Running to You | Park Han + JL + Steven | Haneulz + Stejay AU

Chapter 2: First Impressions

JL chuckled to himself. "You're the one invading his country, dumbass."

There was a knock on the door. Juwon peeked in. "Yo. We're doing breakfast runs. You in?" JL stood quickly. "Yeah, just let me... wait. Juwon?"

The boy grinned. "Guess you didn't expect to meet your gaming buddy in the flesh, huh?"

JL laughed. "Screw u, nub! You're a lot taller than I imagined."

"Yeah, I get that a lot." Juwon was tall, with broad shoulders, all legs, and very light on his feet. Compared to the rest of the people in the hall trudging sleepily past, Juwon moved with the smooth, precise grace of a natural dancer. 

They walked to the dining hall together, easy and light. Juwon was the kind of person who would have been his best friend back home. He was charming, popular, and had a bright and warm personality that could bring even the worst introvert out of their shell. At least ten people greeted Juwon when they walked into the dining hall, two of them looking like they wanted to propose. JL felt his shoulders ease for the first time since landing in Korea.

* * * 

Track Gym, Later that Day.

"Yo," someone barked, slamming down a water bottle. "Is that the rookie headed towards here with a tray of muffins?"

"Man, put those guns away before they hurt somebody," Kyungho said, gesturing to Steven's bulging biceps with a roll of kinetic tape. "Good morning to you too." 

Heads turned as Steven Kim crossed the gym, shoulders broad, almond-shaped eyes narrowed, his features as chiseled as ever. He was in full compression wear, which meant everyone he passed on his way to the gym ended up doing a double take. He had a nickname among the fans:  The Australian Fox. They claimed it suited his intense gaze. 

Next to him, Jeongwoo leaned against the wall, arms crossed. "Yup, the one who wrecked Park Han's time trial." Steven whistled.

Behind them, Juwon flipped a towel over his shoulder. "I can't believe I played LoL in a trash bracket with that guy for a year and never knew he could run like that."

"He's cute," said Woongki, half under his breath. Steven gave him a look. "You think everyone's cute." 

Woongki shrugged, sipping his smoothie. "He's got nice hands. I can tell."

"He's fast," Jeongwoo muttered. "That's what matters."

Just then, JL entered the gym, headphones on, face slightly pink. Unbelievably, he seemed to be carrying a small tray of banana bread muffins. Homemade, warm, delicious banana bread muffins.

He saw the guys, froze, then bowed three times in rapid succession. "Hyungs! Um,  I brought snacks. Sorry if I'm intruding." Steven blinked. Jeongwoo raised an eyebrow. Woongki lit up.

"You baked?" Woongki gasped. JL nodded, flustered. "It's just from a mix, nothing special. I--I do it to calm down before meets." 

Jeongwoo took a bite and paused. "This is... incredible."

JL flushed, rubbing his nose. "Really?"

"Are you single?" Woongki asked instantly.

"Woongki," Kyungho said flatly, walking in behind them with his towel slung over his neck.

Ah yes. Kyungho. The alpha of alphas. Tall, dominating, and competitive. Rumor said he once trained through a fever so intense he hallucinated a win.

He looked JL up and down once. Then nodded. "Gaspar, right? Welcome to KNSU." JL inclined his head. "Thank you, sunbaenim.

Kyungho didn't smile. But his expression wasn't unkind.  "I saw your time. We'll see how you do in real competition." JL's smile faltered a little, but he nodded again. "Yes, hyung."

Han, watching the new recruit from the stairs, narrowed his eyes. JL wasn't performing now. He was just absorbing every comment, every gaze, every judgment. He never pushed back. But he never stepped down either.

It was like watching a sponge soak up gasoline. Han bit the inside of his cheek. He wanted to see him ignite on the track again.

* * * 

A relay practice was scheduled and Han was team captain. JL was placed on his team. Kyungho was on the opposing squad, alongside Steven and Jeongwoo.

As they lined up, Kyungho leaned over and muttered to Han, "Better keep your puppy in line. Or we'll smoke you, golden boy." Han didn't respond.

But when JL stepped into the second leg position and pulled off his warm-up shirt to reveal those lean, sculpted arms, someone whistled from the crowd.

Steven: "I thought this guy was shy."

Woongki: "That's what makes it worse. He is shy. But he's like some sort of feral variant that doesn't know what effect he has on others."

The gun fired.

First leg:  clean. Han passed the baton to JL with practiced ease.

And then, JL's infamous change of expression.

JL tore through the track. His entire demeanor had changed: spine lengthened, expression hardening, eyes darkening. He passed Steven with ease and didn't even look back.

They won. Obviously. The gym exploded. Fans screamed their heads off.

Afterward, as the teams cooled down, JL crouched near the bench, wiping sweat from his brow and offering water bottles to the seniors.

Steven gaped a little at him. "You dusted me like I was standing still."

JL looked horrified. "I hope I haven't offended you," he said timidly.

"No, it's great," Woongki said, sitting beside him with stars in his eyes.

Steven laughed. "I'm Australian. If we don't insult you, we don't like you. We're good. "

Jeongwoo turned to Han. In a quiet voice, he said, "You better keep an eye on that one."

Han didn't answer. He wasn't a man of many words. He was straightforward and frank, an arrow headed towards a clear goal. But something about JL's duality, the way he slipped so effortlessly from gentleness into power... it made Han feel something he hadn't felt in years.

Inspired. And maybe just a little competitive. Threatened? He shook the thought off and returned to the dorm. But the image of JL running, of that intense gaze, that unbelievable certainty in himself when he ran, would not leave him. That gaze kept popping up in his mind during moments he expected it least.

It was aggravating.