Chapter Text
Things are going great for Hoseok.
He’s managed to repair his relationship with Seokjin, enough to where they’re going out on weekly dates now, either to the park for a picnic, the bowling alley for some friendly competition, or the mall for some window shopping. Everything with Seokjin is just so easy and carefree, Hoseok can really enjoy himself without stressing too much.
He’s also gotten back into training regularly with his club team, although that’s going less well. Having taken so much time off from soccer, Hoseok has forgotten how demanding and tiring practices could be. Since he’s been back for a couple of weeks now, Coach Seo has started going harder on him, and normally, Hoseok would love that, would love to try and rise up to the challenge and prove to his coach that he deserves to be on this team.
Lately however, he just wants to slow down. Even with the physical therapy his knees are still weak, and all the running that soccer demands has really been putting them to the test and pushing them to their limits. Every night after practice, Hoseok has to sit in an ice bath just to soothe his aching muscles.
It’s taken an even greater toll on his mental health. Coach always yelling at him to go harder, run faster, be better. He wallows in self-misery every night feeling like he’s really not good enough, that he should just give up now since he’s been injured and he’s damaged goods; he’ll never be able to get back to his former level of playing.
Seokjin is always the one that talks him down from his intense spiral of self-loathing, coming over to his apartment after practices, arms laden full with sports drinks and protein bars, ready to help Hoseok through his cool down stretches and to build him back up from whatever place he’s beaten himself down to. He’s taken his motivational role as a physical therapist up a notch, and Hoseok is incredibly appreciative and maybe a little bit in love.
Practice earlier that night had been a particularly exhausting one, Coach Seo seemed to have been in an especially unpleasant mood, making them run sprints across the field and up the stairs in the stadium to build up their endurance, even though most of them had just finished playing in the World Cup and were arguably in the best shape of their lives. But it was never good enough for Coach Seo.
Hoseok had taken a quick shower after practice was finally over, shooting Seokjin a text about how poorly practice had gone and how he was going to need a lot of post-practice stretching to keep his muscles loose. Seokjin had responded with a cheeky “I may know someone who can help you out ;)”, causing Hoseok to laugh, the tension that had gathered up in his shoulders instantly dissolving.
Upon arriving home, Hoseok drops his soccer bag right in the entryway, too physically and mentally exhausted to put it back in it’s correct spot in his closet. He trudges over to the couch, falling face forward on it and whining into the pillows when the movement jostles his knees the wrong way.
It’s quiet in his apartment, peaceful enough that Hoseok thinks about maybe taking a nap before Seokjin arrives, but his peace is interrupted by a series of knocks on his door, one after the other in a complicated pattern that Seokjin had thought of himself one day.
“It’s so you always know it’s me and not some random creeper fan or a murderer.”
“Are you saying that you aren’t a creeper fan of mine? Because you seem to be in the same place as me quite a lot…”
“Because we’re dating you dweeb! We literally go on dates to the same places together!”
Hoseok peels himself off of his couch and nearly drags his body over to his front door. His legs feel like actual lead and his knees are stiff and tight; he can barely lift his feet off the floor.
He opens the door up and is met with the bright smiling face of one Kim Seokjin, and Hoseok isn’t sure if there will ever be any time where he’s not taken aback by his boyfriend’s beauty. He’s just wearing a simple flannel over a white t-shirt and a pair of dark jeans, but still - he’s the most beautiful man Hoseok’s ever seen.
“Hey hyung.”
“Hi Hoseokie. Rough practice today?”
Hoseok just pouts and opens his arms up wide for a hug. Seokjin, of course, obliges, engulfing Hoseok with those strong arms of his, letting Hoseok rest his head on his broad shoulders. “I don’t know why it’s not getting easier. I’ve been back at practice for weeks now, I shouldn’t be having this hard of a time.”
Seokjin squeezes him one more time before drawing back and running his fingers through Hoseok’s hair. “You were out for a long time sunshine, it’ll take a good long bit for you to get back to where you were before your injury.”
Hoseok smiles at the nickname Seokjin uses. He had started using it one day after they had Skyped with Hoseok’s mom and she had answered the call with a bright “Hello sunshine!” . Seokjin thought it was cute and Hoseok doesn’t mind; it makes him feel safe and warm and cared for, and never fails to make him smile.
“I know, but it’s still frustrating, especially when everyone else around me isn’t struggling as much. It’s just sort of disheartening is all.”
They move to the living room, Hoseok grabbing the yoga mat leaning against the wall, and rolling it out so he can sit down. Seokjin takes off his backpack and unzips it to hand Hoseok an energy recovery drink and a granola bar.
“You’ll get there Hoseokie, I’ll make sure you get there.”
Hoseok smiles with a mouthful of granola. “Thanks hyung.”
