Remember to vote if you think Jimin is an insanely attractive individual who is the finest male specimen you have ever witnessed, or if you think burgers are good.

---

Jimin

Another challenge. Another.

After a rather explosive elimination the previous night where Vinny had gone home and Markus flung off the entire blue team, the tense team had to win a challenge together. How were they going to do that when Markus wasn't cooking and instead making fun of his teammates for basically nothing?

"Jimin," Markus said from behind him, laughing like a hyena. "You should have gone home yesterday."

Jimin had to repeat Y/n's words in his mind over and over again to keep himself grounded. All he had to do was cook a Japanese dish. It was another classic challenge Gordon loved to give; Gordon liked to make the chefs cook with different cuisines from all over the world every season of Hell's Kitchen.

Louis had Greek, Chris had Thai, Jungkook had Chinese, and the list went on and on. No one had a say in what they cooked, and it was chosen based on chance, which was typical for Hell's Kitchen.

"Cook your dish, Markus. You may not like us right now, but you'll like us a whole lot less if we're doing a punishment together," was all Jimin responded with, instead opting to cook and focus on what he needed to do to redeem himself from the previous night. He couldn't let Markus win. Or his negative mental state.

Markus, somehow, got convinced by Chef Scott to return to work. And by "convinced," Jimin meant Chef Scott ripped into him and threatened to send him home right there and then. That got Markus to shut the fuck up and make his food, but with twenty minutes out of forty left (yes, Markus had been stalling for twenty minutes), Jimin had no confidence Markus could do it. Granted, he didn't have confidence to begin with, but he had even less.

The next twenty minutes passed by in what felt like seconds. Soon enough, Jimin stood with his team, his dome on the counter behind him. His team had seven competitors compared to the red team's eight, and Jimin knew what was coming.

"Red team, you have one extra dish. Please choose one to eliminate before we get started," Gordon, who stood not too far away in front of the classic rectangular tasting table, said.

The red team turned, lifted each other's domes, and whispered amongst themselves. As long as Y/n's wasn't eliminated, Jimin didn't care. Part of Jimin wanted to go up against her, but he knew the odds were unlikely.

"Red team, who are you eliminating?"

The team turned, and it was Seulgi who answered.

"Ophelia's, chef. She had Italian cuisine."

"Why?"

"We felt it didn't have the best presentation, chef."

Gordon nodded, glancing at Ophelia. "Are you happy with their decision?"

Ophelia shrugged. "Of course I want you to taste what I put so much effort in to, chef, but they're right that my presentation could have been better, so I don't mind it."

Wow. A chef who wasn't throwing a temper tantrum over being voted out? That was the most mature chef Jimin had seen on Hell's Kitchen.

"Alright," Gordon said, garnering everyone's attention. "Let's start with the battle of the Greek."

Y/n had Greek, so she was up first, and Jimin gnawed on his nails while watching. It was the first and only time Jimin would root against his own team, though to be fair, as much as Jimin had no issues with Louis, he knew Y/n was a far better chef than Louis. And that was proven when Y/n took home the point for the red team. No shocker there.

Then came Chinese, with Jungkook versus Felicia. Jungkook took home the point. Another no brainer. Felicia was good, but Jungkook was exceptional. If he spoke more and took more control over the kitchen, Jimin could see Jungkook as a finalist.

Then came Thai, which was Seulgi versus Chris. That was far tougher, seeing as both were strong chefs. But Seulgi ended up with the point, making it two to one, red team. It went on and on without Gordon calling out Jimin's name, so he stood there, nibbling on his nails until he realized it was the last round, meaning he had to go.

And the score was tied.

It was tied four to four due to the blue and red teams earning one point each the previous round. It had initially been three to two, but then the blue team scored and made it three to three, and the next tie made it a continued tie.

Long story short: it was all on Jimin.

Jimin approached and faced off against the red team member who had Japanese cuisine, too: Diya. She was a great chef and sweet person, so Jimin knew that round would be far from easy. Honestly, the red team had better chefs than the blue team did. All around, anyway. Fiona was a bit of a crackhead, and Ophelia had weaknesses, but the others were pretty solid. Based on what he had seen, anyway.

Meanwhile, the blue team got fucking Markus, Harold, and Vinny. At least two of them were gone, but having Markus was a massive blow to his confidence in his team. And, yes, Markus hadn't scored a point for the blue team. What a shocker.

"Diya, what do you have for us today?"

Diya lifted her dome to show an elaborate bowl of noodles, and Jimin had to admit it was colorful.

"Chef, today I made you a simple yaki udon with chicken and soy sauce."

A classic. Jimin loved that dish, and part of him wanted to nom nom nom it up before Gordon could, but he reminded himself he was a professional (and also in a competition) and stayed at bay.

