Closer to evening, Yoongi and Jungkook returned home from their outing with a surprise for Jimin. When Yoongi called Jimin's name, the hybrid obediently hopped up from the couch- probably too quickly, seeing as he stumbled upon putting weight on his still injured ankle.

Luckily, Namjoon had been approaching to see what Yoongi and Jungkook had bought and was able to steady the hybrid. "Why aren't you wearing your sling? And that crutch of yours isn't just an accessory, you know; it's there to help you," the human chastised, sounding exasperated.

Jimin's ears fell flat as he looked at Namjoon apologetically. "I'm sorry, sir... I forgot," he mumbled. He really just didn't think it was necessary. Things always heal on their own- eventually. So what if he has a couple bones repaired slightly out of place? He can use his body just fine and that dumb sling wasn't making anything stop hurting. It was just uncomfortable to have it on and still try to use that crutch. He felt so clumsy with them and clumsy people can't defend themselves when faced with an opposing force.

He just... didn't think it'd be a big deal if he didn't use them. Glancing up at Namjoon however proves that that's simply not the case. He lowers his eyes again out of respect and shame and waits for Namjoon to continue scolding him, but it doesn't happen. As much as he wants to know the human's reaction, he doesn't want to look back up at his face for fear of being seen as disobedient. They've been lax about the eye contact that all previous masters forbade, but he's not willing to push his luck just now.

He gripped his injured arm nervously when instead of punishment, Namjoon puts his large hand right on top of his head to ruffle his hair. Jimin curses himself for flinching at the contact, expecting something more sharp. He bites his lip, wishing that he could believe everyone who has told him thus far that he doesn't have to worry about getting hurt anymore. 

"I'll go put it on now," he stutters out, slipping away from the human's hand and awkwardly shuffling past Jin and Taehyung who are still seated on the sofa and then around Yoongi and Jungkook who stand beside it to get to his room. He'd kept his head down but had hardly avoided the confused and concerned looks he received on his way out of the living room with his tail practically between his legs.

It was stupid, getting upset over something like this, but he had been too comfortable, it seems. They had expressed that he was free to do as he pleased, and he just didn't want to wear the arm sling. He thought it would be okay. It was stupid of him to think it would be. There will always be limitations.

He struggled trying to pull the strap over his head after putting his arm in the sling part, but he couldn't seem to make it fit over. It was tugging too hard on his shoulder and it hurt. He kept getting more tangled up and more frustrated until he threw the fabric down onto his mattress with a huff, slumping down next to it. He rubbed his shoulder gently in a futile attempt to stop the throbbing that had started as soon as he began struggling with the sling. He never should have taken it off in the first place, but it was so uncomfortable to sleep with.

It was dumb and he knew it. It was so dumb, but he couldn't help but get a little upset.

A knock at the door had his ears dropping once again as he slouched into himself. "Hello?" he called out in invitation.

The door opened a crack and Jimin saw Hoseok peeking his head through. "Hey Jiminnie. Namjoon-ah told me to come check on you. Is everything okay?" The human took note of the way the hybrid sat criss-crossed and slouched on his bed, his arm's sling flung onto the blanket next to him. 

Jimin nodded in response to the question. He didn't need to be made fun of right now- he could figure this thing out himself. 

"Can I come in and help?" Hoseok asked, and Jimin's resolve cracked a little. He sounded so genuine. And Hoseok hadn't made fun of him yet. 

He nodded once again, grabbing the sling and handing it over to the human, who came in and sat down beside him on the bed. Hoseok took the sling and turned his body towards the hybrid. "Here," he spoke quietly. Jimin made to put his arm inside, but Hoseok stopped him. "Put it around your neck first. It's easier to get it on that way." Surely enough, it took only seconds to get it on painlessly, and Jimin glanced up at the human gratefully, his ears still low on his head.

Hoseok noticed the silent thanks and grinned widely. "See? It's not so hard. I promise that whatever Namjoon said, he probably didn't mean it."

"He didn't say anything," Jimin protested, because he didn't. It wasn't the human's fault. He took more freedom than he was given and it was clearly his own fault. "It was my fault," he insisted.

"Don't be silly. I don't blame you for not wanting to wear this dumb thing," Hoseok replied, smile still present on his face and Jimin took careful notice of how lightly he was taking this situation.

He disobeyed orders, didn't he? 

"Don't worry though," the human continued. "You won't have to wear it for much longer. You're almost as good as new. We'll go to the doctor in a few days and see if you are fully healed by then."

One of Jimin's ears had raised slightly, turning out towards Hoseok in hopefulness.

"I'm sorry," he apololgized, just in case. Hoseok hadn't shown any signs of being angry at him (and neither had Namjoon, now that he thinks about it). He beats himself up inside even more when he fully realized just how much he had blown this out of proportion in his mind.

"That's okay," Hoseok assured him. "Yoongi-hyung told me he got you a gift today. Do you want to go see?"

Jimin's tail thumped once on the bed in excitement before he calmed himself. "No, that's okay." He was feeling a little embarrassed about the way he acted and wasn't ready to face the others. He wanted to see what this gift was, if it was something as lovely and special as his teddy bear, but he didn't deserve a gift after how silly he'd just been acting.

Hoseok frowned cutely. "Why not?" he whined.

"I don't deserve it right now," Jimin replied truthfully. "I will do better."

"Aw, of course you deserve it! Gifts are good for cheering people up." Hoseok reached forward and the hybrid ducked his head down to allow himself to be pet more easily. "Weren't you feeling sad just now?"

"It's because I did something wrong, though. Namjoon-sshi told me that I should always wear this arm thing but I didn't. Miss Suzy told me I have to wear it too and I still took it off. I was being bad. It was hard to sleep with it though. And now I'm being stupid too, I keep thinking weird," he pouted, not quite realizing he was ranting. "I'm really sorry. I promise I won't take it off again." He knew justifying your bad behavior wasn't acceptable, but he thought that it would be easy to convince Hoseok as opposed to any previous master. He seemed pretty open to negotiation.

"It's not a big deal, Jimin," Hoseok said, looking confused. "Really, no one is angry. Not me, not Namjoon, and not Miss Suzy. You didn't do anything wrong, okay?" He waited until he saw Jimin nod slowly before he continued. "What.. Well, what exactly do you mean by 'thinking weird?'" he asked cautiously, continuing to through the hybrid's hair in an attempt to get him to open up more- make him feel more comfortable in his presence. He tried not to smile too noticably at the way his ears would twitch whenever he pet the fur on them.

Jimin still wouldn't look the human in the eyes as he sighed. "I don't think like the others," he mumbled, looking at Hoseok's lap instead. "I don't think like Jin-hyung and Taehyung. I do things like this and they don't."

"Things like what?" he asked gently, pleased that he was able to coax the hybrid's ears up from where they were previously laying flat. That was a good sign, right?

"Things like... I- I don't know... Just..."

When he sighed and couldn't find the words to continue, Hoseok cocked a grin. "You're not overreacting, you know."