“Just doing my job. Both as your former physical therapist and as your boyfriend,” Seokjin says, and Hoseok practically melts into the floorboards; he can never get over the fact that yes, this beautiful man in front of him is his actual boyfriend , every time he’s reminded of it, he just gets all gooey and soft inside. That’s just the effect that Kim Seokjin has on people. “Now let’s get you loosened up!”
They start with some light stretching, just make sure that Hoseok’s muscles stay loose to avoid any soreness from all the running he did earlier in the day. Seokjin has him lean over and touch his toes, twist around to stretch out his back, bend sideways to relax his core muscles.
Moving on to his neck, Seokjin situates himself behind Hoseok and tells him to tilt his head towards his shoulder so they can loosen up his neck. “Okay, now look straight ahead and hold that for a bit.”
Hoseok, being the little shit that he is, and because he’s just a weak man that loves looking at his boyfriend, instead turns his head upwards so he can gaze at Seokjin above him.
“Hey, I told you to look straight ahead!” Seokjin delivers a light slap to Hoseok’s chin, barely even a tap, and Hoseok breaks out into a smile.
“I just wanted to see you hyung, since you’re so handsome.”
Seokjin blushes, that pretty cherry blossom shade of pink that Hoseok likes so much, averting his eyes to the ground. But he’s smiling as he says, “Okay, I’ll let you off then.”
They both giggle uncontrollably, until Hoseok leans up to close the distance between them in a quick kiss, effectively startling Seokjin into silence and deepening his blush even further. “Hey, stop getting sidetracked here, we’re trying to stretch you out?”
“I pictured the process of you stretching me out involving a whole lot more lube than this.”
“Hoseok!” Seokjin screeches, scandalized. He slaps Hoseok’s shoulder before adding, “I cannot believe you just went there.”
“Sorry hyung, couldn’t resist, you’re just so cute when you’re embarrassed,” Hoseok tells him through his giggles. After Hoseok stopped them before things got too heated after their first date, they still hadn’t progressed any further than making out and occasionally groping each other under their clothes, but Hoseok didn’t particularly care, he still wanted to take things slow with Seokjin, to cherish him and every moment they got to spend together. That didn’t stop him from making dirty jokes and innuendos every chance he got though.
Seokjin huffs, crossing his arms over his chest and says, “Well we’re done with your stretches anyways. Do you want something to eat?”
“Always.”
So they order in some food, jajeongmyeon this time, and wait out the delivery time flicking through channels on the tv until they find a movie neither of them have seen.
“Eventually, I’m going to cook for you one of these days,” Seokjin says. “It’s better to have a home cooked meal every once in a while rather than eating takeout every night.”
Hoseok hums. “I look forward to being your sous chef again.”
Seokjin smiles brightly and leans over the couch to peck Hoseok on the lips, before snuggling into his side. Hoseok places his arm around his shoulder and accommodates him easily, and they cuddle for a little bit until the doorbell rings to signal the arrival of their food.
They eat and watch the movie in a comfortable silence, but soon enough, they’re playing with their food, taking turns trying to feed each other with their eyes closed to see how much of a mess they can make of the other person’s face with the jajeongmyeon sauce. It’s silly and maybe obnoxious, but Hoseok loves it, loves spending time with Seokjin. Maybe loves Seokjin himself just a little bit too.
“So,” Hoseok starts. They’re eating lunch in one of their favorite cafes in Daeheung-dong, tucked away amongst all the apartment buildings, and serving up the best lattes and americanos Hoseok has ever had. Seokjin has already demolished two pieces of chocolate cake and is starting in on his third. “I’m going on a trip.”
“A trip?” Seokjin asks, chocolate frosting smeared across his lips as he looks at Hoseok in confusion. “What sort of trip?”
Hoseok hands Seokjin a napkin before answering. “It’s a thing for the soccer team. Some sort of retreat thing slash training camp for everyone before the start of the season again.”
“Oh,” Seokjin says, wiping his mouth with his brow creased. “Where at? How long will you be gone?”
“Somewhere on the east coast I think. Naksan beach maybe? I’d be gone a week.”
“Oh,” Seokjin says again. “That sounds like fun.”
Hoseok can tell Seokjin’s upset about having to be away from each other for so long, especially since they just started dating and are still in the honeymoon phase, wanting to spend every available moment with each other. He knows that it could set their relationship back a little bit, but this is something he really needs to do if he’s going to get back into shape and reclaim his spot on the starting squad. Plus, he already told Jungkook he’d room with him.
“Yeah,” Hoseok mumbles. “I’m leaving next Saturday.”
Seokjin sits back in his chair, chocolate cake abandoned on his plate. “Do you need me to drive you anywhere or anything?”
Shaking his head, Hoseok replies, “No, we’re just meeting at the practice fields and they’re taking all of us over in a bus, so we can’t ditch the retreat. You know how crazy controlling Coach Seo is.”
