episode 5 soon. If you’ve got any requests please let me know! It could be about Ha-Eun/Sun or even any kpop group in general, I’ll do my best!

The members sit in a row, everyone with their own luggage in front of them, in the practice room. Sun is being drowned in her oversized, mustard hoodie, contrasting with her black jeans. The outfit is complete with black an white checkerboard vans and a gold bracelet.

“Does everyone remember today’s mission?” One of the staff members ask. The group bellows out the word ‘vacation’, to which the staff laugh, and throw another red mission card in front of them.

Jinjin picks it up while Rocky begins reading, “Team building vacation. To give the tired members of ASTRO some rest and to strengthen their teamwork-”

“Everyone!” Jinjin cuts him off just before Rocky finishes reading, “We’re going to the East-sea! Our mission is to watch the sunrise!” Sun jumps up and down excitedly.

“I haven’t done that in ages! I always used to do it before practice but now my schedule is too busy.” She exclaims. Everyone then begins showing off what they brought.

“Oh!”

“No, no no.” Eunwoo tells MJ. Sun, who’s sitting on the right side of Eunwoo, looks over at all the fuss.

“MJ, protect your dignity!”

“They’re not even that embarrassing!” He replies. Moonbin leans over Sun slightly and taps Eunwoo’s knee. Eunwoo looks over. “Are those the ones I’m thinking of?” He asks. Eunwoo laughs and nods. Just then, MJ takes out the script of ‘To be Continued’. Jinjin and MJ then begin acting one of the most memorable scenes before the staff tells them that it’s time to leave.

In the car, Sun sits at the front, next to the driver. The staff put a camera on the dashboard so that she could talk to the fans. Behind her, sits Sanha, Moonbin and Rocky and then the last row is filled by MJ, Eunwoo and Jinjin. The ride there was very loud, the boys were belting out songs, talking and more. Sun sat, occasionally giggling but overall just being fairly quiet. After a while, she leads forward, looking directly into the camera.

“This is what I have to put up with everyday.” She whispers, “When I try to go to sleep they’re all screaming! It’s annoying but I love them... sometimes.”

“Hey!” Sanha screeched, Sun turns around and wiggles her eyebrows.

“What? I said I love you guys.”

“You’re lying!”

“Why would I-” “Liar! Liar! Liar!” Sanha chants, swinging his legs and pouting. Sun looks at him in disbelief and turns back to the camera.

“I love everyone except Sanha right now.” She giggles. Suddenly she jumps in her seat due to a forceful push in her back.

“I heard that too!” Sanha wines to which she laughs.

After a while, the guys start saying that they’re hungry and ask the driver if they can get something to eat. The driver pulls into a parking lot with a restaurant only a few meters away from where they parked. They all pile out of the car, standing facing the cameras. The staff hands them an envelope. Moonbin takes it but then hands it to Ha-Eun who stands behind him. She opens the envelope and reads it out loud.

“Teamwork building first mission. Blow bubblegum in a relay. One team, one spirit Astro. All seven members blow bubblegum. Blow bubbles one member at a time, everyone must blow a bubble.”

The staff then hands then long strips of bubblegum from behind the camera. They all take one each and put the bubblegum into their mouths, beginning to chew. MJ blows a bubble first... but miserably fails. Due to this, the members can no longer eat. They all go back into the car, complaining how the gum wasn’t good for blowing bubbles.

When the car arrives at Gangneung, everyone gets out once more, starting to walk down the pavement.

“I’m hungry!” Sanha shouts, swinging his arms. Some members even try to convince themselves that they’re full, in desperation.

“I really thought they would give us something.” “We’ve not eaten in twelve hours.” The group continuously mumbles mindlessly before they stop in the middle of the pavement.

“Don’t worry guys!” Sun tries to reason with them, “I’m sure there will be plenty of chances for us to eat.”

Just then, the staff gives them yet another mission card, however, this time 200 won is inside. The groups mission is to go grocery shopping. Sun playfully shoves Sanha.

“See! I told you we’ll eat soon, ya big baby.”

“Yeah but we have to buy the food first and it’ll be a while until we cook it.”

“You’re hopeless...” She rolls her eyes. At the grocery store, the members go wild. Sun runs off to the bakery section with a camera man going after her. He finds her looking between two different packages. One is a bag of chocolate chip cookies and the other is a plastic package of lemon cupcakes. She looks at the camera.

