"Oh bitch....I'm asking." Jade giggled as she entered the dorm. She made sure to step carefully since her head had a dull ache from the night before and bends forward to snatch her heels from her sore feet. Gathering them in the same hands that held her keys, Jade stuffs her phone in her Greek embossed jacket pocket. Alesha waves another dismissive hand over her shoulder as she padded towards their kitchen, Jade following her.

The light in their small kitchen was too bright in the morning, or maybe it was the slight hangover causing Jade's brain to pulse behind her eyes making the natural light a bother. She winces with squinted eyes as she set herself up on the barstool nearby.

"So...." Jade begins and Alesha sighs.

"He helped me get Lana up here. She was passed out in the backseat by the time we got here."

Alesha says hurriedly as she rounds the kitchen island just as Jade leans against it tiredly. Jade's expression goes from stoic to intrigue when the darkening hickeys just below Alesha's jawline catch her eye. Her smirk returns. The refrigerator door tingles as Alesha opened it with an unnecessary force.

"Mmmhmm...Thanks for volunteering that bit of irrelevant information. Now, why were you trying to sneak him out of here, looking and probably smelling like yesterday..." Jade asks and Alesha snorts as she leaned back to scan the contents of the barely stocked shelves, making a mental note to get groceries soon.

"Naw he didn't smell like yesterday after that shower...." she mumbles distractedly, wiggling an itch from her nose. Jade regards her with tired eyes with her head propped against her hand.

"Yeah, I bet. You better put a spoon on those hickeys unless you want everyone in your business..." Jade yawns.

"Who? Like you?" Alesha rebuttals, making Jade let out a stiff breathy laugh.

" Please...I'd pay good money not to know anything about you and your coochie shenanigans but I, unfortunately, have a next-door seat. I'm just glad I wasn't here. Yall are loud..."

Alesha laughs at the irony of her statement. Since that was the very thought she had when Jimin made her one with the headboard earlier. Finding nothing inspiring in the fridge, Alesha grabs an unopened container of orange juice and bumps the door with her hip to close it.

"I'm glad you weren't either. Speaking of which...How was your night? I didn't expect to see you strolling in this early..." Alesha tosses the question over her shoulder as she opens the cabinets. A sudden frown crosses Jade's face as she recalled her night. Not that it was bad. The exact opposite.

Taehyung brought them back to the dorms in Jimin's car as instructed and the two of them went back to his room. Like Yoongi, Taehyung was an athlete on scholarship so he was granted special privileges when it came to room and board. Private rooms were on the furthest side of the dorm buildings and all existed in a series of duplexes. Jade's dorm that she shared with her suitemates, Taehyung had no roommates which meant privacy.

Their night was perfect.

That morning she woke up, tangled in Taehyungs arms. His bare chest to her back. His face nuzzled in her neck as they breathed in tandem. They'd spent many mornings like this, have been inseparable for the past 10 months. It was the first time she'd been a guy who seemed to be within her league. Not so much socially but intellectually.

"Maybe....he is the one."

Jade feels herself smiling at the thought and she wiggles comfortably against him as he reflexively pulled her closer in his sleep. Thoughts like that often hit her in moments like this, where the two of them seemed to be in a great place and all other aspects of her life fell in alignment.

Then she heard his phone vibrate.

The sound of the cup hitting the spot on the counter in front of her make Jade's eyes flutter and she finds it filled with orange juice. Looking up to find Alesha standing across from her, holding her cup and eyeing her suspiciously, Jade takes the glass gratefully.

"Thanks.."

"Mmmhmm...so you were saying? About your night.." Alesha urges. Jade hadn't realized that she'd asked.

"Oh...It was fine. You know...drunk sex. But Tae snores girl. I couldn't. I needed to get back to my bed.." she lies smoothly, lifting the cup. Alesha was already taking her second sip.

"Oh, trust...we know. And THAT'S why he ain't allowed over here. I got zero sleep last semester because of the two of you." Alesha chortles, making Jade furrow her brow.

