He looks up at him from the bench, arms feeling like limp noodles and panting a little, He chuckles at the 'gotten yourself killed' comment. "I doubt it would end that badly." He sighs as he sits up.

"fuck." He groans, damn his arms hurt. "Why are you here anyways? its like three in the morning"

Not to mention that he was also here. Maybe they both couldn't get any sleep. It was still weird he didn't even see the man enter the gym. but those weird misalignments didn't bother him too much at the moment.

Konig loomed over him, silent for a moment, head tilting slightly as if amused by the sight of him worn out and breathless. Oh, that was a sight he could get used to up close and personal.

"I could ask you the same thing." A non-answer, of course. It's not like he wanted to lie to Jiwoo.

"It is the perfect time to work out, ja? No one around… just you and me."

He took a moment, just laying on the bench for a bit catching his breath. Feeling sweaty and a little cold -the gym was always running cold as fuck- Jiwoo sits up, propping himself up on his arms for a moment.

"I guess. I have a spotter now, atleast." Jiwoo agrees, shrugging. "I just couldnt sleep. nothing else was really working so it was gym time."

He doesn't usually do the whole 'going to the gym at 2am' Business. But... Well, He was having some trouble sleeping, inspiration wouldn't hit and he had done everything to try and get back to sleep.

So he's at the gym

when no one else is there.

He usually has a spotter for bench pressing but, well, no one is in. But he was being safe until he kinda wasn't, too many reps and he's there struggling until the bar is suddenly lifted back up like it isn't anything heavy.

"Shit! König, you scared the shit out of me." He gasps

See, when König got the notification that Jiwoo had left so late, it was a natural reaction for panic to bubble in his chest. Had something happened? A red-eye back home? Or worse, a late night rendezvous with someone that wasn't him?

It would have been stupid not to follow.

And as he racks the bar for Jiwoo, well he should be grateful that someone was here to help. It could have been hours before anyone found him crushed.

There is a wild grin behind the mask, looking down at him as he steps back.

"You shouldn't lift without a spotter, Jiji." A pause in which König has a devious idea. "You could have gotten yourself killed."

He looks up at him from the bench, arms feeling like limp noodles and panting a little, He chuckles at the 'gotten yourself killed' comment. "I doubt it would end that badly." He sighs as he sits up.

"fuck." He groans, damn his arms hurt. "Why are you here anyways? its like three in the morning"

Not to mention that he was also here. Maybe they both couldn't get any sleep. It was still weird he didn't even see the man enter the gym. but those weird misalignments didn't bother him too much at the moment.

Elliot nods at the words of gratitude, though not in any language he knew well enough to converse in.

“Oh yeah, of course!” He rocks back and forth on the balls of his feet, One of the many things he does to stim in a very unstimulating interior. “There’s some chairs back by the windows that way. You can see the river and everything.”

“If you need anything else just let me or one of my colleagues know.” He smiled again. It’s a wonder how his face doesn’t feel tired

Maybe the smile was contagious. If the man looked closely, he'd be able to see the crinkle of skin beneath König's eyes, his smile itself hidden by a medical mask.

"Ah, I do have one more thing."

His free hand moves to slip into one his many pockets and pulls out a piece of paper.

"Spirit Beings in European Folklore." He reads before looking back up hesitantly at the man, knowing this one was a bit more obscure than the previous ask. "If it is not too much trouble."

He is two steps back before he hears the man ask for one more thing. He listens to the title -He supposed it was the title- and tilts his head, thinking face on for a little bit trying to think.

"It doesnt sound too familiar but..." he states, turning in a direction and starting off in that direction, motioning for the taller to follow. "We do have a small folklore section, and it is Mostly European."

He leads him to a more secluded part of the library, some spot in a back corner enclosed at three sides by books, not really like he felt unsafe with the man. Doing jazz hands to the sign reading Folklore he turned back to him. "If youre looking for that in specific alot of the smaller folklore books are online though!"

