Hoseok made good on his promise the next day to take Taehyung to the park. Jimin, despite his crutch, tagged along too. The two dog hybrids had spent an uneventful day together; Taehyung had found Jimin sitting awkwardly on the sofa all by himself when he’d emerged from reading in his bedroom for a glass of water, so he decided to join his friend in the living room. The younger had been in the middle of an interesting chapter, so he simply continued reading aloud so Jimin could enjoy as well. Despite the fact that Jimin was unfamiliar with the previous events of the story, he instantly became entranced by Taehyung’s voice.

He closed his eyes and pictured the events of the novel playing out like a movie behind his eyelids. He even imagined himself as the story’s protagonist once or twice; even though it was all fiction, it was almost empowering imagining the ease with which the character engaged with others as if it were him effortlessly socializing and solving problems. They didn’t reach the end of the book by the time Hoseok came home from work, and Jimin was silent the entire walk to the park, his mind far too busy creating different ending scenarios in his head.

Hoseok wasn’t concerned with his silence, though. He kept his smile soft and his pace matching Jimin’s slow, careful hobble even with Taehyung occasionally skipping ahead on the sidewalk. The human held one of Taehyung’s tennis balls in his hand and had Jimin’s own ball tucked safely into his jacket pocket. He may not be able to play fetch just yet, but Jimin wanted to bring his new toy along anyway.

There was no fresh snow on the ground, only small clumps- remnants of snowy days past. Still, it made the sidewalks slippery and Hoseok was all too willing to keep such a sluggish walking pace for the hybrid’s safety. Besides, he very much enjoyed watching Taehyung’s tail perk up at any change in the environment around them as he led the pack.

Perhaps it was a bit bizarre how close the pair were to anyone outside of their group of friends and housemates, but Taehyung’s easy happiness always brought so much joy to Hoseok. Even with what his best friend has just been through these past few days, he’s still able to serve as a pillar of support for those around him simply by keeping his positive and caring attitude. He hadn’t been lying in the slightest when he said Taehyung was the most selfless person he knew. He really lucked out when his parents took Taehyung in all those years ago.

“Um-“ Jimin’s quiet utterance startled Hoseok out of his trance. “Excuse me?”

“Yes, Minnie?” the human quipped back.

“Can we, uh, sit down when we get to the park?” the young hybrid asked, Hoseok only just then noticing the little beads of sweat dampening Jimin’s bangs that peeked out from underneath his hat and the slightly shaky exhales. The human was startled; how hadn’t he noticed how tired the boy was? Only just getting back into proper health and now having to struggle this trek with his crutch must have been so difficult and Hoseok somehow forgets Jimin’s situation sometimes with how comfortable the older is in his presence.

“Of course, Jimin,” Hoseok assures, already looking to see if there are any benches around them. They had almost arrived at the park anyway, but he’d be willing to take a break if Jimin needed it. “I’m sorry, I hadn’t even noticed. You must be so tired- do you want me to carry you the rest of the way?” he continued, squatting just slightly and gesturing to his back as an invitation to climb on.

“Ah- no, that’s okay. I can make it,” Jimin assured him, cheeks red from a combination of the cold, the exertion, and now from embarrassment. And usually, any hint of embarrassment would be enough to stop Jimin in his tracks, to retreat inward and not open his mouth again until prompted. This time however, Jimin questioned it. ‘Why am I embarrassed about this?’ he thought fleetingly. He can distinctly remember times on walks much like these where Taehyung had exhausted himself running around the park, tail drooping and dragging his feet on the way home, begging Hoseok for a piggy-back ride. ‘If TaeTae isn’t embarrassed, then why should I be?’

“If you’re sure,” Hoseok trailed off, still watching the hybrid warily. He probably mistook Jimin’s silence for something else, something it wasn’t. At least not this time.

“No,” Jimin was quick to assure. “It’s just that- um, I don’t like when people know I’m tired. When they can hear me breathing heavy. I’m really good at making my breaths sound even, even when I’m really tired.” He’s not sure why he’s even still talking. This is the same trail his thoughts would have taken regardless- only this time, he’s saying them out loud. “Masters would always make us work harder if they could tell we were worn out. Builds up resistance and all. So you gotta breathe in really deep and then breathe out through your nose so they can’t hear your breath shaking. Only it happens a lot more often now,” he mused, not caring whether his rant was making sense to Hoseok. It made sense to him at least, and maybe the human can decipher it anyway, without him having to pause to collect his thoughts (the way he’s used to trying to express himself out here). “I used to only have to do it during training. Now I’m just walking, it shouldn’t be hard…”

“That’s- you know, that’s normal,” Hoseok said, turning his eyes back ahead to keep watching Taehyung. He was shocked at Jimin’s sudden openness but didn’t want to scare him quiet again, so he only chose to respond to certain parts of Jimin’s brief speech. “You’re recovering is all,” he continued. “You breathe with your lungs, and remember your lungs were sick recently, so it’s very normal that you would feel tired right now.” Even out of the corner of his eye, he could see Jimin’s ears twitching beneath his warm winter hat and had to hold back a coo at the sight.

Jimin’s only response was a hum, but Hoseok still considered it a win. Even as the two sat on opposite ends of the bench once they reached the park, Jimin didn’t speak. Hoseok took turns throwing Taehyung’s ball as far as he could and gently rolling Jimin’s back to him on the soggy wood beneath them, understanding the silence for what it was: simple comfort in one another’s company.

Jungkook slipped one side off his headphones off his ear when he heard Yoongi’s muffled voice slipping through the soundtrack of his game. “Huh?” he asked, urging the human to repeat.

“Was just asking what you’d want for dinner,” Yoongi clarified, leaning back in his swivel chair with his own headphones hanging around his neck. “Namjoon said he’ll be running late tonight from his internship,” he gestured to the phone in his hands. “Figured maybe we could cook together- what do you say?”

Jungkook hadn’t removed his eyes from the screen, entranced with the game he was currently playing on his laptop but still paying attention to his hyung speaking. “Umm, sure. What do we have?”

Yoongi smiled lazily, removing the headphones from his neck and placing them gently onto the desk in front of him. “How about we go check when you’re done with that round?”

“Are you done working?” Jungkook asked quizzically- it usually took a lot more than a text about dinner to pull Yoongi away from his work.

Yoongi sighed, making his way over to where Jungkook was lounging on the bed, laptop on his thighs. “It’s time for a break,” he mumbled, gently laying himself on the bed so as not to disturb the younger’s gameplay and then rolling over so his cheekbone was pressed into Jungkook’s hip. The hybrid smirked at the attempt of cuddling, glad the human was unfazed by the furious tapping of the keyboard right by his face.

“Fair enough,” Junkook replied. “Shouldn’t be much longer.”

“Don’t mind me,” said Yoongi contentedly. “Take your time.” It was almost comical the way he was curled up on his side, pressed into the much taller (but also younger) male. His eyes slid closed comfortably until he felt an unidentifiable tickle on his back, reaching all the way up to the nape of his neck, when- “!” he squealed, body shuddering. The hybrid burst into uncontrollable giggles above him while Yoongi continued