a day on the beach [dated to 2/9]

[caughtinalie]

It's really not warm enough for a beach trip, but maybe that's why they're doing it. It's an impractical trip, a flight of fancy that hadn't been planned or anticipated, a spare afternoon where none of them have other plans, or at least no plans that can't be changed. They have a free few hours and Jin's truck and nothing in the world sounds better than spending a few stupid hours together.

The hyungs all pile into the cab, Jin hyung and Joonie hyung up front, the other two just behind them while Jimin and Taehyung and Jungkook make themselves comfortable in the bed. Or at least as comfortable as they can with a few blankets, their cheeks turning a frigid pink as the wind whips at their skin. It's next to impossible to carry on any conversation back there, but that hardly stops them from trying, the three of them screaming and laughing into the wind, rejoicing in the opportunity to just be away from the rest of the world, to exist in just this exact moment with nothing else weighing them down.

Jimin's ears are ringing by the time hyung pulls onto the familiar stretch of beach, body buzzing from the vibration of the truck on the road as he hops out.

It's even colder here than it'd been in the city, the wind rushing off the water, chilling Jimin to the bone despite his big, puffy coat. But it feels amazing, the sand soft under his shoes as he runs up ahead, glancing back at his friends as he comes dangerously close to the edge of the water, hands still stuffed in the pockets of his coat. The dulled sunlight glints off the truck, a little blink as the sun is enveloped in another blanket of clouds.

They've only just got here, still have hours to spend doing just about whatever they want and yet, some part of Jimin is already dreading when it all ends.

Comments

[likedriedflowerpetals]

It's a relief to be out in the open air, the sweet salt of ocean air on the wind. Yoongi has been restless for days, unsure why, if it's just being back in school or if it's knowing that every day passed brings him closer to letters from the universities he's applied to. Whatever the reason, there's a feeling of freedom out on the beach, surrounded by his friends, that eases the part of him that's been so unsettled.

He walks with his hands in his pockets, kicking up sand as he goes. As he gets closer to the water's edge, he toes off his shoes. He's still debating if he dares get his feet wet in this cold when he hears one of the others approach and glances back with a welcoming grin.

[iwishicould]

Namjoon has been on the beach for ten whole minutes and he can already feel sand in his shoes rubbing against his socks as he approaches Yoongi. Hopping on one foot, he pulls one of his heels halfway out of his shoe and tries to brush off as much as he can. Wobbling a little, he puts a hand out for Yoongi's shoulder before he makes it worse.

"Sorry, aish," he mutters as he shoves his foot down, shifting it from side to side back into his shoe. With that distraction sorted, Namjoon looks up and ahead of him, breathing in the sea air for a moment before turning to Yoongi. He opens his mouth to say something, but something about what he sees stops him. A wide smile spreads across his face before he crackles with laughter. "Sorry, sorry," he apologises again. "I wasn't expecting you to be smiling."

[likedriedflowerpetals]

"Yah," Yoongi exclaims, slapping at Namjoon's arm. "Why is everyone always so surprised I know how to smile?"

Even with such a complaint, he only scowls briefly. It's too good to see Namjoon laughing, even if it's at his own expense. It feels to him like everything is a little lighter out here by the ocean, weights lifted from their shoulders, even if it's only temporary. When they leave here, they go back to their lives, their responsibilities, their families. For now, though, they're free.

[iwishicould]

Namjoon snickers, accepting the retaliation. "I knew that you knew how, it's surprising when there's no evil intention behind it."

He looks back out towards the sea. It's not a particularly nice day. It's overcast, and the sun has troubles peeking through, leaving a grey wash on the sky, almost blending in with the dull blue of the ocean. Regardless, there was something about it all, the fresh wind, the cold sand, the laughter from the group behind them. The combination made him feel at peace.

It would be easy for him to delve into this thought, to inspect it and to ask questions about it and to analyse, but he was trying not to do that here. Any thoughts could lead him back home, and that was a place he wanted to ignore for now. Instead, he places his attention on Yoongi.