“I really like sweet things, I’m not the type of person for savoury foods. I want to get these,” she shows the camera, “but I want to get something the boys like too... I also have a feeling they’re going to spend all the money so I’m just going to get the cookies. They’re simple but good!”

She walks back over to the boys, finding most of them holding full-to-the-brim grocery baskets. She notices that MJ isn’t there. Just as she’s about to ask, her name is bellowed across the store.

“Sunnie!” His face pops out from behind the shelf, holding a large caramel chocolate bar, “This one is your favourite right?”

“Woah! Yeah! Thanks MJ.” She grins at him as he places a few of them into the basket. Once the food is paid for, the staff takes them to an arcade. Ha-Eun runs off with Jinjin to play air hockey, while they were playing they starting talking.

“I haven’t been to an arcade in ages!” She exclaims.

“Same here, I used to go after school with my friends. I think we used up all of our money on it!”

“Ahh, that sounds fun. I used to go with my family when we went to the seaside, much like today actually. It’s nice to come back with you guys.”

_______________________________________

The next mission is for the group to ‘beat a game master’, the first round is basketball, Sun is chosen by the staff to go against him first.

As she steps up to the machine, everyone laughs. Sun turns around and faces the cameras.

“I don’t think this is fair!”

“Why,” Eunwoo laughs, “why is it unfair Sun?” “From the way you’re laughing I think you know all to well why!” She gestures to her height, the game masters height and the basketball hoop that just happens to tower over her body. “Do you really think I can throw that high? I hope you know I’m the worst at sports in school and this is one of the reasons why!”

After her dramatic monologue, the game begins. Sun nervously picks up the ball, glancing at the taller figure beside her who happens to be perfectly getting every basket he shoots. She puts the ball above her head and throws. To her surprise, it goes in smoothly.

“WOAh!” She cheers, jumping up and down, doing her own victory dance.

Everyone shouts at her, “Keep going, keep going!”

The score is noticeably different. Sun was at 2 while the game master was at 10, beginning to feel competitive she continues to throw the basketballs, scoring mostly each time. When the game had finally finished, Sun had scored 43 while the game master scored 41. MJ runs up to Sun, engulfing her in a hug as he cheers along with the rest of the boys.

____________________________________________

A few hours later the members stand in the house where they’ll be sleeping for the night. Just as the staff is about to announce the results, the boys make the sound of a drum while Sun free styles.

“Astro, you will be eating now!” They announce.

Later, most of Astro are now sitting down on the benches. Jinjin and Eunwoo are grilling the meat they brought at the grocery store. Sun begins talking to the camera, sighing.

“Gosh these boys go mad for meat.”

“Do you not like meat?” One of the staff members ask, trying to help fans watching understand Sun’s likes and dislikes.

“I mean,” She begins, “It’s not my favourite thing in the world. I like the taste but the texture and idea of it bothers me the most. I might as well not be korean! Personally, I prefer sweeter foods. I’m not keen on bitter things either, like coffee for example! Eunwoo thinks I’m mad, I can’t help it!”

“You are mad! How do you not like coffee or meat?!”

“I just don’t, okay!? Don’t judge me Eunwoo, I’m my own person!” She giggles.

“Whatever you say.” Eunwoo rolls his eyes, going back to grilling the meat.

Soon, the meat is cooked and everyone sits on a bench, tucking in. The staff eats their ramen on another table. Noticing this, Sun fills her plate with a portion of meat, stands up and places the paper plate on their table. She sits back down and grabs a cookie, enjoying the chocolate-y taste.

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insideabunker · 6 years

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The Games: Chapter 11

Lexa jogged down the cavernous hallway of the Gangneung Ice Center, narrowly avoiding collisions with the swarm of spectators still flowing out of the rink. Here and there, people pointed at her, murmuring feverishly as they realized who had just brushed past them, but Lexa ignored their excitement. She was a woman on a mission, too preoccupied with the task at hand to stop and humor. At a set of heavy metal doors, she slowed, flashing her access pass to the uniformed men who stood guarding the entrance to the player area. Darting through she ran headlong into a gaggle of American players toting sticks and heavy gear bag. Lexa strained to pick up their murmured conversation as they passed.