“Hm, yeah, I’ve never even met him and I already know he’s a complete hardass,” Seokjin agrees. “Don’t push yourself too hard okay? I know you want to get right back into it but you still have to take things slow and remember to not stress out your knees too much.”
Hoseok reaches across the table and takes Seokjin’s hand in his own. “I know hyung, you’ve only drilled that into my head a thousand times a day ever since I started practice again. I’ll be fine.” He gives Seokjin a smile that he hopes is comforting. “I’ll miss you though.”
Seokjin smiles back, close lipped and a little tight but Hoseok will take it. “I’ll miss you too.”
And so, next Saturday, Hoseok finds himself on a bus with all of his teammates, sitting next to Jungkook as they drive away from Seoul and head to the beach on the east coast. He’s got a backpack full of snacks and sandwiches, a journal detailing all the stretches he needs to do after every practice, and Dubu, all of which were provided by Seokjin of course. He had shown up at Hoseok’s doorstep that morning, arms bursting with goodies that he hastily packed away in Hoseok’s overnight bag. Hoseok had thanked him and given him plenty of kisses to hopefully sustain the both of them over the course of the next two weeks, and Seokjin had held him in his arms one last time before Hoseok made his way over to the stadium to get on the bus.
Hoseok pulls out a box of Pepero to munch on as he looks out the window at the smog filled city growing smaller in the distance, the air getting clearer with every mile they drive further into the countryside. The goodbye with Seokjin was upsetting, to say the least, but it was only for two weeks and Hoseok knew that this trip would be good for his mental and physical recovery, and he was excited to see what was in store for them on Naksan beach.
The drive is long and boring, but he has fun messing with Jungkook when he’s asleep, and they get to stop at a rest area along the highway to grab some lunch before continuing on. Hoseok has missed being able to spend time with his teammates outside of practice; he hasn’t had a chance lately due to how long sessions typically run, and being preoccupied with Seokjin. It’s nice to have a break.
Upon arriving at their lodgings for their stay, they unpack everything and head to their assigned rooms to rest until dinnertime. They’re planning on having a large barbeque on the beach; the coaches already headed out to the local market to pick up the meat and side dishes. Hoseok flops face forward onto one of the beds in their room while Jungkook moves towards the window to look out to the ocean.
“So how are things with Seokjin?” Jungkook asks.
Hoseok groans into the pillow. “I miss him already.”
“Wow gross.”
“You’re just jealous. How are things with Yoongi?”
“There is no thing, really. We’re just hanging out. Enjoying each other’s presence. We went on one date, like you told me to do, but we’re not dating.”
“Uh huh, sure.”
Jungkook crosses the room to lay down next to Hoseok on the bed. “I’m serious. I still don’t know if I want to date anyone right now.”
Hoseok hums and strokes his fingers through Jungkook’s hair. “Well I’m glad you’re at least giving it a try. I’m proud of you Jungkook.”
A red tint appears on Jungkook’s cheeks and he turns his face into the mattress to hide his blush. “Shut up hyung.”
“Aww, my cute Jungkookie, turning into a man, I’m so proud!”
“You’re so embarrassing.”
“But you love me!” Hoseok pokes at Jungkook’s cheek.
“I do,” Jungkook tells him, finally turning his face towards Hoseok again. “And I’m glad you’re back at training. I’m glad you came on this trip.”
Smiling softly, Hoseok says, “Me too. Wanna nap until dinner?”
“Duh.”
So they snuggle up together on one of the beds, even though there are two in their room and it’s still a bit too warm for cuddles. It’s comfortable, familiar, and a little bit like home. They snooze until there’s a loud knock on their door alerting them that it’s dinner time.
The beach is almost deserted, save for their loud and rambunctious group, and Hoseok relaxes as he sits down at one of the wooden tables set up with his plate overflowing with meat. He takes a picture and sends it to Seokjin, who texts back immediately with a sassy ‘Looks delicious, but I could’ve grilled it better’. Hoseok rolls his eyes but sends his boyfriend a simple ‘of course’ in response.
Jungkook sits down next to him and together they laugh and reminisce with their teammates, poking fun at each other and making each other lettuce wraps with way too much garlic and spices in them. It’s a nice way to start off their trip, even though Hoseok knows this may only be the calm before the storm with the first training session slated at 6 am the following morning.
Coach Seo stands up and makes a toast, some grand lon speech about how well their national team did in the World Cup and how they needed to continue with that mindset as they enter the club season once again. He asked for those that did make the national team to help boost up their teammates and guide the club to victory in the K League this season. Hoseok drowns most of it out, focusing instead on his beer and his emoji battle that he has going on with Seokjin.
