The Time Ara Trusted A Gym Bro
Ara agrees to a “light workout” with Changbin and quickly learns that his definition of beginner-friendly is a lie.
This is not proofread, please don’t point out my dyslexic spelling errors I’ll cry ;-;
Ara’s first warning sign should’ve been the way Changbin said it. Not the words, no, those were innocent enough.
“Let’s go to the gym together, noona!”
It was the tone. The absolute conviction. The sparkling, dangerous enthusiasm. The look in his eyes like he’d just been handed the keys to a tank and told it was legally his now.
Ara paused in the dorm hallway with her strawberry lemonade halfway to her lips. “Together?”
Changbin nodded so hard his entire body agreed. “Together.”
“Like…for fun?”
“Fun,” he confirmed with the same voice as someone promising they would “just peek” into a haunted house.
Seungmin, sitting on the couch scrolling through his phone, didn’t even look up. “Don’t do it, noona.”
Ara blinked. “What?”
“I said don’t do it.” Seungmin finally glanced up, expression flat. “He thinks ‘warm-up’ means ‘pre-workout.’”
Changbin whipped his head around. “Yah! Why are you slandering me?”
“Because I love her and I’m trying to save her life,” Seungmin said calmly. “This is an intervention.”
Jeongin, chewing something suspiciously sounding like her favorite granola, leaned over the back of the couch. “Noona, if you go, can I have your snacks?”
Felix appeared from nowhere like a sunshine ghost. “Wait, you’re going to the gym with Changbin?” His eyes got huge with both awe and fear. “Ara…you’re brave.”
Ara stared at them. “Why is everyone acting like Changbin is about to feed me to the barbell?”
Changbin clapped once, loud enough that Felix flinched and Jeongin choked on his (stolen) granola. “Because they are dramatic and weak.”
Seungmin raised one eyebrow. “No, we are traumatized.”
Jeongin nodded solemnly. “I saw him do push-ups while talking. Like…conversation push-ups.”
Felix shuddered. “He does squats when waiting for the microwave.”
Changbin frowned. “That’s called efficiency.”
Ara laughed, but it came out a little uncertain. Changbin wasn’t wrong. He was the kind of person who treated “rest” like a rumor.
Still—this was Changbin. Her boy. Her loud, affectionate, relentlessly supportive Binnie Bear. She loved spending time with him, and she knew he’d been wanting more one-on-one bonding lately, especially with how busy schedules had been.
And…if she was being honest?
Ara had been feeling a little restless. A little out of her body. A little like she’d been pouring herself into everyone else and forgetting to refill her own battery.
Maybe the gym wouldn’t be so bad. Maybe it would be fun. Maybe—
Changbin grinned like he’d read her mind. “I’ll make it easy for you.”
Seungmin’s eyes narrowed. “Liar.”
Changbin pointed at him. “I’m not lying. I mean it. Beginner-friendly. Light workout.”
Ara tilted her head. “Light?”
Changbin placed his hand over his heart like he was swearing an oath. “Light. Like a feather. Like a cloud. Like…Felix’s personality.”
Felix gasped. “That’s the nicest thing anyone’s ever said to me.” He said, wiping a faux tear.
Jeongin stared at Ara. “He’s totally lying.”
Changbin swung his gym bag onto his shoulder with such confidence it should’ve been illegal. “Ara, I will take care of you. I will teach you proper form. I will make you strong.”
Ara took a sip of her lemonade like it would protect her. “I’m already strong.”
Changbin’s eyes softened instantly. “I know. But I mean strong in the ‘you can carry six grocery bags at once’ way.”
Ara laughed again, and this time it was real. “You could’ve just offered to help me with groceries.”
“Too late,” Changbin said brightly. “We go to the gym.”
Seungmin sighed like he was watching a tragedy unfold in real time. “I’ll start preparing the funeral arrangements.”
Ara pointed at him. “Stop it, puppy.”
Seungmin pointed back at her. “Remember I warned you.”
Felix grabbed her hand gently. “If you don’t make it back, I’ll water Kevin the Second for you.”
Ara snorted. “Thanks, Lixie-Pixie.”
Jeongin leaned forward. “Can I have your hoodie that Chan-hyung gave you if you die?”
Ara flicked his forehead, smiling at his giggles. “Get out of my face.”
Changbin practically vibrated with joy. “Let’s gooooo!”
