Tulip Bud~
A light pink of failing love. Shows signs of wear in a place where a relationship once flourished.
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"I need your help."
I pace the empty corridors of the apartment complex basement, hugging the phone tight to my ear. On my sides are narrow hallways meant only for cleaning personnel to travel within. I shouldn't technically be in here, but I am. Since I needed a phone for contacting someone trustworthy, I had to go to certain heights.
Luckily, I caught a janitor cleaning the lobby bathroom of the dormitory. He was nice enough to let me borrow his phone on the way back from practice. If Coach Kan realized the irony of this task, it's that I really DO have janitors that are fans. The guy who lent me this phone knows my name and asked me for an autograph. Kan would be shocked.
"Help? You need my help?" McKayla Maroney seems worried. Her voice grows alarmed once my silence confirms her questions. I really do need help. "With what? Are you okay? Why are you calling from an unknown phone?"
"Yes, I'm alright. I uh, borrowed the phone." I lower my voice, checking behind me for any stray people. No one is there. No one I can see at least. In the dull yellow tunnels of the complex's basement, there are no eavesdroppers to this conversation other than, perhaps, ghosts. "Leo is the one who isn't alright. Leo needs my help."
McKayla hums, clearly perplexed. "Leonardo Costa? I just saw him today. He seemed fine to me. What's wrong with him?"
I unconsciously trace my fingers along the wall, cringing when I feel the tickle of dust on my skin. The paradox of cleaners residing in such an uncleanly place doesn't get past me. I shake my head at the greasy-looking walls, wondering if the janitors trash the basement when they're done beautifying the upper floors. I guess they don't have the same cleaning statues to follow down here.
"Ah, it's nothing wrong with HIM. It's...Leo's father." I sigh, rubbing my temple aggravatedly with a free hand. "His father is the one with the problem. And it's not going well for Leo."
"What do you mean? You mean his coaching style? If you're talking about strictness, I get it. My coach can be an asshole sometimes-"
"No, not strictness...it's, ugh." I lick my lips in contemplation. Do I tell her about Leo's abuse? It's not my right to, but it's getting so out of hand. Him showing up to practice with marks that can't be explained by natural injury...it's WRONG.
"His father is...well..."
"Is what?"
"Is...he's..."
"Jungkook, say it already. I can't help you if you won't tell me the basics here."
"Leo's father is abusive."
Silence on the other line. I hear the faint sound of her breathing, but nothing else. I swallow a thick lump down my throat, hoping I did the right thing. It seems like minutes before she decides to speak again.
"Please tell me you're lying."
My heart throbs. I wish I could tell her I was lying. I wish none of this was true, that Leo was just another happy gymnast training in the sport that he loves, trying to compete for the gold medal at the grand London Olympic Games.
But I know that's not the case.
"I'm not lying. His father says horrible things to him that he won't tell me. He also hits him. I saw a bruise on his neck earlier today. There's no limit to his father's—woah." One of the pipes in the basement makes a gushing noise that startles me terribly. I jolt backwards, knocking into the wall. Scoffing at my own jumpiness down here, I pull the phone closer to my face. "Sorry about that, I just got scared. I feel like Coach Kan is going to show up out of no where and see that I'm on the phone."
"What's wrong with you being on the phone?" McKayla sounds thoroughly confused. I forgot that I haven't told her about the training separation, phone prohibition, or the...well, the relationship between me and Leo. I don't think I need to mention the latter in order for her to realize the danger.
"Uh, I kinda got in trouble at practice. Kan said my form was worsening, and now he won't let me use my phone. He also took away my iPod. He wants me to focus only on training. The Olympics are in two weeks. I can't afford to spend my attention on anything else."
She hums. "Ah...that sucks, but I get it. Coaches get really harsh before the big day...is Leonardo's father getting worse? I think I know what you mean by a mark on his neck, but that could have been from the high bar training, or like, anything else. But if you're convinced his dad is doing it-"
"I KNOW his father is doing it!" I don't mean to be loud, but I am. My voice carries throughout the hallways, echoing down the ends and returning back to me. I hope the janitors on the floor above me didn't hear the outburst. "I know it, McKayla. I was there when Leo got slapped once. Leo dislikes his dad, but he feels like he owes him something, given he's the best gymnast in the whole world and his father got him there. So he's in a really tough position."
"Oh...no..."
"Yeah. It's bad."
McKayla takes a deep breath. She releases it right into my ear, and I pull the melancholy-riven phone off of my shoulder. She's just as distraught as I am.
"Okay...I'll help you. Tell me how to help."
Nodding, I feel a burst of gratitude spread throughout my body. Her agreement to aid in Operation Help Leo makes my life a lot easier. She'll be our go-between, our living system of messaging as we travel into the last week of training.
I'm praying that it'll work.
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McKayla runs to catch up with Jungkook in the rec room of the complex.