After everyone has eaten their full and they’ve played maybe one too many drinking games, considering their early practice the next day, they all head back to their respective lodgings to sleep for the night. Hoseok showers and changes quickly so that he can get into bed and text Seokjin goodnight, who wishes him good luck at his training session and yet another reminder to stretch properly. Hoseok sends him a sleepy picture of himself with Dubu tucked up under his chin and the blankets pulled up to his ears.
[Seokjin 😘 ] 10:11 pm
Both of you are very cute but make sure you get a lot of rest!!!!
[Seokjin 😘 ] 10:11 pm
I miss you tons, stay safe and do well 💕
Hoseok smiles to himself before locking his phone and setting it down on the bedside table. As long as Seokjin had his back, he thinks he could take on whatever stands in his way.
Hoseok feels floaty. He’s walking in a field of flowers, all different shades of pink and purple and yellow, and it’s warm. But there’s an occasional breeze that flows by, rustling his hair and lifting the scent of peonies and daffodils and roses up into the air. In the back of Hoseok’s mind, he’s aware this is a dream, there’s no place that he’s ever seen like this in Seoul, but it’s nice to pretend for a while.
He keeps walking through the flowers, letting his hand run over the top of them and feeling the soft petals between his fingertips. He reaches a clearing and looks up. Seokjin is sitting there waiting for him, laid out on a soft picnic blanket with an assortment of sandwiches and fruits all around him.
“What took you so long?” Seokjin asks, a gentle smile curving on his face, eyes lighting up brilliantly in the sunshine.
“I didn’t know where you were,” Hoseok responds. “I didn’t know I was supposed to find you.”
Seokjin’s smile grows even larger and he pats the space next to him for Hoseok to sit down. “Well I’m glad you found me.”
“Me too.”
Seokjin leans over and kisses Hoseok softly on the cheek, and Hoseok turns his head to the side so that he can kiss him back fully on the mouth. Dream Seokjin is soft, but it’s nothing like feeling the solid warmth of the real life Seokjin and Hoseok finds his heart yearning for more. Their kiss is languid, nothing more than the two of them just enjoying one another’s presence, very fitting for the peaceful serenity of their surroundings.
Suddenly, there’s a blaring horn sounding in the distance.
“What’s that?” Seokjin pulls away to ask.
Hoseok shrugs. “I’m sure it’s nothing. Come back, I wasn’t done kissing you just yet. I’ve missed you.”
Seokjin leans forward again, but before their lips can meet, there’s another horn, louder than before.
“Are you sure that’s nothing Hoseokie? I think you may need to go.”
“No, I don’t want to leave you.”
Seokjin caresses his cheeks with his soft, dream-like hands. “Sunshine, they’re waiting for you. Show ‘em what you’re made of. I’ll be waiting for you.”
There’s another horn, and slowly, the dream starts to fade into nothingness. The flowers dissolve away, petal by petal, the blanket thread by thread, and finally, Seokjin, piece by piece. The last thing Hoseok sees before his eyes finally open is Seokjin’s eyes, so bright and cheery and full of mirth.
Hoseok rolls over in his bed, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes as he looks over to where Jungkook is also rousing himself from his slumber, hair a mess and eyes scrunched tightly closed. He glances at the alarm clock on the bedside table where he sees the numbers 5:42 blinding him with bright red. Outside, he can hear one of the assistant coaches yelling down the hallway for everyone to get up, occasionally blasting an air horn to really get his point across.
Snuggling into his bed covers once more, Hoseok is embarrassed to see that he’s been clutching one of the other pillows all night, and he can see a distinct wet spot on the corner of the pillowcase. Belatedly, he also realizes his dick is hard, and he palms his face in slight annoyance. Apparently, dream Hoseok’s actions made it out into the real world to cause problems for his conscious self.
There’s a loud banging on the door that jolts Hoseok out of his stupor. “Those of you who aren’t down at the beach in five minutes have extra laps to run!”
That really jolts Hoseok into action, and he rips the covers off of himself and scrambles to find acceptable clothing for their training session, slipping on a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt before sliding into his sneakers and grabbing his bag with his cleats in it. Nearby, Jungkook is doing the same thing, mumbling about how he can’t find his socks anywhere before Hoseok just tosses him a pair of his own so they can get going.
“Can’t fucking believe this,” Hoseok grumbles as they leave their room. “I was having such a nice dream too.”
Jungkook huffs under his breath. “Yeah I woke up a little bit before you and you were saying Seokjin’s name over and over again.”
There’s a smirk on his best friend’s face when Hoseok looks over at him in surprise, cheeks burning in embarrassment. “It wasn’t what you’re thinking, totally PG.”
“Yeah?” Jungkook quirks an eyebrow at him. “Tell that to the tent in your pants.”
Hoseok shrieks and covers himself with his bag, slapping at Jungkook as he runs away cackling maniacally. He pouts at his best friend as soon as they reach the meeting point on the beach, where they had their barbeque last night. “Well we were interrupted before it even got good anyways.”
