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You know how kids boast to their surroundings about a knowledge they just learn by using it repeatedly and in-your-face?
That's exactly what is happening at the current moment in Treasure's Dorm 2 as Jihoon stops paying attention to the muscled panda memes Teume posted on Weverse and moves to the teen who just got back from school one fine Friday afternoon.
"Excuse me?" the leader asks because he thinks he heard wrong.
"I said, we're like David and Goliath, hyung."
No, it turns out Jihoon's hearing is working perfectly. So, he frowns, confused.
The teen, Jeongwoo, who flops down to the sofa next to the group's leader, still dressed in his uniform, follows up with snark, shown from a tiny smirk gracing his tanned feature. "You don't know what it means, hyung?"
"Of course, I know what it means. What I don't know is the reason for the sudden declaration."
"Well. I just learned the phrase earlier in English class, and I think it fits us."
No, it doesn't—is the reflexive counter Jihoon has in his mind. Unless the meaning of the phrase—that derived from biblical tales—has diverted from denoting a situation of an underdog facing a bigger, stronger opponent into another meaning, Jihoon sincerely believes the phrase is wrongly used here. Another possibility is that there's something Jeongwoo doesn't tell him, but whatever the reason, the teen keeps his smirk while gazing at the leader confidently—so proud of this shining, new knowledge he acquired—and Jihoon wonders if this is what it's like to be a dad.
So, ever soft for the group who he considers a second family, the brown-haired leader decides to play along. "Okay. Which of us is David?"
Jeongwoo points a finger to himself.
"And that means I'm Goliath," Jihoon concludes. "So, are you... trying to defeat me, Jeongwoo-ya?"
The other answers with a wide grin, all teeth, before standing up to get a shower.
"We'll see," Jeongwoo chirps merrily before disappearing into the corridor of the dorm, leaving Jihoon with more question marks hanging above his head. The latter pursues his lips, kicking the gear in his brain to find a possible answer, but after a couple of minutes, grows bored and decides to just see how the future events transpired.
In short, the following week is an eye-opening experience for Jihoon. From his keen observation, he manages to recap and divide which area the self-proclaimed modern David tries to defeat Goliath.
1. Defeat Jihoon in vocals.
"Jihoon-hyung, let's make a bet," Jeongwoo says out of the blue when the members are gathered in the big studio to record their new comeback song.
Jihoon, seated on a revolving chair next to the producer, quirks an eyebrow, intrigued. "A bet?"
"Yeah. I bet I can hit the high note quicker than you."
That takes Jihoon by surprise, so much so he automatically slips out a chortle. "Aren't you confident?"
But Jeongwoo appears mighty serious; knitted eyebrows, pressed lips, hands on his hips. Then, it clicks to the older man that this is what the teen means by them being David and Goliath. For what purpose, Jihoon still has no clue. But instead of asking it directly, being a curious jackass he is, Jihoon chooses to join the game and see where it ends.
"Okay, " the leader nods, then mulls for a brief moment before laying out the rules. "Hyung will treat tonight's dinner if you can hit your high note quicker than me. If you can do it in six tries while I'm five, then you lose. Vice versa, then you win. The producer will be the judge so it's unbiased. Deal?"
"Deal!" Jeongwoo exclaims, satisfied that his offer to duel is being granted but it seems their conversation is being eavesdropped on by another maknae; Haruto.
"Oh, a bet? Let me in too," the deep-tone rapper chimes in from behind Jeongwoo, which the latter immediately protests for some unknown reason.
"No, no, Ruto-ya—"
"Sure, Ruto can join," Jihoon shrugs.
"But he's a rapper, not a vocalist!"
"Doesn't matter. Rapping also takes multiple tries to get the right flow. So, if it turns out his take finished quicker than us, then we both have to buy him dinner."
Haruto gives a thumbs up while Jeongwoo a thumbs down. Jihoon ignores both thumbs, instead shoots one to Junghwan who's in the recording booth and successfully wraps up his lines.
After Junghwan, it's Haruto's turn. The tall Japanese teen stumbles in his words a couple of times but after seven tries, the producer signals an OK gesture. Then, Jeongwoo's turn. It's obvious he's pressured by Haruto's number and the nervousness affects his performance. On the first and second try, his voice sounds strained, even before hitting the high note of his part. So the teen tries again. And again. And again. Jihoon actually lost count but the producer doesn't.
Jeongwoo steps out of the booth after his eleventh try. While he quickly chugs down a bottle of water, Jihoon enters and starts his recording. And what do you know—the brown-haired leader finishes the whole thing in just five tries.
