Jungkook focus

The soft waves of music woke Jungkook up, and confused he lifted his head to find a honey-brown mob of hair on his chest. Right, they had been playing games yesterday, and Jimin had fallen asleep on his lap, so he had stayed. But the older must have woken up at some point because they were covered by the snow-white blanket. With a happy smile, he let his fingers run through the soft strands of his new friend. Jimin occasionally was confusing and hard to understand, but most of the time the smaller was adorable and heartwarming. Jungkook did not understand what people meant when they talked about the sly Charmers. Jimin was anything but. In fact, the other had been more startled when he had made a move on him than the other way around. Sadly, he had had to realize that the half-breed was not used to simple affectionate gestures. He had been completely stunned when Jungkook had ruffled through his hair.

A soft grumble and a motion on his chest made him look at the smaller again. The latter rubbed his nose in a cute movement of one hand. Jimin's hands fascinated him. They were so small in his own.

"Good morning," he said quietly and let his hands run through the elder's hair once more.

His voice seemed to bring some life into the ball that had curled up half at his side, half on his chest.

"Jungkook?" the sleep-stained velvety voice asked.

"Yep," he answered, and a pair of drowsy mahogany orbs looked at him through a messy fringe.

A wide smile spread on the soft face of his friend and made him smile, too.

"The captain requests your presence in the kitchen in twenty minutes, uniformed," the AI informed them.

"Good morning, Bang," Jimin greeted the computer. Jungkook was still startled by how the older talked to the board AI. During his military service he had learned that nice behavior towards AIs was unnecessary and a waste of time and energy, but his friend seemed to disagree with that. And who was he to question a psychology doctor's decision?

"Good morning, Jimin," Bang greeted back, and Jungkook was amazed by its tender tone. Maybe the small man knew way more than what the rest of the crew expected.

"Let's gear up and follow the captain's order," Jungkook suggested and sat up, lifting Jimin up with him in the process. When the body threatened to slump over to the other side, he slung an arm around him and pulled him back against his chest.

"Don't want to," the older grumbled and slung his arms around him. "What cologne are you using?"

Jungkook raised his eyebrows. "I don't use any."

Confused mahogany eyes looked at him. "But you smell so good. Like some spice. Cinnamon, or anise, or something like that."

Jungkook chuckled. Jimin sure was a strange guy.

"Let's go!" he said once more and finally got up.

Suppressing a groan because of his injury, he walked over to the door and tapped the green circle.

"See you later," he waved his goodbye and stepped onto the hallway.

Massaging his damaged rib, he walked to his room to get ready for the day. He stripped off the t-shirt and jeans and took a super-quick shower before he slipped into one of the many black turtlenecks that filled one slim drawer of his closet, neatly folded and ready to wear. For a moment he wondered who did the laundry. But then he shook off the thought and pulled out one of the functional pants, combining it with his personal drop-leg-holster in which he shoved his gun. Since his days in the military, he felt naked without it. The weight seemed to keep him grounded and focused. Just for some reason he had not missed it while he had been at Jimin's. He furrowed his brows while trying to find a reason for that.

After he had toweled his damp hair once more, he left his personal room to meet with the rest of the crew in the kitchen. When he arrived, Hoseok, Namjoon and the two pilots were already present. Jimin surrounded him to get to the coffee machine when he entered the place after him.

"What kind of tea do you drink?" the small honey-haired asked him with a look over his shoulder.

"Sencha in the morning," he answered, delighted that Jimin cared about him. He was so caught up in watching his new friend that he did not notice the looks that were exchanged between the two pilots.

When the six sat at the table, all with a steaming mug and a nutrition bar, their physician entered the room.

"How dare they call this a kitchen," the man spat and enabled the food automat with his fingerprint. Then he stepped in front of the coffee machine and pressed the button for americano. The automat began to rumble.

When it was finally done, the oldest took the food bar and the mug and sat at the table across to Namjoon. "How dare they call this food!" he hissed with a disgusted look at the biscuit.

"Shut up, you finicky eater," Taehyung growled and shot the doc an annoyed gaze, "You knew when you entered E II Academy."

The hazel-haired doc pouted slightly but stayed silent. Jungkook was shocked by how the V dared to talk to an older member, but he kept his mouth shut. Instead, he leaned slightly over the table to have a better sight at their captain who had positioned one of the eight chairs in a way he could sit at the head of the table.

