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

Chapter 16: Predators on the Track

Han's brow was glistening with sweat, but he surveyed the crowd coolly, with a detached eye. The crowd surveyed him back hungrily.

"That guy might be my new husband. Sorry, Jungsan team."

"He didn't even look like he was trying."

"Now I understand why JL and Han are the top two."

"Am I... Am I a Haneulz now?"

Commentary from rival teams:

"JL's terrifying. Han's terrifying. We're cooked."

"Han didn't even break stride. Like he expected to win."

"Confident bastard, he could at least pretend he was competing".

"That's not confidence. That's cold-blooded execution."

Jeongwoo was up next.

His event: hurdles.

He walked to the start line with his towel draped across his shoulders. Anyone else would have looked like a sweaty athlete, but Jeongwoo looked like a model at a luxury sports shoot.

The crowd buzzed.

He stretched slowly, arms high overhead, revealing a tank and sculpted arms. He smiled to the crowd, like the sun coming up behind a cloud. A girl in the bleachers dropped her juice box. Many, many phone cameras snapped shots.

Jeongwoo dropped his towel onto a chair.

The whistle blew.

Jeongwoo launched forward. Clean, graceful, devastatingly smooth over every hurdle. He wasn't just fast - he made it look effortless. On the final leap, he twisted just enough midair to acknowledge the stands.

His time placed top three across all schools. Someone in the crowd made a sound like a dying whale, and Jeongwoo grinned.

Chih En's turn.

500m relay starter.

When he stepped out onto the track he was calm, quiet, almost bored. His long black hair was pinned back under his sports headband, his skin almost blinding in the sun. If he could hear the screams in the stands begging him to turn around, he didn't show it. For Chih En, the goal was an exam to be completed -- with careful study, precision, and efficiency.

A teammate approached with the baton. He was poised, ready to grip it with delicate fingers. As soon as his hand touched the baton, his leg muscles coiled and released like springs. His time shocked the timing board. His form was beautiful. There was no wasted movement.

Halfway through the lap, someone muttered, "He's like a machine." Another whispered, "A really, really hot machine."

As soon as he finished his lap, the records showed his time in the top 3, just like Jeongwoo. Chih En returned to the bench, took a sip of water, and stared calmly into space.

Steven blinked. "Was that... new?" Woongki fanned himself with a program sheet. "He got even more attractive. Not fair."

Twitter, mid-meet:

@fieldreporter_ah: JL is just an absolute beast. What does he eat for breakfast to make him run like that???

@qkr2025: Han doesn't run. He commands the lane. Ice in his veins, that guy.

@jwoostan_: Jeongwoo clears hurdles like he's floating. CAN HE NOT SMILE LIKE THAT BECAUSE I DON'T THINK I CAN HANDLE IT???