"Oh, we haven't discussed what we'll do if you win, hyung," says Haruto, approaching Jihoon when he's back on his seat. "You want us to treat you to dinner?"
It earns a scoff from the vocalist. "Ridiculous. I can buy one on my own," then he snaps his head around, searching for the loser of the three. "Ya, Jeongwoo-ya, I win—"
But what greets Jihoon is a sight of sulking Jeongwoo, perched beside Junkyu in the long sofa pressed to the wall. Lips pressed tight, eyes cast downward, Jeongwoo is playing with his nails while ignoring the leader's call before abruptly walks out of the studio.
Puzzled? Well, so is our Goliath.
2. Defeat Jihoon in dance.
But strap on your seat because the next day, Jeongwoo bounces back to his cheerful self and corners Jihoon at the start of their dance practice.
"Jihoon-hyung, let's make a bet!"
The addressed man of course, dumbstruck by the request and pauses stretching his body. Next to him, the older leader, Hyunsuk, does the same, a little snoopy at what's going on with the Park brothers.
"Again? What's with you, Jeongwoo-ya?" Jihoon genuinely asks out of wonder.
But the other zips his mouth tight and stirs the topic back to their oncoming bet. "I bet I can master the new choreography at the end of the day, hyung."
"Wow, that's a bold claim," Hyunsuk chimes in with a chuckle, "Even me and Jihoon will have a hard time doing that."
"I know, right?"
"That's why it's a bet! I bet I can learn quicker than you, hyung!" Jeongwoo persists, whining like a child, and Jihoon can't help but snicker at the sight.
Hyunsuk nudges the younger leader's elbow, "What's the prize, Jihoon-ah?"
"Dinner, I guess. Since the last one didn't happen, let's go for dinner again."
"Can I join, hyung?" Suddenly, Doyoung comes in. He's settled on Hyunsuk's right all this time and overhears the conversation from the beginning.
Seeing his 'kid' take the initiative, his 'mother', Hyunsuk, looks the most pleased. He pats Doyoung's back while smiling so wide, "Yes, let Doyoung-ah here join. His stamina has been improving. He'll put up a good fight for you two."
"Sure," Jihoon allows.
And so it occurs again; a fast objection from the original bet maker. Jeongwoo whines louder than before, "No, no, Jihoon-hyung, this is between us!"
Doyoung nods timidly, "Oh, okay, I'll pass then—"
"Come on, Jeongwoo-ya, the more, the merrier," Jihoon argues, making the teen pouts.
"But…"
"Try mastering the whole choreo by the end of the day, then both your dinner and the next day's lunch are on me. If I win, you don't have to do anything. A good deal, right?"
"Akh!" It's Doyoung who answers first in the manner of a soldier, complete with a salute. Must be the lingering effect from their mini-military training, Jihoon often jokes about. Very contrast with the other maknae who after hearing Jihoon's decision, goes back to his original spot by Jaehyuk's side without a word.
Honestly, Jihoon suspects the bet is off because Jeongwoo lack of enthusiasm on display but as the coaches arrive and start demonstrating the choreography, then the teen goes full-throttle. Jeongwoo mimics each move with power from the get-go. It takes no time for his tee to soak wholly from sweat. Think this is the first time Jihoon sees the other so enthusiastic in dancing to the border of worrying for him to not extort his body too much throughout the seven-hour practice. But Jihoon's concern is uncalled for because four hours later, Jeongwoo's abundant energy slowly dims. His body hits a limit.
In the end, Jeongwoo only masters half of the choreography, similar to the rest of the group except the leaders and Doyoung who only lacks a couple of moves before completion.
"Good job, Doyoung-ah," Jihoon squeezes the younger man's shoulder before Doyoung retreats to the shower room along with others. The leaders stay behind to converse with the coaches, and by then, Jihoon notices how Jeongwoo is still sprawled on the floor, heaving harsh breaths out of his mouth. He feels pity, of course, but before he consoles him, the teen gets up. With his shaky legs resulted from the muscle extortion, Jeongwoo wobbles out of the room, avoiding the leaders' stares as he passes them.
Next to Jihoon, Hyunsuk frowns. "What's with him?"
"Beats me."
If you fall from Jihoon's indifference, then you're not paying attention.
3. Defeat Jihoon in raw strength.
Because here comes the last battle of David and Goliath. It happens at night when Jihoon is done arranging the clean, freshly washed plates from Dorm 2 dinner time into the kitchen cabinet. Hurried footsteps reach the brown-haired leader's ears before he feels a presence standing in front of the island bar.