"Seriously, though. You look happy. It's good. I won't point it out anymore."

[likedriedflowerpetals]

Yoongi huffs out a laugh. "I am happy," he says, low as a confession. "It's just... nice to get away."

He's been so much happier since he started dating Jungkook, but excursions like this still come as a relief. He doesn't mind the city; he minds his house, the place that has never been a home. It helps to know he has other places he can go and people to go with, friends who actually give a fuck about him. Being out here, breathing fresh salt air, there's a measure of freedom he doesn't feel at home.

"It's really nice out here. Like it's just us left."

[iwishicould]

"Hmm." Namjoon looks over his shoulder, back toward the truck. Toward his carefree friends laughing together, running across the wide expanse of pale sand. It's easy, from this angle, to imagine it. What if there was simply no one else? What if it was just them left to pick through the world at whatever pace they wanted?

"I like that," Namjoon says, mostly coming out of his daydream. "I'm going to steal that." His eyes still lingered on the others and he can't help a faint smile. "Sometimes I feel like this is the way they're supposed to be. Like, how they would be if there wasn't... everything else, you know?"

Everything Else. It had become a big, shadowy concept to Namjoon of late. There was the things in their lives that mattered, that felt pure and full and right. And then there was everything else that turned them into hurt, more shattered versions of themselves.

[lovestrippedbare]

Perhaps subconsciously, there's a part of Jungkook that enjoys being chided by elders and hyungs alike for never wearing enough to suit the winter weather. In the bed of the truck, it was all made a little better by the layers upon layers of blankets and a little bit of cuddling up to his hyungs, but now that they're on the beach, there's very little to actually protect Jungkook against the raging winds.

He likes it, though. The way the wind cuts through to the skin, and the slightly salty and sticky hint in the air. Likes the way the sand looks so perfectly smooth in contrast with the constantly raging waves, tiny little bubbles chasing up the shore. Jungkook kicks his shoes off early and can't be bothered as he takes off sprinting towards the ocean, shrieking when the cold water splashes against his shins.

"The water's great!" he yells to no one in particular, waiting for someone else to join.

[venomambition]

Hoseok shivers even harder than he was before when he sees Jungkook wade into the winter sea, ducking his chin even lower into the neck of his coat as he walks closer, watching Jungkook frolic. He thinks he can see Jungkook's skin turning an angry red already, but maybe that's just his imagination.

There's some part of him that wishes he could be that carefree. The idea of being in the cold water makes Hoseok's bones ache, and he thinks about the sand afterward, how it would get into his socks and shoes without really having anything to dry off his skin.

"Isn't it too cold?" he calls out to Jungkook, standing well back from where the rolling waves climb up the beach, careful to keep his boots dry.

[lovestrippedbare]

Jungkook is just reaching down to roll up his pants further when he hears Hoseok calling out to him from further ashore. His eyes light up, smile wide and delighted as he laughs — not quite full, but teetering instead towards a giggle, the pitch of his voice raising with the low temperature of the water.

In some ways, Jungkook has always enjoyed seeking excitement, regardless of form. He's the first to run towards a queue for a roller coaster. He dreams of someday being able to skydive, sweeping through clouds and feeling the weightlessness as he falls through the sky. Running into the chill of the ocean probably pales in comparison to some of Jungkook's distant dreams, but for now, it's the perfect amount.

It lets him run about while keeping one eye always fixed on his hyungs.

"No," Jungkook yells, shaking his head. "It's perfect! And it smells so nice out here — hyung, you're not coming in?"

[venomambition]

Hoseok isn't sure if Jungkook's just being tough or if the cold of the water really doesn't bother him, but even just the damp, salty breeze off the water makes the bare skin of his face sting. Jungkook looks like he's having the time of his life, though, wading a little deeper, kicking at the water with his toes. He looks young and happy with the whole of his future stretched out in front of him like the vast sea. The thought makes Hoseok's heart swell with warmth.

