i know it’s me that’s supposed to love you. – Is There Somebody Who Can Watch You, The 1975

He receives a call from his mother every Friday after dinner.

Meanwhile, his closest friends—sans Taemin and Kyungsoo who are also currently serving on active duty—make it a point to call him every Tuesday evening.

He hasn’t heard from all of them so far, but, whoever calls—the most frequent being Sehun and Sungwoon—usually has enough information on the outside world that he’s missed.

“What—what? What do you mean by Barcelona getting rid of Messi? That’s not the tune they sang earlier this year. Plus, the season has only just begun! They—they’ve got no grounds!”

“I know,” Wonshik groans, sounding troubled. “They’re doing him so dirty. Then, it was Ronaldo. Now, it is Messi. What’s the point in watching La Liga anymore, right, Jongin?”

Jennie has not called, not even once.

He cannot ask his friends how she’s doing or how she’s coping; his relationship is, after all, not their problem.

Only he has been away for almost twelve weeks, and it has been very quiet in the somewhat dingy supply center base where he waits for a call that never comes, always on edge and lacking sleep.

How cruel, he sneers. She knows it better than anyone that he does not like periods of lengthy silence.

“Private Kim, your girlfriend is calling! Showing up, she is at last!”

“…”

“Ha! Kidding, it’s your dear momma again! At least we can confirm that you do have a girlfriend, though!”

Prick, he rolls his eyes, trying as hard as he can to dismiss the poor quality experience of his military life, one that he has to survive apparently without any help from his girlfriend. Another prick.

It is the last Tuesday before his first vacation, the one that marks his 100th day in the army. Jimin is the one who calls this time around, and they go over their plan to have a lunch date on Thursday.

“So I drop my stuff at my house and then you’re going to pick me up there, right?”

“Right, Hyung.”

He considers asking Jimin about Jennie—the younger guy must have seen her at some point during the last three months—but, at the end, decides against bringing up the topic. He figures he doesn’t care about her very much right now, anyway