Chapter Text
The coach had canceled the rest of practice for the day considering they only had about 15 minutes remaining and he apparently didn’t want to deal with Jongho’s injuries even though that was supposed to be a part of his job. So their coach left and Hongjoong was mad.
At least, that’s what Jongho’s fuzzy brain gathered from the muffled conversation he could make sense of.
He had no idea how long he’d been sitting on the turf before the university’s recreational athletic trainer ran out behind Yunho (who had apparently sprinted all the way to the athletics trainer’s office after Jongho said his head hurt).
Jongho’s eyes became weighed down and all he wanted to do was sleep thinking that maybe if he slept it off he would be better by the next day’s practice.
“Jongho, you know that’s not going to work,” Hongjoong spoke up as the athletic trainer settled next to the younger player.
‘Oh, did I say that out loud?’
“Yeah, you did,” Wooyoung said from where he stood, “And we all know that letting a concussed person fall asleep without being evaluated is dangerous.”
“Oh yeah, I forgot,” Jongho replied numbly. His shoulder throbbed, but his mind felt like it was getting slower and slower by the second. He really needed a nap.
“Jongho, would you be okay with lifting off your shirt?” He whipped his head towards the athletic trainer and immediately regretted it, letting out a wince as his vision spun from the sudden movement. Why would he need to take his shirt off?
Letting out a huff, the athletic trainer asked for help from Mingi and Yunho. “Could you two slowly help him with his shirt while I grab a sling and the ice bag? I’d recommend starting from his other shoulder so it doesn’t hurt him too much.”
The two taller boys nodded in confirmation and crouched next to Jongho on the ground. Jongho let his heavy eyelids fall shut as he focused on taking deep breaths that wouldn’t agitate his shoulder. Someone next to him said something he couldn’t focus on and he was suddenly leaning against something sturdy and warm. Letting his body fall somewhat limp, Jongho felt a gentle grip on his uninjured arm that guided it through the sleeve of the shirt he was wearing.
He oh so desperately didn’t want his shirt to come off and let out a small whine, but he couldn’t find the energy to resist the movement.
“Jongho, we have to take this off, okay?”
“No,” he responded tiredly. His eyes were still closed, but he just couldn’t fall asleep like he wanted to. It was like his subconscious knew that falling asleep after a hard hit wouldn’t be good.
The sturdy thing Jongho was leaning against rumbled as a chuckle reached his ears.
Oh, it was Mingi. He was still there.
What was he doing here?
Jongho peeled his heavy eyes open and slowly tilted his head up to see his friend.
“Oh hi, Mingi,” he said tiredly.
“Hey buddy, how are you feeling?”
The low vibrations that accompanied Mingi’s voice made Jongho want to bury himself deeper into the other’s chest.
“I don’ know…” Jongho trailed off, trying to get his scattered – or more like foggy and nonexistent – thoughts. His brows furrowed in concentration, but e couldn’t remember why he was leaning against his friend. “I’m- I don’ know what’s goin’ on.”
He barely registered someone pulling his shirt over his head, but couldn’t help but wince when the shirt got pulled off of his right arm. It was throbbing, the pain having dulled slightly from before.
Jongho opened his eyes in time to watch Yunho fold his shirt and place it softly on the ground.
“Why do you have my shirt, Yunho?”
He missed the way a worried expression took over the tall man’s features as Yunho looked worriedly between Mingi and the athletic trainer.
Jongho let out a little hum. “Please don’ hurt my arm too much.” After he said that, he let out a sigh, closed his eyes, and relaxed more against Mingi.
He felt a big hand ruffle his hair, making him let out a small laugh. All he could do was sit there and let whatever happened next happen.
The athletic trainer spoke up again and instructed Jongho not to fall asleep, which he begrudgingly accepted to do only because he knew what could happen if he drifted off.
“Did any of you see what happened exactly?”
“I know he was trying to tackle Wonho.” Jongho recognized Yeosang’s voice and smiled softly. He loved his friends so much.
“We love you too, bud.”
Jongho peeled open one eye and tried to find where Wooyoung was speaking from, but he gave up when he could only see Hongjoong, Yunho, and Yeosang in his line of sight. He must’ve said that out loud again.
Something was said about a couple of them asking Wonho what happened before the latter left for the day. Wonho had told them what he saw happen, even though he himself wasn’t super sure because it was in the middle of him just trying to plow through; he didn’t really pay too close of attention to how Jongho had hit him.
Jongho knew though.
At least he was pretty sure he did.
But then again, he was concussed, so he might remember it differently than what happened. All he knew was that he hit Wonho wrong and his shoulder hurt.
Was that what happened?
How did that even happen?
“Jongho.” he let out a small hum acknowledging the athletic trainer. “I know you aren’t thinking super clearly, but can you let me know what hurts as I check your shoulder?”
“You gonna move it around?” He asked, a little nervous at the pain that was inevitably incoming.
“Only because I have to, okay? It doesn’t appear to be dislocated, but I need to make sure the rest of it is okay. That means you have to sit up away from Mingi.”
Letting out a huff, Jongho grumbled, “Fine,” and did his best to sit up. He could tell that Mingi was helping him to do it slowly. Jongho made a mental note to thank Mingi later.
