Until We Drown : Vhope

【パート13】

Since the Syloe attack, Jimin lays low from night duties till he can mentally recover from the trauma.

He files in a few off-days for the excuse that he was busy training for upcoming examinations and would be back no later than a few days.

His thigh had healed up without a single trace that he’d ever been attacked, maybe left behind a
small, unnoticeable patch of discolored skin like the birthmark at the back of his knee, shaped like
a pair of wings getting ready for takeoff. He mentally thanks Yoongi for saving his life each time his mind replays that night like a broken record.

His squad members had wondered worriedly about him when he didn’t report back to their usual check point once sunrise came. They called out the other squad members for a search party not knowing Jimin had already scanned in with his Identity at four a.m. A member from Namjoon’s
squad had spoken up before the group headed out in search of him, saying something about seeing
Jimin dragging himself through the doors early that morning with a forced smile and sweat running down his face.

They canceled the search team before stepping outside of headquarters
during the daytime disguised as ordinary civilians.

Jimin hadn’t told anyone about the incident. He didn’t find it necessary if he was okay, besides the slight trauma the attack left behind where he found himself waking up randomly throughout the night with the image of sharp teeth ripping his neck open like a perfectly ripe watermelon in
summer.
He’d shoot up in bed panting with his hand reaching for his neck to check that it was still intact, sighing in relief at the realization that it was just a bad dream. It’s usually the image of
Yoongi’s lips that calms him on most nights.

Ever since the day Jimin joined Divenire, he had vowed to keep all his personal troubles to himself. It’d proved to be helpful through his training days when he’d aspired to be one of the best, and he’d become one of the top members of his group in no time, even earning acknowledgment from the Authority as one of the best in defense and observation.

The acknowledgment got him a few shifts that Authority normally wouldn’t hand out to the trainees,
one being guard duties for the Syloe held captive in the East wing. His skills were the reason the Authority had trusted him with the case.

But a lot of the time, he found it hard keeping everything to himself, like a pile of books just waiting to fall or a balloon waiting to burst. And sometimes, he wanted to spill all his thoughts to Hoseok just for the hell of it. It’d be nice to share the weight on his shoulders and not have to deal
with it all on his own, but he figured Hoseok had enough on his shoulders to deal with his, too.

And when his mind pushed him into sad thoughts about family and achievements, he forces himself to picture the outline of Yoongi’s eyes looking into his, warm despite his cold exterior.

Because sometimes, the last thing he could think to comfort him during times of hardship, comforted him most.

Hoseok looks down at his hands and notices his skin starting to pale, his hands trembling slightly as he holds them up to examine.

A small flight of stairs easily had him short of breath, and standing up too quickly made him dizzy all too quickly. Sometimes he feels dangerously close to fainting during combat practice, and he knows Seokjin can tell by his slow movements and weak hits.

Hoseok was known as a direct fighter, not a defender, and the way he spent most of sparring blocking Seokjin’s attacks rather than advancing on him was a dead giveaway that his body
couldn’t keep up with him. Hoseok brushes it off as a fever whenever Seokjin asks, but he lets him sit out for the rest of practice anyway, and Hoseok is glad Seokjin doesn’t question it any further.