And because Ara loved her boys more than life itself and sometimes made decisions based on affection rather than survival instinct, she agreed to the gym peer pressure..
Ara stood in her and Chan’s closet ten minutes later staring into her closet like it had personally betrayed her.
She wasn’t NOT a gym person. She walked. She danced. She stayed active. She had stamina. She was an idol for god’s sake.
But Changbin-gym was different. Changbin-gym was…a lifestyle. A religion.
A place where people willingly lifted heavy objects repeatedly and then smiled about it like they’d just had a lovely cup of tea.
Ara pulled out a cute matching set—soft pastel, flattering, comfortable—and immediately pictured Changbin saying, “Cute! Now do fifteen burpees.”
She put it back with a whisper of fear.
Then she considered sweatpants and an oversized hoodie. Safe. Modest. Comfy.
But she could already hear Changbin: “You need mobility. You need breath. You need freedom for your limbs.” Like she was about to fight in a medieval war.
She ended up choosing black leggings, a loose shirt of Hyunjins that she turned into a cut up crop top, and a comfy pair of sneakers. Practical. Neutral. Not too cute, yet not too sloppy.
She tied her hair up into a ponytail, stared at her reflection, and pointed at herself sternly.
“This is fine,” she told herself. “It’s gonna be light.”
As she made it back to the living room, Changbin was already stretching like he was preparing for battle.
Ara watched him touch his toes with ease and then casually crack his neck.
“Are you okay?” she asked.
Changbin beamed. “I’m amazing.”
“Are you always…like this before the gym?”
“Before the gym, during the gym, after the gym,” he said. “The gym is inside me.”
Ara blinked. “That sounds like a cult, Binnie.”
Changbin laughed, then noticed her outfit and gave her a thumbs-up. “You look ready.”
“Do I?” Ara asked cautiously.
Changbin nodded. “Yes. You look like you’ll survive.”
Ara narrowed her eyes. “Survive.”
Changbin patted her shoulder. “You’ll be okay, noona. Light workout, remember.”
Seungmin, passing by with a bowl of cereal, muttered without stopping, “Liar.”
Changbin yelled after him, “STOP SAYING THAT!”
Seungmin lifted his spoon in farewell. “Good luck, noona.”
Ara mouthed, ‘help me’.
Seungmin mouthed back, ‘you chose this’.
Felix called from the couch, “Ara! Remember to drink water!”
Ara pointed at him. “Thank you. Someone in this house loves me.”
Felix smiled sweetly. “I do love you!”
Jeongin, mouth now full of Seungmin’s cereal, added, “I love you too. Please leave your snacks where I can find them.”
Ara laughed and ruffled his hair, grabbed her water bottle, and followed Changbin out.
Changbin drove them to the gym like a man on a mission, music up, one hand tapping the steering wheel with enthusiasm.
Ara sat in the passenger seat like she was preparing mentally for a trial.
“I just want to clarify,” she said. “When you say light workout, what does that mean?”
Changbin glanced at her, sincere. “It means we don’t go too heavy.”
Ara nodded slowly. “Okay. And what is ‘too heavy’ for you?”
Changbin paused, thoughtful.
Ara waited.
Changbin said, “We’ll figure it out.”
Ara stared at him. “That’s not an answer.”
Changbin smiled like sunshine. “It’s flexible.”
“It’s a trap, is what it is.” Ara muttered.
Changbin pulled into the parking lot and reached into his gym bag. “Here.”
He held out a small bottle like it was a sacred offering.
Ara squinted. “What is that?”
Changbin said, proud, “Pre-workout.”
Ara recoiled. “Absolutely not.”
Changbin laughed. “It’s not scary.”
Ara eyed the bottle like it might bite her. “Isn’t that the thing that makes your heart feel like it’s running from the police?”
Changbin’s smile widened. “It gives you energy.”
“I already have energy.” She argued.
Changbin tilted his head. “Do you?”
Ara opened her mouth to retort, then closed it.
Changbin leaned closer with puppy eyes. “Just a little.”
Ara pointed at him. “Hey! You are not allowed to weaponize your cuteness.”
Changbin pouted. “Noonaaaaaa.”
Ara sighed. “Fine. A sip.”
Changbin practically sparkled. He opened it, shook it, handed it to her.
Ara took the smallest sip imaginable. It tasted like sour candy, electricity, and regret.
