ᴛʜᴇ ᴄʟᴇᴀʀ ᴇɴᴇᴍʏ || ᴊ.ᴡʏ + ᴄ.ꜱ

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟑𝟑

"I better see you outside completing your morning laps in two minutes tops, understood?" Lieutenant Jeon warned after pausing in the doorway to San and his team's bunker. His gaze remained locked straight ahead without a single look in their direction. "And lose the shirts," he ordered further before continuing past in the brisk fashion that he was known for, somewhat of a poster child for it in the military community.

The routine morning laps he referred to were no joke.

Their new title "Soldier" came with a heavy load and not only forced the new recruits to up their game more than they already had but made their previous training look like a cakewalk.

San knew enough from his brother that the no shirts weren't in the least for their comfort, but simply because the military officials preferred that the uniforms not get drenched in sweat spots, obsessed with their soldiers having a clean-cut image; and the level of work they were made to do would no doubt have every one of them sweating buckets in no time.

Before Lieutenant Jeon was even a step out of view, San and the rest of his team, along with the few other recruits also assigned to that bunker, sprang into action and shirts went flying. Whatever instruction came out of the lead lieutenant's mouth, not a single one of them thought twice before complying.

He had dominating energy, completely different from Taehyung's. He didn't have to prove he was the alpha with action or words. The aura he gave off was enough to assure them that he wouldn't allow anything less than what was asked, but he held the same standards for himself, very serious in regard to the work being done in his jurisdiction.

They were basically all his dogs, and he was an expert at training them, which is why, just like he'd instructed, no more than five minutes later there the boys were, gathered out in the early morning sun, not a shirt in sight, meeting at their usual spot—an asphalt road that ran entirely through the military base. 

They made their lines and began the dreaded three-mile run they were forced to partake in every single morning at 6:30 a.m. sharp. Lieutenant Jeon and Lee trailed closely behind them, both also shirtless and pushing them repeatedly to get a move on.

"Pick up the pace! Better not let me pass you!" Lieutenant Jeon shouted as he edged closer, all of them crying out a uniform "yes, sir" and giving their all to prevent him from getting anywhere close to them, fearful of the repercussions, any thought about pacing themselves long gone.

San's muscles were already aching after the first mile, and, about halfway through the second, he could feel himself start stumbling as sweat coated every inch of his body, salty drops dripping into and briefly stinging his eyes, the sweat pooling a great deal more in worse areas, resulting in his shorts hugging against his thighs uncomfortably. He could smell the stench radiating off his body along with the several other sweaty boys surrounding him since they were jogging so closely together in a column formation.

He thought back to the countless times his mom had complained about his and Kai's laundry smelling like shit and figured she'd consider this hell. She wouldn't survive even a second in this mustiness.

Behind him, San heard Lieutenant Lee yell out orders for them to take a short breather and he almost wished he could just keep going since, as soon as he stopped, his breaths began coming out so hard that it hurt, the sweat seeming to drip faster now that he was standing still.

He looked around him at everyone's shining chests pumping up and down with every breath they took, their red faces similar to a stick of dynamite, looking ready to burst into a giant puddle of sweat. He imagined he looked about the same, possibly worse, since some of the others were in better shape than he was.