"Jihoon-hyung—"
"Let me guess, you wanna make a bet."
"Oh? How did you figure it out?"
"Call it a parental instinct," Jihoon mutters under his breath, amused, unheard by the other so Jeongwoo asks again.
"Say what, hyung?"
"Nothing," Jihoon clicks the cabinet closed and spins on his heel, confronting the teen. "What now? A bet for who can make more delicious ramyeon? Or who can drive Shiho angry first by wrecking the dorm upside down? Or, even better. Let's see who can make Hyunsukie-hyung cry first by scaring the shit out of him—"
"Uh, I don't want to be kicked out of the group, hyung."
Watching Jeongwoo actually nervous with his shifting feet and downturned smile, Jihoon cackles some more. Then, "Okay, fair. So what do you have in mind?"
"Arm-wrestling!"
Silence.
Jihoon's mouth hangs open like an idiot, staring at the optimistic teen whose arms are half the size of Jihoon's biceps. "…Seriously?"
"Seriously! Don't underestimate me, hyung! I've been working out too, you know. Look!" Jeongwoo flexes his right arm proudly that builds a lump of muscles, and on any day, Jihoon would have praised him but tonight, the younger wants to make this a match so the older acts accordingly and puts down his elbow on the island bar.
"Okay. You asked for it."
Jeongwoo grins happily before doing the same and grabbing Jihoon's hand. After a count of three, the battle commences.
"Aaahh!"
"Aaaahhh!"
"Aaaaaahhhh—"
"Okay, you can quit the screaming, Jeongwoo-ya, or our bet is gonna change from arm-wrestling to the one that makes Shiho angry. Believe me, hyung has already excelled at that." Hence, why the poor leader is left with the task of cleaning up in the first place. Recalling Mashiho's death glares after Jihoon accidentally spilled sauces on the table earlier at dinner sends a shiver down his spine.
"But—but—why are you so—strong?!" Jeongwoo hisses through gritted teeth. Lines of contracting veins are embossed across his arm that try to bring down Jihoon's. Even the one on his neck shows as Jeongwoo clamps down his jaw, hard, until his face flushed red. But Jihoon doesn't budge. At all.
The stubborn display is quite funny to the musclier man out of the two. Jihoon chuckles, "Give it up, Jeongwoo-ya."
"No!" Even when his arm trembles horribly only in the effort of staying upward.
"Just give it up. Hyung has more workout hours than you. While you're studying at school, I'm pulling weights at the gym."
"Nooo!" But the teen is determined and keeps his hold. At this point, Jihoon starts to get scared the wrestle might strain Jeongwoo's muscle so he ends it in one swift movement.
"Hana, dul, set!" Jihoon counts before pushing his young opponent's arms down easily. And thus, the handsome Goliath wins for the third time.
Obviously, the teenage version of David is quick to sulk; slumps forward then crosses his arms on the island bar to bury his face.
"Hey," Jihoon calls but no answer.
"Hey, Jeongwoo-ya~"
Still mute. So, Jihoon tries a different approach by lightly pinching his ear. But the teen doesn't react, much less lifting his face up.
Jihoon shakes his head, sits somewhere between amused and puzzled. So enough with the games, time to talk it out. When he speaks again, his tone is low and calm; the kind that only surfaces when addressing trouble within the group.
"Jeongwoo-ya."
It successfully makes the other flinches.
"Hey, what's with you?"
A momentary pause in time before a muffled answer. "Numbin."
"Napkin?"
"I said, nothing!" Jeongwoo cries exasperatedly, lifting his face and meeting Jihoon's eyes again.
"Ahh, I see, I see."
But it doesn't stop the teen from pouting. Jeongwoo throws his face sideways.
Jihoon probes again, "Hey, Jeongwoo-ya, why do you wanna defeat me so badly? It's not like we're in a competition or something. The survival show is done, we're one-year-old idols now."
The addressed teen doesn't immediately answer. Instead, he chews his bottom lips while his eyes scatter left and right. Maybe right now his brain is in the middle of trying to string together the correct sentences. So Jihoon waits.
And after a full minute—"I just thought if I win from you in everything, you stop messing around with me."
It would be a damn lie if Jihoon says his heart doesn't drop to the ground. His mind straight off flies to the worst scenario.
"Ah, did hyung make you uncomfortable with all my pranks?"