Ara coughed. “Why does it taste like a battery?”
Changbin grinned. “Good, right?”
Ara stared at the container. “This is what people drink willingly?”
“Yes!”
Ara handed it back like it was radioactive. “If I start vibrating, I’m suing you.”
Changbin laughed. “Come on. Let’s go.”
They stepped into the gym and Ara immediately became aware of…everything.
The smell of rubber mats. The clank of weights. The low hum of treadmills. The mirrors. The people.
The people who looked like they practically lived here.
Ara kept her face calm, because she was an idol and she had dignity (and training), but internally she felt like a small animal in a very loud zoo.
Changbin, however, looked like he’d just arrived home after a long trip.
“Okay,” he said, already in trainer mode. “First we warm up.”
Ara nodded. “Okay. Warm up.”
Changbin pointed toward the treadmills.
Ara followed him, still optimistic.
Five minutes later, she realized that optimism is for fools.
Ara walked at a gentle pace, thinking, ‘Okay. This is fine. This is normal.’
Changbin walked beside her at a pace that suggested he was power-walking away from any of his problems.
Then he increased his incline.
Ara stared. “Why did you do that.”
Changbin blinked innocently. “Warm up.”
Ara glanced at her treadmill. “My incline is zero.”
Changbin looked genuinely confused. “Why?”
“Because,” Ara said slowly, “I am warming up.”
Changbin frowned like she was speaking a foreign language. “But you’re not…sweating.”
Ara leaned toward him. “Changbin. If I sweat during the warm-up, I will die during the workout.”
Changbin’s face brightened with inspiration. “Okay. Then we make you sweat during warm-up a little.”
Ara’s eyes widened. “No—”
Changbin reached over and pressed buttons.
Ara’s treadmill incline rose.
Ara’s treadmill speed rose.
Ara’s soul left her body.
“Changbin!” she yelped.
Changbin held up both hands. “It’s still light! Just a little!”
Ara began power-walking against gravity like she was hiking up a mountain in flip-flops.
“Why am I climbing Everest?” she demanded.
Changbin jogged beside her easily, breathing normally. “You’re doing great!”
Ara stared at him with betrayal in her eyes. “You’re not even sweating.”
Changbin blinked. “I don’t sweat until later.”
Ara wheezed. “I’m sweating now.”
Changbin’s smile softened. “Okay, okay. After warm-up, we stretch.”
Ara gasped out, “Thank God.”
Changbin nodded. “Then we do legs.”
Ara froze. “…Legs?”
Changbin’s grin returned. “Yeah.”
Ara stared at him like he’d just said he was going to throw her into the sun.
“You said light workout,” she reminded him.
“This is light,” Changbin said confidently. “Legs are essential.”
Ara narrowed her eyes. “Why are you trying to ruin my ability to walk?”
Changbin laughed, delighted. “Ara, trust me. You will feel strong.”
Ara muttered, “I already feel regret.”
Changbin, oblivious to her spiritual crisis, checked his watch. “Okay! Warm-up done. Stretch time.”
Ara stepped off the treadmill and immediately felt her calves complain. Not in pain. Not yet. But complained like they were filing paperwork.
Changbin guided her to the mats and dropped into a deep stretch with the ease of someone who had never been betrayed by their own muscles.
Ara lowered into a stretch and immediately realized her body and Changbin’s body were operating under different laws of physics.
Changbin watched her carefully. “Don’t force it.”
Ara nodded, grateful. “Thank you.”
Changbin gently adjusted her posture with light pressure on her shoulder, a quiet correction at her hip, respectful and focused.
Ara appreciated it…until he said casually,
“Okay. Now do it deeper.”
Ara blinked. “Deeper.”
Changbin nodded. “Yeah. You can do it.”
Ara stared at him. “You’re actually trying to break me.”
Changbin laughed. “No! I’m trying to improve you.”
“I was fine,” Ara said, stretching like her hamstrings were strings about to snap. “I was a complete person before this. Now I’m shattered.”
Changbin clapped once. “Okay! Now we do squats.”
Ara inhaled. “Okay. Squats. I can do squats.”
Changbin’s face lit up. “Yes, you can! That’s the spirit.”
Ara held onto that confidence like a life raft. They walked to the squat rack. Ara looked at the bar. The bar looked back. The bar looked… heavy.
Ara swallowed. “That’s…the bar.”
Changbin nodded. “Yes. That’s the bar.”