"Good morning," Hoseok welcomed them to what apparently was a meeting, "Yesterday was hard, but I hope you rested well and found some positivity. As I already told this half of the table-" He gestured towards the side with the commander and the pilots. "-we're heading into a battle. And to prevent Earth ending up like Ancient we must become the best fucking team of the whole Agency. There must be a reason they put us together as a crew, so let's find out what makes us special and how we can use this to kick some bad asses." Taehyung and Yoongi grinned. "From today on, the non-military members will receive special training in handling guns, and the whole crew will work on stamina and physical strength." Yoongi's smile faltered. "But first, I want everyone to take a fitness test to provide Bang with the data to assemble the individual training plans." Jungkook nodded and Hoseok looked at him with determined eyes. "Jungkook will teach you in handling weapons and I'll be your fitness trainer. Are there any hidden talents that could be useful?"

Silence.

"I'm a hacker," Taehyung admitted after some seconds. He held his eyes fixed on the table's surface as if he feared to be scolded for his skill.

"Perfect," Hoseok said and the pilot's head snapped up with a stunned expression. "Can you teach officer Min?"

"Well, I guess," the young man said and turned his head to look at the computer scientist.

"Do I have to join the training, too?" Seokjin asked.

The captain nodded. "We'll need everyone."

After a moment of silence, Jimin began to talk. "Why are you wearing glasses?" he asked Namjoon and everyone looked at him flabbergasted. Jungkook chuckled. How were the others supposed to take him seriously when he asked questions like that in a moment like this?

"Um... Occasionally, I find it comfortable to see less details. I feel overwhelmed at times," the commander answered, followed by a mumbled 'I feel ya' from Taehyung. Apparently, being an advanced human had its disadvantages. Now that he thought about it, most of the non-humans of their crew seemed to have some problems. Namjoon was incapable of understanding emotions, or at least it was difficult for him, Taehyung had mood-swings and, as well as the blonde, felt overwhelmed by his perception, and Jimin was startled by small affectionate gestures. Suddenly, Jungkook was happy to be human.

"Well," the captain said into the awkward silence. "Dr. Kim, we'll start with the tests now. I'll be the first."

"May I suggest something?" Jimin asked shyly and all eyes were on him again. Jungkook placed a hand on his friend's lower back to encourage him to talk. "Using first names or even nicknames has a great effect on teambuilding."

Everyone looked astounded.

"I like that, Minie," Taehyung agreed and grinned a grin that was almost rectangular. Then he turned towards the captain. "You're a great man and I absolutely adore you, and calling you Hoseok won't change that, right Joon?"

Yoongi chuckled amused.

"Shut up, sugar. I'm trying to be serious," the commanding flight officer joked.

The white-haired man's expression changed from amused to not-amused within a second. "What did you just call me?" he growled with his unique raspy voice.

"Don't be mad, sugar. You're my favorite, after all," the V mocked his colleague and slung an arm around said man's shoulders.

"You punched me in the face," the older deadpanned, pointing at his swollen and purple-blue eye with the small tape strips that held together the cut.

"You deserved it," the other replied.

"Well... yeah," the pale pilot admitted and grinned again.

"You done?" the captain asked, but his face showed amusement. He looked like he had watched his children play a stupid but cute game.

The pilots nodded synchronously and shut up.

"Good. Well, I'll try my best, but I guess it'll take some time for a soldier to adjust to casual calling," the brunette agreed and Jimin smiled gratefully. "Doct- Seokjin. If you're ready?"

"You can call me Jin. All of you," the physician offered and stood up to start the tests. "I'll tell Bang when the next is up."

Jungkook's eyes followed them out of the room. He undeniably was nervous. The last test of this kind had been at the E II Space Academy's entrance examinations and he had barely managed it because of his injury. His right lung had been cut in several places by the splinted rib of a bullet hit and air had flooded into the small room between his lungs and the diaphragm, making the lung collapse, what had caused an inability to breath properly. He only had been saved because of Hoseok who had recognized the signs of a pneumothorax instantly, and because of the advanced medical capabilities of Earth II space ships. But the injury still made him suffer under great physical stress.

"What's on your mind?" Jimin asked with a concerned expression.

He just shook his head and smiled at the smaller. He had accepted his fate over the last two years. The first year which he had spent in rehabilitation had been hard, but after Hoseok had recommended him to the Academy and he had found a new purpose as assistant technician and military officer, things had become better. And right now, he was more than happy to have a crew like this. Hoseok, again, had overstepped his boundaries when he had convinced the headquarter to send Jungkook with them without having finished school. He owed the man big.

The pilots had left the room and Namjoon stood up to get some water from the automat.

"What do we do until the test?" Jimin mused.

"We can watch some episodes of Star Trek," Jungkook suggested, knowing his friend liked those, and Namjoon twitched slightly but stayed quiet.

Jimin agreed happily and they left to head into the elder's room.

><

"Officer Jeon," Bang interrupted Captain Kirk during a psychological battle against a bodiless creature, "Dr. Kim awaits you in the infirmary."