"So what, you and Jimin having loud angry sex is supposed to be payback or something?" she asks with the cup at her lips.

"Angry?" Alesha perks her brow at the word and Jade pauses mid-sip to glance over the rim of the cup with dead eyes, her expression making Alesha choke. Jade takes a long draft of the cool juice as Alesha awaited her response.

"I guess you're not aware of the way you and that boy talk when yall have sex..." Jade downs the remaining juice in her cup and walks around the island to place her cup in the sink. Alesha frowns in thought as Jade moved around her, her half-full glass slotted between her fingers.

"I don't know what you mean..." she concedes after a few seconds, watching Jade's shoulder shake as she chuckled. The sound of the running water that rinsed her cup goes silent and she turns.

"I bet. Wheres Alana? She still sleeping?" Jade moves on to change the subject casually. Though Alesha's denial and dismissive attitude towards her and Jimin's shenanigans were quite entertaining, she wasn't quite in the mood to pry today. Seeming to share a brain, both women glance towards the kitchen doorway where Alana's bedroom door existed a few feet away.

"I assume so. She was pretty messed up. I think she has a meeting with her squad later though.." Alesha states before taking a sip.

"I better not catch that ugly fucker on the streets." Jade turns to lean against the sink, crossing her arms.

"You and me both." Alesha swallows.

"How could he do that to her? He doesn't even go here but has the nerve to show up at one of our parties embarrassing her upstairs with some bitch.." Jade goes off, a scowl marring her pretty features as she cussed.

"And that hoe he was with better be glad she wasn't there when we got up there. Just wait though...I got something for that ass..."

"It ain't the hoe's fault Dez ain't worth a damn." Alesha sighs. Jade's narrowed glare softened as she moved to join her at the sink.

"True but.....Somebody needs their ass whooped for this. I'm not scared of Dez but..." Jade trails off and Alesha shrugs beside her, rinsing her cup and setting it aside.

"Girl...It wouldn't matter if you and I tag-teamed and put a WWE smackdown on that ass..or got Taehyung or Yoongi or an entire ARMY on him, Alana would still forgive him somehow. This ain't the first time he's done some shit like this, I guarantee. Won't be the last. That's why I just stay out of it...She's a big girl." Alesha exhales with a shake of her head. The sound of the running water accompanies their collective mumbles of distaste and disapproval.

Eventually, the two move on from the kitchen, taking their conversation to the shared living room. Alesha tucks her feet beneath her body as she curled up on the corner of the couch, picking up the remote to turn on the TV. Jade perches on the arm of it with her eyes fixed on the screen but not paying it much mind as Alesha channel surfed.

Yoooou like Krabby patties don't you Squidward...

Mediterranean Tacos! ARBYS, We've got the meat!

In the case of little Tre'shawn Jenkins...Demarcus, You are...NOT

800 588 2300 empiiiirreee...TODAY!

OH OH OH O'Reilyssss...O'REILLY! AUTOPARTS

"OW!"

Jade flinches at Alesha's sudden outburst and rolls her eyes as the two of them share a laugh. That girl was crazy but Jade was thankful for her. She always knew how to level out a moment when it was tense, whether she knew it was needed or not.

Her body slides over the arm of the couch so that she's plopping into the cushions. Alesha glances over at her friend casually but pauses to notice the way she wilts slowly. A forlorn expression crosses her features and she chews on the inside of her cheek habitually. Something Alesha grew to know was one of Jade's many habits when she was stressed. Though she normally carried her troubles gracefully, living with her made it easy to detect when she was under stress and it was evident that something was bothering her.

Alesha settled on a channel that was playing a random sitcom from the '90s and Jade was mindlessly watching it with mild interest as she turned to her.

"Hey.."

"Hmm?" Jade quirks a brow and looks over. Alesha narrows her eyes.

"You alright?" she asks, her tone clipped with genuine concern.