Ara pointed at it. “Isn’t that too heavy?”
Changbin blinked again, innocent. “It’s just the bar.”
Ara stared at him. “That is legally a weapon.”
Changbin laughed. “Ara. It’s okay. We’ll start with no weight.”
Ara exhaled. “Okay. Good. No weight.”
Changbin stepped behind her. “Feet shoulder-width. Chest up. Engage your core.”
Ara…certainly did her best.
Changbin’s trainer voice got gentle, encouraging. “Good. Now sit back like you’re sitting into a chair.”
Ara lowered into a squat.
Changbin watched with proud eyes. “Yes! Perfect.”
Ara rose again, feeling smug for exactly one second.
Changbin said, “Okay. Now do it ten more times.”
Ara’s smugness died.
“Ten?”
Changbin nodded. “Ten. Easy.”
Ara started counting aloud.
“One…two…three…”
By “five,” she was beginning to regret ever being born.
Changbin, meanwhile, looked like he was watching a baby animal take its first steps.
“Ara,” he said softly, almost reverent. “Your form is good.”
Ara panted. “Thank you.”
Changbin smiled. “Okay. Now we add the bar.”
Ara stopped breathing. “…Add the bar.”
Changbin nodded as if it was the most normal thing in the world. “Just the bar.”
Ara stared at him like she was seeing him for the first time.
“This,” she said slowly, “is not beginner-friendly.”
Changbin leaned forward, serious for a moment. “Ara, I promise. You can do it. I will spot you.”
Ara didn’t know why, but something about his sincerity made her chest warm.
Changbin might be a force to be reckoned with in the gym, but he wasn’t cruel. Especially not to her. He genuinely believed in her. He genuinely wanted her to feel strong.
Ara sighed dramatically. “Fine.”
Changbin’s smile returned immediately. “Yes!”
He loaded the bar into position and guided her beneath it carefully, hands hovering near her shoulders, ready to help without overstepping.
“Okay,” Changbin said. “Grip here. Good. Elbows down. Yes. Now, breathe.”
Ara took a breath.
The bar settled across her shoulders.
It was heavier than she expected.
Ara’s eyes widened.
Changbin noticed instantly and softened his voice as he held her waist. “It’s okay. It’s just a bar. Your body is stronger than you think.”
Ara swallowed. “I feel it in my bones.”
Changbin chuckled. “One rep.”
“One,” Ara echoed. “Just one.”
Changbin nodded. “Just one.”
Ara bent her knees and lowered carefully. Her thighs immediately screamed at her.
Changbin leaned closer. “Good. Good. Now push up.”
Ara pushed.
Her legs shook.
Changbin’s hands held her waist. “I’ve got you. Push.”
Ara’s jaw clenched. She pushed harder.
She rose back up.
She did it.
She stood there, panting, eyes wide with shock.
Changbin lit up like she’d won an Olympic medal. “YES! Ara! That was good!”
Ara blinked. “I did it.”
Changbin laughed. “You did it!”
Ara, albeit against her will, felt proud. Just a little.
Then Changbin said the sentence that changed everything. “Okay. Again.”
Ara stared at him.
Changbin smiled.
Ara whispered, “No.”
Changbin’s smile didn’t falter. “Just one more.”
Ara’s soul left her body again. And that was when Ara realized: The gym wasn’t going to be a cute bonding activity. It was going to be a disaster.
A hilarious, humiliating, potentially character-building disaster. And Changbin—sweet, supportive, terrifying Changbin—was only getting started.
Ara realized she was in trouble when the gym started getting…noisier.
Not louder, exactly, it had always been loud, but sharper. Every sound felt like it was being piped directly into her head and amplified. The clank of weights became metallic and sudden. The whirr of treadmills buzzed like static. Someone dropped a dumbbell across the room and the thud made her flinch before she could stop herself.
She straightened immediately, slightly embarrassed, hoping Changbin hadn’t noticed.
He had.
“Hey,” he said gently, stepping closer. “You okay?”
Ara nodded too fast. “Yeah. Totally. I’m good.”
Changbin studied her for half a second longer than she deemed necessary, then smiled. “See? You’re doing great.”
She smiled back, because that was easier than explaining that her chest felt tight in a way that wasn’t physical, that her skin felt too aware of everything touching it—the bar, the mat, the sweat, the noise, the mirrors.