Jungkook just stifles his laughter behind his hand as they both turn their attention to Coach Seo who’s pacing in front of them and the rest of their teammates that managed to get to training on time. Some of their other teammates weren’t as fortunate though, and Coach made good on his promise of giving them extra laps, which Hoseok is eternally grateful he avoided.
Their first practice is a lot of fitness, since it’s still relatively cool enough out on the beach for them to not get terribly overheated with each sprint they run and push up they do. However, as nice as the weather is, the wet sand is horrible for Hoseok’s knees; he has to work harder to move through the muck and he can practically hear his joints creaking in protest as he moves. He tries to voice his concern to Coach Seo, that this may be putting him back in his recovery process, but Coach Seo only had a cold glare and some choice words of advice for Hoseok in response.
“Maybe if you cared a little bit more about your sport, you’d be all healed by now and you wouldn’t have to deal with this.”
And that knocks more air out of Hoseok’s lungs than any amount of burpees could. He’d tried hard hadn’t he? He’d worked enough to give himself a fighting chance at making the starting lineup again on his club team. He cared enough to come out on to this stupid training camp, right?
The rest of practice is borderline torture for Hoseok, his knees are screaming at him to take a break but he can’t, not with Coach Seo’s hawk-like eyes watching his every move, waiting for any sign of weakness so he can yell at him again and tell him how he’s not good enough. Hoseok knows not to give in to that, he’s worked with Coach Seo long enough to know his tricks and how he works and deals with his team. He’s tough, but he gets results. It’s just not what Hoseok needs right now.
He needs Seokjin.
Kind, caring, supportive Seokjin that guides him through his workouts with encouraging words and praises, only scolding him when he knows that Hoseok is distracted or not giving it his all. Here, Hoseok is trying to give it his all, his body is just preventing him from actually doing it, and that frustrates him. He wants to do better, he really does. But it feels like he’s right back where he started again.
Two grueling hours later, the coaches let them go so they can go and eat breakfast, a buffet set up just for them in their hotel, but Hoseok skips it and heads back to his room to ice his knees. He fills the tub with cold water and gets a couple of buckets of ice from the ice machine down the hall before sinking himself down and relaxing against the back of the tub.
Closing his eyes, Hoseok thinks about his progress over the last couple of months. He had thought he was all better, but maybe he was just deluding himself. Maybe he really isn’t cut out for returning back to soccer, maybe this was a sign that he should just quit. Maybe Coach Seo was right and the drive to be the best just wasn’t there anymore and he should give up.
That didn’t sit well in Hoseok’s stomach. All his life, all he’s ever known was soccer. Lived it, breathed it, dreamt about it every night. He couldn’t give up, he’s been working towards this since he was two years old and could barely kick a soccer ball without toppling over. It didn’t make sense, for him to live a life without soccer.
His knees really fucking hurt though.
There’s a soft knock on the door to the suite. Hoseok tenses, thinking briefly for moment that it might be one of the coaches coming upstairs to drag him back down to another training session, but then, there’s a soft click as the door opens and Hoseok can hear a muffled ‘Hyung?’ coming from behind the closed door of the bathroom.
“In here Jungkookie. I’ll be out in a minute.”
Hoseok allows himself to indulge in his bath for a little longer, even though his body heat has all but melted the ice in the tub, before heaving himself up and grabbing a towel to wrap around himself as he exits the bathroom.
“I brought you a plate,” Jungkook says, holding up a paper plate laden full with rice and vegetables and eggs. “Saw you come up here as soon as we got back. Figured you’d be hungry.”
Hoseok takes the plate and ruffles Jungkook’s hair fondly. “Thank you Jungkookie, what would I do without you?”
Jungkook blushes and shrugs, fingers fiddling with the hem of his shirt. “I noticed you were having a tough time at practice earlier too.”
Hoseok freezes with a scoop of rice halfway to his mouth. He puts his spoon back down and clears his throat. “Just still not used to the intensity of these training session is all. I’ve been out of it for so long.”
“Coach Seo was too hard on you.”
Hoseok shakes his head. “No, he wasn’t any harder on me now than he would’ve been before I was injured.”
“But that’s just it!” Jungkook protests. “You were injured, he should be more understanding.”
“Coach Seo can’t show me special treatment just because I hurt myself. He needs everyone to be performing at the top level, there’s no room for slackers.”
“You’re not slacking, you’re injured.”
“It’s okay Jungkookie.” Hoseok pats his friend’s thigh in comfort. “Just gotta push myself harder is all.”
“Don’t push yourself so hard that you stress your injury even more.”
“I know my limits. And if it really gets to be too much, I’ll tell Coach Seo to fuck off and let me rest.”
Jungkook smiles. “Okay hyung. I believe you.”
“Thanks for being there for me though.”
“Of course.”