“Do you think Clarke’s really ok?”

“She says she’s fine.”

“Did Coach have Jackson checker her out?”

“She said she didn’t need him to.”

“All I know is she was limping badly when she came off the ice.”

“Yeah, but she did come off the ice on her own. I mean it’s not like anyone had to help her off.”

“That check looked horrible. I don’t know how Griff was walking after that.”

“Well anyway, Raven stayed behind to talk to her. Maybe she can convince…”

The conversation stopped abruptly when the women noticed Lexa. Each one cast concerned glances her way as they pasted, eyeing her suspiciously as she headed down the hall. Lexa made a point of walking past the American locker room, doubling back when she was sure the other players were out of sight.

“You're being ridiculous!” She could hear the sound of someone yelling could through the door. Before Lexa could even grab the handle, it swung open, revealing an irate Raven Reyes, her face red from arguing.

“Oh, great!” Raven threw her hands in the air, looking Lexa up and down doubtfully. “Well, maybe you can talk some sense into her!” In a huff, Raven stomped out into the hallway and disappeared towards the busses.

Clarke sighed, looking skeptically in the Canadian goalie's direction. Still was half clad in hockey pants, shin guards and skates, she shifted uncomfortably on the bench.

“What are you doing here, Woods?”

The tone of Clarke’s greeting took Lexa by surprise, more irritable and exhausted than happy to see her. Lexa felt a wave of uncertainty wash over her. “What was she doing there?” she wondered. Granted she hadn’t known the American Captain very long, but as she’d watched the violent scene unfold on television, she'd been filled with the distinct sensations of terror and worry, followed by a terrible need to find out if Clarke was hurt. Lexa remembered being sure of her purpose as she’s dashed out of Canada house and grabbed the first available ride to the rink, but now, she couldn’t quite place what her plan had been. Had she merely wanted to know if Clarke was injured? Had she meant to confront the Swiss player and defend her friend's honor? “Friend,” the word bounced around in Lexa's head echoing off the far walls of her conscious. Was that even what they were?

"I..." She stammered.

Clarke leaned forward, her eyebrows arching towards her hairline expectantly.

"I just wanted to see if you were alright." She shoved her hands in her pockets awkwardly, totally unsure of herself.

Clarke sighed, avoiding the tall Canadian's gaze. "I'm fine." She frowned as she began unlacing her skates. "Looks like you're not off the hook for the playoffs."

There was a touch of bitterness to that statement that felt underserved, and it wounded Lexa more than it should have.

"Hey," Lexa clenched her jew, annoyed that her concern was being dismissed as competitiveness. "I don't care about that. I was worried about you."

"Well, don't be.”

Clarke continued to avoid her gaze as she pulled her second skate off, though Lexa could hear the subtle tremor in her voice. The blonde pushed off her hockey pants, tearing off her game socks and making quick work of her shin guards, all of which she thrust frustratedly into the large gear bag in front of her. Clad only in a Bauer neck protector shirt and compression pants, Clarke forced herself up off of the bench carefully. Lexa noticed the way she clung to her stick for balance, taking great care to keep her weight on her good leg as she attempted to step over her equipment.

"I'm absolutely…”

Before she could finish the statement Clarke's foot caught in the loose strap of her bag, and she jerked forward, off balance. Reflexively, she stuck out the other foot to stop her fall, bringing all of her weight down on her injured leg.

The second pressure shifted to her wounded limb it buckled, and Clarke let out an agonized cry that raised the hair on Lexa's neck. The goalie lunged forward, catching Clarke around her shoulders just before she toppled to the ground.

"I don't need your help," Clarke groaned through gritted teeth.

Lexa sighed, trying to be patient with the stubborn woman.

"At least let me help you to the training room so you can ice that thing."

Clarke's eyes were screwed shut in anguish, her breathing ragged as she fought the pain coursing through her leg. Swallowing her pride, she nodded, and Lexa slipped one hand around Clarke's back. She slung the smaller woman's arm over her shoulders and held it in place, bracing her around her mid-torso as she pulled Clarke up. Lexa walked forward cautiously, allowing the injured skater to use her as a crutch as they made their way through the swinging doors of the training room. Once inside, she eased Clarke down onto the padded table top, gently picking up her legs to swing them over.