She told herself to breathe. She could do this.
Changbin turned back toward the rack, already talking. “Okay, we’ll do one more set, then we switch machines.”
Ara’s smile didn’t falter.
‘One more set’, she told herself. ‘You can do one more set.’
She stepped back under the bar again, positioning herself carefully. Changbin guided her with soft instructions, his voice calm and encouraging.
“Feet here. Good. Core tight. Breathe.”
She breathed and lowered. Her legs protested immediately, muscles trembling in a way that was new and uncomfortable. The bar felt heavier than it had a minute ago. Her heartbeat thudded in her ears, loud and fast.
“Good,” Changbin said. “Push up.”
Ara pushed.
Her vision blurred for half a second, not dangerously, just enough to make her heart spike. She made it up, locked her knees, and exhaled shakily.
Changbin beamed. “That’s it! One more.”
Ara nodded, even though her legs felt like jelly. She didn’t want to disappoint him.
Changbin wasn’t being mean. He wasn’t pushing her cruelly. He genuinely believed she could handle this, and that belief meant something to her. She’d always admired how seriously he took things, how passionate he was, how deeply he cared.
So she stayed quiet as she squatted again. Halfway down, her knees wobbled.
Changbin noticed immediately, hands holding her waist a bit tighter this time. “It’s okay. Slow.”
Ara nodded, jaw tight. She pushed back up, but this time her breath hitched, chest tightening in a way that made her pause.
She stood there longer than necessary, hands gripping the bar, trying to ground herself.
Changbin noticed that too.
“Hey,” he said softly, moving a bit to step into her line of sight. “You don’t have to rush.”
Ara forced a small laugh. “I’m fine. Just…catching my breath.”
Changbin nodded, trusting her. “Okay. We’ll rack it.”
Relief washed through her so fast it made her dizzy.
He helped her rerack the bar and stepped back, clapping once. “Good job.”
Ara smiled, but it felt stiff on her face.
They moved away from the squat rack, Changbin already talking about the next exercise.
“Okay, we’ll do something lighter now,” he said. “Machines are easier.”
Ara nodded again, her movements automatic.
The gym felt brighter suddenly. Too bright. The lights overhead reflected harshly in the mirrors, and seeing herself multiplied from every angle made her skin prickle.
She focused on Changbin’s voice. Anchored herself to it. He guided her to a leg press machine and demonstrated with exaggerated clarity, making sure she understood.
“This one’s nice,” he said. “You sit. Push with your legs. We’ll keep it light.”
Ara sat, adjusting the seat. The vinyl was too cold against her skin. Changbin loaded a very reasonable amount of weight. To him.
Ara stared at the plates. “That’s…light?”
Changbin laughed. “It’s okay. Trust me.”
She did. She trusted him immensely. She placed her feet, hands gripping the sides.
Changbin stepped back. “Okay. Push.”
Ara pushed.
The resistance hit her immediately, thighs burning in a way that made her gasp softly. She pushed it back up, heart racing.
Changbin smiled. “Yes! Good! Again!”
Ara swallowed and did it again.
By the fourth rep, her breath was shallow. By the seventh, her hands were trembling slightly where they gripped the seat.
Changbin didn’t notice at first, he was watching her legs, her form, the machine.
“You’re doing so well,” he said warmly. “Almost there.”
Ara nodded, vision tunneling just a bit. The noise around her felt like it was pressing in from all sides now—overlapping conversations, weights hitting the floor, music pounding faintly overhead.
She finished the set and sat there, frozen, staring at her knees like they might run away.
Changbin clapped again. “Okay! Rest.”
Ara didn’t move.
Changbin frowned slightly. “Ara?”
She blinked, snapping out of it. “Yeah. Sorry.”
She stood, legs shaky, and immediately had to steady herself by gripping the machine.
Changbin was there in an instant.
“Hey—” He reached out, not grabbing, just hovering close. “Sit. Sit down.”
Ara shook her head quickly. “I’m okay. Really.”
Changbin searched her face now, concern flickering across his features. “You sure?”
She nodded again, more forcefully this time. “I don’t want to stop. I can keep going.”
Changbin hesitated.
This was the moment.
The moment he could have pushed her, the moment she was afraid of disappointing him, and she braced herself for it.
Instead, Changbin sighed softly.
“Okay,” he said, but his voice had changed. Softer. Slower. “But we slow it down.”
