a/n: this is unedited, so there may be minor typos. sorry in advance! <3

summer- imagine dragons

~HOSEOK'S POV~

"So, what's the deal with Y/N?" Kai asked Hoseok later that same night as they unloaded the surfboards from the truck after dropping you off at your house. Lea and Felix had already headed home, and Kaylen was inside.

"What do you mean?" Hoseok asked, hanging the second to last surfboard up on the rack.

"I mean what are your intentions with her? Why is she still around?" Kai had an uncomfortable edge to his voice.

"Whoa there, what's your problem?"

"I don't have a problem, I'm just curious. It's pretty rare that a person has the privilege of infiltrating our group, and I've never seen you date a single girl while being here. So, I wanna know. What makes Y/N so different?" Kai passed the last surfboard over as he spoke.

"She hasn't infiltrated anything. For the record, it was Lea that invited her in the first place," Hoseok noted as he hung it up.

"You then proceeded to encourage that invitation," Kai crossed his arms, leaning against the truck. Hoseok let out a sigh, turning around to face his questioning, stubborn friend.

"What do you want me to say, Kai? I can't explain my feelings to you because I don't understand them myself," Hoseok shrugged, "She's fun to be around. She's new here, and probably lonely. If I'm being honest, I've been kinda lonely too these days...It just seems nice to have a new person around, that's all."

"Why are you lonely when you have all of us?" Kai was automatically on the defensive, not at all to Hoseok's surprise. His friend was one that was easily jealous and quick to get his feelings hurt. Hoseok usually didn't get frustrated with this difficult quality of Kai's personality as he knew that it was rooted in negative past experiences and self-loathing. But, right now, Kai's attitude was irritating to Hoseok.

"Just because a person has great friends doesn't mean they don't get lonely sometimes, or crave a different kind of relationship. I love you, Lea, and Kaylen like siblings, but that doesn't mean I don't want a girlfriend or maybe a wife someday, you know? It's just I've noticed myself considering my future more often lately, and I know that I want another person to be apart of it."

Kai was silent for a moment, pursing his lips as he both digested and considered Hoseok's words. "I understand that."

"You do?"

"Yeah, I get it. I'm sorry if I came on too strong. You know how I can be," Kai stood completely then. "I'm guessing you think that Y/N could be this person that you're yearning so bad for?"

Hoseok walked alongside Kai as they both headed out the garage, and to the door to enter the house. "I don't know. Our relationship is new, so I don't want to label or expect anything out of her. We may not even connect on a level that deep yet, again, I don't know. I just know that I want to get to know her and see where it goes. So, assuming you no longer have a problem with it, she's going to be around a lot from here on out," Hoseok explained, pulling open the door.

"I don't have a problem with it. Good luck, my friend. Love is hard, especially when you're young," Kai smirked, stalking off into the house before Hoseok had a chance to say another word.

☼☼☼

~YOUR POV~

The following morning, you were busy writing up the final draft of your first paper, with only a few hours to spare before the required deadline to submit it to your professor. The bickering sisters were fortunately not at home by some miracle, and Mia was quietly eating an acai bowl in the living room while also working on the same assignment. The atmosphere in the house was completely peaceful for once, and you were definitely feeling happy. The positive feelings and sunshine vibes from the night before had carried over to the morning, and you had an extra skip in your step.

The thought that Hoseok, his inviting group of friends, and an island full of exciting opportunity were all in your reach for the next few months excited you. After all, your goal coming here was to be crying as you left because you loved the experience so much. Barely a week into your stay, and you had already found people you were curious about. You were grateful for the accident on the beach that day, for, without it, you'd still be feeling quite alone.

"Submitted!" You exclaimed from the kitchen bar, slamming your laptop shut and throwing your hands up in a proclamation of sweet victory. "I'm a free woman until Wednesday!"

"Lucky, I still have like 4 pages to go," Mia sulked from the couch, "And we have another assignment due on Wednesday?!" She looked saddened by the news.

"Don't worry, it's only a small reflection piece, not a full essay that's required. Cut yourself a break, you got here a bit late. You'll catch up," you reassured her, bringing over a fresh cup of coffee to lift her spirits.

"Thanks, Y/N," she smiled, accepting the coffee before turning her eyes back to the daunting task that resided on her computer screen. "Wish me luck."

"Good luck," you chuckled, heading into your room. It was only around eleven in the morning, and you had no plans for the rest of the day. It was a good feeling to have any looming responsibilities left to take care of, but it was also a bit intimidating. You had a couple of days of free time, and you were unsure of how to spend it; there were just so many possibilities, it was almost overwhelming!

You plopped down on your bed, content with the thought of giving yourself a few minutes to sit on your phone and procrastinate on deciding what to do with your time. You had a few messages from your family that you responded to, you checked your email, and as a last resort to add some extra time to your procrastination, you checked Facebook.

It was almost like a God-Send as you were about to lock your phone and get up, it was suddenly ringing, Hoseok's name lighting up the screen. Your chest lept with excitement as you quickly accepted the call.

"Y/N~" He called out, sounding cheerful as usual.

"Hoseok~" You mimicked his happy sounding tone, smiling like an idiot as you did so.

"What are you doing right now?"

"Sitting and trying to come up with a not lame way to spend my day," you answered honestly, secretly hoping he would propose something fun to do.

"No homework today?"

"Nope, I got it all done this morning."

"Good job for getting it finished early on. That's very responsible of you," he giggled a bit on the other end of the line, causing your smile to spread even larger. You were glad you were talking to him on the phone because if he were beside you now, he'd be able to see how much you were blushing.

"What are you doing today?" you asked, shifting your cell phone to your other ear.

"I'm working," he pouted, and you felt your heart sink. You were disappointed that he wasn't available to spend the day with.

"Why are you on the phone with me if you're working?" you teased him to mask the sadness you were feeling.

"No one's in the shop right now. Slow morning," he yawned, "Do you wanna come see me? I mean, assuming you have nothing better to do?"

"Come see you at work?"

"Yeah, you know that little strip of stores on the side of the road? Over in Koloa?"

"The one you pass on the way into Poipu?"

"Yeah, that's the one. I work at the Ukelele shop. Come hang out if you want, and we can check out the other shops when my shift ends at 2," he offered, and the previous sadness you had felt was immediately overwhelmed with excitement again.

"Really? You wouldn't mind me coming?"

"Not at all. I'd love if you spend some time with me," his answer was pure and honest, and you were all smiles once again.

"Alright, I'll be there in a bit, then."

"See you then. Be careful on your way over, alright? Run from anyone carrying a surfboard, you don't need another gash in your head," he teased.

"Oh, shut up Hoseok. I'll see you soon," you bit your lip to calm down your huge smiles as it was starting to make your cheeks hurt.

"Bye, Y/N," he hummed and hung up the phone.

/////

A/N: Some chapters may end up being shorter than what you all are used to. I've decided to kind of split up what would normally be a longer chapter (2,000-3,000 words) so that I can push out updates a little more often. I hope you guys understand this! Thanks again for all of your support, you all are lovely <3 ~Mattie