"I can smell it from here," he replies with a grin. "I think I'll stand here and live vicariously through you, for a bit, if that's okay with you?"

[lovestrippedbare]

"Well, I can't force you," Jungkook laughs, shaking his head as he watches the way Hoseok stands on the cusp of the water. Part of him wonders if he should be heading back and helping to block the wind from Hoseok — it'd probably be less cold if they stood close to one another, pooled their body heat. But then Jungkook glances back at the vast ocean in front of him, and he finds that he can't quite bear to leave it yet.

Soon, they'll have to find some place to sit and some way of keeping warm. A fire, maybe, Jungkook thinks to himself. A fire around which they can huddle and perhaps have a few treats — maybe wrap some sweet potatoes in foil and let them warm up by the wood.

Jungkook glances down suddenly when he feels his toes bumping up against something hard, tilting his head before he digs them further into the sand, pushing up a small clam shell. He reaches down to pry it out of the ground, letting the waves carry away the silt inside, until the inner surface shines opalescent under the sun.

Jogging back to the beach, Jungkook waves Hoseok closer. "Hyung! Hold out your hand," Jungkook instructs.

[venomambition]

Sometimes Hoseok thinks he'll always be cold; outside of when he's dancing he almost never feels truly warm, except in the full heat of summer. He's been skinny as long as he can remember, spent years in the drafty halls and rooms of the orphanage, his donated clothes never nearly thick enough, the blankets always threadbare.

The coat he's wearing now was bought for him by Jungkook's mother, the hat a gift from Jimin, his boots he saved money for six months to purchase after his old ones started to get holes last winter. He's wearing a sweater and jeans and wool socks, has his hands pushed deep into his pockets, but still he's shivering against the wind.

And yet this is the happiest he's been in a long time.

He'd stood by the truck for a while when they'd first arrived, watching his friends as they experienced the beach in their own ways. It's quiet here aside from the crashing of the waves, the sound of their voices, and he takes the time to watch each of them, memorize how they look right now, cheeks pink, eyes and smiles bright.

The air smells salty and crisp, and soon Hoseok starts wandering himself, watching the waves rolling, feeling himself sinking into the sand as he walks. He still cold, his face aching from it, but he feels good, alive, almost hopeful. Sometimes the future feels heavy like a weight ready to crush him, but today feels like it's free from the passage of time. Today is just them, here, experiencing this place and each other.

He hears the sand crunching then, over the sound of the ocean, and he looks to his left, offering a smile. "Fuck, it's so cold!" he exclaims, his tone giddy.

[caughtinalie]

Jimin's trying to be sneaky, but he's apparently not as light on his feet as he'd hoped, Hoseok turning around just at the last second to flash a blinding heart-shaped smile as Jimin lunges, wrapping him up in a tight hug. It's meant to be a back hug but it turns into a weird sort of side hug instead, not that Jimin cares all that much. He has his chin on Hoseok's shoulder, Hoseok's arms trapped in his embrace, laughing happily as they nearly topple into the sand.

"Lucky I'm here then," he says, still giggling as they struggle to find their footing. Jimin refuses to loosen his hold at all. "I'll keep you warm, hyung. Oh!" he adds, eyes popping wide. "We should make a bonfire!"

[venomambition]

Hoseok laughs when Jimin catches him in his arms, stumbling sideways and just barely keeping himself from falling over sideways, taking Jimin with him. He can't hug Jimin back from this position, unfortunately, but it still feels so nice, Jimin's body heat helping warm him a fraction, the heat of Jimin's breath soothing on the side of his neck.

"Can we do that?" he asks, tipping his head as much as he can to look at Jimin's smiling face, his round, pink cheeks. "Like, is there wood for that?"

[caughtinalie]

"Hmm, I don't know," Jimin admits, ignoring the small swoop in his stomach when he realizes just how close his face is to Hoseok's. His gaze drops briefly to Hoseok's lips before he catches himself, grateful for the cold that stands as an excuse for why his cheeks might be a little pink right now.