But Jeongwoo even looks more rattled than Jihoon. Frantically, he denies the leader's presumption. "No, no, that's not what I meant. It's just—you never mess around with the other maknaes," Jeongwoo utters small, a bit shy. "Ruto is good at taking instructions when recording, Doyoung-hyung is good at dancing, Junghwan is stronger than you. So you acknowledge them and like them better, right? Better than me. That's why you never mess around with them on and off camera. Only with me," murmurs Jeongwoo sadly, it touches Jihoon's heart.
But this is Jihoon we're talking about, not Hyunsuk. Being mushy-mushy is not his style. So he does the knee-jerk reaction of hearing such nonsensical logic and that is to laugh it off.
"Ya, hyung, stop it!"
But Jihoon is a loose, blaring cannon; he laughs until he lurches to his stomach and tears prick in the corner of his eyes.
"Hyung, stop it or I'm gonna cry! Really! I'm really gonna cry!"
Hearing the threats and seeing Jeongwoo's expression grows identical to his viral crying meme, Jihoon finally gives mercy. He starts to calm down, gasping for breath all the while. "Wow. I let Junghwanie won one time on camera and look where it got me. Everyone thinks I'm weak now. Unbelievable." Then, he puts his right elbow on the bar again. "Come on. Let's do a rematch."
Jeongwoo tilts his head in confusion but obeys. Without waiting for a count, Jihoon drags Jeongwoo's arm down to the right, so the thinner arm lays on top of his firmer one. And just like that, the teen wins.
Obviously, Jeongwoo scowls, "You're cheating, hyung."
"Yes, but you know who's also cheating? David."
While Jeongwoo frowns deep, Jihoon continues, "Or the historian. Because originally, it's not David who defeated Goliath. It's someone else. I forgot the name. But later on, the historian pinned the victory to David because he's a more famous character. It's common knowledge, right up there in the first paragraph of their Wikipedia."
The revelation draws Jeongwoo embarrassed. He ducks his chin low, "I don't know that…"
"It's okay," Jihoon assures, "But, that's why, Jeongwoo-ya, before you use that phrase, it's better to go to the original source. Like how you should go to me first before you assume my feelings."
Jeongwoo levels his stares up, wide-eyed, but before he can say anything, Jihoon lifts their locked arms once more. "Again," he says before repeating Jeongwoo's victory.
"Hyung—"
"I will never let you defeat me, Jeongwoo-ya."
The statement might sound arrogant and contradictory to what's happening at the moment but Jeongwoo keeps his mouth shut after seeing no humor left on Jihoon's face. No more jackass; the leader of Treasure is talking.
"Or let those three guys you just mentioned do. Ruto is good at taking instructions but so is everyone on a good day. Doyoung is improving but his stamina needs some work. And I let Junghwanie won an arm-wrestle that time in the LINE video, just so you know. But it doesn't mean you should give up. Work harder. Try to best me in any category. But you should know that in response, I'm gonna work extra hard than all of you combined. Why? Because I'm your hyung," Jihoon says sternly and with bursting pride, Jeongwoo can't help but be stupefied in awe.
"I'm supposed to be the role model to all of you, just like Hyunsukie-hyung to me. Surely you don't want a leader more helpless than you. It's a responsibility I bear but honestly, I don't mind," Jihoon utters before breaking into a smile, one that makes his eyes shape crescent. "It's fun—as long as the twelve of us are here."
There's silence, stretches between the young men while their eyes lock and what is being exchanged is not buried turmoil anymore, but an understanding. Of the older to the younger's natural need of acknowledgment and the younger to the older's unwavering dedication to his position. And like crossing a bridge, they meet in the middle.
But Jihoon being Jihoon, washes the heavy air he created himself with nonchalance comedy. He shrugs, "But hey, you just won against me in arm-wrestling so maybe I'm a bad hyung, after all."
It manages to draw a sheepish smile on Jeongwoo's face. "That's not fair, hyung."
"It is not fair but for my favorite dongsaeng, I'll let him win any time and day," Jihoon says, still with his smile, and there's a tenderness that very seldom etches his face but tonight, it comes out only to Jeongwoo. It spreads warmth across Jeongwoo's chest that ends the cold, ridiculous conquest of the modern David because just like the cheating David, Jeongwoo too has come out triumphant, for Jihoon's love to his second family weighs more than winning a petty fight.
Seeing Jeongwoo's face lit bright once more—twinkled eyes, rosy cheeks, child-like grin—is what Jihoon considers a victory.
-
"Hyung."
"Hm?"
"Am I really your favorite dongsaeng?"
A beat of silence.
"Nah, I lied, it's Ruto."
"Jihoon-hyuuuung!"
"ㅋㅋㅋ"