Remember to vote if you think Jimin is so adorable that he triggers a deep cuteness aggression within you that makes you want to shatter through the screen and just give him all the love and support in the world, or if you like waffles.

I was feeling quirky so here's an early update (that and 1.6k reads in less than two weeks has melted my heart so here y'all go enjoy early updates).

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Y/n

Elimination was far from what Y/n wanted to spend her night doing, yet there she was.

While the men sat all nice and comfy off to the side, the women faced the reckoning of Gordon motherfucking Ramsay. Yes, because getting yelled at by Gordon Ramsay was desirable.

Okay, to Y/n it was, but that was besides the point.

Gordon Ramsay stood not far away, the low lights of the empty dining room illuminating his wrinkles. The tables were all pushed off to the sides, leaving a giant gap for the red team to stay in. No one moved a muscle, not even Seulgi, who Y/n imagined would be more relaxed considering she had nothing to worry about. Seulgi and Y/n had been the stars of the service.

"Ladies," Gordon said, clicking his tongue. "Not a great start. Getting kicked out of the kitchen during the first service? Yikes."

Okay, he didn't need to rub it in. Well, maybe he did-

Y/n, focus.

The red team nodded but otherwise didn't speak. Gordon let the silence linger before he pointed to Seulgi, which was no surprise.

"Seulgi. Who is the red team's first nominee and why?"

"Our first nominee is Karen, chef," Seulgi replied, her voice as stiff as her shoulders. "We felt her communication was a bit hostile, and there were two wellingtons sent back tonight."

Karen, who stood next to the iconic Felicia, lowered her head but didn't protest. Chefs on Hell's Kitchen had ego problems. Arguments and spats would break out all day every day. Yet Karen took it without much argument; in fact, she had owned up to her mistakes and apologized for them back when they had discussed who to put up. Plus, she had bounced back during service and sent out perfect wellies after the first two misfires. Someone else had been the one to sunk the team.

"Your second nominee?"

Seulgi didn't hesitate, though Y/n knew the show would do a dramatic editing technique of cutting between the different contestants to add suspense. Anyone with a brain, though, knew who the second nominee had to be.

"Missy, chef." Seulgi also didn't hesitate with her explanation. "Nothing Missy sent tonight was good."

Ophelia, who stood next to Missy, had been the one to somewhat try on the fish station. When your partner is sinking you, though, there isn't much you can do.

Gordon rubbed his forehead before nodding. "Alright. Karen, Missy, step forward."

They did, but Y/n didn't care. She had nothing to worry about, and she didn't know Karen or Missy, so no point in getting emotionally invested. Besides, as much as Y/n was a team player, one less person meant one less competitor, and it also made the team tighter. Tighter, smaller teams tended to work better on brigades, in her experience. Well, more accurately, the less assholes, the better, and Missy was a bit of an asshole. Karen was, too, but she was an "asshole" because she told the truth.

Y/n glanced at Jimin, and he had his eyes on the two being interrogated by Ramsay. Ramsay asked why they believed they should stay in Hell's Kitchen, to which Karen started with the generic I believe I should stay in Hell's Kitchen because and then went on to spout the same bullshit every contestant did with I haven't shown you everything yet or it won't happen again and all the same old same old.

Jimin, after a beat, flickered his gaze over to her, and he offered her a smile that showed his dimple and crinkled his eyes a bit. She let herself swoon for it (mentally, of course) before paying attention.

Karen had given her case in a scratchy voice. She was the oldest on the team, being in her fifties, though Y/n admired how Karen didn't have a single gray lock. Her hair was identical to Ramsay's in terms of color, and maybe a bit of the style, too; hers wasn't very long, after all.

"Missy," Gordon said, bouncing a bit on his heels. Gordon was always moving his body. It was like no one could get him to stay still. "Not a great service."

"Not at all, chef."

"So why should I keep you in Hell's Kitchen?"

"I should stay because I'm a fighter, chef. I will show you-"

"Hold on, hold on. A fighter? You didn't bounce back tonight. Not a single good dish from the fish station tonight," he interrupted, and Missy huffed a curl out of her face.

"I know, chef. It won't happen again."

Chef Ramsay shook his head and didn't allow her to continue, instead glancing between the two nominated for elimination and clicking his tongue once more.

"My decision is..."

Gordon trailed off. He didn't need to for long. The editing team would cut it as needed, and they'd add random music and sound effects to make it more dramatic. The cameras captured every moment, and Y/n knew she'd have to do a million confessionals after the elimination to fill in the runtime for the dinner service and, of course, elimination itself.

"Karen."

Karen hesitated for a moment (who wouldn't), and then she stepped forward, but Gordon raised his hand and pointed toward the red team.

"Back in line."

Karen slapped both her hands over her mouth, thanking Gordon again and again before she rushed to join the rest of the team, leaving Missy there, alone. And also as the sole person on the chopping block. Which meant...

"Missy, give me your jacket, young lady," Gordon said, and Missy approached and took off her red jacket. Gordon snatched it and stared at her. "I did not see any push back from you tonight, and when I see no passion, I see no future for you in Hell's Kitchen. Goodnight."

