Faltering Steps • J-Hope

xvi.

Namjoon, Jin, and Yoongi got back to the dorm at a late hour. They walked in to find Tae stretched out lengthwise on the couch, sleeping. Jungkook was curled up on the opposite end, also sleeping.

Hobi, meanwhile, was sitting his his back against the couch, holding a game controller in his hand and staring intensely at the TV.

Jin, who had been silent for most of the walk, frowned and upgraded into Mom Mode. "Hoseok! You know what our policy is on those violent video games!"

"Our policy, he says," Hobi muttered, still playing without looking away from the screen as he shot another player. A badge appeared at the top of the screen with the words Headshot and Double Kill.

"Woah, nice," Namjoon said, leaning over the couch to watch him. "What gun are you using?"

"Man of War with a recon scope with rapid fire, stock, and fast mags," Hobi said, completely focused on the game.

"NAMJOON! WE DO NOT CONDONE THIS-"

"What's your secondary?" Namjoon asked calmly.

"I used a wild card to get a second primary for my secondary, so the 48 Dredge. I can't remember what optics I put on it," Hobi mumbled, knifing a player to get more points for melee.

"Hoseok! Namjoon! I told you guys not to play Call of Duty Black Ops 2 anymore!"

"It's Call of Duty Black Ops 3," Hobi correctly automatically. "And it's okay as long as I'm winning, right?"

"No! Look at the graphics on this game! It's terrible! And the language! Turn it off! I thought I hid the disk!"

Hobi reluctantly shut off the game and pouted, staring at the ground. "Jin just wants to play Mario," he mumbled.

Jin put his hands on his hips. "Why all the attitude, Hoseok?" He pursed his lips. "Hobi."

Hobi frowned, crossing his arms. "I don't know, my leg was hurting a little so I couldn't get to sleep. Tae and Jungkook were supposed to stay up and play with me but-" He paused to turn around and stare at the two sleeping boys. "Yeah, they're useless."

As soon as Hobi mentioned his leg, Jin turned soft. "Oh, Hobi, I'm sorry about that. Does it still hurt?"

"Not really..."

"Do you need help getting into your room?"

Hobi frowned and shook his head. "No."

Jin sighed and looked up at Namjoon. "Can you help me carry them into their rooms?"

Namjoon nodded, but Hobi interrupted. "I can take Tae. I mean, we're going to the same place."

Jin bit his lip. "But, I'd feel better if Namjoon carried him..."

"I can do it!" Hobi insisted, and Jin finally agreed (with much reluctance). Hobi proceeded to pick Tae up and slowly carry him to their shared room with Jimin.

Meanwhile, Namjoon carried Jungkook to his room. Then he returned to the couch, where Jin and Yoongi were seated.

"Do we let the kid apologize?" Namjoon asked, clearly tired as he looked to Jin.

"Does his apology help anything?" Jin asked, looking instead to Yoongi. "I mean, it doesn't change Hobi's condition. And does Hobi even want to meet the person who single-handedly ruined his life?"

"Driving requires two hands, hyung," Yoongi said flatly.

"Shut up, brat. You know what I mean."

Yoongi sighed and leaned back against the cushions. "I don't know. I just get the feeling that Hobi's trying to ignore the whole thing as best as he can and pretend that it never happened and that everything is perfectly normal. Only, it did happen, and it's all turned to shit. It isn't normal for Hobi not to practice with us because he's honestly the best dancer out of all of us."

"But an apology isn't a one-sided thing," Namjoon said quietly. "Like, if I steal Jin's food, I apologize for his benefit, but for mine too, you know? Because I want to be forgiven."

Jin frowned and tilted his head. "And you're saying we should give Sehun that chance? To absolve himself?"

"I'm just saying that he looked like shit and it's obviously been eating him up inside and yeah, maybe his apology won't do Hobi any good, but maybe it'll give the poor kid a bit of peace so he doesn't have to feel guilty every second of every day."

"Maybe he should feel guilty every second of every day," Yoongi muttered. He was still sour about the whole thing.

Jin patted Yoongi lightly on the head. "Relax." He turned to Namjoon. "Maybe we should just talk to Hobi and ask him what he wants. That way, if he's not ready, he can say no. But if he wants to hear the kid out, he can."

"But then Hobi will know we went behind his back on all of this," Namjoon said, and Jin cringed.

"You're right...but we didn't really have a choice, right? Family protects family."

Yoongi leaned forward, putting his elbows on his knees. "Look. Like I said, Hobi is trying to ignore what happened. And I get that. It's a coping mechanism or whatever. But I don't think it's really healthy for him. I think he is refusing to accept what happened, and maybe having this kid apologize will make him face it. That said, once that happens, Hobi is going to be totally wrecked. We need to be there to pick him back up. We need to find something that he can do so he doesn't have to focus on what he can't." Yoongi stood up, stretching. "Aaaaand that's all for me. I'm tired and I'm going to bed."

Jin and Namjoon nodded as he left. Then Jin turned to Namjoon.

"I think he's right. About all of it. But what is going to replace dancing for Hobi? We have to think about this. There's got to be something. Or maybe there are certain dances he can do. I don't know."

Namjoon just sighed and nodded. "I know. I'll try to think about it tonight. Meanwhile, though...how are we going to contact Sehun? And when should he meet up with Hobi? How is it all supposed to go down? Should the whole fam be there?" Namjoon rubbed his eyes with his hands. "This whole thing is stressing me out."

Jin just nodded. "I know. It's hard being the leader. Just take a deep breath and know that you're doing better than anyone else could. Now go to sleep and find all the answers."

Namjoon nodded and left with a small smile.

Then Jin sighed and went to his room. He just wanted everyone to be happy.

That could happen again, right?

Right?

i guess there will be a q&a at the very end so start thinking of questions now