“Everybody up!” Seokjin yelled from the main room. A chorus of groans sounded throughout the apartment. Seokjin grinned and slammed open the first room-Jimin, Taehyung, and Hoseok’s room. Hoseok’s bed was closest to the door, so he suffered the first blow. His was exposed to the air, and his cover was crumpled around his hips. His face was buried in his pillow, and he didn’t look like he was moving. Seokjin rubbed his palms together in preparation, then brought both of them down hard on Hoseok’s exposed skin. A loud slap reverberated around the room, immediately followed by Hoseok’s loud, high-pitched scream. That lead to another shriek straight out of Taehyung’s mouth. His head bolted up and he clutched his blanket to his chest with a dazed and partially feared expression. Jimin also jolted awake, but his eyes merely popped open while his hands spread to hold his legs to his chest. When he caught sight of Hoseok’s angry glare and Seokjin’s proud smile, he relaxed.

    “That was low, even for you.” Hoseok growled. Seokjin smiled and patted his shoulder.

    “You should sleep with clothes on then.” Seokjin walked over to Taehyung and Jimin’s bunk and patted Taehyung’s knee.

    “Come on, time to get up. You don’t want to be waiting for an hour to take a shower.” Taehyung mumbled some incoherent thought in response. Seokjin merely smiled and nodded, pretending like he heard him. He crouched down to be eye level with Jimin, giving him one of his sweetest smiles.

    “Sleep well your first night?” Jimin rubbed his eyes and chuckled.

    “Sure, if you call waking up every other hour well.” Jimin his lips. His sinus’ were acting up so he had a sore throat to go with the lack of sleep. Seokjin frowned and furrowed his brows.

    “Awww, poor thing. Well, you have my professional level cooking to cheer you up! I hear my eggs are to die for.” Seokjin winked and patted Jimin’s head. Hoseok smacked his lips and frowned, pointing to Seokjin as he started leaving the room.

    “Don’t believe this mean hyung. He just sets you up with pretty words and a sweet smile. He’s a devil in disguise. Just wait until you see how conceited he is. This hyung stares at his own reflection in the mirror just admiring himself.” Seokjin smacked Hoseok on the arm, earning a hiss from the younger.

    “Sheesh, you don’t know how to keep your mouth shut. How could anyone not admire this perfect face of mine?” Seokjin pantomimed a rain of sunshine opening over his face and highlighting his features. Taehyung yawned as he climbed out of the bunch and scratched his lower back.

    “Do you eat jellyfish?” He asked. Seokjin looked at him with confusion.

    “What?” He asked. Taehyung held up his finger to pause, then let out a burp and smacked his lips together.

    “You’re cheeks look like the heads. They go bloob bloob every time you speak.” Seokjin narrowed his eyes in concentration.

    “Are you really awake?” Seokjin asked. Taehyung stared blankly at him for a solid minute before making a strange expression and swatting the air. Seokjin nodded and took that as his answer.

    “I’ll go wake up the others then. Breakfast’s on the table.” Seokjin said as he was leaving. Jimin pulled on a pair of sweatpants and a sweatshirt. Hoseok slipped on a shirt, but that was the extent of his care for public decency. Jimin stared at Hoseok while he left the room with no pants on. He shook his head in disbelief.

    “Who can have that much confidence in themselves? Isn’t he the least bit shameful? Even Taehyung had the sense to put pants on. This hyung is strange.” Jimin muttered to himself. Even as he stalked up to the table where they were sitting to eat, he couldn’t draw his eyes away from the bare and bright white legs stretched out to the side. Hoseok seemed completely unaware of the discomfort he was causing Jimin. Jimin sat down cautiously, grabbed a pair of chopsticks and pulled a small pile of food to him. He picked out chunks of stewed fish and chewed over them, occasionally glancing up at Hoseok. At first, it was fine, the elder was oblivious, but after about the tenth time, he caught Jimin’s eye and smirked. Jimin was in for trouble.

    “What? See something you like?” Jimin huffed and rolled his eyes.

