Jinx: Reimagined — Ch 1
pairing: joo jaekyung x kim dan
tags: 18+, AU Canon Divergence, Not Canon Compliant, What-if, Jinx Reimagination, Friends-to-lovers, Established Friendship, Established History, AU - Canon Divergence, Dan and Jaekyung met in college, Jaekyung dropped out, They reunite as adults, Yellow-green Flag Jaekyung :P, Slightly OOC Kim Dan (he’s not wimpy, nor a crybaby, has more pride, only half a people-pleaser)... adjusted their age gap a little bit so it fits the canon-divergent timeline… Dan is now only two years older than Jaekyung, banter as love language, “Two dudes chilling in the hot tub, 5 feet apart because they’re not gay” friendship vibe, Idiots in Love, Friends with benefits, Friends with sugar baby benefits for Dan, Down-bad Joo Jaekyung, Roommates, Emotional Constipation
Two friends/roommates, two people jinxed by life, and two emotionally constipated men slowly discovering that love sometimes moves in one day and refuses to leave.
Early Spring, 2022
Dan sighed heavily as he tapped on the ‘Confirm’ button and felt his misery climb higher.
There it went: what was left of his monthly paycheck drained after the last online banking transaction. He lived every day trying not to spiral about how his late twenties had devolved into an unforgiving series of unfortunate events, but it was kind of hard not to dwell on it sometimes.
Part of him wished he could travel back in time and still be an undergrad.
Dan was optimistic about the future back then. He’d had a stellar transcript, and picking up side gigs to drum up some cash wasn’t as bad. His grandmother was still relatively healthy; he’d had a social life, shared a dorm with a hoobae who used to nag Dan about his smoking and threatened to deck him in the face if he didn’t stop. (Jaekyung could have, but he never did).
Joo Jaekyung…
They had their differences and their gripes, but Dan would be lying if he said he didn’t miss the odd companionship he’d found with the younger man. Jaekyung was hot-headed, a little impulsive, gave off constant ‘I don’t give a fuck’ vibes, a bit of a delinquent, and, truthfully, scary, but for the most part, he reminded Dan of a surly and grumpy cat.
Shame that Jaekyung dropped out…
Dan never saw him again after he himself graduated, and only got one last text from Jaekyung, telling him that he had stopped going to university after his second year of undergrad.
Life just got harder after college graduation, what with his grandmother receiving a cancer diagnosis and especially after that incident in the hospital.
Dan could vomit just thinking about it.
He blinked and squinted at the back of the headrest in front of him as Dan tried to calm himself down. He was twenty minutes away from the next bus stop. He may have been blacklisted from several hospitals around Seoul, but at least they hadn’t revoked his physical therapy license.
Because those freelance PT jobs paid more than his stints at a convenience store, for sure.
And Dan’s latest assignment?
Come to a gym at a specific location in Seoul to treat professional athletes.
Part of him knew he should have known better than to trust a vague job description he found online, but the payout was too good to ignore, and they did emphasize that they needed a qualified physical therapist to carry out the job.
Dan had expected a lot more after the phone call interview, but apparently, that was all it took.
He was assuming today was the day of the final interview, and, if he was lucky, maybe even the first day on the job.
Maybe this could be his clean career restart? A chance to build it back up again after that creepy director tried to have his way with him and ruined Dan’s life in the process.
Shit…
Dan inhaled and exhaled, counting each breath to calm himself down again. He couldn’t get worked up over that now.
He had a job to do.
=OoOoO=
Park Namwook — the guy Dan had been on the phone with about the job — quickly advised Dan to head to the 5th floor: Team Black MMA Gym. Dan barely remembered exiting the elevator and rushing to the entrance.
He squeezed through the limited space he himself had created at the door, and the idea that he was in a professional MMA gym only sank in the moment the combined odor of sweat, blood, rubber flooring, old leather, and sharp disinfectants hit his nose.
That and someone’s cry of pain, accompanied by headgear flying across the room.
Dan flinched when the object rolled at his feet. It was splattered with blood.
“Huh? I thought I made it clear I don’t want anyone bringing strangers in here while I train. Which one of you clowns decided to invite a guest without clearing it first?”
Wait a minute…
That’s— No, it can’t—
Dan was not short by any means, but he caught himself craning his head back to properly address the owner of the familiar voice and the imposing presence towering over him.
“Jaekyung?!”
The name left him before he could stop himself. No way… This was unreal. Dan couldn’t remember his friend being this tall. Did he grow even more after dropping out? How long has it been? Six years? Seven years ago, maybe?
A myriad of expressions flew across the other man’s face. It started with confusion, eyes flicking towards the brass name tag clipped to Dan’s scrubs, and then the recognition dawned on his face.
“Dan-hyung?!"
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