Gordon tasted it and hummed. "Good flavor. Well-seasoned. Chicken is well-cooked. Good job."

"Thank you, chef."

Gordon turned to Jimin. "And you, young man?"

Jimin almost dookied his pants the second Gordon's eyes met his. His sweaty, shaky hand managed to lift the dome to show his steak underneath, and he swallowed as best he could as he pushed the plate toward Ramsay. It didn't help that there were cameras all over the place, same with microphones capturing every second. Maybe his excessive swallowing and rapid heartbeat, too.

"Chef," Jimin started, and he paused to clear his throat. "Today I prepared a wagyu steak over a bed of rice and stir fried veggies, and I brushed the steak with soy sauce."

"Interesting."

Gordon cut into it, not that there was much to cut into. It was already thinly-sliced in rectangles and resting over the colorful rice underneath.

Gordon took a few bites, and Jimin was thankful there were no gags or vomits or spits. That meant it was edible. Maybe a low bar, but he'd take it at that point.

"Wow." Gordon set his fork down and met Jimin's gaze. "That's perfectly cooked, Jimin."

Jimin beamed. "Thank you, chef." That didn't stop his sweat, though.

"The rice was a great choice. It doesn't overpower the beef, which is a common mistake I see with wagyu. Bold choice to cook with this meat. Have you cooked with it before?"

"Yes, chef."

Gordon nodded and placed his finger on his chin while staring at the two dishes. "Two great dishes. Tough decision. But one had the edge." Gordon trailed off for dramatic effect, letting the cameras get b-roll of everyone's faces for reaction shots. And then, he fired out the winning team. "Congratulations to the blue team."

Jimin actually did dookie his pants a little.

Jimin exhaled so hard he thought he was about to pass out, and Diya congratulated him, to which he smiled and thanked her, managing to stutter out how her dish looked amazing and how she did good, too. Then, Jimin thanked Ramsay and scurried back to his team. He did it. He won for the team.

He won.

Jimin didn't know if he should cry, scream, throw up, or cry some more, but he opted to keep his "professional" facade on for a hair longer, while in front of Chef Ramsay. He accepted the pats on the back and the thanks from his team (aside from Markus, who scowled the entire time), keeping his face happy but rid of any potential tears.

"Blue team, you have a wonderful reward today," Gordon said once the clapping dialed down. "Do you like jet skis?"

The blue team hollered out in approval, and Gordon chuckled.

"Good. You're going to spend a day all around water and sand, and there may be a good lunch for you, too. Now get up to the dorms and wear appropriate clothes."

The blue team rushed off, and Jimin glanced at Y/n in the process, who smiled and gave him a thumbs-up. He appreciated that more than he could express. Even while about to be punished, she was there, encouraging him. What did he do to deserve her?

Jimin was last into the dorm, listening to the cheers of his teammates, and he plopped on the couch instead of getting ready, just needing a moment to relax. That was when Jungkook came over, already changed. Yeah, he was wearing basic black shorts and a white t-shirt. No wonder why it took him ten seconds to get ready.

"Good job today," Jungkook said, and Jimin kept his smile.

"Thanks. I'm glad I got us a win."

"I'm not surprised."

Jimin furrowed his brows. "You're... not?"

Jungkook shook his head. "When I saw you were last, I knew we would win."

Jimin stiffened at that, his eyes widening and his mind trying to process those words. Jeon motherfucking Jungkook just kind of admitted to having faith in Jimin. Maybe even to seeing a good chef in Jimin. But what did he think of last night? Jimin didn't know, and he didn't want to ask. Instead, he chuckled.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you like me."

"No," Jungkook answered without hesitation, scoffing. "But I'm not stupid. You're a good chef." Jungkook hesitated, standing and glancing down at Jimin. "Even if you make some mistakes, you're a good chef. A really good one. Don't forget that."

And then, Jungkook walked away.

Jimin sat there, flabbergasted, his eyes tailing Jungkook's retreating form. He departed the dorm first, and the other members of the blue team started piling out too. Jimin knew he should hurry and change, but he couldn't bring himself to move, seeing as Jungkook's words were a bit much to process.

No one on his team had told him not to worry about the previous night. No one had noticed his distress other than Y/n, and it seemed Jungkook, too. Jimin didn't expect his competitors to care, but to see Jeon Jungkook of all people show care was astonishing, and it had Jimin sitting there, peering off into space, and questioning his life. But no matter where his mind went, one thought remained.

He could win Hell's Kitchen. All he had to do was never give up.

---

Remember to vote, comment, and follow if you think Jimin is your favorite human on the planet, or if you think water is wet.