Hoseok eats his meal in silence while Jungkook plays around on his phone. They have an hour or of downtime before they’re called to practice again, this time for technical drills and footwork practice, which is much better for Hoseok’s knees. It’s still insanely draining though, and Hoseok is almost dead by the end of it, but Coach Seo doesn’t yell at him as much and he’s able to do some of the more complex tricks some of his teammates couldn’t master.
They finish with another family dinner, everyone gathered around the tables outside eating cold buckwheat noodles and talking about the upcoming season. Hoseok barely has the energy to lift his chopsticks up to his mouth, but he tries his hardest to participate in the conversations flowing around him.
When they get back to their room, Hoseok lets Jungkook have the shower first, since he had his mini bath earlier. Hoseok lays on the bed and pulls out his phone. Seokjin knows that he was at training, so he only has one text from him, a simple ‘Fighting! Let me know how it goes’.
So Hoseok opens up Seokjin’s contact and calls him. It only takes a ring or two before Seokjin picks up.
“Hello?”
“Hey hyung.”
“Hoseokie! How’s it going sunshine?”
Hoseok bites his lip. He could lie to Seokjin, tell him everything is great, that practice is going just fine and he didn’t almost have a breakdown in a bathtub. But he can’t do that to Seokjin. He cares about him too much. “It’s… not going great hyung.”
“What? What do you mean?” Seokjin asks immediately, concern thick in his voice as he bombards Hoseok with questions. “Tell me what happened.”
So Hoseok relays the events of his day, starting with the morning’s rude awakening (he leaves out the part about the dream, because yes, they are dating, but there are some things that can be left unsaid here). Seokjin makes some upset noises when Hoseok tells him about how they had to run on the wet sand on the beach and how awful it was for his knees, but he really loses his shit when Hoseok gets to the part about Coach Seo reprimanding him for not caring enough.
“He said what now?”
“Hoseok don’t make a big deal out of this, it’s fine.”
“Oh I will make a big deal out of this because he is dead wrong. How dare he accuse you of not caring enough about your sport. That’s bullshit! Doesn’t he know how hard you’ve worked since you got injured?”
“I mean, I could have done more - “ Hoseok starts, but Seokjin interrupts him.
“Not unless you wanted to completely blow your knees out. This is why I really hate athletes. Always going too hard with absolutely no care about how it might affect your body in the future. You have to be smart about these things. You can’t just dive right back into professional level training, you gotta ease yourself into it. He’s a terrible coach and a horrible human being if he doesn’t know that.”
“Seokjin don’t you think that’s a bit much?”
Seokjin exhales, almost like he didn’t breath the entire length of his tirade. “I’m just trying to look out for you.”
Hoseok smiles even though he knows Seokjin can’t see him. “I know. Part of me feels like what Coach Seo was saying was right though. I mean, other people would have been completely healed by now right?”
Seokjin sighs, staticy when he comes through the phone’s speakers. “Everyone is different, everyone’s body is different. Some people have longer recovery times than others. It’s nothing specifically that you did or didn’t do. It’s not your fault.”
“Feels like it is.”
“Now you stop that Jung Hoseok. You stop that nonsense of feeling sorry for yourself. I did not raise you to be so self deprecating.”
“Hyung, you didn’t raise me at all?”
“Trained you, instructed you, whatever.” Hoseok laughs at his boyfriend’s antics. Seokjin takes another breath before continuing. “You don’t really think that do you? That you don’t care enough to be on the team or playing soccer in general?”
Hoseok breathes deeply and thinks. His throat is tight as he says, “I don’t know. Everything’s pretty confusing right now. It’s too much and I’m still adjusting.”
“Well take your time to do that,” Seokjin says gently. “I know that you can pull through, and I have a feeling Jungkook and a lot of your teammates feel the same way, but you have to be the one to believe it in order for it to happen.”
“You’re right,” Hoseok tells him. “I’ll keep trying.”
“That’s my boy,” Seokjin cheers. Then he adds on, “And do your stretches, please!”
Hoseok chuckles. The shower turns off in the bathroom. “Wanna walk Jungkook and I through the steps? I can FaceTime you.”
“That’s my job is it not? Plus, I miss your cute face.”
“Miss you too hyung.”
The rest of their week long training camp proves to be very similar to the first day; fitness first thing in the morning, break for lunch, and then technical work in the afternoon followed by team dinner. It doesn’t get much easier than the first day either, although the extra fitness has helped increase Hoseok stamina somewhat. He thinks his knees are getting stronger too.
Whenever he tires, Seokjin’s words echo through the back of his head; that he needs to believe in himself in order to succeed, and it’s loud enough to drown out any other negative thoughts or self-deprecating feelings. Sometimes it gets to be too much and he’ll shoot Seokjin a quick text, and his boyfriend always responds with cheerful encouragement and a silly selfie or two.