Jungkook twitched at the word infirmary but stood up anyways. "Call me Jungkook," he offered to the AI and opened the door. "See you later, Jimin."

"Later, Kookie."

He turned around to look at the smaller. Since when did he call him Kookie?

"I always wanted to call you that," the older admitted with a wide smile that formed his eyes into crescents. Jungkook chuckled. He liked the nickname.

With a last glance at the mahogany-eyed, who was already focused back on captain Kirk's battle, he turned around and left to meet Seokjin. Hopefully, his lung won't pass on him.

"Hello, Jungkook," the physician greeted him with a smile. "Sit with me for a moment."

While he crossed the room to sit at the table of the physician, he scanned his surroundings. There was a total of five beds with snow-white bedlinen, scattered on both sides of the room, a wide closet with doors of intelligent glass that showed shelfs with medication in all colors and forms as well as information about the temperature of the storing and the stock list. He could not read what the doors said, but he knew from his time in hospital. On the wall next to the door waited two medical robots. Those were used for operations and in case of too many patients. They looked scary when turned off, like humanoid puppets. Well, they were humanoid puppets. It just looked creepy.

Behind the doctor was a wall that showed empty diagrams and personal information fields. Those would wake up the moment he began his workout. And on the plain white desk stood one of the rare intelligent glass panels that had a white back to prevent the person on the other side of the table from seeing what was displayed. Jungkook had learned to value this discretion during his time in rehab. The pictures of his splintered rib had been very ugly.

He sat down in the comfortable white chair and waited for the physician to speak.

"I read your medical files and they said you had a pneumothorax," the doc said, sounding like he asked a question. As if someone would write bullshit into his personal medical files. Still, Jungkook nodded.

"We'll dive into the test gently to prevent damage. I'll constantly monitor your physical state, and we'll stop if it becomes too dangerous," Jin said determined. Jungkook nodded, albeit he hated it. Those words always made him feel weak though he was not.

Jin guided him through a door behind his desk into a smaller room that was equipped with a treadmill, a spin trainer, a rowing machine and an Icaros*. The wall in front of the sport equipment showed video footage of a path in the woods. Jungkook found it silly. The physician opened a slim closet drawer with a tap of his finger. "You can put your clothes in here." And then he opened a second one with black sport shorts and a sample of black straps which the soldier knew from other physical tests.

"If you don't know how to fix the straps, I'll help," Jin offered, but Jungkook waved him off.

"You're not very talkative, are you?" the older asked with a wry smile.

Only now, Jungkook realized that he had not said one word since he had stepped into the infirmary.

"I prefer to talk when what I can say is valuable," he replied.

"That is very wise of you," the doc admitted, "But talking does not just serve the purpose of transferring information." A strange glint glistened in the hazel-haired man's eyes.

Jungkook thought about what the man had said. It was not that he could not do small talk, but there was barely a right moment for it. He was not like Taehyung who always just blurted out what his mind produced. Military had drilled him to think before speaking, and he preferred it that way because it caused less trouble. And he liked that his words had an impact when he decided to open his mouth. People who talked nonstop were easily overheard.

He decided to keep his thoughts to himself and began to strip off his clothes. There had to be a balance in everything, and people like him compensated people like Jimin and Taehyung. Maybe this was one of the reasons he and the psychologist clicked so well. Jimin loved to talk and he liked to stay quiet and listen. A perfect match.

When he was done with fixing the straps around his chest, wrists and calves, Jin checked them and pressed the sensors for measuring the brain activity to his forehead. It stung a little when the edges poked into his skin, but he was used to it. Then the doc looked at the scar on his now bare chest that curled unattractively over the rib bow, slightly above the liver, which was the other organ that had been damaged back then and caused his abstinence of alcohol and other unhealthy substances.

"I'd like you to take the spin trainer to not stress the injury more than necessary," the hazel-haired said and walked over to the bicycle.

"No," Jungkook objected, "We're heading into a battle. I doubt I'll be riding a bike on a space mission."

Jin sighed. Jungkook had nothing against the man; he was considerate and polite and radiated a soothing calmness, but he was too soft. Holding back too much would do more harm than good.

"Okay," the physician agreed and turned on the treadmill. "Warm-up for ten minutes, and then Bang will start the test."

The raven stepped onto the trainer and the tool woke up.

"Don't worry, Jungkook," Bang's uncle-voice sounded from the off, "You can make it."

Jungkook wondered if the AI was programmed to say something like this, or if Jimin had been right in assuming that it was more than a computer.

>><<

*This is an Icaros. It's a flight simulator with VR.

And this is how the flight can look.