Jeno was pumped; the whole way on their third match out of town this season, their team had been in good spirits all morning, making a ruckus, hyping each other up and celebrating like they'd already won. 

It felt like it, the certainty in the air filling them all up with confidence like no other.

Four wins in a row did miracles for your team's morale (read: ego), and not even one of them was worried about the outcome with everyone in such a great condition. Well, with the exception of Hyunjin that had caught a cold and had had to sit out on this one time.

In the midst of cheers and loud singing, Jeno checked his phone with a small smile, hoping to see a message from his friends. He'd probably stayed up a little longer than necessary last night (they watched two movies after all but Jaemin left half-way through the second one when his mom called), but it was a small sacrifice to make.

Only, there were no notifications.

He had to instantly swallow the disappointment settling down inside his chest, smiling instead when Rowoon loudly promised the team he'd buy them all pizza if they won today, and everyone cheered in response, even more hyped now.

His hand still clutched his phone tight, making sure he'd feel it when it vibrated. When it did, he immediately opened up the messages and smiled for real.

From: Jaem ^^

Good luck 

You better score at least three times or I'll take away your junnie privileges for a week

(just don't tell my mom)

From: Injunnie ^^

Hope the match goes okay! I'll treat you for ice cream if you win!

Sorry I wasn't there in the morning to wish you good luck... I had to go change in case we're going out tonight :D

Jeno felt great about the game now. They were surely going to win!

The game really was going great - Hoenn high school was a tough opponent and they'd managed to score once already, but they were still in the lead with two goals, so it wasn't that bad.

The sky had been filled with dark clouds all day, and every now and then there was a small shower of rain that stopped absolutely none of them from pushing forward even harder despite the slippery conditions of the ground, causing them all to slip every now and then.

Honestly, it was still so much better than playing directly under the sun in unbearable heat. Jeno was already drenched in sweat, constantly trying to make himself available for a pass, but the other team was putting up a great defense, making it hard to approach the goal.

It seemed that after getting caught off-guard at the beginning of their match, their opponent had steeled their resolve and were really fighting back now for real. It was what made it all the more thrilling, having to put an effort to score.

The whole team got visibly excited when there was a lucky break towards the end of the game, their scores now tied, and Jeno managed to snatch the ball from the opposing team, passing it to Sunwoo, who passed it back when Jeno pushed through the defense, having a clear line to the goal post.

He ran towards it, focused, passing the ball and receiving it back just as quickly as the other team tried their hardest to block his shot, and he could almost taste the victory on his tongue. 

He was so close now, all he needed was just one chance and-

Jeno groaned as he hit the ground painfully, pain erupting in his hand, making him shout out in pain. He'd been just moments away from scoring when he'd slipped on the wet grass and fell hard, landing on his arm and shoulder. 

He could remotely hear the whistle blow and the game being halted, the loud voices of his coach and teammates rushing towards him to check up on him while light rain showered his face. And then there was the pain, and Jeno knew, for certain, that he was ed. 

There had always been a little trepidation in Renjun's heart with the sports obsession Jeno had, the kind of dread that he could feel in the pit of his stomach every time he watched him practice.

Renjun couldn’t explain it, but the anxiousness never left, only proving itself more persistent over time, and now... now Renjun knew why.

Jeno had gotten injured.

Renjun had felt his heart drop the moment the news made it to his ears. No one was sure how bad it was yet, but he'd heard them say that when they’d taken him to the infirmary, they’d sent him to the hospital just to make sure it wasn’t worse than it seemed.

He was the golden player of the team after all – the ace, the winner, the one that carried the whole team as awful as it sounded, even when he was only the co-captain with one of their seniors – so it was crucial he'd get up and going before the major games.

No one else took it as serious as Jeno, and it showed in the way he played. His whole team backed him up, determined to try their best for him. They wanted him to get the scholarship as much as he himself did. So knowing that he got hurt must’ve cut him deep.

"Renjun!"

Renjun whirled around, almost sobbing in relief at seeing Jaemin rush up to him, looking just as pale and distraught as he felt.

"Jaemin, thank god! Have you heard anything? I tried asking the teachers but they wouldn't tell me anything!"

Jaemin shook his head, looking serious. "Jeno's not picking up his phone, but I heard he left it with his stuff when they took him to the hospital. The guys said he looked to be in pain but alive."

"Comforting," Renjun muttered wryly, none of his worries eased at all. In fact, he felt even worse knowing Jeno was in pain.

"I tried to pry some information out of the coach, but he didn't tell me anything. Said it was being taken care of, and that so far, there were no updates. But his mom is a nurse, right? I'm sure they'd let her take care of him."