He always video calls Seokjin at night so they can go through his stretches together, even though Seokjin gave him that notebook before he left with all the information in it, it’s nice to have Seokjin’s voice guiding him through the moves and seeing his bright smile whenever Hoseok looks at his phone screen propped up by pillows on the bed.
On the last day of their camp, they gather all of their belongings and trudge back onto the bus, everyone nursing sore muscles and complaining about how they got to come to the beach but not enjoy it.
Hoseok is right there with them, but he’s got a bit more of a pep in his step. He gets to see Seokjin after a week and there are not enough words in the Korean language to describe how much he’s missed him.
His body is positively buzzing with excitement as he jumps off the bus. Seokjin had texted him earlier to tell him that he would be coming to the stadium to pick him up, since he had the day off, and Hoseok could barely contain his anticipation at seeing his boyfriend after one of the toughest, most grueling weeks of his life.
Hoseok spots Seokjin easily, of course he does, it’s like he’s permanently drawn to him, a mere rocky planet stuck in a beautiful star’s orbit.
That, and also Seokjin has taken it upon himself to create a sign similar to the one he made for Namjoon’s race, complete with terrible puns and horrible meme photos of Hoseok’s face.
Rolling his eyes fondly, Hoseok bounds over to his boyfriend, ignoring any sense of decorum and immediately capturing his lips in a kiss.
“Missed you hyung.”
“Missed you too sunshine.”
They stand there just staring at each other before they’re interrupted by a loud ‘Get a room!’ courtesy of Jungkook across the parking lot.
Hoseok just flicks him off behind his back but Seokjin laughs and says, “Let’s get some food in that belly yeah?”
“Yes please.”
They find themselves at a seolleongtang restaurant a couple blocks away from Hoseok’s apartment, the warm broth soothing Hoseok’s aching muscles. Hoseok asks Seokjin how work has been going for him, and Seokjin tells him about Heechul’s latest pranks and hijinks and how Yoongi has unfortunately been on the receiving end of most of them.
Hoseok feels so at home it’s almost as if the past week didn’t even happen, like he was always going to find himself here in this restaurant with Seokjin sitting across from him. And he wouldn’t have it any other way.
Over the course of the next month of two, Hoseok continues to train and work hard to get back into shape. It’s still difficult, but nothing compared to the first day of that training camp, and he always manages to bounce back even on the worst days. Seokjin is there to guide him, of course, never wavers or leaves his side for one moment, a strong pillar of support for Hoseok to lean on.
They go on more dates, of course, to the aquarium and the palaces and everywhere in between, and Hoseok feels himself falling deeper for Seokjin with every passing day. Hoseok just has so much fun with Seokjin so effortlessly, and he could honestly say that wouldn’t mind spending the rest of his days with him.
As it stands right now, however, there’s something a bit more significant on the horizon.
Hoseok has finally been selected to be on the squad for the FC Seoul game this upcoming weekend.
He wouldn’t be starting, but still. He gets to go back on the field for a competitive match, he gets to return to that environment that he loves and feeds off of so much and he’s ecstatic.
Seokjin is ecstatic too, already planning out signs he can make for Hoseok’s big debut, even though Hoseok reminds him that he might be sitting on the bench the whole game and won’t get to play a single minute.
“It doesn’t matter Hoseokie, you finally get to go back. All your hard work has really paid off.”
Jungkook is excited as well, he nearly tackled Hoseok in glee when they found out the news, and they had jumped and celebrated together for a solid ten minutes.
Hoseok just honestly can’t believe it. It’s been so long since that fateful day when he was injured, since he got surgery, and since he started physical therapy with Seokjin. He’s come so far, grown and matured in different ways, and he has longed for this moment for months now, he’s almost unreal that it’s finally here.
The day of the game, Seokjin comes over to make him breakfast.
“You’ll need a full meal in you so you don’t run out of energy.”
“Hyung, I told you, I’m not starting, I’ll probably play like five minutes at the end at most. It’s not a big deal.”
“It is a big deal, stop downplaying your own successes sunshine, this is important.”
Hoseok simply stays quiet and lets Seokjin fret over the food, resigned to his fate.
“Jimin and Taehyung have been asking about you at the clinic,” Seokjin says while he’s flipping some jeon in the pan. “I told them you might be playing today and they got so excited, you should’ve seen their little faces. They told me they were going to watch you on TV and cheer you on.”
“They’re sweet boys, I miss them.”
“Yoongi and Namjoon are going to be at the game too, managed to get some tickets before they sold out. Who knew the announcement of the return of Korea’s golden superstar would cause such a quick sellout?” Seokjin winks as he slides a plate full of food towards Hoseok.
Hoseok blushes and just digs into his breakfast, not wanting to make eye contact with Seokjin’s smug face. Instead, he compliments his boyfriend. “This is really good hyung can you make this for me every morning?”