    “You have no shame. Where are your pants?” Hoseok laughed and brought his leg up onto the table, both to the displeasure of Jimin and Taehyung-who would have rather continued stuffing his face than see someone’s leg where his food was.

    “But look at how beautiful it is. Look at that quad, those majestic tendon lines. Doesn’t a leg like this just make you-” Taehyung threw a piece of seaweed at him.

    “Unless it’s fried, grilled, or drenched in spice, I don’t want it. Put that meat somewhere else.” Hoseok bit his tongue to prevent himself from cussing out the pain in the rear that was Taehyung.

    “You cheeky little brat. You’ve been a little too comfortable with that tongue of yours, maybe I should-”

    “Now, now, now let’s just calm down. Okay? Happy family?” Jimin placated. Hoseok his teeth in response and threw a small pile of rice at Taehyung. The pieces scattered in his hair, but Taehyung waved him off and continued eating. Jimin sighed, thinking that all would be calm and normal again. He reached up and started to take a sip of his water. He turned to the side and nearly choked. Yoongi had walked out casually in nothing but his boxers, not minding the fact that he was basically in front of them. Jimin coughed out a lung trying to regain his composure. Yoongi looked at his shocked expression and raised an eyebrow.

    “Can I help you?” He asked while pouring himself a cup of coffee. Hoseok answered for him.

    “Jimin’s got a leg . Careful or you might stir him up with those pale thighs of yours.” Jimin whined and shoved him in the shoulder, sputtering to Yoongi that this was most definitely not the case.

    “I’ve only been here one day. Why is everyone so loose?” Yoongi sat down opposite of them and made himself a small pile of food in his bowl.

    “Pass the kimchi.” Yoongi commanded to Taehyung. Taehyung gulped down his food and handed the bowl over to him.

    “Who’s to say we’re loose? What if you’re just too uptight?” Hoseok responded. Jimin pouted.

    “You’re most definitely too loose. Please put clothes on. Where was the cool and mature hyung that talked me into this group? Was he just a figment of my imagination?” Hoseok laughed and patted Jimin on his back.

    “Awww how cute. You thought I was cool.” Yoongi rolled his eyes.

    “Yes, that was your first mistake. Your second was assuming that clothes were a given in a dorm full of young adult boys.” Just as Jimin was about to respond, Namjoon and Jeongguk followed-thank God-fully clothed and even looking like they’d gone through a morning routine. Namjoon sat down next to Yoongi, while Jeongguk placed himself at the head of the table. He looked cute, almost docile when he just woke up, but it was all a lie. His filter was nonexistent when he just woke up.

    “Awww, sleep well Kookie?” Jimin cooed, knowing full well by the bags under his eyes that no, he did not.

    “Awww, did you shrink another inch?” Jeongguk responded in the same tone, but with mocking creased into every part of his expression. Jimin wrinkled his nose at him and grumbled a complaint about everyone making him seem shorter than he actually was. Namjoon laughed over the food in his mouth.

    “Got something to share with the group Jimin?” Namjoon asked. Jimin shook his head no and pouted in his seat. Out of the corner of his eye, Hoseok saw it and smiled a little more. He was completely different from the day before, like the thing with his old roommate had never happened. In fact, the bruises and cuts had healed completely, all that remained were thin red blotches around his neck. The animosity from the day before came again, and Hoseok had to grit his hand to remind himself to keep calm. He would get to the bottom of it soon enough. Today was a new day, and it would not involve that horrible person.

    “The van will be here in ten. Just find a place to chill till it get’s here.” Namjoon announced to the group in the lobby. A chorus of “yes” and “understood” followed, with each member settling themselves comfortably in the lounge area of the lobby. Taehyung sat down next to Jeongguk and started pulling on the rips in his jeans. Jimin, who had been sitting across from them, found himself snickering when they started to fight.

    “So what would you do if I just yanked this?” Taehyung asked.

    “I think I would kill you, decompose your body in a bucket, and dump the remains in the forest.” Jeongguk responded while smacking away his hand.