Clarke braced her hands on the table’s edge and leaned to one side, keeping as much weight as possible off her weak leg. She attempted to ease herself down slowly, reaching to pull her pants off. As soon as her weight settled, she grasped the table again, desperately pushing herself back up. Unable to let go, she cast an abashed glanced at Lexa.

"Can you," her eyes darted towards her waistband.

As respectfully as she could, Lexa gripped the top of Clarke's compression pants and began pulling them down. She stopped abruptly when she saw the blonde wince.

"Stop!" Clarke grimaced, gasping for breath. "Go slow, ok?"

“Sorry! Sorry!” Wordlessly, Lexa began her ministrations again, moving with as much care as she could muster. She pulled back the stretchy black fabric, rolling it down Clarke's leg with great hesitation. As soon as Lexa passed the material over the top third of Clarke' thighs the black and blue of a large and angry contusion began to show along the muscles of her right leg. A few inches more and the bruising looked even worse

"How I sit?" Clarke forced through clenched teeth.

"Clarke..." Lexa felt a cold chill shoot up her spine as she realized the extent of the damage. "I don't have any medical training, but this looks pretty bad."

"How's the knee?"

Lexa anxiously pulled back the fabric a few inches more, observing the knee thoughtfully. Like the quad, the knee was bruised, though not as swollen as Lexa expected. "I'm not sure. I don't know what I am supposed to be looking for, Clarke, but I really think you need to get this checked out by a doctor."

The American ventured a quick peek at her leg. Grimacing, she turned away quickly. She swallowed hard, fighting back the urge to vomit.

"Well, at least it hasn't swelled up like a water balloon. That's a good sign." Clarke exhaled a long, slow breath, trying to stop her mind from racing.

"Can't you get me some...?"

"Ice, right!" Lexa finished the sentence, dashing off to the cooler and filling two bags with ice shavings. She returned to the table, placing them against the warm, swollen flesh of Clarke's leg.

"Here, hand me that," Clarke pointed to stretch-wrap, stuck on a handle at the end of the table. Lexa passed it over obligingly, pulling up a chair up as she watched as Clarke skillfully secure the ice to her leg.

"Where did you learn how to do that?" Lexa smiled, trying to break the tension with small talk. "I even touch that stuff, and it's wadded up, tangled mess."

Clarke focused on the cylinder of plastic wrap, her eyes never leaving her work. "I told you, my mom was a nurse." She continued wrapping, binding the bags in place. "She knew my dad was terrible with blood, so she taught me basic first aid when I was really little." She finished securing the ice, and tore the plastic, fastening it expertly. "Also, I spent some time interning with our trainers when I got injured."

Clarke leaned back a bit, finally able to settle her weight now that the cold ice was numbing her injury. "When I first hurt my knee it wasn't clear that I would be able to play again. I had no idea what I was going to do, so our trainer let me work with him for a while to see if I might have an interest in sports medicine.”

"Did you enjoy it?" The goalie smiled at her sympathetically.

Clarke shrugged, examining her handiwork. The blonde leaned forward, looking defeated. She pulled her uninjured leg into her chest, hiding her face against it. "I guess it was an ok alternative."

Lexa hung awkwardly at the side of the table, unsure what to say that might help Clarke. Just as she was about to speak, she heard a muffled sob escape the blonde, then another. Lexa stared silently as Clarke finally unraveled, weeping softly into her curled leg. Lexa began to get up, convinced that Clarke would want to space to fall apart alone. To her surprise, however, the American reached out, grabbing her hand.

"This isn't fair." The words slipping out between choked sobs and forced Lexa her back into the chair. Unable to offer any other comfort, she simply held Clarke's hand and allowed her to cry.

"I know it isn't. I know"

Lexa wasn't sure how long they had stayed like that, camped out in the deserted rink while they waited for the swelling on Clarke's leg to subside. The whole time the brunette sat patiently, assuring her companion that she had nowhere else to be

"It takes as long as it takes," she'd assured the blonde calmly between trips to the cooler for fresh ice.

