Stronger || NCT mafia au

Chapter 18 | "a pretty great team"

The five boys begin training, moving through different skills as Jihyun critiques and corrects them. After two hours of training, Jihyun tells them to take a quick break.

Jaemin's notes were correct, Renjun has impeccable shooting skills, and Chenle can be shockingly quiet. She noticed that Jisung tends to hold back a bit when it comes to fighting, in stark contrast to Jeno who is incredibly strong and skilled.

"Well that was a lot today guys, but I hope you learned something." They all smiled, wiping the sweat from their forehead and nodding enthusiastically.

"How about we end with something fun? How about a 2 vs. 4 sparring match?" She suggests, a slight challenge in her eyes. The boys exchange excited glances before turning to her.

"You're on" the six of them walked over to the center combat arena, quickly hopping in.

"So, who's on my team?" Jihyun asks, scanning over the boys. Jaemin quickly steps over, putting an arm around her.

"Obviously your best friend" he winks at her.

"But that's not fair." Chenle wines out, "you two have been practicing together for god knows how long, you know how to work together better." Jihyun nods her head at what Chenle said, agreeing with him.

"I'll fight with Jihyun" Jeno raises his hand, flashing his signature eye smile, "only if that's ok with you, of course."

"I'd love to fight beside you" she says as Jeno steps forward, pushing Jaemin back to the other boys with a dejected look in his face. "Alright, take your positions, and lets go!"

Jihyun and Jeno step to one side of the mat, sharing a determined nod at one another before facing the boys on the other side. On Jihyun's signal, they begin their fight.

Slowly they circle around each other, neither group wanting to make the first move. Jihyun notices Chenle slightly nod to Jisung before the two of them lunge. Jeno shrugs off Jisung, pushing him to the ground while Jihyun ducks under Chenle, sending him tripping over to the other end of the mat.

Taking the opportunity, Renjun and Jaemin attack next, the former going after Jeno while the latter takes on Jihyun. After landing a hit here and there, the match is back at a stand still. Jeno and Jihyun go back to back as the other four circle around them.

Jihyun discreetly reaches her arm back, carefully tapping on Jeno's back in a countdown. After she reaches her third tap, the pair springs apart, Jihyun running towards Chenle and Renjun, and Jeno attacking Jaemin and Jisung.

Jihyun swings at Chenle, catching him in his side snd knocking him to the ground while quickly dodging an attack from Renjun. She stands, grabbing Renjun's outstretched arm and flipping him onto his back. Shoving Chenle away with her feet, she pins Renjun to the ground, a triumphant smile on her face as he slides off the platform in defeat.

She quickly turns to see that Jeno was about to pin Jisung, Jaemin having just been knocked over. She turns back to Chenle, who's already running at her, both of them getting knocked to the ground. He tries to pin her but she throws him off, hearing a shout of triumph from Jeno.

The two make brief eye contact, going back to back again as Jaemin and Chenle continue to circle them. The boys attack again, Jihyun and Jeno staying back to back as they fight, each one ducking and swinging in perfect rhythm with one another. Neither Jaemin nor Chenle can seem to land a solid hit with the pair in the center working together to protect one another.

Jihyun sees an opportunity when Chenle tries to get Jaemin's attention for a coordinated attack, she quickly runs at him, putting him in a headlock before throwing him to the ground. She looks up and sees that Jaemin and Jeno are fighting again, Jaemin knocks Jeno to the ground when her focus goes back to Chenle, starting to get up.

She hears a thud behind her, hoping it's not Jeno, as she grabs Chenle's hand, twisting it behind his back and pinning him to the ground. He groans as he starts to slide off the mat.

Jihyun begins to turn to check on Jeno when a body slams into her. Caught off guard, Jaemin smirks as he stares down at her, his hands gripping her wrists and pinning them above her head. She tries to move but Jaemin has the advantage. She's about to yield when suddenly his weight is thrown off of her body.

Jeno picking him up and slamming  him back down into the mat. Jihyun stands up and meets eyes with Jeno, a triumphant smile on his face.

"Hell yeah, take that boys!" She exclaims.

"That's right, we did it!" Jeno smiles, running over to Jihyun and picking her up, spinning her around in a hug before placing her on the mat, the two of them happily laughing.

"We make a pretty great team, you know." He says to her, smiling.

"I guess we do" she says back, holding her hand out for a high five as the pair continue to laugh together.

Soon the other boys run up to them, congratulating them and commenting on their teamwork as Jaemin, still sitting on the mat panting, watches with an angry expression. Jihyun's laugh snaps him out of his trance as he quickly stands.

"Great job today guys, that was a lot of fun. Same time tomorrow?" She says with a smile. The four boys look at each other with excited smiles on their faces.

"I thought you said that this was only for one day" Jaemin speaks up, clearing his throat, his tone a bit more sharp than he intended.

"I mean yeah, originally, but I like you guys. I think we can be great friends." She says, looking fondly at the boys around her.

"So is that an invitation to come back? And keep training with you?" Jeno says excitedly.

"Of course it is" She says, looking at each of them with a warm gaze as they widen their eyes in excitement. "Let's go pack up, it's time for me to head home and for you guys to go get some rest."

The four boys slide off the mat, Jihyun going to follow them. She stops before she leaves, turning around to look at Jaemin, beckoning him to go with her. He forces a smile on his face, walking up to her.

"Hey, you're ok with your friends joining us right?" She asks him. He's tempted to say no, even though he was the one who suggested it, but he can't deny the hope in her eyes.

"Yeah of course, it's fun. And we can all be friends." He says, trying to hide his frustration. Jihyun still picks up on it though, letting out a small sigh before hugging him. He's shocked for a second but quickly wraps his arms around her, resting his chin on her head.

"You know you'll always be my #1 right? After all, I could never replace my first friend." She says into his chest. He relaxes at her words, hugging her tighter and nodding his head.

"I know Hyunnie, thank you." He looks at her, a genuine smile on his face before they pull away and hop off the mat. The 6 of them pack up and walk out of the training center together, Jisung's eyes widening in realization.

"Wait a minute, we're all friends with THE Jang Jihyun! How cool is that!"

———
And here we goooo. All the dreamies are here now, who's she gonna end up with later👀
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