Renjun didn't really know how hospitals worked, he was rarely allowed to go, but that sounded plausible. But he wasn't even sure how Jeno had gotten hurt and where. There was no way for them to know how bad it actually was! Would he need surgery? Crutches? Would he be able to come back to school at all?

"I already texted his mom," Jaemin continued. "She'll tell us when she gets to it. Unless Jeno calls us first."

Renjun sighed. In the end, there was nothing they could do but wait for Jeno or his mom to contact them.

“Yo,” Yerim called once she entered the room Jeno was being held in.

Jeno could only roll his eyes at her as he laid down on the bed. It was nothing personal, he was just feeling useless at having to lay motionless all day like this, wasting precious time he could've used on practicing.

Well, if he hadn't gotten himself injured like an idiot that was. 

But really, he was glad she was there. Yerim was, undoubtedly, an infinite source of bright energy that Jeno sometimes needed with all the things he was trying to cope with.

Dealing with Renjun’s issues and Jaemin’s harshness when his nerves were pulled tight was a constant strain no matter how much he cared about them, and sometimes he found himself unable to deal with it all, needing a break.

But if he showed any of that, he knew Renjun would close off all over again, and Jaemin would stop talking to him, half-offended, half-embarrassed, but they'd come around eventually. Like always.

Jeno just really didn't want to be a bother. He was the one supposed to take care of them after all. To be their safe-space.

Yerim on the other hand... Yerim was like a breath of fresh air. She was bubbly, energetic, and even when she got lazy and out of energy, she was still a pleasure to be around. Because as bad as it sounded, Yerim was a dose of normal, as simple as that. And even if Jeno felt a little guilty for thinking like that, it was true.

Yerim had always made it easy to spend time with her without stressing too much, and Jeno knew he didn’t need to worry about her as she had plenty of other people to take care of her for him.

Especially Jaehyun, who usually didn't bother showing her affection till someone tried to mess with her, and Mark, a goofy senior in the same basketball team as her brother, who was always looking out for her. Jeno had no doubts about their abilities to keep her safe.

And besides, she had plenty of friends to hang out with around the clock, so Jeno didn't need to feel bad about ditching their plans when something came up. 

And yeah, even if she was highly emotional and constantly crushing on a new person almost every week, she never took it out on him, and if she did, she apologized instead of pretending it never happened because she wasn't perfect, and she was still figuring herself out as well.

Really, she was one of the only people he could really share his most personal things with, and vice versa. Things that neither of them felt comfortable admitting to other people.

That was all there was to it, really. Platonic closeness as friends where he knew he could count on her no matter what. She was someone he wasn't ashamed of being weak in front of. 

But Jeno really wasn't made for resting. 

“You're going home so soon? Already?” Yerim asked him, seeing him pull aside the blanket he'd been given. Jeno could see she was eyeing his injured hand while snapping the hairtie in her hands, a nervous tick she used when she felt restless.

She must've been worried. Jeno couldn't even think about how Renjun and Jaemin must've felt when they'd hear about it. And they must've, considering Yerim was already there. Then again, he couldn't really underestimate her ability of finding out news in a quick manner, faster than most.

“Not yet. I just need to get on my feet or I'll go crazy in here.”

“But what did the doctors say? It wasn’t a fracture was it?”

“No.”

His shoulder had taken a hit but it was nothing serious. They'd taken some photos but there wasn’t anything that needed immediate action, and he’d be fine in no time with some rest and painkillers.

The X-ray had mostly just been a precaution just in case since these things could get tricky, but the good news was he didn’t need surgery of any kind. At least yet. 

It was his fingers that were the problem; he hadn't broken any of them, but three of them were wrapped in a cast for at least the next 5 to 7 days considering the damage, and after that once the swelling's gone down, depending on the actual healing progress, they'd consider alternative treatments. 

They'd said it could take months sometimes but overall, the doctors had been rather positive about it. And while it wasn’t the best, it was definitely better than needing to be operated and probably losing over half of this year’s training for recovery.

Really, Jeno just couldn't believe he was even there, being treated like a long-time patient for a simple finger sprain. 

Granted, his fingers were swollen, red and hurt as hell, he couldn’t even move them without enormous pain shooting up his arm, nearing what he thought could’ve been a possible fraction.

But no.

A sprain.

A stupid, weak sprain that he'd acted all baby for. And he wanted to be the captain of the team once Yuta was out of the team? What kind of an example was he setting here exactly, if he couldn’t even handle a simple sprain?