When Clarke was finally able to put weight on the leg, they departed the rink cautiously, careful not to be spotted by errant fans. Chivalrous to a fault, Lexa slung Clarke's gear over her shoulder, her other arm braced securely around the little center's waist as she helped her out of the rink and into a waiting cab. They'd ridden back in relative silence, a quietly crying Clarke curled into her side as Lexa attempted to give directions to their driver.

"Around the back, please. Away from people."

By the time they arrived at the dormitories, discretion was hardly a concern. The hour was late, and the streets of Olympic Village were deserted, save for a few roving security patrols. None-the-less, Lexa did Clarke the courtesy of sneaking her up the service elevators, wary of allowing anyone to see her condition. They moved slowly enough that it took twice as long to help her back to her room, but Lexa never once complained.

When they'd finally reached Clarke's suite, the girl stiffened. She squeezed Lexa's shoulder gently to stop her and apprehensively stared at the door.

"Raven," she whispered. “I don’t want her to see me like this.”

Lexa nodded, easing her worn out companion delicately to the floor.

"Pass me your key card." She hitched the gear bag higher on her shoulder. "I'll check and make sure the coast is clear.

Clarke slipped the card from her pocket, mouthing a silent "thank you."

Lexa slid the key into the electronic lock and easing the door open as quietly when the light turned green. She slunk inside slowly, tiptoeing through the short hallway to peer into the bedroom. Lexa breathed a sigh of relief, observing that Raven's bed was unoccupied, the sheets still made perfectly. She set Clarke's gear bag down in the corner, returning to the dim glow of the hall.

"You're safe. No one is here."

Clarke looked relieved. She attempted to get up but abandoning the effort when her leg throbbed in pain. By now Lexa knew better than to wait for the Captain to ask for her help. She crouched down, motioning for Clarke to place her hand on her shoulders as she snaked her other arm under the blonde’s legs. It took tremendous effort, but Lexa managed to push herself up. She cradled the smaller girl against her chest, her arms straining under the surprising weight of Clarke’s toned body. After a few attempts, Lexa managed to turn the door handle with the point of her elbow, taking great care not to bump her companion’s leg as she backed them into the room. Gently, she made her way over to the bed, straining to place Clarke down without aggravating her injury.

"Here." Lexa lifted her leg carefully, sliding an extra pillow beneath the knee for support. She slipped off Clarke's sneakers and placed them neatly by the dresser.

"Medicine?"

Clarke pointed to the bathroom. "There's an industrial sized bottle of Ibuprofen on the sink."

Lexa crept through the dark quietly, returning a moment later with a handful of pills and glass full of liquid. She took a seat on the edge of the bed, handing both items to Clarke. Never one to enjoy tablets, the blonde tried not to gag as she forced herself to swallow the medicine, washing it down with a giant swig of water.

"Thank you," Clarke whispered as she sank back into the pillows, her eyelids drooping.

Lexa grabbed the extra blanket from the foot of the bed and pulled it over the exhausted woman. She watched as Clarke shifted, adjusting her body warily until she'd found a comfortable position.

"Clarke," she bit her lip nervously, hesitant to leave without ensuring that the stubborn girl was going to take proper care of herself. "I really think that you need to get your leg examined."

"I will." Clarke sighed her expression one of disheartened resignation. "Just give me tonight. If it's not better by tomorrow, I'll go to our trainers."

Lexa nodded, satisfied for the moment that the American was acting responsibly about her well-being. She tugged the covers up a bit higher over Clarke's shoulder, filled with the urge to stay and keep watch, though she knew that she should leave before Raven returned. Lexa stroked her fingers over Clarke's weary brow, cocking a crooked smile. In spite of the emotional chaos of the evening, there was something strangely satisfying about the night she'd spent helping Clarke. She tucked several straying strands of golden hair behind her ear and watched as her eyelids finally fluttered closed.

Sure that she was no longer needed, Lexa began to rise from the bed, fighting the urge to kiss her companion goodbye. Before she could leave, Clarke's voice halted her in her tracks.

“Stay."

It was spoken softly, more a plea than a request, and the word tugged on Lexa's heartstrings. Without a second thought, she slid off her shoes and lowered herself back onto the bed. The goalie slid beneath the covers, careful not to disturb her half-sleeping companion as she curled up against her.

"I'm here." Lexa's arm slid protectively over Clarke's waist, pulling her closer. "I'm not going anywhere."

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