"Huh? Why?" Jade mumbles with her gaze still trained on the TV. Alesha wasn't blind to the way Jade's eyes were glossy and red, her waterline rimmed red and puffy as if they were irritated. Or she'd been crying.

"I don't know...Just asking. You look....tired."

Jade's eyes avert from the scripted banter playing out on the flat screen as she considered Alesha's words. After a beat, she lets out a resigned sigh and blinks slowly as she shrugged.

"Yea I'm good. Long night.. " she says, her tone also clipped with something letting Alesha know that she was not good. But the same way Jade abandoned the topic of Jimin, Alesha chooses to act satisfied with her half-hearted response. She looks back ahead at the TV slowly, glancing back at Jade slyly before lifting her hand to mask a little yawn.

"Whew......That's a fact.." she exhales and resumes her attention ahead, saying nothing else. Eventually, Jade stands and heads in the direction of her room without saying a word. Alesha doesn't think much of it and she continues to flip channels and laugh occasionally at what she saw as the sound of Jade's door closing is barely heard.

Just as the sound of her leaning against it as it shut her inside, her back sliding down until she's seated on her floor.

Drawing her knees into her chest as she finally lets the sob escape that had been fighting its way through her the entire walk over to her building after leaving Taehyung sleeping in his bed.

Two days later...

The scent of freshly polished maple wood and sweat accompanied the symphony of labored breathing, squeaks of sneakers worn by heavy-footed men, and the wet splash of the net filled the auxiliary basketball court.

After running a few drills, a harsh whistle blows to signal the end of practice and the slew of lanky young athletes disperse to the locker room while a few hang back to lounge in the bleachers.

Yoongi is the first to sit, plopping down with a wince. He relaxed against the gap between seat planks and pushed his headband further back to clear his face of his bangs dripping with sweat.

"Heads up!"

Instantly on alert, Yoongi lifts his head in time to see a water bottle being tossed his way. His quick reflexes snatch it mid-air just as Namjoon strides up to him with his own. The team's Center squeezes water into his mouth before collapsing on the floor near Yoongi's feet.

"Fuck...I think I broke my ass..." he groans. Yoongi nearly chokes on his sip from the bottle at Namjoons confession but he shows him little concern as he too felt as if he would crumble. 

The season hadn't officially started yet but practices were mandatory in preparation. Their coaches were taking no prisoners this year so practices were brutal.

The Bayfield Tigers shooting guard rolled his neck and shoulders with a grimace as his eyes fell shut.

A few minutes passed as he caught his breath and the rowdy sounds of his teammates faded to nothing as his mind wandered.

"I wonder how Alana is..." he says to himself.

His jaw relaxes as he recalled the look in her eyes that night and grimaces when Dez's threats echoed in his mind.

"What does she even see in that clown...." He finds himself asking within his thoughts. From what he saw, Dez wasn't ugly. If you were into that obviously hood and affiliated type. Alana wasn't like that at all. She was smart and kind. She cried when those save the children commercials came on. She was always mindful of herself and wanted whoever she was around to know she was mindful of them as well. Sure she wasn't a softy. She had a hood edge to her that let him know she wasn't to be played with but...

Yoongi's jaw tensed as that same twisty feeling in his chest stopped his racing thoughts in their tracks. What was this feeling anyway? He felt it the moment he saw her last night. That light and fluttery sensation that he hadn't felt since he was a teen.

"Seriously Yoongi? " he thinks.

Alana wasn't into him. Maybe Yoongi made her nervous sometimes. He was used to having that effect on those who didn't know him well. But that didn't mean she was interested in him. She couldn't be. Not when guys like Dez seem to be her type.

Tattoos. Muscles.....Not to mention... the history.

He sighs.

"......a pussy who can barely eat pussy...hmmph"

Yoongi grunts in amusement at the memory of their conversation before lifting his head at the sound of approaching feet. Taehyung saunters over, tossing a ball between his fingertips with a curious smirk.