"Oh-I -uh.." the notion of the man asking him out to dinner was making him blush even harder, it starting to creep further across his face and even onto his ears.

No matter how much he wanted to actually go out to dinner with this man -platonic or otherwise-, to draw his form in sketchbook after sketchbook, There was an unease. What if his admirer... God why is he thinking this... What if he stopped? And what if he'd never feel that same small thrill and love again?

His phone rings in his gym bag and he nearly jumps at the sudden vibration. Looking at the contact, he swore slightly under his breath. AGENT. in big loud letters. He missed the meeting, by a lot actually.

"Next time, Maybe?" He smiles back up at the man, before turning away and walking out of the gym in a hurry. He could still be heard as he walks down the busy street at the front of the gym, getting farther and farther away...

And just like that, Jiwoo was gone.

Well, not really, as König switched over his earbuds to tap into Jiwoo's phone instead. He'd keep his distance, simply ensuring that the artist was safe as he walked through busy streets. People could do crazy things.

And he does so until after the conversation is over and Jiji is safe at home.

Good information, however - König learns the date of Jiwoo's gallery opening. He notes this in his calendar for later, despite the fact that he will see Jiwoo in the gym later this week.

He doesn't usually do the whole 'going to the gym at 2am' Business. But... Well, He was having some trouble sleeping, inspiration wouldn't hit and he had done everything to try and get back to sleep.

So he's at the gym

when no one else is there.

He usually has a spotter for bench pressing but, well, no one is in. But he was being safe until he kinda wasn't, too many reps and he's there struggling until the bar is suddenly lifted back up like it isn't anything heavy.

"Shit! König, you scared the shit out of me." He gasps

There were those dimples he loved so much. And, oh, the way a lock a hair fell to his forehead when he looked down at the pressed flower in his hands - it takes everything in König not to brush it back behind his ear.

He hums, nodding along with both new information and old. He'd let Jiwoo speak for hours, if he could. In fact, he'd listened in on phone calls just to hear his voice. So, to think that the artist was somehow nervous about this? Well, it's foolish.

"You owe me." As much as his voice says he's joking, he's not sure if he is or not. "Dinner?"

"Oh-I -uh.." the notion of the man asking him out to dinner was making him blush even harder, it starting to creep further across his face and even onto his ears.

No matter how much he wanted to actually go out to dinner with this man -platonic or otherwise-, to draw his form in sketchbook after sketchbook, There was an unease. What if his admirer... God why is he thinking this... What if he stopped? And what if he'd never feel that same small thrill and love again?

His phone rings in his gym bag and he nearly jumps at the sudden vibration. Looking at the contact, he swore slightly under his breath. AGENT. in big loud letters. He missed the meeting, by a lot actually.

"Next time, Maybe?" He smiles back up at the man, before turning away and walking out of the gym in a hurry. He could still be heard as he walks down the busy street at the front of the gym, getting farther and farther away...

Factoïd

Send 🎲 for a random fact about my muse.

Looking down at the text notifications after a moment, They smile crookedly, only slightly. Malaika had rarely heard those words from anyone. It was always something she should be doing, which made the achievement not as special.

[Mal: Thank you. 7 years is a long time.]

and special forces, well it made sense. dude looks built like a brick wall.

[Mal: So are you only stationed here for a limited time? Well, its not like you're going to be able to fly out soon with the winter storm hitting tomorrow.]

König leaned back against the stiff mattress of his cot, the dim glow of his phone served as the only source of light here. While there was an initial apprehension in reaching out, maybe this wasn't so bad.

[König: Seven years is dedication. I respect that. ]

[König: Ja, only here for a short while. A few weeks, I am told. There are worse places to be stuck. I have not seen enough of Krakow yet. ]

[Mal: I might need to appoint myself your new tour guide. Studying here for as long as I have makes me pretty qualified.]

Their texting language seems dry, but they joke.