"Hey! Jungkook, hey!"
Jungkook glances up from under the low, navy rim of his baseball cap, quickly taking in the scope of his environment. Only two other male gymnasts lounge in the rec room, ignoring him and McKayla to talk spiritedly about London. The soft thrum of air-conditioning fills the space, and various staff members occasionally pass through the area toting important bags in hand. This close to the final week of practice, the building is alive with activity. Last minute plans for gymnasts, affirmations of strategic routine moves, and travel requirements for the gymnasts are constantly monitored. Everything must be perfect in London before the athletes arrive...before the grand opening ceremony of the London Games.
"McKayla, hi. I'm so glad to see-" Jungkook gets cut off as McKayla tears him from the blue-cushioned seat. Her arms wrap around him in a hug, nearly squeezing the life out of him with their ferocity. He shifts under her arms before gradually bringing up his own to rest on her back, flooded by the bright magenta aura of McKayla. She laughs, squeezing him tighter.
"Gosh, I haven't seen you in forever."
"It's been one week." Jungkook mumbles against her black sweatshirt.
Today, McKayla's usual dolled-up face is long gone, replaced by the tired pallor of someone in tough training day-in and day-out. It's a weathered veteran look, one of someone who is hard at work and consistently ambitious. He likes this side of McKayla more than her flamboyant one, surprisingly. It seems more open, honest. Now that they're friends, they're not wrought with the same need to impress the other, so appearance isn't a top priority.
"Ah one week, yeah yeah. Am I not allowed to miss my favorite male gymnast?"
Jungkook grins, pulling apart from her. "You are allowed to miss me, but I think people are starting to look."
In the corner of the rec room, peeping eyes quickly turn away when McKayla faces them. Like repellant, their questioning stares are warded off by McKayla's dagger stare, pushed away forcefully with her chin lifted in a challenge. McKayla hmphs, angry that she has an audience yet pleased that she removed their attention from the male-female gymnast hug.
"Okay...I have my phone. So you want me to film you talking...then you want me to find Leonardo after practice, show the video to him, record him speaking his answer, and finally return the phone to you...right?"
"Yes. Exactly." Jungkook motions for them to start walking. Putting distance between them and eavesdroppers would be beneficial for their surreptitious plan. If Kan or Costa Sr. found out about this mode of communication between them—using McKayla as the middleman—they would be irate. "But you can't make it obvious. The first time around you should leave your phone somewhere and tell him where it is. Stay away while he watches my video. If other people see you two near each other and talking, they might ask questions. So only go by him when you're filming his response. And do it at the end of a quiet hallway."
McKayla nods as their footfalls line up along the lower level of the apartment complex. Late at night, the gymnasts don't have too much free time before lights out, but a few linger around the building anyway. The dorm rooms aren't the best in terms of space, so those who get claustrophobic can sit here until they're forced in for the night. Jungkook didn't have the same excuse, but still had a right to leave room 333 as a member of the Road to London camp.
Still, he took precautions. Jungkook told Coach Kan what he was doing beforehand so that when the motion sensor cam went off in his room, he wouldn't get in trouble.
Speaking with McKayla in the common area of the apartments is hardly a crime, but Coach Kan didn't see it that way. Kan didn't appreciate the idea of him speaking with her at all. Jungkook had to spend ten minutes convincing him that room 333 was too small of a space for him to move around in. By using a variety of persuasion tactics, including the argument that more blood would travel to his competition muscles if he moved around the complex, Kan was eventually swayed.
But he was limited in time. He only had twenty minutes with McKayla before the other male gymnast group would exit practice. Then was McKayla's chance to corner Leonardo and relay Jungkook's message to him through her phone. Without McKayla's phone, the system wouldn't work. As long as a trusted third party held the evidence of their rebellion, no one would get in trouble. McKayla Maroney was that trusted, mediator go-between.
"Wait a sec." McKayla stops them next to a tall, flowy plant leaning against the windows facing the front of the building. "I get why Kan wouldn't let you use a phone these last weeks of practice...but not seeing Leonardo? Not training with him? Why not?"
"Uh..." Jungkook grimaces, remembering the injured red aura of Leo when Kan discovered them in the room together. "He doesn't want me to fraternize with the enemy. Kan thinks that if I hang out with Leo, he'll somehow taint me or make me sympathize with him...leading to the path of failure. A silver medal."
The plant gets flicked by McKayla's hand. "That's really dumb. Why can't Kan see that Leonardo is just another hardworking, dedicated gymnast? Shouldn't competitors get along? Fuck the competitor climate. I hate it."
"Me too." Jungkook backs up against the wall, running a hand through his hair a few times. His hair needs to look perfect when Leo sees it. "Okay, now I don't have much time. You need to film the video of me talking. I know exactly what I need to say..."