"What's funny?" he asks and Namjoon hums incoherently from the glossed floor. Yoongi shrugs.

"Oh, Nothing....."  Yoongi lifts his chin.

Taehyung tosses his head back to clear his forehead of his dampened bangs as he lowered himself to squat, perching on the basketball. He groaned briefly as the basketball rolled forward, forcing his butt to plop against the court. He leans back to rest on his hands with the ball lodged between his knees.

"Nothing? Hmm...Looks like you're plotting to me..."

Yoongi regards Taehyung with little reaction.

"Plotting...who's plotting?"  Namjoon mumbles with his eyes closed and Taehyung cuts him a look.

"Oh, yeah...You missed it. Yoongi's hands almost came out of retirement last night" Taehyung grins at Yoongi. "Namjoon lifts his head at Taehyungs eager tone then looks over at Yoongi, whose shaking his head and chuckling.

"Retirement. That's funny.."

"Who?" Namjoon asks and Yoongi shrugs.

"Just some punk Alana knows...Nobody is worth the sweat. You should have seen his face when Jin and his boys stepped outside."

" Jin? He was about to fight? Now I'm mad I wasn't there.." Namjoon lifts his head. Taehyung nods.

"I'm telling you, man. You need to stop being a hermit and come outside every now and then. Shit was lit..." he says towards Namjoon, who makes an unimpressed face before shrugging. He lays his head back and resumes resting.

"You know those parties arent my scene..." he shrugs again. Yoongi nods in agreement.

"Understandably so...Last night was a lot. I think I've met my 'outside' quota for this semester. I just like to drink and vibe out in peace...Not all of that other extra shit." Yoongi prattles off with a lounging Namjoon nodding at every word. Taehyung listens on with a judgy pout.

"My sentiments exactly." Namjoon points over his head, earning an eye roll from the youngest.

"Yeah yeah well...Speaking of outside though..." Taehyung waves his hand towards an unsuspecting Namjoon. Yoongi looks up as Taehyung scoots closer, the ball following.

"You guys hear about that party downtown? Where students get in half off..."

Neither respond to his question, both only sharing a sardonic snicker at his expense. He frowns.

"What?"

"You didn't get enough last night? " Namjoon asks with a slight groan, bending himself forward to sit up against the bleachers.

"That was a pregame. Frats host parties like that all the time. Same people, same face..same old shit... I'm talking about a real party...off-campus. There's supposed to be one next Saturday over at Cages.."

This would be the moment in the movies where the record scratched to a silencing halt and all eyes shoot in Taehyungs direction, widened in aghast.

" Cages???" both Namjoon and Yoongi say in unison, their expressions making Taehyung frown.

"....Yeah," he responds hesitantly, his tone making Yoongi shake his head. He leans back to tuck his hands behind his head, peering in Taehyungs direction through his hair.

"Hell no...That place is bad news..." Namjoon says after a beat. Taehyung looks him up and down humorously and scoffs.

"You would say that, big scary ass...I expect that type of response from someone whose social meter peaks at 3." he sneers and Namjoon mouths 'fuck you' with an exaggerated smile.

"Hey, didn't someone get shot there last weekend? And the weekend before that.." Yoongi asks,

"And a month before that.." Namjoon adds.

"Wow...I didn't know my friends were such pussies. Shit ain't that bad...I heard they doubled up on security since then. It'll be fine." Taehyung shrugs, his ignorance, and nonchalance making the two exchange a look.

"Yea ok. So say we do go...It'll be all of us. The girls? Jade.."

At the sound of her name, something in Taehyung shifts. He glances around anxiously, almost as if he were worried she'd hear their conversation.

" Um...no. I didn't say anything about taking Jade.....Cage isn't her kind of scene.." he chuckles nervously. Yoongi narrows his gaze.

"And it's yours?" Namjoon quirks a brow, picking up on Taehyungs suddenly agitated demeanor. His eyes dart between the two of them for a few seconds while they stared at him with suspecting eyes. Eventually, he lets out an impatient breath.