Ara’s shoulders loosened just a fraction.
They moved over to the benches, taking a break. He stayed seated beside her instead of standing over her, watching her closely.
They sat in silence for a bit.
The gym still felt loud, but sitting helped. Being lower to the ground helped. Changbin’s presence beside her—solid, calm, nonjudgmental—helped the most.
She focused on her breathing. In through her nose. Out through her mouth.
Changbin spoke quietly. “You don’t have to prove anything to me, you know.”
Ara’s fingers curled into the bench.
“I know,” she said quickly.
Changbin glanced at her. “Do you?”
She didn’t answer right away. She couldn’t. The truth sat heavy in her chest. She wanted to be capable. She wanted to be strong. She wanted to be the person everyone relied on without needing to stop.
And she wanted Changbin, her intense, earnest Changbin, to be proud of her.
“I just…” she said finally, voice soft. “I didn’t want to quit.”
Changbin’s expression softened completely.
“You’re not quitting,” he said gently. “You’re listening to your body. That’s strength too.”
Ara swallowed, throat tight. “You’re not disappointed?”
Changbin looked genuinely startled. “Ara.” He said, honorifics dropping as his tone took a serious shift.
He turned toward her fully now, voice firm but kind. “I’m proud of you. You showed up. You tried. That’s already more than enough.”
Something in her chest cracked, not painfully, just enough to let air back in. She let herself lean back against the wall, eyes closing for a second.
“Okay,” she murmured.
Changbin smiled. “Okay.”
They sat there for a moment longer, just breathing.
Then Changbin’s phone buzzed.
He glanced at it and groaned. “Oh no.”
Ara opened one eye. “What?”
Changbin showed her the screen, his messages open on their group chat.
Felix: Did she survive or should we call emergency services?
Jeongin: Is mom alive????
Seungmin: I told you she wouldn’t live through it.
Ara snorted before she could stop herself.
Changbin laughed too, relief obvious. “See? Even they had doubts.”
Ara wiped at her eyes, smiling now, truly smiling. “You’re telling them everything, aren’t you.”
Changbin grinned. “Only the embarrassing parts.”
Ara sighed. “Of course.”
Changbin stood and looked down at her. “Okay. New plan.”
She smiled up at him, looking every bit of tired she felt.
“We’re done for today.”
Ara blinked. “Really?”
Changbin nodded. “Really. We’ll go eat. My treat.”
Ara laughed softly. “As an apology?”
Changbin pretended to think. “Yes. For lying about ‘light workout.’”
Ara rolled her eyes playfully. “You’re lucky I like you.”
Changbin grinned and nodded. “Very lucky.”
Ara realized how bad it was the moment she stood up from the bench.
Her legs said no. Not a polite no. Not a negotiable no. A firm, unionized, legally binding no. She froze mid-stand, hands gripping the edge of the bench, brain doing frantic calculations.
Changbin, tying his shoes with suspicious ease, glanced over. “You good?”
Ara smiled. It was a lie. “Yeah.”
She took another step. Her knees buckled like they’d just remembered every bad thing she’d ever done. Ara made a noise somewhere between a squeak and a whimper.
Changbin’s head snapped up. “Ara—”
“I’M FINE,” she said quickly, waving one hand while clinging to the bench with the other. “My legs are just…buffering.”
Changbin stared at her.
Ara attempted to walk again.
She moved exactly three inches before her legs gave up entirely and she plopped back down onto the bench with a defeated thump.
Changbin’s face went through several emotions in rapid succession: Concern, guilt, panic and suppressed laughter. He failed at the fourth.
“I’m so sorry,” he said, covering his mouth while laughing helplessly. “I—I didn’t think—”
Ara glared at him. “You did this to me.”
Changbin nodded immediately. “I did this to you.”
Ara crossed her arms. “I trusted you.”
Changbin bowed his head. “I betrayed that trust.”
Ara sighed dramatically and leaned back. “I will never walk again.”
Changbin crouched in front of her, still smiling but clearly remorseful. “Okay. Don’t move.”
Ara narrowed her eyes. “Why.”
Changbin grinned sheepishly. “Because I’m carrying you.”
Ara blinked. “You are absolutely not—”
Changbin stood, hands already sliding under her knees and behind her back with practiced ease.
Ara yelped softly. “Binnie!”
“Relax,” he said gently. “I got you.”
