The words caused a whirlpool of fury to rise within Jimin. Hoseok was right, instead of harboring empathy for mentioning his break-up, he was being made fun of. Is he always this blunt?

"Can you train me, please?" Jimin sliced the thick air with his direct request.

"I can..." Jungkook noted, moving around to get back to his chair again. "But I won't."

This made the bronde inhale a long shuddering breath, holding it in and closing his eyes while his phalanges turned shut.

"Let's go, Jimin-ah."

Hoseok's voice made Jimin open his eyes again. Many thoughts were suspended in the air, all he had to do was pick one after wrapping it in words and throw it at the rowdy man in front of him, already feeling the sting of the tears that he fought back. But he decided to listen to his friend and nodded, letting Hoseok stand guard in front of him.

They were walking back when Jimin's brows drew together and he heard the haughty man's voice. "Mr. Jung, congratulations on your wedding."

Hoseok turned back to spot Jungkook standing by his chair. Before he could form words, Jimin decided to saunter back to face the pretentious coach. "You knew about Hoseok Hyung's wedding?"

"He did invite me. Was I supposed to not know?" Jungkook deadpanned slowly, looking between Hoseok and Jimin who stood way too close to him for his comfort.

Jimin scoffed, taking a glance at Hoseok who wanted nothing more than to get out of there. "So you knew that Hoseok Hyung got married yesterday, and if you knew it, now you can see with those round, owl eyes of yours that he is here in front of you, 400 miles away from home, with me, leaving his newly wedded wife back at home." Jimin punctuated, wanting to drill the words in Jungkook's supposedly dense mind.

An understanding passed over Jungkook's face as he looked down a bit, gnawing at his lower lips with a mix of fascination and respect on his face. "As you so graciously mentioned, Mr. Park. My owl eyes can perfectly see you here with Hoseok."

"Don't you think that the reason why Hoseok Hyung isn't with his wife could be something alarming?" Jimin asked fiercely, wanting to step closer and corner the man to punch him senselessly.

"Let me guess," Jungkook's face now wiggled into a faux relief as he stepped away from Jimin. "He is babysitting you because you...threatened to harm yourself, which I am assuming you did before too?" The gaze that padded to Jimin now was marred with judgment and the words were so careless as though Jungkook didn't care if someone died, as if it was coffee talk between two strangers.

Jimin couldn't understand how could one be so supercilious to not care about people other than himself, and so he charged at the man, causing the taller's eyes to go wide in surprise as he stepped away to guard himself against the scathing attack. Hoseok was petrified for a moment before his reflex kicked back into his body and he ran to hold Jimin back. In a normal scenario, Jimin would never opt for violence, but in a scenario when he was dumped after ten years of being in a relationship and a stranger had nothing but disdain for him, rightfully begged more for the occasion. So when Jungkook stepped out of the way, his empty and forceful punch lurched him ahead, tangling his feet into a heavy dumbbell bar placed behind the chair.

A shriek left Jimin as his feet kicked onto the hundreds of kilos weight and he dropped onto the carpeted floor, holding his leg while Jungkook only gulped and realized that there had been an accident in his center after going two years without any injury to any client. Not only it would bring a certain backlash to Mikrokosmos, but also to him.

"Mr. Park, are you alright?" Jungkook knelt in front of the man who was in tears as Hoseok tried to hold his leg down.

"Can I please see?" Jungkook cautiously stepped closer, waiting for verbal consent from the man to touch him, but knowing how Jimin was whimpering in pain, he knew it wouldn't come.

Hoseok nodded discreetly at Jungkook to let the man take off Jimin's shoe and then his sock to see that the foot was swelling at an impossible speed. At this moment, terror was scribbled all over Jungkook's face.

"Jimin-ah," Hoseok scrambled through, "Can you get up? Can you walk?" The plan of getting back home was long forgotten.

"Get me out of here, Hoseok Hyung. I don't want to see this man's fucking ugly face!" Jimin intoned, not feeling the said man's hand on his foot as it started growing hot and numb.

***

Looking around with a groan and a fuzzy mind, Jimin found only white walls around and a bed under his back, realizing it was a hospital setting. "Hyung," his voice came out thick, and then clearing his throat, he called again. "Hoseok Hyung!"

Jungkook zoomed in into Jimin's view, only, he was not wearing what the bronde remembered him in, a grey and black matching tracksuit from earlier, but an olive shirt and black trousers. A scowl immediately decorated Jimin's face which was completely swollen and red. "Take it easy, will you? You have broken two metatarsals."

"Fuck it!" Anger surpassed Jimin as he perched his body on his knees to spot his leg placed securely under the bandages, hung slightly above the bed, hinged securely in the suspended medical ceiling.

"You can't overlook broken bones, Mr. Park. Trust me, I've tried," Jungkook grimaced at the stupidity of the man who was willing to do more damage to himself.