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"Oh? Jeon Jungkook? Why are you-"
"I need to talk to you." Jungkook storms into the office, wiping aggravated tears off of his cheeks. Wordlessly, he plops down into a seat, cradling his head with shaky hands.
His brown eyes pierce into the carpeting of the office, tearing apart the ugly strands of the soft floor with his mind. His lips tremble as he bites on them hard, stifling the urge to break into sobs. Continuously, his stooped head sways left and right. Repeatedly shaking in denial and a difficult problem of conscience.
Snowden stands up, alarmed.
"Jungkook? Are you okay? Why did you come here?"
The Korean shakes his head glumly. Deep breaths wrack his chest as he tries to calm himself, but how can he? The video of Leo that he saw tore his heart to shreds. The Brazilian spent the first half of the video turned to the side, obscuring half of his face. He spoke normally, hopefully, answering all the questions Jungkook left him like, 'how is your mother doing?' and 'how is practice going?'
But at some point, he turned to reveal his whole face. On the side of his jaw, right underneath the left jawbone was significant bruising. Not just the result of a bump on an apparatus or a dive taken after fumbling a skill, but a harsh, fight-inflicted bruise. One that started under his left ear and traveled sickeningly down his neck in a dull purple.
It horrified him, drove him to almost throw McKayla's phone across the hallway after his practice was finished and he saw the video. How was no one else questioning this? Did no one second guess Leonardo Costa's appearance because he was the number one in the world? Anyone with eyes could see the plume of discoloration under Leo's face. Did they assume it was a training mishap, an accident of one who regularly works hard? Whatever they assumed, Jungkook was pissed of at them. How obvious did Costa Sr. have to make it for them to see that it wasn't an accident?
To top it off, Leo mentioned in the video that his practices were not going well.
"I couldn't focus all week. My uh, coach hasn't been the nicest trainer to work with. I stumbled out of my Amanar on vault today and he...well, he wasn't happy and-"
"Jungkook? Hello?" Snowden squats down by Jungkook's chair, resting a gentle hand on the arm of it. "Why are you crying?"
"I...I don't know what to do anymore."
"About what?"
"About something that I s-shouldn't be here for...I...this isn't..."
Snowden lowers her voice. "You can tell me anything, Jungkook. It's my job to keep it confidential. I won't tell it to your coach or any other faculty member. I promise."
A shiver passes down Jungkook's spine. What is he doing here? Shouldn't he leave someone's personal business to them? But Leo isn't just someone.
"I...he...it's not fair!"
"What isn't fair?" Snowden's voice is gentle, coaxing. "I won't be able to help you unless you tell me."
Jungkook regards the statement closely. He compares it to his life, to a week ago when him and Leo were standing in the waiting room. Back then, Leo wanted to know what means things Kan had said to make Jungkook so sad.
'Tell me what he said. I can help.' Leo had said. And he'd waited for Jungkook to open up, listening to him attentively while he explained the problem. Leo had asked, listened, and reassured him that he mattered, that he shouldn't starve himself to the brink of exhaustion. Leo had been there for him...something that Jungkook can't do now.
All those times they lounged in bed together, laying side by side and talking about their training hardships, Leo rarely mentioned his father's abuse. He was always so interested in Jungkook's side of things, always ready to steer the conversation away from his family if it got too deep. But the whole time, Leo's aura spoke of pain. A hidden pain pushed away to the backburner, ignored because Leo wanted to spend time with Jungkook and not his ugly past.
"Whenever you're ready Jungkook."
Snowden waits for him to speak, not batting an eyelash. Jungkook inhales deeply, picturing the bear with the heart on its stomach getting thrown across room 333.
Then, he opens his mouth to deliver the truth.
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note from authAURA~
why hello there, debonair square!
if any of y'all expected relationship advice in this note since the color of this chapter has to do with love...well, sorry to let you down. the only blip of knowledge i have regarding love can be taken straight out of the lyrics of one of my favorite songs.
'Who's that lounging in my chair?
Who's that casting devious stares in my direction?'
if you know, you know. HAH!
okay, like always, avoid tulip bud. thanks!
izzy, probably
Hehehe...here's another video! Of vault this time. He's very powerful, generates great height, and lands cleanly! Great job, "COSTA!"
For his vault, he does a Yurchenko entry (roundoff onto the springboard) back-handspring over the vault, then blocks off the apparatus to complete 2.5 twists in a back layout position! This vault is called an Amanar, and it's extremely difficult. It's a blind landing, meaning the gymnast cannot see their feet prior to landing, so they don't get to spot the mat which significantly helps a solid land. (personally I always hated Yurchenko entries onto the board cuz I always went crooked, so I stuck with the classic roundoff for Tsukahara entries)...
Greatest GOAT (Gymnast of All Time) Simone Biles has competed an Amanar on vault before. She's won gold medals doing so, and shit why am I still talking about this? this isn't even men's gymnastics now? ssjfljdsigosjd
have a nice day. :-)