Missy shook Gordon's hand and said goodnight, waving to the red team, who waved back. Missy left through the double doors near the left side of the dining room, and she was gone to film a confessional before leaving. The team would have her stuff packed and a taxi called to take her wherever needed.

Long story short: she wasn't the red team's problem anymore.

Missy had sunk the service and caused them to lose, and Y/n had no intention of losing the next service. Or challenge, for that matter. Y/n wanted a nice reward and to get to know the girls better. A team could only have chemistry through bonding. Well, not always, but Y/n wanted to believe they'd become stronger over time.

"Now fuck off," Gordon said to the rest of them. A classic Gordon line, and one Y/n had heard a crap ton not too long ago during service.

The boys stood and allowed the ladies to lead the way. They did the walk of shame back to the dorm, away from the cameras until they got to the dorm. At least Y/n's hot tub conversation with Jimin hadn't been recorded. Since there was a narrow window between the cool off and elimination, the camera crew hadn't bothered to record anything other than the blue team gloating and the red team arguing over who to put up for elimination.

The dorm was quiet, as expected. Karen thanked the red team for basically nothing since, well, they did put her up there to begin with, but Karen was so grateful to be back she didn't so much as mention that, and Y/n patted her shoulder and offered the older lady a smile she returned. She had straight teeth, though her right canine had a chip on the tip of it that made it look flatter than the other canine.

Y/n parted from Karen to plop on the couch next to Jimin and another member of the blue team Y/n didn't know the name of yet. It was difficult to keep track of everyone, so she glanced at the man with little hair, but of what was there, it was fuzzy and dark. He glanced back at her and parted his thick lips to speak.

"Y/n, right?" he said, and she nodded.

"That's me."

"My woman," Jimin interrupted, wrapping his arm around Y/n's shoulder and staring at his teammate. "So don't get any ideas, Chris."

Chris. That was the name. She swore she had to get better with names, but remembering things took a lot of effort when it wasn't recipes or whatever order Gordon called out. Though, to be fair, earlier in the night, she had forgotten a few of the orders. The entrees. Since she had been on hot apps, she didn't need to remember the entrees unless she was jumping in to help. Ramsay would fry her for thinking that, but it was something she would work on later. For the time being, she wanted to enjoy her down time.

One part of her mind worried about names and memory, and the other part giggled over Jimin's warmth and the way he got all protective over her. It was probably an act just to play into the whole she's my wife joke that she had a feeling would continue throughout the series, but the cameras were rolling for another hour, according to the producers. Then, they would shut off for the night unless something special occurred, like Gordon decided to wake them up at ass o'clock in the morning to do a surprise challenge.

The producers had said to treat it like you were always on camera. So, that was what Y/n did. She made a mental vow not to be too big of an asshole so it didn't reflect poorly on her later, but otherwise, she'd be herself. Any asshole comments could stay in the brain.

Chris held up his hands and chuckled. His laugh was as flawless as his voice. "Hey, man, if that's your lady, that's your lady. Don't worry, I won't interfere."

"Awh, Chris," Y/n said, leaning back against Jimin's chest and trying not to squeal over it. "You're too kind."

"I know. My mom raised me that way."

Never in a million years did Y/n think she could go a day drama-free on Hell's Kitchen, yet there she was, having a peaceful conversation. Yes, there was drama, but it wasn't the same as past seasons had seen. Hell's Kitchen had been changed recently to focus on the chefs more and the drama less. That meant more of the chefs were supportive of each other rather than bitter. Well, maybe the confessionals would show something else, but oh well.

Chris took his leave to make food with the others in the kitchen. Y/n had no appetite, so she stayed with Jimin and craned her head to glance at him.

"Not hungry?"

"Not even a little bit. I have too much adrenaline, seeing that elimination and all. I know I'm good at what I do, but just one bad night could do it, y'know? It's scary."

"Yeah," she said, letting out a small string of air. "But you've done great so far. I'm confident you'll make it."

"Oh, my wife's confident. That's all I need, then." He brushed her hair back and beamed. "Thanks for believing in me, Y/n. I mean it. And, for what it's worth, I believe in you too."

"What's this? Getting attached already? Mr. Park, you've known me less than a day."

"Maybe a day's all I need, Mrs. Park." He booped her nose with his finger, snickered, and then got off the couch. "I'm gonna go lay down. Maybe pass out, who knows. See you tomorrow?"

Y/n had known him less than a day, yet she didn't want him to go. She wanted to hear more about his experiences and everything he thought about life and cooking. Something about Jimin was fascinating. Maybe addicting. But, she knew he needed rest, so, she nodded and returned his grin.

"See you tomorrow."

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Remember to vote, comment, and follow if Jimin could call you a bitch and then slap you and you'd thank him.

(though, tbf, if Jimin of all people, the sweetest bean on the planet, is calling you a bitch, you probably deserved it)

(for legal reasons that's a joke)

Also, I apologize if there's a delay in my response to comments. For some reason, last time I posted an update about this story, my comment notifs suddenly stopped working??? I missed literally 100+ comment notifs since they just decided to stop working. I'll be checking the comments manually, don't worry, but if there are any delays, I apologize! I love chatting with you guys and seeing all your comments, so I promise I'll see them!