He doesn't let his smile falter too much as he loosens his hold and turns to look back toward the rest of the group, squinting past them. "We could probably find some. And, if not, hyung could drive us to a gas station."

Now that he's thought of it, Jimin doesn't want to let it go. Nevermind that the sun's still out, the idea of sitting around a huge fire, maybe even curling up close with Kookie and Tae and his hyungs, of maybe cooking some food and telling stories... it all sounds amazing.

[venomambition]

Hoseok glances down the beach and he doesn't see anything that looks usable as firewood. He's never tried to build a fire on his own so he's not sure how much wood they'd need, if the gas station would have it available. If they're allowed to build a fire on the beach anyway.

"Do they sell firewood at the gas station?" he asks, moving so he can wrap an arm around Jimin's waist, partially to lean some of his weight onto Jimin (and off of his sore right ankle) and partially to hold Jimin closer, sharing his body heat. Jimin has always been someone Hoseok can rely on, someone Hoseok trusts, and now more than ever Hoseok only really feels like he's on solid ground when he has Jimin by his side.

[caughtinalie]

The cold makes things quiet. Sometimes that quiet can be stifling and too noisy in its own way, sometimes it does nothing but amplify the shouting in Jimin's head.

But right now, it means freedom in the form of a wide open beach, it means a space for only the seven of them, a place free of anybody who might tell them to quiet down and be more respectful, free of dark, judgmental gazes and disapproving stares. It means hours of doing nothing but existing with the six people he loves most in the entire world and wishing for things that right now, right in this moment, actually feel possible.

The others are still laughing together, dragging a cooler out of the truck bed and chasing the waves when Jimin gets an idea.

Without a word, he jogs off, not toward the waves, but toward a little inlet of stones about fifty meters away. The sand squelches under his shoes, makes his steps wobbly, and he's panting a bit by the time he gets there. Hands still in his pockets, Jimin crouches down to take a closer look at the little pools of water that seep in with every bigger wave and when he finally spots what he's looking for, Jimin reaches in to carefully pull out a tiny shell. A tiny shell with equally tiny legs sticking out.

"Look," he says, when he hears footsteps behind him, placing it carefully in the palm of his hand and turning to show his prize with a bright smile.

[iwishicould]

Namjoon gasps softly, hunched over Jimin's hand to get a close look at the creature he caught. Eyes wide, he makes a noise as he watches the tiny legs find purchase on Jimin's palm, and start to crawl around experimentally. "Cute..." He breathes, getting a little bit lost in the shape of the shell, and wondering how something could be so small.

After a moment, he straightens again, smiling. "You and I had the same idea."

Although it was often playful nowadays, Namjoon was used to being teased for his desire to search around in small rock pools rather than do whatever typical things kids do at the beach. Sometimes he's surprised at himself, that he hasn't grown out of this fascination for the tiny creatures that live in hidden places, but he's glad for that. There's too many other things one loses when they grow up.

He ambles over to the pools Jimin had found, stepping as carefully as possible on the wet rocks, to get a better look inside. It's not long before he's absorbed in the sight of it. A small world becoming larger and more detailed only upon inspection. "Ah, it's so pretty!"

[caughtinalie]

The tiny little crab skitters across Jimin's palm, too quick for him to stop before it falls right off and back into the sand.

"Oh no!" Jimin crouches down immediately, less interested in capturing this time and more in checking to make sure it's okay. He thinks it probably is, that he shell is there to protect him from big falls, but he's worried all the same, frowning until he finds the little shell drifting in the tiny lagoon.

He glances over at Namjoon then, brow furrowed but expression fond. "I'm not as good at catching them as you are," he says, wondering a little at how Namjoon, who's usually a little bit awkward and more than a little bit clumsy, can often times be so wonderfully gentle. "Oh, look at that one!" he says, pointing to a different shell altogether. He's not sure if it's one that serves as a house or not, but the light glints softly, pretty and iridescent as Jimin rests his chin on his knee.

[iwishicould]

"Nah, sometimes they just don't want to be caught. You have to know where to look for their hiding places."