“Told you there was nothing like a good home cooked meal. There will be plenty of mornings later for more good food, but for right now, eat up, you have to get going soon.”
Hoseok tries to ignore the implication behind the words ‘plenty of mornings later’ and scarfs down his food. Seokjin already has his bag packed for him by the time he’s done.
“Go get ‘em sunshine,” Seokjin says before pecking Hoseok on the cheek and shooing him out the door. “I’ll clean up here and then head over closer to when the game actually starts. You’ll do great Hoseokie.”
Hoseok gives Seokjin one last kiss before heading towards the staircase. “Thank you hyung!”
Making it to the stadium in record time, Hoseok bursts into the locker room where the rest of his teammates are gearing up. Coach Seo intercepts him before he can make it to his locker though.
“Hoseok, a word.”
Hoseok tries to ignore the icy feeling tightening in his stomach. Had there been a mistake? Was he not actually on the squad?
Coach Seo leads him into his office. Once inside, Hoseok sees Jungkook sitting down on one of the chairs across from Coach Seo’s desk.
“Jungkookie? What are you doing here?”
“Hey hyung, uhh, funny story…”
“Jungkookie here got into a bit of an accident and has sprained his ankle.”
“What?” Hoseok exclaims and moves around to sit down in the other chair. Jungkook’s ankle is wrapped tightly in a bandage and he’s wearing a rather sheepish expression. “How did you manage to do that?”
Jungkook shrugs and averts his eyes. “I uh… fell off a sidewalk?”
“You… fell… off a sidewalk…”
“Yeah.”
“Anyways,” Coach Seo says loudly. “The fact of the matter is, he can’t play today. So Hoseok, you’ll be starting instead.”
Hoseok’s head whips around to face his coach. “I’m what now?”
“You’re starting. You’re the next best center mid that we’ve got and we need you.”
“Coach, you can’t be serious,” Hoseok sputters. “This is my first game back, I can’t start. ”
“You can and you will,” Coach Seo says gruffly. “Now get your uniform on so we can start warm-ups.” He gets up briskly and heads out of the office, leaving Hoseok and Jungkook behind.
“Jungkook, how could you injure yourself like this the night before a match?”
“Well… injure might be a strong word.”
Hoseok does a double take. “What do you mean?”
“I mean, I did fall off a sidewalk. But I didn’t really sprain my ankle. At least not badly enough that I wouldn’t be able to play today. I may have just… played it up a bit so that you could get a spot on the starting lineup.”
“Jeon Jungkook you did not.”
“I did. And it’s too late to back out now, so you have to start for me. I’d apologize but you really deserve this hyung, and I think you’ll do so well. I have so much faith in you. Enough that I risked my future on the starting lineup by faking this injury.”
“I cannot believe you did this.”
Jungkook shrugs. “I don’t regret it. Now get out there before Coach Seo changes his mind.”
“I could kiss you right now Jeon Jungkook.”
“Please no.”
Fifteen minutes later, Hoseok finds himself warming up with the ten other starting players, Jungkook watching from the sidelines. Fans start to file into the stadium and the energy in the arena starts to pick up; it thrums through Hoseok’s veins and ignites a fire in his bones that has long since been dormant. The fire and fuel of competition and playing for your team and supporters. Hoseok loves it.
An hour later and they’re ready to start the match. They walk out of the tunnel single file, and Hoseok is almost blinded by the stadium lights and is almost deafened by the raucous cheers from the stands. He can’t keep the smiling off his face as he looks around, taking it all in. It’s overwhelming in a good sort of way. Hoseok still can’t believe he’s here again.
He scans the crowd, smiling and waving at all of the fans, until he sees him. Seokjin. He’s far away and it’s a bit bright because of the lights but Hoseok thinks he’s crying. He’s got his hands covering his mouth and his eyes are shining and Hoseok is endeared. And proud. He’s proud of how far he’s come and he’s proud of Seokjin for helping him get there. Hoseok blows him a kiss and Seokjin seems almost surprised that Hoseok found him, but he pretends to catch it and blows Hoseok one back in return.
The stadium quiets as the national anthem begins to play, and Hoseok takes the time to breathe deep, to try and calm his racing heart.
The two teams disperse once the anthem is over and everyone has shaken hands, setting up on their respective side of the field.
Hoseok takes his place at the edge of the center circle, jumping up and down to get some of the last minute nerves out. He can do this. He was born for this, it’s who he is, who he’s always been meant to be. He may have had to take a slight detour to get there, but he’s here now and he’s going to prove to everyone how strong he is.
He looks up to the stands to where Seokjin's sitting one last time. 'I love you' Hoseok mouths to him. Even from this distance, Hoseok can see his shocked and surprised expression, and it only gives him another burst of energy, seeing the pure adoration and joy on his boyfriend's face.
The whistle blows, and the game begins.