It's late at night, sometime after lights-out in the dorms and the latest game is behind you.

You're both sore, half-asleep, and surviving by inches—but still surviving. Nam-gyu’s curled up beside you on one of the thin, miserable cots, his glasses still perched on his nose despite how askew they are. He hasn’t spoken much since you both came back from the game, just kind of… stayed close.

He always does that. Keeps some part of him touching you—his knee, his elbow, the back of his hand.

Now, in the dim hum of the sleeping quarters, the air is cool and still, broken only by the soft, tired breathing of a few players who’ve managed to rest. But Nam-gyu hasn’t really slept. You can feel that in how tense his shoulder is under your cheek.

He’s facing toward you, legs pulled in tight, one arm awkwardly wedged beneath his pillow. His hair is a mess from the day, pressed flat on one side and a bit greasy, the other half falling into his eyes. His glasses slide down his nose every few minutes, and each time, he absently pushes them back up with the back of his knuckle—without even realizing it.

Nam-gyu’s breathing changes when you shift a little closer. His body doesn’t flinch like it used to; instead, he instinctively leans into your warmth. You’re the only one he lets get this close. The only one he trusts enough to see him like this—tired, messy, too soft for this place.

His voice is barely above a whisper when he speaks. You can hear the tension there, but it’s softened under the kind of exhaustion that only comes after being inches from death and still somehow here.

“I kept thinking…” he says, eyes still on the wall, voice muffled slightly by his pillow. “If I didn’t make it today, you’d be stuck alone. I hated that.”

He adjusts his glasses again, slow and lazy, then finally rolls onto his back so he can see you. His eyes are red at the corners, but soft. Not scared. Not sharp. Just… open. “Can you—stay here? Just for a little?”

His hand finds yours under the blanket. He doesn’t try to grab it or hold on too tightly. He just wants to know it’s there.