"It's all because of you!" Jimin spluttered out yelling and Jungkook rolled his eyes. "Had you simply been a little nicer, I wouldn't need to-"

"Punch me?"

Jimin shudderingly inhaled, eyes wavering as he still struggled to get out of the bounds. "W-where is Hoseok Hyung?" He asked, tearing away his gaze from the man who stood unbothered. The fact that Jungkook was watching him in this situation made the bronde feel mortified and regretful of his own actions.

"His wife called, he is on the phone," Jungkook replied with the same scowl, scrutinizing the man with his keen and focused stare.

Jimin slumped back with a defeated groan. "I can't feel my leg!" He groaned and the agitation on his face and tears of his irritation talked to Jungkook. He wasn't a stranger to the pain and the feeling of feebleness and being defenseless after his accident that had left him with a broken left arm and ribs, being told that he could never lift weights in his life again, which meant more to him than anything. A scar on his face was a constant reminder of how he had fought through it.

The scowl softened into a pang of pitiful guilt as he leaned down, fluffing the pillow under Jimin's head. "If you could just relax," he began in a softer tone. "You will heal in no time. Don't make this harder on you than it already is."

"Jimin?" Hoseok walked into the room while tucking his phone into the suit's pocket. "Are you up? How are you feeling?" Jungkook stepped away quickly so the bronde's friend could check up on him. He watched the two with curious eyes. He couldn't imagine any of his friends doing something like this for him what Hoseok was doing for Jimin, especially when he got married just last night.

"I am so sorry, Hyung. I am so sorry I dragged you into this," Jimin's heartbroken sobbing caused Hoseok to chuckle at the younger.

"It's okay, Jimin-ah, stop worrying about me when you are the one on the hospital bed."

"You should leave, I will be okay here. What did the doctors say? When can I go home?" Jimin began to summarize the whole situation in his head.

"Calm down first," Hoseok shut Jimin's mouth with his palm so the younger was now muffling out voices like a pigeon and moving his hands and rotating his eyeballs.

"Jimin-ah," Hoseok chuckled again. "I will leave, I have to, I am sorry, but stop freaking out."

The hunkered body and pleading face of Hoseok made Jimin want to hug him and tell him that leaving would be the right thing to do for which he didn't have to feel apologetic. He was in this situation for his own stupidity. Only if he kept his childish impulses in check. "I will be fine, please go."

"I called Tae, he is on his way," Hoseok slurred absentmindedly. "I will send essentials for you and you will be home before you know it."

"He won't be home before he knows it," Jungkook interjected from behind. "It will take his bones three to four weeks to mend."

Jimin shot a glare at Jungkook while the older only looked at his former coach. "Can I please have a moment with Jimin alone?"

Jungkook nodded expectantly, moving away towards the door to give privacy to the two friends. "What is he doing here?" The bronde asked through his gritted teeth as Jungkook barely managed to get past the door and heard it.

Hoseok made sure to gait towards the door and lock it before returning to Jimin. "I didn't want you to come here because there is no magic formula to gain confidence, Jimin-ah. They broke me, and humiliated me so much during my time here as a part of their constructive criticism that the only way I knew was up. It took in me everything every day for the one year I was here to not do what you did today."

"What do you mean?" Jimin felt scared and confused. "What did they do?"

"I was insecure about my looks so they made sure they did everything to critique it further, said anything worst possible until I grew immune to those insults. The things didn't simply affect me when I returned home because I have been through literal hell here. There was nothing that could surpass this." Hoseok coaxed, wanting his friend now to know why he didn't want him to come here or why he didn't tell him anything discreetly about this place all those years.

"That fucking toad face! I will kill him, Hoseok Hyung," Jimin aggravated, vexed at the words as he thought about what the older had gone through to make it through all of it. There was no wonder why was he silent all the while they were in office.

Hoseok tutted, sitting beside the bronde. "Jimin-ah, it only worked for the best."

"How could you say that, Hyung? What they are doing here is inhuman and I am sure illegal too. We can't let them do this to innocent people."

"That's the thing, Minie. Nothing's illegal. We do sign the consent form and weaponize them to use it against us. All his clients now are the celebrities who soared to success too soon and fell flat sooner. They have seen the worst and all they deal with is depression and a burning will to kill themselves. This seems like the last straw to them. We can't do anything against Jungkook. But what we can do is get the hell out of here."

"I am so stupid, I shouldn't have even tried. He isn't worthwhile, Hyung. I feel terrible." Jimin found vetting himself.

"You know," Hoseok suddenly sighed. "He wasn't as bad with you, if you ask me," With an undertone of gloating in his voice, the older stepped away from the bed.

"That's wasn't as bad?" Jimin raised his brows.

"Trust me, I have seen him in action. He feels responsible and he has some sympathy for your...situation." Hoseok worded carefully. "Otherwise he wouldn't be here in the hospital for five long hours."

12 Mar, 2022