The next couple of minutes passed in a blur to Jongho. Of course, some of the tests hurt his shoulder, but it wasn’t unbearable. The athletic trainer apparently decided he need to wear a sling and also secured a bag of ice to his shoulder with saran wrap to help reduce any swelling.
He wanted to give his thanks and all, but they left just after giving instructions to all his friends that they needed to take him to the hospital to get his concussion checked and also his shoulder if they feel the need – it turned out they weren’t all that worried about the injury to his arm.
After some short discussion between his friends, Jongho heard Seonghwa speak up behind him. Jongho couldn’t bring himself to look away from the turf in front of where he sat. It just seemed like a chore.
“I brought my car around. I can take him to the hospital. I would say Hongjoong could come too, but I know you have to go do some work.”
“I care about Jongho more than I care about that project, Hwa,” Hongjoong shot back, “Besides, I’m the team captain. It’s my responsibility to care for my team.”
Jongho couldn’t help but cringe at the slightly increased volume of Hongjoong’s voice. Things were getting too loud and his head was throbbing. He lightly closed his eyes and tried to take a deep breath, but the uncontrolled sharp intake of air jostled his shoulder.
“Hong, please, you’re already stressed enough as is. I’ll go with Seonghwa.” Jongho’s head tilted slightly at the sound of Mingi’s voice. That sounded like a good idea.
Jongho opened his eyes and turned his head slowly, eventually making eye contact with Yunho, who was still seated close to him.
“Hey, can you help me stand up?”
He watched as Yunho’s brows furrowed and a confused expression took over his face, reminding Jongho a lot of a puppy. The thought made him want to giggle.
“Only if you’re sure you can stand, bud.”
“I’ll have to eventually, right?” Jongho could hear the tiredness in his own voice.
Things were slowly starting to get clearer in his mind, but he still had some moments when he really couldn’t figure out what was going on. Those moments rarely last longer than a few seconds, but they were still concerning to Jongho and his friends.
Yunho let out a small sigh, smiled, and shuffled into a crouched position next to Jongho. “Just don’t throw up on me. I’ve had concussions before and, let me tell you, they are definitely not fun.”
Jongho let out a quiet chuckle as he grabbed Yunho’s outstretched hands. “Yeah, I can tell.”
The movement of Jongho trying to stand up from the turf got the attention of his other friends who collectively let out small noises of alarm at the sight of him attempting to stand up.
Trying to stand might have been fine with just the concussion, but even the slight force put on his injured shoulder made him hiss in pain.
Once the youngest was on his feet, he couldn’t help but feel like his legs were going to crumble beneath him due to how weak he felt. Jongho’s left hand firmly gripped Yunho’s shoulder to help anchor him as he tried to find some semblance of balance. His vision swirled and a wave of vertigo hit him from the exertion.
“‘m gonna throw up-” he mumbled, cutting himself off as he held back a gag.
Yunho made a panicked noise next to him.
Once the wave of nausea let up, the youngest made a bleh sound. He watched the others around him chuckle, some with concerned looks – Yunho – and others with smiles, at joking noise.
“Well, since you’re up on your feet,” Seonghwa started, gently stroking Jongho’s sweaty hair – he couldn’t help but lean into the contact –, “We might as well get you to the hospital sooner rather than later. Concussions are no joke and we don’t want you to fall asleep until we’re in the clear.”
“Valid,” Jongho mumbled, standing up a little straighter.
Mingi stood beside him and Yunho let Jongho shift his weight onto Mingi.
“Let’s go on an adventure, buddy,” Mingi said cheerfully.
Jongho glared at him. “Don’t call me buddy.”
“You let the others call you ‘bud’ earlier.”
“To be fair,” San spoke up from in front of them, “I don’t think he remembers most of what happened in the last twenty minutes.”
The youngest nodded slightly with a satisfied smile on his face. “Yeah, so I’m not even sure who said that.”
The group had begun making their way toward the edge of the field to where Yeosang and Wooyoung went.
“Mingi was one of them.”
Mingi let out a curse at Hongjoong’s statement. “Yunho literally said it to you before you stood up.”
“Darn, must have forgotten,” Jongho said, a sly smile gracing his lips.
Yeosang chuckled from where he was crouched down over by the edge of the field picking up some ruck pads. “You’re a little menace, you know that?”
Wooyoung made an offended sound and whipped around to face the group, throwing the ball bag over his shoulder and stumbling a little bit. “I’m the only one allowed to be a menace around here.”
They spent the next couple of minutes arguing about who in their little friend group was the “most menacing” and pointing out events that supported their opinions.
Jongho simply watched with tired eyes and a soft smile from where he stood, still holding onto his best friend’s shoulder.
He really loved his friends.
If it weren’t for them, he probably would’ve been at college and simply relying on the rare visits of his few friends from home –except Mingi – for his socializing.
He couldn’t be more thankful for the six boys he’d met during his short time at college. He was especially thankful to Mingi for introducing him in high school to a sport that he loved so much; even if it did come with its fair share of bumps and bruises.
The boys he’d met were more than just a team. While there were many on the team that he still wasn’t super close with, he’d definitely made some lifelong friends.
They were more than just friends though.
They were more like a family to him.