[Mal: I know afew people who work at the opera house. Was going to go see a ballet alone but if you’d like to join I can contact some people about getting you in.]

Another low stakes proposition, though Malaika knows she will have to tell him the dress code is /very formal/. It’s not as bad as it was in Moscow but being in the vacinity, with the culture of ballet being something to dress up to see, it gets abit.. fancy

[Mal: you might need your formal uniform if you’d like to go]

König is trying hard to push down the giddy smile that grows on his face. Beautiful, Jiwoo says, and he is oh so right. A masterpiece, if König had any say in it - the way he carried himself when he thought no one was looking, how sweet he was to the barista that made his drink, how he kept fussing nervously.

"Hmm." A hum rumbles from his chest, thinking over revealing just a bit more about how much he'd been watching the man. König needed to keep him safe, after all.

"When I can be. My schedule can be busy." He pauses before offering more.

"That flower - it was a gift?"

He smiles crookedly, shyly even, at the mention of the flower. If one had the eye for it, they could see his dimples on his cheek when he smiled. He nods, looking back down at it.

"Yeah, a -uh- friend gave it to me." He cant find the words for what his secret admirer was and in all honesty, he didn't want to be a brag about it either. Oh yes i have a secret admirer no its not weird. "Its my favorite flower." He mentions, like it was nothing at all, like he didn't have a bouquet of them on his counter every time it was spring.

"My mom is really into flower language, and she sends me them all the time. In Korea, they're a symbol of change and new beginnings. Ya kno, spring and all."

"Sorry, I'm talking your ear off." He chuckles a little bit. "Thanks for noticing i dropped it, i would be stranded otherwise."

He's lost for too long in the way that Jiji smiled, the way his face turned König's new favorite color of pink, and then finally, when he offered his hand to shake.

No longer content to sit on the sidelines and watch, he thought he'd be taking a risk in starting a conversation but now? To be touching him? There were some days where König felt like God's unluckiest soldier, but not today.

For once, he's thankful that he's not wearing gloves as he took the offered hand.

"König."

He contemplated giving his first name, not the one he hid behind, but it would be too close, too personal.

"You are here often, ja?"

calloused hand in calloused hand, it was only a moment but it felt nice to have some contact. Jiwoo was a bit of a hermit sometimes, so physical touch was few and far between. But he notably didn't linger.

And the other has an accent! Jiji was prone to seeing the beauty in everyone, really, and he loves it. Muscular man with an accent, what an amazing muse-artist partnership they would have if jiji wasn't a coward.

"Oh yeah." his blush deepens slightly as his eyes look down at the passkey holder in his hands now. " An artist must be beautiful in his own way, yakno."

"You're here a lot too, right?" he noticed, of course.

clipping the bus pass back onto his carabiner, he takes a moment to look at the pressed flower, inspecting it like it couldve been damaged, but it was the same.

Conversations like this are easier at night, when the world feels quieter, less demanding. It was an exhausting day of training, but the soreness in his muscles gave him something to be proud of, too.

[König: Ah, a doctor. That is very impressive. You must have studied for a long time. ]

[König: And ja, I am. Special Forces.]

He stops there, unsure how much he wants to reveal. People like Malaika, people who heal rather than destroy, don’t usually like knowing the details of what he does.

Looking down at the text notifications after a moment, They smile crookedly, only slightly. Malaika had rarely heard those words from anyone. It was always something she should be doing, which made the achievement not as special.

[Mal: Thank you. 7 years is a long time.]

and special forces, well it made sense. dude looks built like a brick wall.

[Mal: So are you only stationed here for a limited time? Well, its not like you're going to be able to fly out soon with the winter storm hitting tomorrow.]

[ open rp - stalker!könig ]

Ever since he was a child, König was obsessive. He would devour any and all of something - whether it be binge watching a tv show and then reading all the theories and writer's notes, or finding manuals and videos on how something worked until he could learn no more.

His interests consumed him.