“Oh, thank god,” Yerim breathed out in relief. “At least you'll recover soon. Does it hurt a lot?” 

Jeno found it impossible to lie to her. He sighed, feeling pathetic as he ran his healthy hand through his hair.

“Yeah... They said it’s because of the inflammation. Once that's under control, it should already feel a lot better. I need to do some finger exercises after the swelling has gone down and the fingers are less stiff, but that I should take it easy now so it'll get better faster and without any complications.”

Yerim nodded, “Yeah, okay, sounds plausible. Will you actually listen to them though? I know you're stubborn as hell about that ball.”

Jeno sighed, leaning back on the bed and covering his eyes in frustration. After intending to get up and walk, his bruised shoulder had put a halt in that plan, and anger stirred somewhere deep inside of him, stemming from the frustration he'd felt ever since he'd messed up the game.

It had been less than a day and he was already sick of this injury. He was going to go nuts!

Yerim could see his frown even when he tried to hide it. 

“Hey, look on the bright side. At least you have your little boyfriends by your side to take care of you. I heard they went around asking the whole team if they'd heard anything about you yet. Even the coach, and he was surprsingly nice to them, too.”

Jeno moved his hand aside to stare at her, blinking. He almost asked about Jaemin and Renjun before he stopped himself. “Wait, when did I get boyfriends?”

"As in plural?"

"No, as in a boyfriend." Or two.

Yerim tilted her head to the side, considering it. "Maybe not then. That's what everyone's been saying, so I just figured you got your together yesterday or something. Anyway, my bad. Didn’t mean to assume."

Jeno frowned. He wasn't sure what she was talking about at all. Maybe he'd heard it wrong, or maybe it was the meds messing with his head. Surely he'd know if he'd started dating someone, right?

"Anyway, Joohyun gave me a ride, so I need to go, I just needed to come see how you’re holding up with my own two eyes. Text me when you get back home.”

“Yeah, sure. I’m just waiting for mom, she said she’ll pick me up after her shift.”

“Okay. See ya.”

Jeno bid a silent goodbye, tired but restless. He'd never admit it, but he was a little scared of being left alone with his thoughts that were far from positive now that his only distraction was walking out of the door.

If only he had his phone with him.

Jeno had stayed home for a few days after that, just in case. Renjun and Jaemin had stopped by every day to hang out with him and keep him out of misery, but he needed to go back to school eventually. 

It was better than staying home and rotting away as he moped, he guessed. It would serve as a distraction even if his arm was still sore and a little useless. 

After all, there was only so much his friends could do to cheer him up when he had to spend half the days alone, waiting for them to get out of class. 

He’d explicitly told them not to skip class - which he knew they would. Jaemin would feign being sick and Renjun simply just wouldn’t go.

He hadn't honestly expected much from it, just boredom of a different kind now that he couldn't really do anything but listen, but to his surprise, it seemed like he'd accidentally stirred the good ol' rumormill for reasons he didn't expect. 

It wasn't even about his injury or them winning the game despite his accident that had gotten the students excited - no. It was about... him, Jaemin and Renjun?

Jeno gave questioning looks to his friends that were clearly avoiding his eyes. It seemed like this had been going on for a while already while he was back home resting, and they'd just decided not to mention anything about it to him before this. 

“What? You seriously mean to tell me they aren’t dating?”

“What the ? Like, just look at them."

“I am, bamboozled.”

“Could’ve fooled me.”

“I could swear they were dating though. Oh well, I guess not.”

“Well they aren’t straight, that’s for sure. You know Seomin? He said something about this the other day.”

"You both think those two are gay?  No way. You must be out of your mind."

"What, it's not that bad? Not everyone's like... well, you know."

"Ugh, don't even get me started. But them dating? Seems unlikely. Where did you even hear that? Just Seomin?”

“Oh, so you know, I was getting checked up in the hospital and–“

Renjun kept his head down as they sat down in the cafeteria, too nervous to lift his eyes from the food on his plate. He hadn't had an appetite for days now, and even now he was only playing with his food instead of eating it.

He knew he should've at least warned Jeno about the rumors spreading around, or even talked to Jaemin about it when it had first started, but he'd been a coward.

It was easier to pretend it wasn't an issue till it got impossible to ignore, and now he felt stupid for it.

He couldn't help but steal glances of the other two, knowing they were only acting indifferent. They were being quiet, too quiet, pretending like nothing was out of the usual. 

But Renjun's nerves were fried with the constant worry and lack of sleep, making him feel like he could throw up what little he'd managed to swallow down for breakfast so he wouldn't pass out for no reason.