She froze for half a second, then sighed and let herself relax into his hold.
“…You owe me so much food,” she muttered.
Changbin laughed. “Anything you want.”
They got a few odd looks on the way out of the gym, Changbin carrying Ara like she weighed nothing, Ara hiding her face in his shoulder out of embarrassment.
“I hate this,” she mumbled.
Changbin grinned. “I think it’s cute.”
“I will hurt you,” she warned.
Changbin adjusted his grip carefully. “Worth it.”
_________ ׂׂૢ་༘࿐
Changbin chose a convenience store first, insisting she needed “recovery fuel.”
Ara sat in the car while Changbin returned with an alarming amount of items.
He set them down on the middle console one by one like offerings.
“Protein shake.”
Ara squinted. “That’s the one that tastes like chalk.”
Changbin nodded. “But it builds muscle.”
Ara pushed it away. “I will simply perish instead.”
Changbin laughed and slid it aside. “Okay. Chocolate milk.”
“Better.”
“Banana.” He said next.
Ara stared. “I’m not an athlete.”
Changbin smiled. “You were today.”
Ara sighed, then took the banana. “You’re lucky you’re so charming.”
Changbin leaned back in the drivers seat. “I really am sorry.”
She glanced at him. “I know.”
He hesitated. “I didn’t realize how intense it would be for you. I can get…carried away.”
Ara smiled softly. “You’re passionate. That’s not a bad thing.”
Changbin looked relieved. “You didn’t disappoint me. Not even a little.”
She leaned over and kissed his cheek, smile growing at his smile. “Good. Because I almost cried at the leg press.”
Changbin winced. “I’ll never forgive that machine.”
They laughed together, the tension fully gone now.
_________ ׂׂૢ་༘࿐
The moment they walked into the dorm, chaos greeted them.
Felix was the first to see them.
He gasped. “SHE’S ALIVE.”
Jeongin, Hyunjin and Han ran over excitedly. “Noona!”
Seungmin and Minho looked up from the couch. “Oh. You survived.” Seungmin said.
Ara attempted to walk. Attempted and failed. Changbin caught her immediately.
Minho blinked. “…What happened.”
Ara pointed weakly at Changbin. “Crimes.”
Felix rushed over. “Are you hurt?!”
“No,” Ara said quickly. “Just…extremely sore.”
Chan appeared from the hallway, having been napping, eyes sharp and concerned. “What happened?”
Changbin straightened instantly. “I pushed her a little too hard.”
Chan stared at him and Changbin stared back. Changbin looked away first as he bowed deeply. “I’m sorry.”
Ara waved a hand. “It’s fine. He stopped when I needed to.”
Chan studied her face, then nodded. “Okay.”
Seungmin crossed his arms. “I warned you.”
Ara sighed. “You did.”
Jeongin peered at her legs, crouched down. “Can I poke them?”
“No.”
He poked them anyway.
Ara shrieked. “YANG JEONGIN!”
Felix laughed nervously. “So…gym was fun?”
Ara deadpanned. “I saw every god imaginable.”
Changbin snorted.
Ara lay stretched out on the couch, wrapped in blankets like a burrito.
Changbin hovered nearby like an anxious mother hen, handing her water, adjusting pillows, apologizing again.
“You don’t need to babysit me,” she murmured.
Changbin frowned. “I absolutely do.”
She smiled. “You’re too sweet.”
He flushed. “Don’t tell anyone.”
Seungmin walked by and tossed her a heating pad. “For your suffering.”
Ara caught it gratefully. “Thank you.”
Felix knelt beside her, his cheek resting on her chest as he looked at her. “You were really brave today.”
Ara laughed softly and instinctively ran her fingers through his hair. “I don’t know about that.”
Felix smiled. “You tried something scary. That’s brave.”
Her chest warmed.
Changbin sat on the floor beside the couch, leaning back against it. “Next time,” he said quietly, “we do something less intense.”
Ara hummed. “Like what.”
Changbin smiled. “Walking. Stretching. Maybe yoga.”
Ara laughed. “You doing yoga?”
Changbin shrugged. “For you? I’d try.”
She looked down at him, fondness swelling as she leaned over, kissing his head. “You’re a good boy, Binnie.”
Changbin looked up, eyes sincere. “You’re strong. Even when you don’t feel like it.”
Ara smiled, eyes soft. The gym had been a mistake. But this?
This was worth it.