Namjoon's eyes light up at the sight of the shell Jimin points out. It's a little further away from where they perched, huddled over the colourful pools, but the soft shimmer in the water is entrancing still. He's overcome with the urge to touch it, to know what's inside, to see it out of the water, in his hands.

"I'll get it for you!" He stands, putting one foot on a flat stone that leads into a sort of path between two pools, testing its stability. When satisfied, he starts to pick his way forward until he's sure he's near enough within arms reach of the shell. Squatting over the stones, he pushes a sleeve up his arm and reaches a hand into the water, inhaling sharply at the sudden cold. Just as he thinks he's about to grab it, the shell sprouts legs and moves away from him. Namjoon's hand closes around nothing, and the over-extension tips his balance too far towards the water. Exclaiming with surprise, he drops one knee down to stabilise himself, and it splashes heavily into the cold pool.

"Ah no, what did you do, Namjoon?" he moans, managing to stand and wipe at the dirt on the now wet leg of his jeans.

[caughtinalie]

It's like watching a nature documentary, that moment where the film slows down so the viewer can fully appreciate what's unfolding. Except Namjoon isn't a lion on the attack or a leaping gazelle, but just a boy with long, long legs and awkward knees and no sense of balance and Jimin can only stare as he wobbles and then steadies and then leans, leans, leans.

He tries to reach out in time, tries to catch Namjoon by the arm or the elbow, but he isn't quick enough and the sound that bubbles free of his chest can only be described as a cackle when some of the splash hits his legs and outstretched arm.

"Hyung!" he breathes through his giggles, shifting to get better footing himself before holding his hand out again to help Namjoon out of the cold. "Oh no, you're all wet! Are you okay?"

[likedriedflowerpetals]

Yoongi walks closer, crouching down beside Jimin to look at what he's found. "Ah, a crab," he says, brow lifting a little. "You should show Namjoon." As much as Yoongi finds such things interesting, Namjoon really seems to love the little creatures. Still, instead of getting up to get the other boy, Yoongi looks at the tiny pools of water, eyeing the equally small bursts of movement in them. Tide pools take up hardly any space, but there are, he thinks, entirely worlds in each one.

Curious, he glances over at Jimin again. "What are you doing over here by yourself?"

[Please ignore if this is too late! <3]

[caughtinalie]

Somehow, it's not Yoongi's he's expecting to find, but his smile widens all the more for that as he brings his hand close to his chest, trying to protect the little crab from falling off and tumbling back into the water.

"Just wanted to see if I could find one of these," he admits, smiling down at his hand. "And it's nice to get some air too."

He doesn't mention why it might be necessary, how the sign they'd passed on the way here had made his breath catch and his vision start to go dark. The fresh air is nice, being away where he can breathe is even better.

At the same time, he's glad hyung is here with him.

[likedriedflowerpetals]

"It's cute," Yoongi says, leaning close to peer at the tiny creature in Jimin's hand. It's so strange to consider how small these creatures are, how big the world must seem to them. If they think much of such things, anyway.

There's an aura of quiet around Jimin now that he wasn't expecting, something just a hint withdrawn. Yoongi would have thought he'd be running up and down the beach, shouting, with Taehyung and Jungkook. If he needs some space, though, Yoongi can't fault him for that. With school and parents, life back home gets so fucking claustrophobic sometimes.

"It feels easier to get air out here, doesn't it?" he asks. "Out of the city."

[caughtinalie]

It is cute and Jimin is already looking forward to showing it off to Namjoon later, once he's had a little more time to collect himself. And assuming he doesn't lose the little thing to gravity in the meantime.

He keeps his hand held close to his chest, moving onto make sure it won't crawl off the edge before he looks back up at Yoongi again.

"Yeah," he says, glancing out across the water then, squinting against the glare the muted sun casts off the waves. "And like.... I don't know. Like it might actually be possible to get away someday. Is that weird?" he asks with a grimace when he looks back to Yoongi again.