    “So what would you do if I ripped all of the strands off?” Taehyung responded. Jeongguk looked up from his phone and glared at him.

    “Jimin, get your friend.” Jimin laughed and shook his head.

    “No, he is all yours. I’m going to get some juice. Be back in a sec.” Jimin stood up and left them to their own issues. Jimin overheard Taehyung’s protests as Jeongguk pinned his arms down, and probably sat on top of him as well. Jimin walked across the main lobby and turned down a small hallway to the row of vending machines. He looked through the options, deciding it was a hard choice between banana milk and fruit juice. Jimin moved his finger between the two drinks, murmuring to himself in contemplation.

    “Milk...or juice...milk...or juice...Milk...or juice. Hmmmm. Milk.” Jimin nodded accordingly. He put his bills into the machine and inserted the code number for his drink. He watched as the mechanical holder zipped across the machine and up the ladder to grab Jimin’s bottle of banana milk and drop it down into the tray. Jimin leaned down and grabbed his drink, feeling excited since he hadn’t had some in a long time. Just as he was coming up, Jimin felt an ominous presence lurk behind him, and before he could turn around, a hand slammed next to his face. Then another, and Jimin was effectively trapped in. His heart did somersaults in his chest and the ominous feeling turned to plain horror and disbelief. Oh please no, he thought, Oh please God no, not him, not now. Jimin slowly turned around, coming face to face with him. No, God was not on his side at that moment. The devil himself was standing before him. Joohyung seethed behind his evil smile, but revenge would come later. And it would be much, much sweeter.

    “Park Jimin...” Joohyung murmured. Jimin felt chills run down his neck and back. He clutched the banana milk in his hands.

    “J-Joohyung...hi.” Jimin watched anger flare up in his eyes before quickly being replaced by blankness again.

    “Hi. Didn’t realize how much you’ve changed Jimin. Lying, ditching people, kicking people in the balls-which was a low one Jimin, really-trying to hide from your friends, you’ve just turned into a horrible person haven’t you?” Jimin gulped.

    “J-joohyung, I can explain. I can-” Joohyung slammed on the vending machine, effectively silencing Jimin.

    “Don’t give me that bull . Explain my , the only thing you’ll be doing is suffering because that is exactly what I plan on giving you after the way you’ve treated me.” A mixture of terror and emptiness seems contradicting, but at that moment, that was what Jimin felt. He felt like his body was numb, and Joohyung wasn’t really there. He felt like his senses were slipping away from him and he was somewhere in the air, watching the scene with the fear he’s always had for the elder. Joohyung was scary from the beginning, but he had an uncanny way of making you think otherwise when you first meet him. You see little flashes of his true character, but convince yourself you’re just imagining things because his fake one is what you're used to. You think, “no way, he would never do that” or “Joohyung? Say that? No, you’re probably just overthinking it” or even “It’s just me, not him. I misunderstood, that’s all.” Jimin felt himself thinking that last one so often in the first four months of his trainee days. Always thinking he was the one doing something wrong, when in reality it had always been Joohyung at fault. What suffering? The only person who had ever truly suffered was Jimin. And now he was about to go through it all over again.

    “Joohyung please, not here. Just, not out here please?” Jimin begged. His eyes were tearing up. He didn’t want anyone see him get beat up. He didn’t want anyone to know how much of a weakling he was. But most of all, he didn’t want s to know. He could kiss being in BTS goodbye.

    “Not here? You think a few tears and a quivering lip will undo the you’ve done? Should I just get on my knees, bow down, kiss your , and forgive you? Is that how you think life works?” Joohyung grabbed the neck of Jimin’s shirt and yanked him up into the air. Jimin gripped onto the front of his shirt for purchase, and kicked his feet in an attempt to get some kind of stability.

    “You little piece of -” Jimin was sure he was going to kill him, but a voice cut him off before he could make good on his promise.

    “Jimin-ah! Jimin-ah where are you?” Never had Hoseok’s voice felt so relieving. Joohyung cursed and dropped Jimin to the floor. He clicked his tongue and pointed at Jimin furiously.

    “We’ll