"I'm just looking into something new. The shit around here is getting old and I figured it would be cool to get out one last time with my boys before the books got too heavy...Ya know..like old times."

His hurried response was translucent and both Yoongi and Namjoon knew what was up. Taehyung always did this when he felt things in his life were going in a direction that was too mature for him. He was a few semesters away from graduating. He was almost a year into the first serious-ish relationship he's had since...well...never. He was one of the best players on his team and temptations of going pro loomed over him constantly when scouts came to his games. But his family would never back him from taking such a leap though. They barely approved of him majoring in mass media and communication but they figured that yielded more profit than his lifelong hoop dreams.

He was here to get a degree.

Basketball was just the engine pushing him towards it.

At least while he was here, he would get his kicks where he can.

And he most definitely did.

Dubbing him the king of self-sabotage.

Taehyung awaited their response patiently, his hopeful eyes still dancing between the two. Because of course, he needed accomplices to drag into his foolishness. Otherwise, it wouldn't be as fun. Namjoon cuts Yoongi another look, their wordless mode of communicating their collective response and smirks.

"Yeaaaaaaaa no.....I'll pass. Not that it should come as a surprise but...no can do on the Cage thing." Namjoon stands slowly. Taehyung follows his movement with annoyance clear in his features.

"Typical Namjoon..Don't worry I didn't expect you to pass up on reading to your bonsai and trimming your ficus..." Taehyung mumbles bitterly, his snide comment breaking Yoongi's silence and making him cough out suddenly with laughter. Namjoon, the third-year botany minor, didn't find the remark amusing. The sound of Yoongi cough/laughing and Taehyung snickering fills their quiet corner of the empty basket court and Namjoon wanted nothing more than to mush Taehyung in the forehead.

"For your information, Penelope is a monstera, not a ficus." He pouts.

"Hey, how long have you had that thing anyway? 4 years?" Yoongi asks suddenly.

"6 actually...they can live much longer if you know what you're do.." Namjoon begins

"Who cares?" Taehyung interrupts, catching Namjoon by surprise.

"Yoongi, please don't get him started on those damn plants. You and your Lil shop of horrors are pathetic, Ok? I'm gonna start calling you Seymore.." Taehyung teases and Yoongi's laughter kicks back up, forcing him to lean up from the bleachers. The corners of Namjoons mouth continue to curl downward as the seconds pass and he suddenly remembers why he preferred the company of his plants over humans.

"Alright, I'm gone. I'll fuck with yall later...." he says, turning to slap hands with Yoongi, who was still recovering from his laughter. When he turns to see Taehyung fluttering his eyes up at him innocently, he sulks and moves to cross the court towards the locker rooms, mushing Taehyung's head along the way.

"Later..." he snickers, swatting at Namjoons backside as he passed and earning an amused shake of the head from his remaining cohort. Taehyung watches Namjoon disappear through the double doors completely before turning to Yoongi.

"So what about it? You down?" he asks. Yoongi was rising to his feet as well and was stepping down from the bleachers.

"Eh.....I don't know...." he grimaces. Parties were things Yoongi had to mentally prepare himself for and though on-campus functions had the potential to get out of hand, he could tolerate them. At least they were near where he laid his head.

Clubs like Cages were a different story.

"Just think about it. It's not that deep...It's just something to do if you're free." Taehyung says casually, hiding the hint of disappointment in his tone horribly. Yoongi rolls his eyes. He walks painfully towards the locker rooms.

"Stop pouting. I'll get back to you. Get up. Let's hit the showers then the caf. Fucking hungry...." he grumbles over his shoulder.

"Yeah sure...Think about it..."Taehyung smirks after him, watching Yoongi limp away tiredly. He does his best to contain his amusement as he followed to stand, shifting to grasp the basketball between his legs and toss it up in the air playfully as he to hopped to his feet.