And so it goes that, you were König's newest interest. He tells himself it's innocent, just curiosity. But that is a lie.

He shouldn't be watching, he knows this. Not as he learns your typical routine, the people you associate with, the way you take your coffee. Yet he follows, silent except for the way his breath hitches when you turn your head too quickly and he risks being caught.

You're so perfect like this - unaware, unguarded. It would be so easy for König to reach out and just take.

Instead, he leaves little notes and gifts- a pressed flower in your gym bag, 'you shouldn't walk alone at night' slid under the door of your room.

Until finally, it is König clearing his throat behind you, somehow otherwise silent until now.

"Ach, you dropped this."

is it weird that the idea of their little gift giving paramour... excited Jiwoo?

Like he knew that this could go south at any moment, but it had been so long since someone actually gave a shit about him that wasn't just being a fan of his paintings or like wanting something out of him. Even the little 'you shouldn't walk alone at night' note in was Ominous but... fuck is this a kink thing? god.

The flower though, was something precious. It was a daffodil, and they were significant. Every time he had made it into a gallery or even had a solo show, his mother would send daffodils. So having a pressed one... it instantly was gently slid into his metro-card-holder thing so that he could see it as much as possible.

That, is what he had dropped, it somehow being dislodged from its usual spot on his keys. He turned and immediately blushed.

God, it was this guy..

He had stolen long glances at this guy when they were both at the gym and he was enraptured, in some small way, with their musculature. He had so wanted to ask the man if they could... well. help him with anatomy sketches. But he was intimidated.

"oh um. thanks." He noticed he's holding it daffodil up. fuck.

"Im Jiji, by the way." He offers his hand awkwardly.

for @konigisking from X

"Oh, Yes, uhmm..." He turns to look down the long labyrinthine walls of books and then his eyes brighten. "Oh! Okay, yes it would be right over here, of you'd like to follow." He rounds over the desk quickly and leads him through the library for a small moment, before they stop and stoop down to grab the familiar black and white book.

"Here ya go." He smiles, he did take pride in his small talent of being able to navigate the library so well.

He had to crane his head up to make eye contact with the man, like Elliot was above average height but wow. "Are you visiting from somewhere? Yakno if youre visiting for longer than thirty days you can get a visitor library card."

It doesn't take much for König to be able to keep up, despite how quickly the employee is walking - clearly excited to be able to help.

Then, when König is handed the book, he mutters a small piece of gratitude in German before turning it over in his hands.

"Ah, ja, I am visiting. But, I will read here, if that is okay?"

The peace of the library was a much needed respite from where he was stationed at the moment. He'd be able to focus much better on reading here than with the distractions of soldier boots and gunfire on the range.

Elliot nods at the words of gratitude, though not in any language he knew well enough to converse in.

“Oh yeah, of course!” He rocks back and forth on the balls of his feet, One of the many things he does to stim in a very unstimulating interior. “There’s some chairs back by the windows that way. You can see the river and everything.”

“If you need anything else just let me or one of my colleagues know.” He smiled again. It’s a wonder how his face doesn’t feel tired

He has been scrolling through reddit (not reading, just scrolling) in an attempt to keep his mind off the nerves of interacting with another human. But when another notification pops up, his thumbs move like clockwork to open it.

[ Your dog is adorable. More in snow gear, I would think. ]

The little detail on the profile made him want to know more.

[ You are a medic? ]

[Mal: She's my pride and joy. And yes, extremely cute in her puffy coat and snow boots]

Malaika looks toward the couch where Strelka was currently snoozing. It was a bit late, and they were studying for a practice exam, but any distraction was a welcome one at this point.

[Mal: Yeah, i am. Not a combat one, if that's what you're wondering.]

[Mal: I'm in my final year of my Doctorate program, so it will change from medic to doctor soon.}

That felt Kinda odd to say. No one tells you just how much time it takes to become an actual doctor. Feels like forever honestly.

[Mal: You're Military?]