Chapter Text
In Hyunjin’s defense, he was just trying to show off.
Coach had told him not to mess around during morning drills, but what was he supposed to do when the sun was out, his legs felt like magic, and half the cheer team was watching from the bleachers?
So yes, he went for the unnecessary bicycle kick. And yes, it went terribly, tragically wrong.
Something or someone... squawked. Then there was a thud and then silence. Hyunjin landed clean but the other guy did not.
“Oh my—oh my God, I kicked someone!” Hyunjin dropped to his knees next to the body lying face-up on the grass. The boy looked like he’d just gotten slapped by gravity and betrayal. His suitcase lay open a few feet away, underwear spilled in the breeze like a crime scene. Worst of all, a giant yellow duck plushie stared up at the sky beside him, as if it too couldn’t believe what just happened.
The boy weakly groaned.
Hyunjin slapped his own forehead. “Okay. Okay. This is fine. I didn’t kill him. Probably. Hopefully?”
The duck offered no comfort.
Within ten minutes, the guy was groggily blinking at the ceiling of the university clinic, with Hyunjin perched on a plastic chair beside the bed, looking like a kicked puppy and a lawsuit waiting to happen.
“You kicked me,” the boy finally said, voice hoarse but full of judgment.
“I didn’t see you!” Hyunjin defended. “You walked straight onto the field. Who even does that?”
“I thought it was the soccer field-slash-pathway! My dorm’s supposed to be nearby! I was literally just following Google Maps!”
“You don’t bring a luggage and a huge duck into a varsity training field!”
“Don’t talk about Mr. Bbokari like that!”
Hyunjin blinked. “You named it?”
“Him.”
The nurse reappeared with an ice pack and an unimpressed expression. “He has a mild concussion. And a very strong opinion about ducks.”
The boy snatched the ice pack, holding it to the side of his face while glaring daggers at Hyunjin. “So what’s your plan? Gonna roundhouse kick me into next semester too?”
“Look, I said I was sorry,” Hyunjin snapped, folding his arms.
“You didn’t even help me pick up my underwear!”
“You were unconscious! What was I supposed to do, fold it and color-code it?!”
“Common courtesy!”
Hyunjin scoffed and stood up. “Well, now that you’re awake and still dramatic, I’m going.”
“Go ahead,” the boy muttered. “Next time just stick to passing drills and stop kicking to impress people.”
Hyunjin nearly turned around and chucked Mr. Bbokari out the window.
Instead, he stormed out of the clinic with all the grace of an angry flamingo, ignoring the weird flutter of guilt in his chest.
Later that afternoon, after surviving his coach’s rant and a missed group project meeting, Hyunjin finally made his way to the dorms.
The Athlete Housing Wing sat at the far end of campus, tucked behind the pool and under renovation signs that were definitely just decoration now. He walked up the familiar stairs to the second floor, muttering to himself about concussed drama queens and overgrown duck pillows.
As he rounded the final corner toward his room, he paused because someone else was standing right in front of it, dragging a familiar suitcase and holding…
“Are you kidding me?”
The boy looked up from trying to scan his ID card, Mr. Bbokari tucked under one arm like a battle companion. His hair was still messy from earlier. His glare was alive and well.
“Oh no,” he muttered. “Not you again.”
Hyunjin stared, horrified. “Why are you here?”
“This is the dorm for athletes,” the boy snapped. “I live here.”
“You live on this floor?”
“Yes.”
Hyunjin’s voice dropped to a whisper. “What’s your name?”
“Felix. Lee Felix. Freshman. Taekwondo scholar. Unwilling victim of soccer-violence.”
Hyunjin paled. “I’m gonna throw up.”
Before either of them could scream, insult, or flee, they both reached for the doorknob… the same one. Their hands froze inches apart. They stared at each other in horror.
“No,” Felix said.
“No,” Hyunjin echoed.
Mr. Bbokari slid slightly down Felix’s arm, judging them both with his beady eyes.
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