Not only that, but the sight of Jeno's bandaged hand still made him queasy. Ever since he'd first heard Jeno had gotten injured, Renjun had felt like he couldn't breathe properly, constantly on the edge.

His mom had texted them out of consideration the moment she could, letting them know he was fine, that it was just with a little injury on his hand that would take some time to heal, it hadn't eased his nerves. 

Even when keeping him company and seeing he was fine, the unease didn't dissipate. Worst of all, Jeno refused to talk about it. He barely even acknowledged the fact that he was injured, stubbornly pretending he was fine. 

But it was clear this injury didn't bode well with him. So much of it was readable on his stiff posture as he awkwardly shuffled through the day with only one properly working hand, unable to even take notes by himself. The mood he'd been in all week was tense and gloomy, like a storm about to erupt.

Renjun almost jumped at the first chance to peel the clementine Jeno handed him.

"So... how's... how's the hand?" Renjun asked for about the ninth time that day as he peeled the fruit, handing it back to Jeno once done, watching him eat the pieces slowly, one by one, like he had no appetite either. 

"It's fine," Jeno offered blandly. "You don't have to worry about it, it's just a sprain."

Renjun had never heard something more ridiculous in his life. How could he not worry?

But with seeing him like this, seeing him struggle and hide his winces of pain and frustration, it was slowly starting to dawn on him that this must be what his friends always felt about him, making the guilt increase the queasiness inside him.

Oh, he was so close to throwing up any minute now. Lord have mercy on him.

"You say that, but you've been awfully silent all day," Jaemin voiced out, tone clipped. Renjun held his breath, looking between them, tense. Jaemin didn't mix well with nerves either, and this situation was already delicate enough to splinter at any given second now.

"And?"

"And? Jeno, don't with us. Your hand hurts. We want to be there for you. it up."

Renjun laughed nervously, trying to diffuse the building tension again by any given excuse he could find. "Uh, I mean... Are you both really okay? I mean.. It's just that... you've heard it too, right?" Two heads turned to him, expressions unreadable. Renjun shrunk back to himself. "I mean! What they say. The students. You've... heard it, right?"

"About what?"

"Yeah, Jun. What do you mean?"

Renjun tried finding his voice again. “You aren’t... uh.. I mean I know I should've already brought it up earlier, but... aren't you offended they're all kind of assuming your uality now because you’re friends with me?”

He was used to being addressed as the gay boy or other more unsavory names by the other students, so he wasn't really shocked to hear what some of them had to say about him.

At times it seemed to be the only thing people knew him as, as if being gay was his only personality trait, or that he even had a choice over that matter, and that made him a little uncomfortable.

But now that it was happening to his best friends, he was feeling awful about it. He really needed to make sure neither of them were too upset by it, or god forbid, blame him for it. 

Or maybe he was just making everything about himself again, he thought bitterly. Wasn't that what everyone told him when he'd first come out and tried to fight back?

"What?"

"Says who?"

Now it was Renjun's turn to be confused. "Huh?"

"Jun," Jeno started, trying to smile but it was a little tense. "They're assuming we're gay because we're so close. Not because we're friends with you."

"Oh."

Well, it kind of made sense when he thought about it. It was a little too late of a reaction for it to be his fault. But he wasn't sure where this was coming from then. 

"Jaem? What do you think?"

Renjun turned his eyes towards Jaemin, kind of scared to hear what he had to say. Jaemin had always been a bit more opiniated out of the three of them, so he'd been acting oddly silent considering all that, making his stomach flip nervously. 

"They don't know a thing about me, so they should keep their mouths shut."

"Yeah," Jeno agreed. "Like what's their deal anyway? I don’t get what’s so interesting about it. It’s none of their business. You shouldn't care either, Junnie. Just ignore them as always."

“And if it was true? That you wanted to… be with guys?” Renjun was surprised at his own question.

Like Jeno just said, it was none of his business and he was only going to make himself miserable by entertaining the possibility. But maybe he was just seeking some kind of reassurance from them even after all this time.

Jaemin didn't miss a beat. “Then what gives? Liking guys isn’t a world stopping revelation, their world won’t end if some dude they know likes guys.”

“Yeah, that's just dumb," Jeno agreed. "If I like guys, I like guys. Who cares? They should focus on their own lives instead of who I’m interested in.”

Renjun found himself almost sag in relief, a weight lifting off of his heart, and smiled, brighter than he’d been able to for the past few weeks. "Right!"

If only it was so easy for everyone else to understand than it was to his friends.